Chapter Eleven
Quinn slowly awokefrom a heavy slumber.Light moved above her closed eyelids, and she winced as the brightness shoved shards of glass into her brain.She moaned and tried to move, only to have pain lance her chest, arresting her breath for a moment.
Max sat slumped in a chair next to the bed.He had on faded, ragged denim jeans, a plain white t-shirt and a long-sleeved white shirt over that.His hair was a mess, like he’d run his fingers through it a hundred times.A heavy tint of whiskers lined his face.His eyes were closed and his head tilted back, looking completely exhausted.She’d never seen him look like this.The most casual clothes she could remember were the pajamas she saw him in at the breakfast table.
“Max,” she whispered, and he immediately woke.
Relief blanketed his face as he leaned on the edge of the chair.When he gently took her hand, that’s when she noticed it had a needle in it, and a little device on her index finger to measure oxygen levels.
He kissed her hand.“Thank god.”
She licked her lips.“Water?”
He turned and filled a glass with some water and helped her to drink it.The few minutes helped clear away the grogginess.Scratches of information came to her like a broken, hazy projector.
“There was a man,” she gasped.Her chin quivered.“H-he hurt me, Max.He ...he cut me!”
“I know, baby.”
“You found me?”
“Yes.There was blood—” He abruptly bit off his words, his jaw working as if trying to get himself under control.“There was a lot of blood, mainly on the stairs.”
“He had a knife.”She touched her chest and discovered a bandage under some type of cotton nightgown.“He carved into my skin.”
“I know.”His eyes burned with fury.“When I found you, I thought you were dead.Some places were cut deeper than others so there are sutures in some places, Steri-Strips and glue in others.”
Max sat on the bed and carefully pulled her into his arms, rocking her comfortingly.She wrapped her arms around him and sobbed.When the storm eventually passed, she was left shaken and tired.For a long minute, she rested in his arms and let her mind numbly wander.One thing Savage got right, every time she looked in the mirror, she would picture his face.
“Could you hand me a tissue?”Max leaned over and grabbed the box off the nearby nightstand.“Thank you.”She blew her nose.“Am I in the hospital?”
“You’re in my apartment,” he replied.He sifted his fingers through her hair.“I know an ex-army medic, so I had him come over to take care of your wound.”
“My wound.”She gave a humorless bark of laughter.“My brand, you mean.”
Max tightened his arms.“I’ll make sure he pays for touching you.”
“He did this because of you.”She had been violated.Tormented.Scarred for life.“He said it was payback.”
“I’m so sorry.”His voice held a boatload of regret and sorrow.“He’ll get what’s coming to him.”
“And what would that be?”she demanded, wiping the tears off her face.“Was this a pissing contest where I got stuck in the middle?”
“Quinn—”
She raised a hand, stopping whatever explanation he tried to dream up.“You don’t think I haven’t noticed you leaving all hours of the night?I thought you were hooking up with women, but now I don’t know what to think.What else aren’t you telling me?”He stared at her so long, she realized he wasn’t going to tell her shit.“I see.”A bitter note hung on those two words.
“Quinn—”
“Am I in another bedroom?”she asked, quickly changing the subject.
