“How is her condition?” I finally asked now that I was able to feel, breathe, see Mia.
“Who are you to her?” the brave nurse asked, appearing at Mia’s other side and looked over the information from the monitor. I gave her a hard look, trying to decide for myself how to answer. What answer would be good enough to reveal information? “Let me guess … ” she continued, “boyfriend?” I turned my gaze back to Mia, emotions having a tight grip around my throat, and the burn returned behind my eyes. “She’s in good hands,” she finally said, trying to relieve the noticeable pressure.
I sucked in a breath and wet my lip. “Her condition?”
“Stable.” The nurse’s eyes wandered to the blood smeared over my ink. “You found her,” she concluded with a nod, “You know she’s lucky you found her when you did. She could have easily bled out. You did the right thing by stopping the blood flow.”
Air blew out of my nose as I shook my head, rubbing my thumb over Mia’s.
“She could wake up at any moment now. I’ll be back in about an hour to check on her.”
The nurse left as Lynch and Scott appeared in the doorway.
“I’m not leaving,” I said without turning back to face them. “I have to be here when Mia wakes.”
“The police are waiting for your statement,” Lynch said as he drew nearer.
“Bring them in then. I’m not leaving her side.”
Two sets of footsteps sounded. My eyes stayed locked on Mia.
The impatient click of a pen sounded.
Click. Click. Click.
I dragged a nearby chair closer to Mia’s bedside, pulled her hand into my lap, and faced the men in uniform as my knee bounced.
“Name?” the older officer asked.
“Oliver Masters.”
“Mr. Masters, can you tell us the events of this morning leading up to the time you found Ms. Jett.”
My teeth clenched. “Mia always takes a shower as soon as the doors unlock at six. I felt something was off—
“You felt?”
“Yes. I felt,” I annunciated. I looked over at Mia, still sleeping soundlessly beside me. I squeezed her hand, pushing and pulling strength between us. “I went to check on her and … ” My head dropped back, and I needed a second, “And the lights were out with the water still running. I flipped on the lights and found her.”
“Was there anyone else in the bathroom?”
“No. She was alone.”I should have been there.
“How would you describe your and Mia’s relationship?”
I kept my eyes trained on the officer asking the question, but four sets of eyes burned a hole into me as both officers tried figuring me out, profiling me. “This is ridiculous. I could never hurt her. I love her.”
“You attend Dolor Reformatory, for what crime?”
“Is this about me, or Mia?”
“It’s a simple question.”
“It’s an irrelevant question.” I looked over at Scott. “Did you ask him?” I asked with a head nudge. “Where were you when Mia was attacked?”
“We’ve already questioned Officer Scott,” the officer stated, redirecting focus back onto me. “Have you ever physically hurt Mia?”
“Fuck no,” I shook my head, unable to believe this was happening. “I’d never fucking hurt her.”
