“I thought you were really going to kill him.” Her voice was soft, her head tilted and her hands clasped in front of her. Earnest was the word he would use to describe her.
“I was.”
Devon walked away from her to face whoever waited for him in his daughter’s room. It suddenly felt like a firing squad instead of his loving family. The thought of facing them made him queasy, and suddenly he wanted them all gone.
He became aware Chloe was following him. He let her catch up and then decided he might as well ask for what he wanted. “Can you tell them all to leave?”
“Who?”
“My family.”
He saw the frown flit across her features. “There’s nobody there but Frank at the door. I was in there until she fell asleep, and then I went down the hall for a bathroom break and a cup of coffee.”
“Oh.” He paused in front of the security guard. “This time I have my license.” He fished it out of his wallet and handed it over.
“You’re good, sir.”
Devon pushed open the door and didn't complain when Chloe followed. She’d saved his ass enough times he couldn't find it in him to protest.
Hailey was sleeping, as Chloe had said. She was on her side, not her favorite position, and Devon wondered why she would choose to sleep like that.
“Her leg was bothering her. The nurse propped it with a few pillows and she found more comfort on her side.”
As though his heart could still break, Devon felt a sharp pain in his chest at the thought of Hailey’s broken hip and how much pain she must have been in. He sank into the chair nearest the bed, the recliner he’d claimed from the first day, and bowed over his daughter’s hand. He wanted to cry; he felt the sting in his eyes, but there was nothing left in him. Nothing but a mountain of grief, and he was too debilitated to scale it.
Chapter Thirteen
Devon couldn't leaveHailey. Everything had gone to hell the last time he left, and he wouldn't make that mistake again. He was on a steady rotation of babysitters once more, but he was finding it difficult to speak to any of them. Nothing they said would change what they’d gone through, or that someone they loved had broken their trust.
“Honey, it isn't your fault,” Lydia had said.
“We've got to lean on each other to get through this,” Don told him.
“I'm here for you, brother, whatever you need.”
Lori was the only silent presence. She wept as she sat with Devon and Hailey. He felt the weight of her guilt as his own. She didn't see what happened. She didn't notice Hailey slip out. She felt responsible. Anna was her best friend, and she’d missed whatever signs pointed to Vince being unstable.
