Page 147 of Now Their Starlet

The door clicks shut behind the doctor, leaving us to suffocate in the heavy tension of the room.

“Do you want to go see him?” Beck asks softly, reaching out to smooth some of Andi’s hair down.

“Y—yes,” Andi says between sniffles. “Please, can we go? I need—need to—I don’t know—” She shakes her head. “Even if he’s not going to wake up, I think—think hearing a heart monitor or something would help. He looked dead when he was—was⁠—”

“That’s because he was,” Eli grunts. He rolls his shoulders as he stands, trying to ease the tightness from cramming himself on one of the little couches to try to get some sleep last night.

“Not helpful,” Beck hisses.

“Sorry,” Eli says, running a hand through his hair before tugging Andi into his side. “Stupid comment.”

“It’s—it’s okay,” she rasps. “Let’s just—just go see him.”

All six of us move down the hallway, trailing Andi like we’re following her into battle.

Leo hangs back by me, his brows drawn down in concern.

“We have a problem,” he murmurs, soft enough for only me to hear.

“I know,” I nod.

“How long do you think we can realistically keep things under wraps?”

“Probably not for long,” I sigh, scrubbing a hand down my face. “The likelihood Gina has hired some sort of private investigator to keep an eye on Andi is high. Plus, there’s also the risk of anyone noticing and recognizing Beck in the hospital.“And the last thing we’d want to do is force Beck to stay at home,” Leo sighs. “They need each other.”

Leo is right on that front, too. Beck’s hand is the one she’s holding as we all step into Edison’s hospital room.

He’s pale. He’s always been pale—maybe a product of the hormone imbalance from the medical condition sparked by Gina’s forced unbonding—but now? He might as well look like a vampire.

His chest rises and falls, but the tube down his throat, emerging from his mouth and connected to a loud machine by his bed, is a reminder that it’s artificial.

Could one of us have prevented this tragedy?

I’d been recognizing signs of fatigue in him over the past few weeks, but I’d thought it was related to the stress of the case.

Well, I guess this heart attack was also related to the stress of the case. He stood in a room with his ex bond-mate. Spoke to her. Looked her in the eye.

That would be a difficult task for anyone to do. Add in the traumatic, chemical unbonding, and it’s a wonder he’s managed to stay upright so long after the hearing.

“We need a plan,” Leo mutters. “And we need one fast.”

His comment isn’t a surprise, but the reminder combined with my own thought spiral, wondering whether I could’ve prevented Andi from feeling the pain and devastation she must be feeling right now, makes my own scent turn dark and overwhelming.

“What are you guys talking about?” Beck coughs, turning away from Edison to face Leo and I, hovering at the back of the room.

“Nothing,” Leo says with a wave.

I keep silent, my jaw clenched. I know if I utter a single syllable, they’ll be able to tell I’m one light breeze away from losing my shit in a way I haven’t since my father died.

“It’s not nothing,” Andi says, her gaze darting between Leo and I.

“Yeah, tell us. We deserve to know.”

“Not right now,” I bite out. “You should...”

I trail off. What can I even tell them to focus on? Andi’s unconscious, unresponsive father? The stale reality of the hospital room?

“Please don’t do this, Everett!” Andi bites out, throwing her hands up in the air. “Just—just tell us! Tell me! Don’t leave me in the dark about something that’s clearly affecting you.”