“In the hospital,” Mom said. “Some nice man found you lying on the streets, unconscious. He was kind enough to bring you here, and the police contacted us.”
“What happened, Lassie?” Dad asked, choking on tears. “Was it that rascal? I swear, when I get my hands on him, I will throttle him so hard—”
“Dear!” my mother said. “Please. This is not the time.”
“Aye,” Dad said. “Sorry, love. You okay, Lassie?”
“I am fine,” I said, ignoring the pain as I sat up.
“Erica is outside,” Mom said. “She is so worried about you. We all are.”
“And the police,” Dad said. “They want to have a word with you. If you are up for it?”
My mind started to race as I remembered what had happened. Why had he let me go? Who called him and why? Did they convince him to let me go? What was going on?
“Actually, I would like to talk to the police too. Can you send them in?” I asked.
A second later, the commissioner walked in, and I found myself telling him everything that happened.
“And you say he got a call that pulled him away? Did you hear anything?” he asked.
“Only what I have already told you,” I said.
“I am increasing the security detail on you,” he said. “And I don’t want you going anywhere alone. There will be police officers outside your building at all times. I don’t like this. I don’t like that call he got. Did you hear anything else? Some sort of clue that might help us?”
“No, sorry,” I said, shuddering as I remembered what had happened.
“Don’t worry about it,” he said softly. “I need you to be safe, okay? Don’t go anywhere on your own. I will see what I can do.”
With that, he walked out of the room, and I lay back on the bed. I had been trying to act brave and strong in front of my family, but the truth was I was terrified. I was shivering and writhing on the inside. I felt like I would completely collapse at even the slightest push.
“Hillary!” I heard his voice, and I opened my eyes.
“Gale,” I whispered back. He stood in front of me, looking just as tired as I felt. His suit was wrinkled, and his hair was a mess, but he had never looked more handsome to me.
“It was Joe, wasn’t it?”
I nodded and said, “I just told the police everything. They are on it.”
Gale took my hand into his, slowly squeezing it.
“I was so worried,” he said. “Erica called me, and I rushed over here as quickly as I could.”
“Why are you dressed in a suit so early in the morning?” I asked with a smile.
“I never went to bed,” he said. I could tell by his expression that something was up. Something was bothering him, but before I could ask, he kissed my hand.
“How are you?” he asked, softly stroking my hair. He leaned down and kissed every single bruise he could see, and my heart suddenly felt light and happy. Where everything seemed dark and ominous a minute ago, with Gale here, I felt better. I felt like I could handle whatever life may throw at me.
“I am fine,” I said. “Don’t worry. It’s nothing serious.”
He looked into my eyes and said, “That’s good to hear.”
“What happened?” I asked. “I can tell something is wrong, so don’t lie to me.”
“There is a crisis back at the firm,” he said softly. “Someone hacked into our system and deleted every single case file.”
“Who?” I asked, bewildered.
