Tony chuckled. "You can't fool me, preacher man. You'll be bringing your husband with you."
Brody's deep laughter rang through the phone line. "Yeah, you're probably right."
Tony knew he was. Brody and Neason didn't tend to spend too much time apart. It might have something to Brody almost losing Neason in a car accident when they were first getting together. The tattooed preacher was a little overprotective of his husband.
He said goodbye to Brody then hung up. He still needed to get Pat's muffler replaced before the end of the day. Luckily, it would only take a couple of hours, and then he could go upstairs and pack an overnight bag.
He knew he'd worry about Lex until he could see him with his own two eyes, just like Brody had said. He wouldn't stop worrying until he knew for sure, one way or another. He just had to get through today, the night, and the flight to Washington, D.C. and then—maybe—he'd have his answers.
Tomorrow couldn't come fast enough.
Chapter Nine
Lex held his breath when the door swooshed open and someone walked into his room. When that person went right to checking his vitals, he released that breath. The nursing staff had been coming in every couple of hours to take his vitals and check their equipment since he'd been moved.
He had no idea how Dr. Green had managed it, but Lex had been moved to the ICU. The big white bandage wrapped around his head might have something to do with it. The only thing he'd been told was to keep his eyes closed whenever someone walked into the room and to not respond if they started talking to him.
Lex had no idea where Carson was now. He hadn't seen him since the man walked out. He wanted to believe that Carson had been scared off, but he wasn't that stupid. He knew Carson was out there somewhere, just waiting for his chance.
He was terrified Carson wouldn't wait much longer. The man was obsessed, and Lex had no idea why. He didn't know him. He didn't want to know him. He'd be perfectly happy if Carson went away and never came back. He just didn't think that was going to happen.
Lex tried not to tense when the door opened again. He wished he could open his eyes and see who it was. At least then, he could brace himself if it was Carson.
"Has there been any change?"
Lex relaxed when he recognized Dr. Green's voice.
"No, sir. His blood pressure and heart rate are still dangerously low, Doctor," a female said. "We had to change his bandages twice during the night. There's some seepage."
Uh, no they didn't.
Lex was a little confused.
"Call downstairs," Dr. Green said. "I want him to have an MRI right away. There may be more damage than we previously thought."
"I'll call down right now, Doctor."
The door swooshed open and closed again. Lex heard someone moving around in the room then felt someone grab his wrist. He assumed it was the doctor.
"We're going to move you in a minute, Mr. Mathis," Dr. Green whispered. "No matter what you hear, I need you to remain perfectly still. Carson is raising hell with my superiors and I don't think I can keep him out of here much longer, so I'm going to move you somewhere he can't find you. Don't move or react until I tell you it's okay. Move your fingers if you understand."
Lex moved his fingers.
"Good, good. Now, Carson is waiting outside, so I imagine he'll insist on going downstairs with us, but I won't leave you alone with him. Okay? He won't get his hands on you. Just remember, you have a head injury and you're in a coma. Don't move."
Lex tried not to stiffen when the door opened again. He was terrified. If they had been worried about his heart rate dropping, it wouldn't be a problem now. His heart was beating so fast, he worried it would jump right out of his chest.
"They're waiting for him, Doctor."
"Good."
There were a few noises, and then the bed Lex was lying on started to move. Everything was pretty quiet until another door opened, and then the noise level shot up, caused mostly by a loud voice Lex had hoped never to hear again.
"Where are you taking him?" Carson snapped.
"He needs an MRI," Dr. Green said. "I'm concerned that he hasn't woken up yet. I want him to have an MRI so I can see if there was more damage than we originally figured."
"An MRI?" Carson asked, not shouting quite as much. "What exactly is that?"
