Ian texted Lincoln:Any word from Montgomery?
As he texted, Rear Admiral Declan Chase approached the desk talking on his phone. "Do you want me to wake them up, or will you? In the ten years, I have sat on this board, I have never asked a favor. Now I am. You have an undercover FBI agent on one of your operating tables. How and where she was injured is high profile. I need extra security for her and her family to ensure privacy." Declan hugged Ian. "No, I can meet you in the morning—say 0600. Right now, I want you to call in your public information officer and the head of security. Also, wake up Doc. Hunter Montgomery is the surgeon of record."
Ian heard the strained tone of voice on the other end of the call. "No, you heard me. Montgomery. I'm also giving Doc's number to Ian. I'll have him call with any issues if I am unavailable. Now, you can have public info and security personnel meet us in the on-call room by the surgical library. I'm commandeering it for the immediate family." Declan hung up with a frown, then took a good look at his son. "I can go if you want—or I can stay. Whatever you need, Son."
"Stay, please." Ian had been to war, lost men, been shot—never had he wanted his dad's supportive presence more than now. He felt off-balance.
Declan led them past the conference room. "Director and Mrs. Paulsen, I'm sorry to be meeting you under these circumstances. Let's go into the on-call room. We can speak in private."
After chasing out a lone intern, Luke put his head between his legs, sitting in an uncomfortable orange plastic chair. With his permission, Declan remained to listen. "Thank you, Ian. Agent Walton told us how you helped Cassie."
Rachel reached for Ian's hand. "I need to thank you for more than that. She enjoyed her dinner with you on Tuesday. I haven't heard her so excited in a long time. I was speaking with her when your flowers arrived; she sounded happy and hopeful."
"It was my pleasure."
Luke steepled his fingers over his face. "Tell us what happened? Wilds isn't saying much."
"I'm still trying to figure it out. Monique and I were at her table. The man who stabbed her, Sebastian Ames, sat beside her. He had her rattled all night. He was predatory."
"Why didn't someone stop him?" Luke asked.
"You need to ask Wilds. I didn't want to put her in a bad place." Guilt ate at him. "I can tell you, from the scene, she fought hard. I got a quick look at Ames. Looks like she put one in the shoulder and one in the head." Ian kept the vivid description of the carnage to himself.
"Did she say anything?" Luke grasped his wife's hand.
"She said, 'Cassiopeia is dead.' Do you know what she meant?" he asked.
Luke shook his head. "Wilds said her com wasn't functioning."
Ian bit the inside of his lower lip. "I don't know."
"It wasn't your show. It was under Wilds' direction. This assignment was a bad fit for her. I should have pulled strings whether she liked it or not. She didn't have to be there; they could've used someone else."
"You know Cassie would never forgive you." Rachel hugged her husband.
"You aren't responsible for this," Ian said.
"We consider Cassie, our daughter," Luke's voice trailed off. Ian ached when he saw the fresh tears on Rachel's face.
Chapter Fourteen
An imposing frame filled the doorway of the small on-call room. “Excuse me, I’m Dr. Hunter Montgomery. Are you Cassie Modine’s family?”
Luke stood, legs wobbling under strain. “We’re her family.”
Hunter eyed Ian and Declan. “I will not sugarcoat this. She’s in grave condition.”
“Hunt, what’s going on? Luke and Rachel, this is my friend and the best trauma surgeon around—Hunter Montgomery.”
Hunter picked at his scrub cap and swallowed hard. “Look, I’m a team player. Correct me if I’m wrong, but I was told you wanted me to handle her case. I just was asked to leave the room. Joe Maddox is the chief, and he’s a good surgeon, but… Cassie needs a very aggressive multi-team approach.”
“What can we do?” Rachel asked. “Please, we can’t lose her.”
Ian and Declan stepped out of the room with Hunter. “The surgical team is rattled, and with that level of trauma, she needs all the help possible. It doesn’t make sense.”
Hunter’s tight expression said everything else. Declan wasted no time. After a messy, political, and emotional fifteen minutes Cassie didn’t have, Ian watched Hunter Montgomery walk back toward the operating room—in charge.
* * *
