And he’d been wrong. The bed wasn’t the same. There were no wheels on it, the frame was metal, and it was bolted to the floor.
“What the fuck is that around his wrists?” Harlow growled, dropping the bags to the floor as he stormed forward, glaring at the nurse, who he’d been ignoring, by Foxx’s bed.
The woman was in green scrubs, had bottle red hair, brown eyes, and was rather petite, about Foxx’s height. Her name tag saidGladys Murry.
The nurse flinched, eyes widening as she took a step back. “S-sir, you need to watch your tone.”
“Yeah, no. I think I’ve watched my tone enough here as it is. Now, tell me, why the fuck do you have him chained down with scripture covered cuffs around his wrists and ankles?”
She bristled. “It’s hospital policy. Safety related. We must restrain all paranormals who arrive in a weakened or passed out state, until we are able to determine that they will not attack staff. He could be a danger to us. We have every right to ensure our safety.”
“A danger, you say?” Harlow growled, taking a step towards her.
“It’s only until he wakes,” she quickly added, holding her hands out. “They can be removed once he wakes up.”
“Since when did hospitals decide that physically torturing their patients was a justified safety measure?”
She gasped. “We would never harm our patients. We change out the scripture cuff every twelve hours to prevent harm!”
Harlow scoffed. “Just get out.”
The nurse swallowed hard, staring for one moment before rushing out of the room. Harlow stomped over, slamming the door behind her. He took a deep breath and held it in for a moment before letting it woosh out. Mostly to stop himself from screaming in unchecked fury.
Harlow wanted to shoot someone.
He took a deep breath, and another, trying to gain control. After a while, Harlow let out a deep sigh. Shoulders sagging, he walked back over to Foxx, dragging an ugly orange chair along the way to his bedside. Sitting down, he sighed again.
Harlow hesitated, before giving in to the urge to reach out and gently brush one of Foxx’s curls back. “It’s going to be fine, Foxx. You’ll be back to your bratty self in no time, I’m sure.”
Slowly removing his hand, he sat there glaring at the cuffs for a bit, before gathering the energy to pull his phone out and call Tony back.
“What did the doctor say?” Tony asked as soon as the call connected.
“He made it through. A few days here, and then three to three and half weeks of recovery at home, and he’ll be good as new. I’m in a room with him now.” Harlow grimaced. “They have him fucking chained up like an animal.”
Tony was silent for a few moments before saying, “You’ve never been to the paranormal side of a hospital, have you?”
Harlow only grunted in response.
“Yeah, a lot of bullshit, borderline cruel policies.”
“Their fucking visiting hours end at 3pm, Tony. They don’t even have hours that vampires can comfortably visit the damn hospital. Like, I don’t really care about people, yet it still pisses me off.”
“Yeah, it’s not good. I’m guessing you bullied your way into staying.”
Harlow chuckled. “Of course I did. I don’t think that the vampire who got away will come after us, but I don’t know. I don’t even know if we were specific targets. Either way, after the shit I’ve dealt with in this hospital, I’m sure as hell not leaving him alone with these people.”
“Good, stay with him. I called Day Lancaster. The Guild Director of the Hunters Guild in Burns Hollow, Montana. He is sending a team your way.”
“For what?”
“To watch your back. Foxx is out of commission, and you are injured. What happened is concerning, and we are still in the dark as to what is going on. It’s better to be safe than for you two to end up dead.”
Harlow smirked. “I thought you wanted me dead?”
“Oh, I do, but I want Foxx alive.” Tony chuckled, voice teasing.
He rolled his eyes. “I’m hanging up.”
