I let him stew, hoping he’ll make the right choice because I really don’t want to resort to the same tactics as the traitor. But I will for Ollie and Rhys. There’s not much I wouldn’t do to bring them back safely.
The nurse swallows hard and finally nods. “Okay, I’ll tell you.” His eyes flick nervously towards the door at the end of the corridor. “It’s Elsa. She’s the one who forced me to do this.”
You could have pushed me over with a feather. I stand there, staring at him in shock and horror.Elsais the traitor? What the fuck?Why? While I wasn’t convinced that our culprit was Adam, he was the most likely out of the group. Elsa didn’t even really factor as a threat to me.
I was so wrong. We all were.
The door at the end of the corridor slams open, causing both me and the nurse to startle and jerk our gazes towards it. Kevin and Alex are hurrying down the hallway, Kevin looking like he’s aged ten years since I last saw him only ten minutes ago. Alex still looks like a pissed-off bear that’s about to attack anyone who comes close.
“I've got a name,” I announce, causing Alex to stumble slightly as shock and relief crash across his face.
Kevin, who has no idea what is going on, marches straight past us and hastily unlocks the door to Andy’s room. “I’ll see to the patient,” he says before narrowing his gaze in disgust at the nurse. “I wanthimgone.”
“Done,” Alex says, also pinning the nurse with a glare.
“Stay with Andy, Kevin. We’ll grab someone from the security team to guard his door,” I say as I hobble towards Alex.
Kevin’s lips tighten in disapproval at the obvious pain and discomfort I’m in, but he thankfully doesn’t comment. Instead, he nods curtly and disappears into Andy’s room, the door shutting and locking firmly behind him.
“Let’s go,” Alex orders the nurse while wrapping an arm around my waist to help support my weight.
The nurse scurries down the corridor behind us as we make our way to the exit. First order of business; find Anthony.
He’s easy to find, sitting in the security office inside the main building with stacks of papers littering his desk. He pauses when we barge in, his confusion clear when he spots the terrified nurse behind us.
“What’s going on?” he asks cautiously, eyeing the nurse.
“It’s Elsa,” I blurt, urgency riding me hard. “She’s the traitor.”
His eyebrows shoot upward and Alex gapes at me in shock.
“You’re sure?” Anthony asks.
I nod. “Very sure.” I highly doubt the nurse is lying; it’d be a death sentence. Besides, what are the chances that he’d name a councillor when we’re already looking for a corrupt one?
“Alright, I’ll get the entire security force looking for her. There’s no point being discreet.”
“Get one of your guys to guard Andy’s door in the isolation ward. There’s evidence to suggest she’s trying to have him killed,” Alex says, shooting daggers at the nurse. “Also, lock this one up when you have the chance and put his family under surveillance.”
The nurse flinches but stays quiet.
“Consider it done,” Anthony says, standing up from behind his desk and striding over to us while relaying information into his radio. He grabs the nurse’s arm and leads him out of his office to escort him to where the rest of our prisoners are being held.
“Come on, let’s see if we can get started on this search,” I tell Alex, nudging him to move. Even though my injuries are killing me, there’s no way I can sit back, not when every second counts.
Alex doesn’t argue, understanding my need for action since he’s probably experiencing the same thing.
We emerge into the cold air and set about hunting down Elsa to make her pay for everything she’s done. But as the minutes turn to hours and the sun gets lower and lower in the sky, Elsa is nowhere to be seen. Every member of the Council says they haven’t seen her and her cabin is empty. None of her friends have seen her either.
But what’s most alarming is that her room looks ransacked, like she left in a hurry.
My gut tightens with dread, and angry frustration bubbles in my chest. My thigh and ass are a throbbing mass of agony, and I want to cry and scream and lash out at everything, but I keep a hold of myself. Alex isn’t faring much better, practically growling and snarling at anyone who comes close, and is wound so tight he feels like he’s about to explode.
Night descends on Haven when we finally give up our search and come to terms with the reality of our situation.
Elsa is gone, along with our best hope of finding Rhys and Ollie alive.
I've Got You
