Page 7 of Blossoming Dahlia

“She can’t walk around in that, it’ll draw even more attention,” the nurse snapped and rolled her eyes. “Let me handle that, I’ll send my coworker in to take out your IV,” she told me gently. She looked at Asher and shook her head as she walked out, and he sheepishly buttoned his shirt back up.

“I swear, we had this planned better. We didn’t think they’d find you so quickly.” He sighed, and grabbed his bag off the floor, digging through it while muttering to himself. Another nurse came in, and she helped to take my IV out, bandaging my hand with care. She also checked my bandages on my back, making sure that nothing had torn from when I was movingaround. My original nurse came in just as she was finishing up, a set of scrubs in her hands, as well as a pair of green slip-on shoes I’d seen a lot of the nurses wearing.

“Here we go, this should do you for now. Don’t worry, they’re clean.” She smiled and pulled the curtain closed around us, leaving Asher on the other side. Carefully, she helped me out of the hospital gown and slipped the scrub top over my head. I didn’t have full range of movement yet, not with my back all stitched up, so it took a minute to get my arms through. The pants were easier, and she helped me cinch up the draw string so they wouldn’t slip down while I walked. “You need some meat on you girl,” she tutted, and I blushed. I used to have hips, but eating one meal a day for months had carved away at them, I felt uncomfortably bony now.

“Alright, that should get you out the door at least, and they shouldn’t recognize you dressed as one of us.” She smiled, and I slipped on the shoes, which were surprisingly comfortable. She ripped open the curtain, startling Asher, who was waiting with his back to us, staring at the door. “You, on the other hand, still look like a fed.” She sighed and pulled at his shirt, startling him further. I tried not to laugh as she manhandled him, untucking his shirt and undoing a couple buttons to make him look a little more casual. Asher, to his credit, said nothing, and let her roll up his sleeves, exposing his toned forearms. “Here, I snagged this from the gift shop,” she told him, setting a ball cap with the logo of a football team on it. The hat made Asher look oddly adorable, and it was impossible to reconcile this man with the one I had just witnessed nearly breaking a guy’s arm in the hallway.

“Here are some pain meds. Your back is still healing, so please take it easy, sitting and laying down whenever possible,” she instructed, holding out a pill bottle. “You need to stay hydrated and eat.Regularly.And not just snacks either, actual meals.” She shot Asher a glance over her shoulder, and he noddedquickly. “Take it slow, nothing too rich at first, or you’ll get sick.” She turned back and smiled at me, touching my arm softly. “You are a survivor,” she told me, and I felt my eyes prickle with tears. I gave her a small smile in return, trying not to cry in front of this nice lady.

“You can take the back way out, using the service elevators. It’ll let you out through the ambulance bay so you can bypass the main doors,” she explained to Asher. “I’ll show you where they are.” She gestured for us to follow, and Asher grabbed his bag and slung it over his shoulder, obscuring his gun and badge from view.

We followed after her as she walked briskly down the hall, and I felt Asher stiffen beside me, his arm going around my shoulder as we walked past a couple of men with cameras. I looked away from them, letting my hair fall around my face to hide my features. We made it to the service elevators without incident, and she instructed us to take it down to the main level and turn right, which would lead us to the ambulance bay. I thanked her again, and she gave me another warm smile that made my eyes prickle. It was nice to remember that there was some kindness left in the world.

The elevator ride was tense, Asher checked his phone a lot, updating Hunter on our new exit strategy, I assumed. He was standing between me and the door, blocking my view, and I would normally be uncomfortable about this setup since it felt a little like being trapped. Asher’s stance was entirely defensive though, as if it was the rest of the world that was the threat. Maybe it was some kind of learned behavior from his fed training, because he didn’t seem particularly uneasy. It’s not like we were fighting our way out or anything that crazy, the bad guys in this case only had cameras. Still, it felt nice to know that he had my back.

When we reached the main level he got off first, then motioned for me to follow. He matched my pace as we headed right, and we stayed off to the side in case any EMTs came through. The ambulance bay was like a giant garage attached to the side of the hospital, and it was so busy no one noticed two extra people wandering through to reach the doors. I breathed in deeply once we were outside, reveling in the cool fresh air.

A nondescript black SUV was parked illegally close-by, and the window rolled down as we approached, revealing Hunter. “Hop in,” he called to us, and Asher opened the back door for me, holding out a hand to help me inside. Once Asher climbed in on the passenger side, Hunter took off, cutting off a car as he pulled out onto the main road.

“I drove past the front entrance and there were five news vans waiting,” he informed us, and my stomach twisted. “You got out of there just in time.” I leaned back in my seat, careful not to put too much pressure on my sore back. The pain pills the nurse had given me were still in my pocket, but I hoped to avoid taking them if I could.

We stopped for coffee on the way out of the city, and I completely blanked when Hunter asked me what I’d like. I used to get coffee every Friday after my class as a little treat, and now, for the life of me, I couldn’t remember what I would order. Both men stared at me gaping like a fish, the words refusing to leave my throat, until Asher finally leaned toward the window and ordered something for me.

I stared down at my lap, my hands clenched into fists as shame and frustration made my eyes sting. I’d gone from a semi-functional adult to someone who couldn’t even pick a caffeinated drink off a menu. No one spoke while Hunter paid for our drinks, and Asher held out a cup for me to take. “You’ve been under a lot of stress, you need to give your brain a chance to rest and heal,” he told me gently, and I shot him a half-hearted smile.I didn’t want to rest though, I wanted to get on with my life and forget the nightmare of the last four months. I let myself stew in my melancholy for a while, watching the city fade away behind us, letting my drink warm my hands. I finally took a sip once it had cooled a little, and realized that Asher had ordered me a mocha, or something like that at least. It was chocolatey but not too sweet, and it made me smile in spite of my dour mood. I made sure to sip it slowly, my stomach cramping a little as it adjusted to the torrent of sugary coffee. It was completely cold by the time I got halfway through it, but I kept sipping it, bit by bit, until my stomach was no longer rebelling every time.

“I don’t like the looks of those clouds,” Hunter mused, staring up at the darkening sky in front of us. The last few hours had been uneventful, aside from a couple of rest stops where we all got out to use the bathroom and stretch our legs. We’d stopped for gas and some snacks recently, and I still had half a bag of pretzels in my lap, which I was munching on idly as I watched the scenery out the window.

“That looks like it’ll produce hail, we’ll need to pull over for a while,” Asher agreed, and I groaned. All I wanted to do was get home and see Amanda and Josh. I’d been trying to imagine what the reunion would be like, to mentally prepare myself for when it happened. Amanda would cry, I was sure. And she’d try to hug me so tight she might rip my stitches. All she would want to dois mother me, do my hair, and make me cozy. My eyes prickled at the thought. I wondered how it must have been for her when I went missing, what she must have thought. I felt an absurd rush of guilt, knowing the pain my disappearance would have caused her.

And Josh… what would Josh think? It was embarrassing, and I was hoping it was just the trauma, but I was having a hard time remembering what Josh even looked like. We’d only been dating for a little while before I’d been abducted. He hadn’t even stayed the night at my place yet—always claiming my mattress hurt his back. Would he be happy to see me? Would he even care?

My stomach clenched, and I forced my thoughts away from him. It would be nice to be home and have my own clothes again. Hunter had pointed out the bag of clothes he’d brought for me, so at the first rest stop we’d reached I’d changed out of the scrubs. The clothes he’d picked out were very basic, just a sports bra, some plain black underwear, a tee shirt, and a pair of sweatpants. Everything fit well enough, but I was getting tired of wearing things other people had picked out for me. I wantedmy things.

Hunter was shaking his head, still watching the gathering clouds. “It’ll be fine, I’m sure it’ll just blow over.”

An hour later, we pulled into the lot of a sketchy-looking motel, and Hunter ran inside to ask for a room. The rain was thick, and we could barely see ten feet out in front of the car. We’d already passed two accidents on the highway, and my knuckles were white when Hunter finally maneuvered us to the nearest turn off and spotted the barely lit-up sign in the darkness. I jumped when the car door opened suddenly, and a soaking wet Hunter reappeared, looking annoyed. “We got lucky, there was one room left,” he told us, and drove further down the lot, parking closer to the end of the building. I grabbed my plastic bag of belongings and braced myself as I stepped outinto the downpour. It was like climbing into a shower with your clothes on. I yelped and jogged for cover, following Hunter as he bolted for the nearby door. I saw the first bits of hail start just as we piled inside the room, Asher closing the door with a bang.

I brushed my wet hair out of my face, thankful for the sports bra because my shirt was now plastered to my chest, leaving very little to the imagination. Hunter cursed, and pulled his jacket off, tossing it at the battered old dresser, and Asher wiped his feet off by the door. We all looked like we swam here instead of driving, it was almost funny. I set my little bag down on the nearby table, shivering a bit as the AC kicked in. Hunter stormed over to the unit on the wall and started fighting with it until it began to blow out heat instead of cold air.

“Hunter, what -” Asher started to say, and Hunter cut him off with a sharp look. I followed Asher’s gaze to the sad, solitary bed in the middle of our room.

“Don’t even start with me, they only had one room left. Apparently every trucker had the same damn idea we did,” he grumbled. “It’ll be fine, I’m sure the storm will let up soon, we can still get out of here today.” He pulled out his phone, checking the weather app presumably.

I walked over to the window and peaked outside, watching as hail bounced off the roof of the SUV. Wind whistled through the crack at the bottom of the door, and Asher sighed, setting his bag down on the table and pulling out a notebook and a pen, sitting down on the edge of the bed. Hunter was still crabby, and grabbed the remote for the little TV, turning it on and flipping through the channels impatiently. My back began to twinge, so I moved away from the window and adjusted the pillow on the bed so I could sit back against the headboard. The bed creaked when I sat down, but it was softer than the mattress in…that roomat least. I stared at the TV as Hunter cycled through the channels, wishing I had a book, or access to the internet. I looked forwardto getting my laptop back, I craved the normalcy of my research and the joys of getting lost in obscure texts. The channel surfing stopped when Hunter found something that looked… familiar. I smiled when I recognized the movie,Silence of the Lambs.

Hunter looked over at me hesitantly, an eyebrow raised. I was sure he was checking if this was too much for my traumatized brain to handle. “Enthral me with your acumen, Clarice,” I murmured, and both his eyebrows jumped to his hairline, emphasizing the creases in his forehead. Asher barked a laugh, and I smiled, turning back to the TV. Hunter sat on the edge of the bed, similar to Asher, and we settled in to watch the movie. Asher was half watching, his eyes glancing up every so often while he wrote, and I wondered what exactly was in this notebook of his.

This must have been one of those special movie channels, because there weren’t any commercials. Once the credits started rolling, Hunter got up and stalked over to the window, muttering under his breath when he saw the rain hadn’t let up. “What is this, monsoon season?” he grumbled, dropping the curtain closed with a sigh. It was already starting to get late; even if we left now, we’d be driving through the night at this rate.

“Are we stuck here then?” I asked softly, pulling my knees up to my chest. This room was pretty small for the three of us, not to mention we had no food, aside from the half bag of pretzels I had left in my pocket.

Hunter groaned and ran a hand through his light brown hair. Close up, I could see the touch of gray growing in at his temples. “I’ll go talk to the front desk again and see what we can do.” He grabbed his jacket and held it up over his head before dashing back out into the storm. Asher finished up a line in his notebook before closing it with a snap, looking up at where Hunter had just been.

“Well, this isn’t ideal,” he mused, turning to look over at me. “How are you feeling? Do you need to lie down?” he asked, and shifted his papers over so I had more foot room at the end of the bed.

“I’m fine, just a little tired.” I replied, and he nodded, studying me with an intensity that made my cheeks heat. My back was starting to ache a fair amount, but I didn’t need to take anything for it just yet. I was pretty tired though, even though today I had mainly been sitting around. “What are you working on?” I asked, hoping to deflect any more questions.

“Case notes,” he explained, tidying up some of the papers and setting them back in the folder. “We have a lot of paperwork from a bunch of different police departments we had to compile together, and now I’m just… trying to find patterns, routines… somewhere that he slipped up.” He shrugged, his hands shifting the papers nervously. I noticed he had a smear of ink on his left hand, and there was a little smudge on his nose now as well.

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