"Brace yourself," he said quietly.
I should have known then. Park never warned anyone about anything.
He pulled back the curtain.
And my worst fear became reality.
Brian was on the gurney.
For a second, I didn't recognize him. Then I did.
His face was swollen, bloody, one eye already purpling shut.
"No." The word was scraped out. "No, no?—"
I moved before I knew it, pushing past the nurses, reaching for him. His good eye found me. Something flickered there. Relief. Apology. Fear
"Hey." His voice was wrecked. Rough with pain. But he tried to smile. Actually tried to smile, with his lip split and his face a mess of bruises. "Fancy meeting you here."
"What happened?" My hands were shaking as I assessed him. Swelling, contusions, possible orbital fracture. "Brian, what happened?"
"Got into a fight." He winced as my fingers probed his ribs. "You should see the other guys."
A fight. He was lying to me. I could see it in the way his gaze slid away from mine.
"Dr. Rothwell." One of the nurses—Jenny—touched my arm gently. "Maybe you should let us?—"
"I've got it." My voice came out sharp. Too sharp. I forced myself to breathe. "Just... give me a minute."
The nurses exchanged glances but stepped back.
I turned to Brian. Looked at him. The damage was methodical. Professional. Deep bruising across his ribs—I could feel the tenderness as I palpated, but no crepitus, no shifting to indicate fractures. Facial contusions designed to hurt, to mark, but nothing that would cause permanent damage.
Thank God. No fractures. No internal bleeding. He would heal.
But even as relief loosened something that had been clenched tight.
"The Langs," I said quietly. "They did this."
Brian's jaw tightened. He didn't deny it.
"What did they say?"
"Nothing that matters."
"Brian."
"Ava." His hand found mine, gripped hard despite the IV they were trying to place. "Listen to me. This doesn't change anything. This is just—they're desperate. It means we're winning."
"You're lying in a hospital bed covered in bruises."
"And I'll heal." His grip tightened. "Don't blame yourself for this. Don't you dare."
"How can I not? You're hurt because of me. Shane's family is being threatened because of it. Garrett, Maya, Rodriguez—everyone is in danger because I couldn't keep my mouth shut about what I heard."
"You reported a crime." His voice was fierce despite the pain. "You did the right thing. The Langs are the ones hurting people, not you."
I wanted to believe him. I wanted to believe all of them.
