Unsteady but able to stand on my own, I shuffled to the bathroom, but like the traumatized woman I was, I kept the door open so I could stare at Konni while I used the toilet.
Unlike me, he tried not to stare as he spoke softly into the phone.
Once I finished, I moved to the sink and caught sight of my reflection.Javier had marked me.Red welts rose from between where his fingers had landed, and I could see the outline of his entire hand, spanning from cheek to chin.My lip was puffy and split, and I had some dried blood in the corner of my mouth, which hadn’t rubbed off when I’d pressed my face into Konni’s shirt.
As if seeing the wreckage made it real, my face started to throb.I washed my hands and face, then used a cold, wet washcloth to ease the swelling.
Konni hung up and moved to stand in the doorway.
“What next?”I asked.
“I’d like to take you to the hospital.”
“I don’t think it’s needed.Other than the face bruise and dehydration, I’m fine.Well, physically.The rest is…I think I just need to be with you.”
His expression flickered with torment even as he nodded.“Okay.I’d still like a doctor friend to check you over at home, for my peace of mind as much as everyone else’s, if you’re willing.”
“I’m willing.”I waited half a second.“Am I going to have to ride you home, or is someone bringing a car?”
He made a sound between a pained moan and a laugh and hugged me hard.
“I’m never letting you out of my sight again.”
Mom criedwhen she saw me in Konni’s arms.
“I’m okay, Mom,” I said.
Kaya hugged her and spoke softly to her as Konni carried me past them.
“The police and Felix are on their way.We’ll be down again in fifteen minutes.I’ll give them ten tops to take her statement.”
That he was allowing any amount of time was only due to me.
Once Balak had arrived at Hestian’s estate, I’d asked Konni to call the police.Although I could see his confusion, he didn’t ask why.He just did it.
We both knew that someone with Hestian’s wealth and power wouldn’t be detained for too long, but that didn’t matter.Being arrested would be the start of his fall.
While Konni was too afraid to ask questions, I wasn’t.
“Will you tell me what happened?”I asked, my fingers idly playing with the hair at the back of his neck.I couldn’t seem to stop touching him.
His expression grew dark, and I set my head on his shoulder as he climbed the stairs.
“I texted you after thirty minutes, asking for a picture.When you didn’t answer, I tried the bodyguard.When she didn’t answer…” He hugged me a little closer.“I found your phone in the fitting room.The cameras had been wiped already.It took an hour to find your bodyguard in a dumpster a few blocks away.”
“They killed her?”
He shook his head.“Badly beaten but alive.”
“We started pulling surveillance footage from nearby stores.We saw you carried out of the boutique, unconscious, and shoved into a van.”
He went straight to the bathroom when we reached our room and turned on the shower.
“We followed the van camera by camera, until we couldn’t.”He set his head on mine again.“I knew you were alive…I could feel you through our bond, but not where.When we had no more leads, I lost it.”
He gently touched my puffy cheek and closed his eyes.
I kissed his bloody chin.
