Page 96 of Only You and Me

“Trina Flynn,” I say, eager for him to give us the update.

“I’m Dr. Williams. I performed her surgery. We removed her spleen successfully and stopped her internal bleeding. Other than her fractured wrist, we didn’t find any additional injuries or sources of bleeding. When she gets closer to discharge, we’ll talk about the importance of staying up on immunizations and other things she’ll need to know because of the spleen being gone.”

“How long will she need to be in the hospital?” Shayna asks.

“I would expect a week, but it could be a little longer because of the collapsed lung.”

“When can we see her?” I’m dying to get my eyes on her and see for myself that she’s okay.

“She’s just getting settled in the ICU. Give the nurses about ten minutes and they’ll be out to get you.” With that, the surgeon nods and takes his leave.

Fitz sighs deeply and my entire body relaxes as I plop myself into a chair and scrub both my hands over my face and through my hair. I close my eyes and take a few deep breaths.

My phone rings and I answer immediately.

“Donley. What’s up?”

“Ben it’s Rachel. They got him. He tried to exit on one of the roads Meadow Creek had blocked. He blew through the roadblock, but they gave chase and eventually caught him. You were right about the boots.”

“Keep him in the interrogation room. I’m going to see how Trina is and then I’ll be down.”

When I end the call, Shayna and Fitz stare at me expectantly.

“We got him.”

* * *

I’ve been sittingat Trina’s bedside in the ICU watching her breathe for an hour. I don’t want to take my eyes off of her. Never again.

“Ben?” Her voice is hushed and raspy.

I nearly pass out from relief when I look at her face and see her gorgeous eyes open. They’re sleepy looking, but they’re fucking open.I press the buzzer to let the nurse know she’s awake.

“Babe,” I whisper as I stand and cup her face in my hands. “God, I’m so damn happy to see you awake.” I kiss her temple and hold my lips there for a moment before sitting back down and taking her hand.

“Em? How’s Emily?” Her eyes are begging for news on her sister.

“She’s okay. She has a concussion and a broken wrist, but she’s gonna be okay. They’re keeping her here in the hospital for a few days to monitor her before they release her. Fitz and Shayna are with her.”

We have to pause our conversation while the nurse comes in and checks on Trina, but she’s efficient and leaves us after a few minutes. Trina looks over at me, clearly ready to resume our conversation.

“Fitz is with her…” She smiles and closes her eyes for a few seconds before opening them again, holding me captive in her gaze with a hint of hope in her eyes. “Is it over?”

I know immediately what she means. “Yeah, it’s over.” I brush some hair off her forehead to keep it out of her eyes. “Meadow Creek caught him. I wanted to stay with you until you woke up and then I’m heading there to make sure all theIs get dotted and all theTs get crossed. But let’s not focus on that right now. I’ll tell you everything when I get back.”

My phone pings with a text from Fitz.

Fitz: Is Trina awake yet? Emily’s not allowed screen time because of her concussion, but she wants to hear Trina’s voice, if possible. You think it’s a good idea?

“Babe, you feel up to having a quick call with Em?”

Trina’s eyes immediately light up and I smile at her and place the call, then hold the phone up on speaker so she can hear. When it stops ringing, it’s Emily’s voice that comes across.

“Tri? Are you okay?” A sob comes through from Emily’s end of the line.

“I’m fine, Ems. Just worried about you. Tell me you’re okay.”

“I am. I have a killer headache and I’m sore all over, but I’m okay. You had me so worried.”

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