I take her hand and press it to my face. Her touch helps, but I need her to be fully here. “I already know one of the things I’mgetting you for Christmas. If you wake up, I’ll tell you what it is now.”
I decide to stay by her bedside until her mother or father asks me to leave so that they can sit with her. It’s selfish of me, but I don’t care. They’ve had her for twenty-eight years, and I’ve only had a few months.
I don’t realize I’m crying until I feel my tears on my hand. The guilt and anger wage a war, but the anger has already won because I’m not giving her up.
I put her hand back on my face, close my eyes, and imagine that her thumb is rubbing my cheek.
“Why are you in here crying like a pussy, King?” The voice is faint and raspy, but it’s hers.
I tighten my eyes, certain that I’m so far gone that I’m hallucinating, but that’s okay. I’ll willingly go insane if it means hearing her voice and feeling her touch.
“I’ll drink your tears.” She clears her throat, and I feel a shift on the bed.
My eyes fly open and lock with her rich, brown gaze. She swipes a tear off my face and puts her thumb in her mouth.
“Why am I here, and why is my dark angel crying?”
Still not trusting my own mind, I bite hard on my bottom lip. It stings. Slowly, I raise my hand and rest it on her cheek.
She smiles at me. “Did I miss New York?”
A sound unfamiliar to my own ears slips out of my body.
“Thorny?” I gaze into her eyes, still unsure of my own sanity.
“Yes, my King. It’s me.”
I lean down and rest my head on her shoulder.
“Why do you smell so bad?” she asks, and I let out a half-laugh, half-sob.
“She’s awake,” I yell to the waiting room.
Eden’s parents stand, looking at me in total shock. We never speak to each other despite our truce. Even Sylvie breathes a sigh of relief.
“Did she talk?” Serena’s voice holds a mixture of fear and hope.
“She called me a pussy for crying and asked if she missed out on going to New York. And she told me I smell terrible.”
Her mother sobs uncontrollably while Sylvie runs into her father’s arms and weeps into his chest. Cori and Selene hug each other.
The next few hours are chaos. We’re not allowed to see her, and they wheel her away for testing.
An anonymous person sent food for the entire intensive care unit, as well as a separate order for Eden’s friends and family. The person is anonymous to everyone else, but not to me.
He’s in the back of the room now with Finch. While everyone is distracted by the food, I follow him down the hall into a secluded corner.
“How did you get that dog in here?” I put my hand to Finch’s face, and she licks it.
“She’s a service dog.” He rubs Finch’s head. “The Brennans are looking for their brother.”
He’s had Jack handcuffed for three days.
“It ends tonight. I’m coming to see him.”
“You can’t kill him,” he warns. “That will start a war and could put Eden in danger again.”
He hasn’t said anything I haven’t thought about since I’ve been here. I’ve had nothing but time to think about how to handle this, and while I want nothing more than to beat him to death, I won’t put Eden in danger.
