She brings ice packs wrapped in towels and settles them around Emma’s ankle, then places pain meds and water on the nightstand.
“Take these now,” Maggie orders.
Emma swallows the pills without argument.
“I’ll check on you in a bit,” Maggie says, then looks at me meaningfully. “Stone’s waiting downstairs when you’re ready.”
I nod, and she slips out.
I kick off my boots and climb onto the bed next to Emma, careful not to jostle her leg. She immediately turns into me, resting her head on my chest.
“You’re leaving soon,” she says quietly. It’s not a question.
“Yeah. But not until you’re asleep.”
“I’m not a kid, Bones. I know they need you downstairs. You don’t have to wait.”
“I want to.” I wrap my arm around her, holding her close. “Just let me have this for a few minutes.”
She’s quiet for a while, her breathing starting to even out as the pain meds kick in. I think she’s asleep when she speaks again.
“The man from the meeting. Carlos. That was his name.” Her voice is drowsy, slurred slightly. “One of the other guys called him that. In the warehouse.”
My hand stills on her back. “You remember his name?”
“Just that. Carlos. I never forgot it.” She shifts slightly against me. “Does that help?”
“Yeah, swan. That helps a lot.”
She’s quiet again, and this time her breathing deepens, becomes regular. I wait another ten minutes to be sure she’s really out, then carefully extract myself from the bed. She doesn’t stir.
I grab my boots and put them on, then stand looking at her for a moment. She looks so young when she’s sleeping, so vulnerable. The fierce woman who stole a car and drove through pain is gone, replaced by someone who just needs rest and safety.
I’ll make sure she gets both.
I slip out of the room and head downstairs where Stone and the others are waiting.
The main room has cleared out—just Stone, Tank, Hawk, and Steel remain, gathered around one of the tables. Josie’s there too, laptop open.
Stone looks up when I walk in. “She settled?”
“Yeah. Got her cleaned up and Maggie re-bandaged her ankle. She’s asleep.”
“Good.” He gestures to an empty chair. “Sit. We need to talk about what happens next.”
I take the seat, and everyone shifts to face me.
“The man Emma saw,” Stone starts. “You said she was certain it was one of her kidnappers.”
“She’s certain. His name is Carlos—she remembered it from the warehouse. One of the other guys called him that.”
Steel immediately starts typing on his phone. “That narrows it down.”
“But you killed them all,” Hawk says, looking at me. “You made sure.”
“I thought I did.” My jaw tightens. “But apparently one got away. Or he wasn’t there by the time I arrived. Either way, he’s here now and we need to find him and put him in the ground.”
“What’s the play?” Tank asks, like he can’t wait to get his hands on something breakable.
