by Jayne Rylon
“You want me to hit a vending machine for some snacks?” Bronson asked.
“Nah. There aren’t any near here. We don’t usually allow guests in this wing.” The guy was already halfway to his station. “I’ve got some extra pudding and apple juice for the patients, though. Hang on.”
It wasn’t more than thirty seconds before he was back, handing Josh a plastic cup that felt ridiculously small in his fist. He guzzled the liquid despite the fact that it looked like piss, then shoveled the entire cup of pudding in his mouth in two plastic spoonfuls.
“Chill out and you’ll feel better in a few minutes,” the nurse told him, backing off so Josh could salvage a shred of his dignity.
“Thanks for keeping him from busting his thick skull when he toppled over,” Ford said to the nurse, clasping his hand. “And for taking care of our…of Kari.”
“No problem. But I actually just came on shift. I haven’t had a chance to review her file yet.” He strode to the door and grabbed a set of papers before flipping through them. He paused, then looked up, really studying her pale face for the first time. “Oh damn. She’s the girl from YouTube, isn’t she?”
“YouTube?” Brady parroted.
The nurse nodded. “That was some scary shit. How that guy shoved her. Did they figure out who it was? I’m surprised he’s not in a room next door with the way you guys are hovering around her. I’m not judging, you know. I’d do the same if she were my loved one.”
Ford looked at Brady, then at Josh, then at Bronson. To anyone else he would have seemed calm. Josh could see the fire raging inside him when he asked, “What exactly are you saying?”
The nurse froze and blinked. “You didn’t know about that? Ah, fuck. I should keep my mouth shut.”
“No, I’d like to hear more.” Ford got quieter and quieter, which any sane person would see as a clear warning sign of his impending explosion.
“Don’t get me written up.” The nurse held his hands out. “Please. I need this job. I have a daughter…”
“We’re not going to get you in trouble,” Brady promised smoothly. “Just help us figure out what’s going on.”
“Have you had your phones off the whole time you’ve been here?” The nurse frowned. “I know it’s against policy, but maybe you’d better take a look. I can call the cops in too. They want a statement from her anyway. That’s the best I can do. Sorry.”
He started retreating out the door. Before he’d vanished, Josh already had his phone in hand and had pulled up YouTube. He didn’t have to search. The horrifying video was right there.
#1 in Trending.
Somehow he didn’t think Kari would be thrilled about this kind of notoriety either.
Shit.
“I recognize this vlogger. Marsden McPhadden has a cult following.” Josh scowled. “Hell, I think he even has a side gig with some of the major news networks. It’s no wonder this is blowing up.”
Ford, Brady, and Bronson gathered around as Josh rotated his phone to make the video larger, then hit the play button.
A young guy with trendy spiked hair and a faded rock band T-shirt was talking into the camera as he filmed himself riding an electric skateboard around downtown. He was facing the same direction Kari would be pointed if she left her office and headed home. And in fact, yes, that was her in the background, over Marsden’s shoulder.
It was surreal to watch her like that, oblivious to whatever sick turn the day was about to take. She grinned, swinging her purse along with a glossy black bag while she walked. Josh couldn’t help but smile back at the image of her, deliriously happy on her way to meet up with them even if it was for a shitty dinner at the office.
Until he saw it. The moment she’d realized something was wrong, even if he couldn’t tell what it was at first. She stiffened and her stride stuttered. That hadn’t been what caused her to trip. It was hard to make it out in the crush of people surrounding her, but there was someone trailing her, walking too close. Someone in a black coat. Someone who seemed familiar even if he couldn’t see the guy’s face. It was something about the way he moved.
No, that was crazy, wasn’t it?
Whether or not it was the person Josh suspected, Kari thought it was him too. She spun on her heel and stumbled backward toward the traffic zooming by. Josh cringed, wishing he could reach into the screen and grab her. Save her.
The guy scaring the shit out of her could have done that. He was right there in front of her as her arms windmilled and she tried to right herself. When it seemed like she might tip forward onto the sidewalk again, his hand smashed between her breasts, propelling her into the street.
“Son of a bitch!” Brady yelled as she took a yellow cab to the quadriceps.
“Oh Jesus,” Bronson muttered.
Ford said absolutely nothing. It freaked Josh out almost as much as watching Kari tumble over the vehicle and flop onto the pavement, inches from the screeching tires of the car behind the cab, which barely managed to stop before running over her prone form.
“Am I crazy or was that…”
“Marty Schone. I’m going to kill that motherfucker!” Ford roared.
From beside them, Kari made a strangled gurgle. She pushed mostly upright in bed on shaky arms with a horrible wail. Though slurred, her concerns were easy to understand. “Marty? Where?”
She scrambled like some kind of uncoordinated, cave-dwelling insect that had been blasted with a beam of intense light. Though she wasn’t very effective due to the drugs in her system, she squirmed toward the headboard in a grotesque effort to melt into the nearest crack and hide. Josh’s heart broke. She should never have to be afraid.
He’d thought she was recovering. Now…
He didn’t blame her for her instinctive terror. Neither did he know how to make it go away. But he swore then and there that he’d do his best for her. To help her recover and keep her from ever being hurt again.
Josh looked at Ford then Brady and saw the same fierce protective light shining in their eyes.
That and something else he couldn’t quite identify. Maybe something like longing, or gratitude that she was still with them at all. Anger too, of course. And self-recrimination. It was a powerful jumble of feelings he’d never experienced before.
It was in that moment that he truly understood the complexity of emotion behind one tiny word and wondered how it could mean so many different things all at the same time. This, he thought, was love.
It might not have been as pretty as he once imagined, but it was unbreakable.
Or at least he hoped so.
3
Confusion reigned. Kari flinched away from Marty, but the ground was squishy, not rough like pavement or steely like the honking car she expected to find beneath her searching hands as she crashed into the street. What the hell?
Where was she?
Gentle arms came around her and a familiar voice teased her from her panic. “Kari, it’s me, Brady. You’re safe. We’re here with you. Calm down, okay? You could hurt yourself worse.”
Immediately, she went slack in his hold. “B-Brady?”
“Yeah. I’ve got you.” He stroked her hair, making her shiver as she realized it was true. If he was there, she was going to be okay. He wouldn’t let anything happen to her. “The guys are here too. See? Ford and Josh are right next to the bed.”
“Bed?” She reached out blindly and someone cradled her fingers in their much bigger hand. Ford, she thought, based on his slightly rough grip. “Josh?”
“Right here, Kari.” A light touch on her forearm joined Ford’s clasp on her hand and Brady’s reassuring hug.
She snuggled in tighter to their warmth and protection even if she hated seeming weak in front of them. “What happened?”
“Why don’t you think about it for a minute? We don’t want you to say anything yet, though. Or talk about it with us. Police officers should be here any moment and we’d like you to tell them exactly what you remember, okay? It’s important.” Brady
rocked her as he gave her instructions, ones that started the gears in her mind turning again.
Kari shook her head, wincing as it began to throb. She buried her cheek against Brady’s chest and breathed deep of his expensive cologne. Having the guys surrounding her gave her the strength to recall walking home and what had come after.
A tear slipped from the corner of her eye. She shifted to swipe it away. No. She would not cry over that asshole again. Never again.
“Excuse me. I’m Detective Bonner with the OSPD. We need to speak with Ms. Hill.”
Reluctantly, Brady peeled his arms from Kari. She sighed, nodding up at him when he eased back a tiny bit. She needed to do this. Unlike last time, she wouldn’t stop until Marty paid for what he’d done to her. With their support, she could face it and conquer it. Keep him from ever putting her in this position again.
Kari smiled weakly at Ford and Josh, then turned toward the officer.
She spilled everything, from her phone conversation with Brady to the route she’d walked and how she’d first noticed Marty behind her. To her surprise, he didn’t think she was crazy. The man nodded, took notes, and didn’t interrupt once while she told her side of the story.
However, Ford had gone stone-still.
“You believe me?” she asked, and hated the part of her that was certain everyone would think she was nuts. Again. Like the night at the restaurant. Or the morning after Marty had assaulted her at the Christmas party.
“It would be hard not to with that video to corroborate your statement.” The cop’s mouth was a grim slash across his serious face.
“Video?” Kari tipped her head, wondering if she was hearing right. “Like from a surveillance tape?” Maybe she’d gotten lucky and there was a traffic camera at that intersection or something in a shop window nearby that had recorded the incident.
“No, ma’am. We haven’t been able to find one of those yet. We’re still checking, but there was a man vlogging for his YouTube channel nearby. He caught…most of what happened to you in the background of his video.”
“That’s amazing!” Kari perked up. “So you have enough evidence to go after Marty this time?”
The cop cleared his throat and looked busy writing something in his notepad. Ford cursed.
Josh stepped closer to her. “You can’t really ID him from the video alone. I believe you. Hell, I knew who it was right away, even before you told us. But it was more about the way he walks and stuff. You can’t see his face clearly.”
“In court…” Ford trailed off as if he couldn’t bear to say the rest. They would know better than anyone if what they had was good enough for a conviction.
“Yeah. It leaves more wiggle room than I would like,” Brady confirmed, shaking his head.
Kari thought she might be sick. Not because of the dull thud in her thigh, which was probably all sorts of ugly colors beneath the bandage she was sporting. No, it was the familiarity of the person who’d sabotaged her that had her blood freezing in her veins.
The officer glanced around the room then. “So help me understand. Why would this asshole go after her now if the original incident with him happened a while back and he was never formally charged for it?”
Ford stepped forward. “First, I think he might have been stalking her for a while. You can talk to the manager at La Bonne Vie. Kari and I were there about a week ago. Someone banged on the window by our table. I didn’t see him, but Kari thought it was Marty. I’m sure now that it was.”
“Did anyone at the restaurant try to find him?” the cop asked.
“Yeah. There was no one hanging around by the time they checked the street.” Ford cursed again.
“So again, what’s been happening that’s setting this guy off? Making him bolder? What does he have against Ms. Hill?”
Brady pinched the bridge of his nose. “I got a call from another firm about Marty last week. Asking for a reference. I was honest with them about the issues our firm had with him and could not recommend him.”
“Shit.” Josh scrubbed his hand through his hair. “I fielded a couple calls like that myself.”
“I had the same conversation no less than five times over the past two weeks.” Ford smacked his fist into his opposite palm hard enough that Kari flinched. “I didn’t say anything to my partners because it’s…well, a sore subject.”
“I see.” The cop made more notes. “So he’s probably getting desperate for a job at this point. Maybe running out of money. Developing resentment that could easily be aimed at Ms. Hill if he blames her instead of his own actions for his termination.”
“This bastard is dangerous. And he’s not going to touch Kari ever again.” Ford leveled a glare at the police officer so intense and icy that Kari cringed. A groan slipped from between her lips as her leg cramped and her head pounded.
“I think she’s had enough.” Brady stepped between her and the officer. “Is there anything else you need at this time?”
The cop flipped his notebook closed and shook his head. “This is enough to get started. I appreciate your cooperation. Please let me know if you think of anything else. We’ll be in touch.”
Bronson was there, seeing the man out and shutting the hospital door quietly behind them. Kari was alone with Ford, Brady, Josh, and all their emotions.
Her vision unfocused.
“You okay?” Josh asked. “Do you need me to call one of the nurses?”
“I’ll be fine.” She knew that with them by her side, it was true. This was entirely different from the last time she’d survived an attack by Marty on her own. “Can you get me out of here? I want to go home.”
“By home do you mean your apartment?” Ford responded in a tone of voice that matched his raised brows, making his answer to that suggestion clear.
Brady frowned. “That doesn’t seem like a good idea.”
“I’m exhausted and I just want to sleep in my own comfy bed instead of this thing.” She banged her knuckles on the hospital bed. “I don’t like all these strangers around, either. Please.”
Ford looked like he was about to argue when Josh stepped in. He wasn’t authoritative, but entirely too rational to argue with when he made a proposal. “Let’s be honest. None of us want to let you go right now. Our place is very secure. The building has a lot of wealthy residents and our penthouse has the extra precaution of the private elevator. There are cameras all over the entry and lobby leading up to the elevator. And I’m positive Bronson would be willing to sit out his shift at the front desk. No one is getting in without us knowing. Even if they did, our place has a safe room that’s damn near impenetrable. Let us take you home…to our home.”
Why did it sound like he was implying it was her place too?
“It’s where you belong,” Ford added, as if that was the final argument.
Brady glared at him, then joined forces with Josh, persuading her with calm rationality. “We have several guest suites. You can have your pick. You don’t have to do something you’re not comfortable with or bunk with one of us if you come.”
“Of course you’re welcome to, if you’d rather,” Ford said, earning himself glares from his partners.
Kari couldn’t help it. She cracked a smile at their antics. Their reassurances helped, truly. She wasn’t quite ready for anything more intense than she’d already lived through right then. “Yes, okay. I’ll go home with you. And take you up on one of those guest rooms. Does it by any chance have a massive soaker tub?”
“Yes. Yes, it does,” Brady reassured her, and reached out to squeeze her hand. “Thank you. I promise you won’t regret it.”
“I’ll talk to the staff.” Ford strode toward the door.
Kari nodded. Her eyes prickled. Thank God they wouldn’t shuttle her to her place and drop her off. Sure, that was a better alternative than being stuck in this hellhole, but truthfully she wanted to be with them. Now and always.
“Be right back.” Ford marched out of the room with such purpose she knew that no
one would stand in his way. She hoped he was half as serious about claiming her for their own.
“Where are my clothes?” Kari looked around. A clear plastic sack draped over the back of the chair next to her bed. All she saw inside it was the glossy black bag from the lingerie shop. The one she’d filled when today was supposed to be about things a hell of a lot more fun than a hospital stay.
“I’m guessing they cut them off you.” Josh winced. “Did you go shopping on your way home? Just wear whatever this is that you bought.”
Kari tried to stop him, but she was groggy and he wasn’t.
Josh fished out the satin and lace. He held it up to admire it. Brady eyed the sexy underwear, his jaw dropping.
Just then Ford reentered the room. His stride hitched when he took in the garment dangling from Josh’s fist. “Damn, I leave for one second and you guys get up to that?”
Kari laughed again, surprising even herself. Despite the pain and uncertainty swirling around them, these guys could make her do that. Her heart fluttered. She relaxed for the first time since she’d heard Marty’s sinister whisper behind her on the sidewalk.
“My mother always told me to have clean underwear in case I got in an accident. Somehow I don’t think this is what she had in mind, though.” She shrugged as if it was no big deal that she’d obviously been intent on seducing them when she’d bought the get up.
“I hate Marty even more because he fucked this up for us.” Brady gritted his teeth.
“Don’t worry, I’ll still wear it for you…someday.” Kari winced as she peeked at the bruises she could already see creeping up her leg above the edge of the bandages.
“Damn straight you will,” Ford said as Josh put the lingerie back in the bag and patted it lovingly.
“I’ll ask Bronson to go get you some clothes,” Brady offered.
“The nurse said they’re going to do a couple more checks on Kari. If there are no issues, she’ll be approved for discharge tonight.” Ford glowered as if preparing to fight anyone who said otherwise.
