Page 73 of Shattered Hope

The man said goodbye, and I drove back to the hospital, not sure how I was going to face Ailani.

Josh was there, ready to leave with his partner.

“We’re going home.”

“Thank you so much for your support. I had my helicopter brought here; it can fly you back to Seattle. It’s the least I can do for you guys,” I offered.

“We appreciate it, but we’ve got it covered. Won’t you be flying back today?” Josh asked, curious.

“No… Ailani is still too weak for such a journey. I’ll take her home when she’s better,” I assured him.

He frowned. “Oh? The nurse told me she wanted to sign her self-discharging papers… I thought you knew about it,” he said.

But I was long gone by the time he uttered the last word.

What the hell was going on? Where was she going?

When I got to her room, she was sitting on her bed, fully dressed.

“Where the hell do you think you’re going?” I asked, closing the door behind me. “You just had surgery yesterday.”

She didn’t look at me. “I’m much better. You don’t have to worry about me anymore. Josh told me Daniel isn’t going anywhere,” she murmured in a low tone.

“Exactly… so you’re not in danger. You can lay back and let your body heal,” I pointed out.

“And I will, but it doesn’t have to be here,” she insisted.

“Do you want to go back to Seattle? Is that it?” I asked, confused.

“Well, I have to go there, eventually. All my stuff is still there.”

“I can arrange that,” I offered, leaving the room to find a nurse or doctor.

“Ah, Mr. Wells, I was looking for you,” Nurse Marilyn told me when she saw me. “Your fiancée insists on leaving the hospital.”

“Yes, she just told me. Is it safe for her to go back to Seattle?” I asked, frowning as I wished I could see what was going on inside Ailani’s head.

“I wouldn’t say it’s safe. But if done correctly and she gets into a hospital in the city, she should be fine,” the nurse informed me. “She was rather disturbed about the medical bills.”

“What? What the hell are you talking about?” I asked her, startled.

“She asked to see her medical bills so far, and it definitely upset her.”

“I told you I would pay for everything. Why did you show her the bills?” I asked, furious.

“She’s entitled to see them,” she scolded me.

“Did you tell her I was paying for it?”

“She didn’t ask, so I assumed she knew.”

“Damn it, woman,” I ranted.

“Mr. Wells!” she protested.

I ran my fingers through my hair, trying to stay calm. “I’m sorry… these have been the worst days of my life… as you might understand, my patience is running thin. Please, prepare all the discharge papers. I’ll fly her back to Seattle in my helicopter, and she will finish her convalescence there.”

She nodded. “Very well. Just make sure she gets the proper treatment and some rest,” she asked me, with a smile.