Chapter Twenty-eight
Bree
Bree had no idea how people were supposed to rest in a hospital. Nurses and doctors and orderlies constantly bustled around, usually carrying equipment that beeped with annoying frequency. She didn’t mind the nurses with the painkillers—in fact, they were her favourite—because between the throbbing in her arm and the pounding in her head, she was on the verge of throwing up.
Eric refused to leave her, even when she said it was okay. Even when she said it and meant it. Yes, she wanted him to hang around, but there was police stuff he should be doing to catch the psycho who’d grabbed her.
After her third attempt to send him away, he leaned over her gurney. Bree thought he was going to whisper something in her ear, since the background noise was on the rise again. Instead, he kissed her full on the mouth, one hand on either side of her face to ensure he had her attention. “I. Am. Not. Leaving. You.”
“Okay.”
It sounded like another fight was breaking out in the waiting area. They’d already had a domestic dispute, and an alcoholic so drunk he was arguing that he wasn’t hurt after crashing his car through a store window. The new screamer was female. “Let me see her!”
“I think that’s Allison. Is she okay? I left her there,” Bree said.
Another tremor shook her. They’d started once she was safely in the emergency room after she’d been stitched up. From the second she’d woken up in that car, she’d been in survival mode, and a good part of that had been fighting the urge to panic. She was exhausted.
The blue curtain swung back and Allison stormed into the cubicle in all her mama bear glory, followed by Tyson who looked like he didn’t know who to hover over first. Allie’s eyes went to the bandages on Bree’s arms, and her face crumpled. “Oh, Bree!”
“I’m okay. Nothing’s broken. I got a few stitches. You should see the other guy,” Bree tried to joke.
“I did. I gave a description to Inspector Holland. Why haven’t you caught him yet?” Allison demanded, staring hard at Eric.
“We’re working on it,” he growled.
“Come home with us,” Allison offered. Behind her, Tyson nodded in agreement. “We can keep an eye on each other.”
Bree didn’t have a chance to accept. “She’ll be staying with me,” Eric said.
“I have my own place, you know,” she said. “And Allison and Tyson’s place has a spare room.”
“I have guns. I’ll borrow Adam’s German shepherd for when I’m not there,” Eric said. When she opened her mouth to protest, Eric covered it with his calloused hand. “It’s not an argument. You are a witness. It’s me or we get Tyson involved, in his professional capacity, by requesting some protective custody, and then who knows where you’ll end up.”
“It better not have a river view,” Bree muttered. Eric’s arm around her shoulder constricted uncomfortably tight. “Not funny?” she asked. Everybody in the room stared at her like she’d run over their dogs.
“No.”
An orderly pushed a wheelchair into the cubicle. “You’re sprung. If your bodyguards want to take you home, the doctor is writing out pain scripts in the hall.”
“Please can we leave?” Bree asked. She wanted out. Some fresh air would clear her headache. Maybe fewer people staring at her would allow her to crank her anxiety levels down to manageable levels. There were too many people around her right now. The ones in the room with her were friends, but there were corners and curtains and crowds. Psycho could be hiding anywhere, and people were watching her, not watching out for him.
Eric may not know exactly what was bugging her, but he picked up on the tension in her voice. He got her out of the emergency room and loaded into the new car Adam had brought to the hospital.
“I’m sorry, baby but we need to get your statement. The sooner the better. Do you want to do it at my place, or can we go to the station?” Eric asked.
“Station.” She wanted her bed but she knew this was necessary. She was safe for now but it wouldn’t truly be over until Psycho was caught. After she gave her statement she could go home with Eric.Home with Eric, she said again in her head. The fact that she equated him with home made her smile, even under the stressful circumstances. Eric saw her grin and smiled back, even though he couldn’t know what she was thinking.
Maybe it all would be okay.
