Chapter 135
-Hailey-
Logan was slowly rubbing his hands over his face in exasperation.
I chugged the rest of my water and dumped what was left of the ice into the sink behind the bar. Then I refilled the glass with whiskey, and I poured one for Logan too. I set it in front of him and gently pried his hands away from his face.
He reached for the glass just as his phone started ringing again.
He flinched, then snatched it up, answering the call with a gravelly, exhausted grunt “What.”
His face changed. His spine straightened up. The hollow look in his eyes was replaced with a sharp focus. His free hand curled into a fist on his thigh.
“What about him?” he barked into the phone. A pause. His gaze flicked to me, then away. “He was fine. You said he was being discharged tomorrow.” Another, longer pause. I could hear a woman’s voice on the other end, but not the words.
Logan’s jaw flexed. “What do you mean, ‘something happened‘?” His voice was rising, losing its rough edge and getting more pointed. “Don’t give me that HIPAA shit. Is he alive?”
He listened, gripping the phone tighter. “Yeah. Yeah, we’re on our way.”
He ended the call and slammed the phone down so hard I thought the screen would crack. Then he was on his feet, shouting. “Talon!”
The President was across the room, deep in conversation with Ledger and two of Viktor’s men. He looked up impatiently, but his expression shifted when he saw Logan’s face.
“Hospital just called,” Logan said, striding toward him. “It’s Leo. They were about to kick his ass out, then somethin‘ happened.”
Talon’s face went hard. “Something?”
“They wouldn’t say shit over the phone. We need to go. Now.”
Talon didn’t hesitate. He murmured something to Ledger, then turned back toward Logan. “Let’s ride.”
Logan crossed the room again and gripped my arm. “You’re with me.”
Once again, there was no discussion. I was an extension of him now, dragged along in his wake. At least I managed to chag my whiskey before he pulled me off the stool.
Outside, he handed me my helmet. His fingers brushed my neck as he buckled the chin strap for me, and the few seconds of gentle contact were electric with his barely contained frustration.
Logan swung his leg over the seat of his bike. I climbed on behind him, wrapping my arms around his waist and pressing my cheek against the Warriors patch on his back as the engine roared to life.
Talon pulled up to the gate on his own bike, and we rolled up behind him.
The wind tugged at my clothes as Logan took us through gate and onto the main road with a speed that almost tore me away from him.
We weaved through the rush hour traffic. I closed my eyes, holding onto him tighter.
This wasn’t just a ride, it was a lunge toward an unknown threat. The wind whipped tears from my eyes. I hadn’t been out of
10 11 F21
Chupary 140
the days war gutting the doors die reg
tant in rides. The tuned in my head, woring with my heartbeat
I was sick with way to las Had my stupid defiantes do this? Med 1 poked the bear and may be was bullet
We med chugh the hopital’s mutomatic doors and down one of the sterile white halle. A triny of arses was latand the extation. Their faces were pinched with concern, but it seemed edged with something or fear
ng for a
And renmen in serunty uniforme stood slightly behind them with their arms crossed. Their eyes tracked b and I was certain we were the reason they were here.
Logan didn’t break stride. He planted his hands on the high counter of the nurse’s station, leaning forward. His prese immediately dominated the space. Togan Nash. You called about Leonardo Mancini
As if they needed the introduction. They knew exactly who he was, and his and Talon’s cuts had already confirmed
The oldest of the nurses nodded. She had kind eyes and deep wrinkles around her mouth. “Mr. Nath. You’re hated as his FRETgency con
“What happened?” Logan cut her off.
She took a steadying breath. “Mr. Mancini was awake, alert, and oriented. His vitals were stable. We were finalizing his discharge paperwork. He was joking with the nurse about what he was going to eat first.” She paused, and the memory of it seemed to pain her.
“And then his monitors started alarming. He went into cardiac arrest. We coded him for twelve minutes before we got a sustainable rhythm back”
“Why?” Talon asked. His voice was calmer than Logan’s, but it carried more weight. “He have a heart condition nobody knew
about?”
“That’s just it” a younger nurse said. Her voice was trembling. “There’s no medical reason. His tox screen from admission was clear. His EKGs were normal. His bloodwork was unremarkable. We’ve run every test we can think of. There’s nothing to explain a sudden event like this.”
“Nothing medical,” Logan repeated. The words were dripping with the rage he was holding back. I touched his arm with cry fingertips, trying to ground him.
The first nurse nodded with a grim expression. “To protect his brain and heart from the trauma of the arrest, and to try and determine a cause, the doctor made the decision to put him in a medically induced coma. He’s stable now, but… he’s unresponsive”
The words “medically induced coma” slapped me across the face. If Leo was in a coma, Logan couldn’t question ham. The one person who might have seen something, who might have known what happened, was locked away behind a wall of drugs.
I wrapped my arms around myself. No medical reason. The phrase echoed, and each repetition drove the quilt deeper. This was an attack, and I was pretty damn sure I was responsible
Or maybe this had nothing to do with me at all.
The two security officers stepped forward. The taller one cleared his throat. “Mr. Nash? Could you come with us, please? You and His eyes flicked to Talon, taking in the president’s patch. and you, sir?”
Logan’s head snapped toward them. “Why?”
Sat, Feb 21
Chapter 135
V
(16)
“We’ve already reviewed the security footage from that wing around the time of the incident,” the officer said. “We think you should see it.”
The air in the hallway suddenly felt thinner. They’d caught something on video?
Talon gave a sharp nod. “Lead the way.”
The officers turned and started down a side hallway. Logan and Talon fell in behind them without a word. I hesitated for a second, a step behind. An unwilling witness. Part of me was burning with curiosity, but a bigger part didn’t want the visual of what I’d potentially caused.
Logan glanced back and his eyes found mine. He jerked his head in a silent command to follow. I was still part of this, dragged along in the undertow of whatever nightmare we were about to be shown.
I followed, with my arms still locked across my chest to keep my heart from beating out of it.
AD
Sara Lili is a daring romance writer who turns icy landscapes into scenes of fiery passion. She loves crafting hot love stories while embracing the chill of Iceland’s breathtaking cold.
