Page 48 of Zale's Little Girl
“I’m here to take Pippa up to imaging,” a voice from the doorway announced.
“You’re coming, too?” Pippa pleaded.
“I’m not going anywhere,” Zale assured her.
As they reached the hallway, Pippa stopped trying to force her swollen eyelids open to see their path. The motion made her ill, and the bright glare of the overhead lights made her head throb. She knew she could rely on Zale to keep her safe.
CHAPTER 17
They’d kept her overnight for observation, but between the testing and the police interview, Pippa hadn’t gotten much sleep. Zale either. A lack of Zs wouldn’t slow him down for a while. For Pippa, however, pain, trauma, and the need for rest combined to make her feel even worse. It took all he had inside not to snap at the tech who’d come in to draw her blood just as Pippa had gotten to sleep.
Thank goodness all the tests had come back without fractures, brain swelling, or internal damages. The bruising was horrendous. She was already turning black and blue. Pippa had flinched at each bump in the road on the way home. Zale hated causing her pain—even unintentionally.
He had her home now, where he could take care of her. While she slept in her crib with Toothie, he’d spent time on the phone lining up current and former soldier buddies to be his backup during the day when he had to go back to work.
Zale ran a hand through his buzzed hair in relief. He’d even set up someone to call to organize around the clock coverage for her if his team was activated. People who served in the military werebonded in a way civilians couldn’t understand. When a call for assistance went out, his brothers and sisters at arms responded just like he would for them.
He called the director of the daycare last. She’d expressed concern for Pippa and wanted to work with her as much as possible. Concerned about how battered she would appear, the coordinator wanted to avoid scaring the children. Zale hated that this was a consideration, but understood.
To the boss’s credit, she offered to work with Pippa to reintroduce her when Pippa was physically capable of the duties in caring for toddlers. Pippa’s boss had also suggested that they had office work that needed handling and perhaps she could be on light duty while she recovered. Zale knew his Little would jump at the opportunity to do this. She was worried about the hospital bills, even with her insurance. Together, they’d tackle the finances. Pippa would understand at some point that she was not alone. It just hadn’t registered fully that he considered her his.
His phone buzzed. “Koa, what’s up?” He checked to make sure that he hadn’t missed a message that the team was deployed. Nothing. Thank goodness.
“Zale, I didn’t tell you this. Scroggins is in town for a meeting tonight at the Tavern. The team is ready to back you up and take him out.”
Zale smiled at the intensity of the younger man. No one messed with a Little. Especially not one of their own. “Let’s see if we can reason with him. I’ll need someone to stay with Pippa.”
“Caden has already volunteered,” Koa informed him.
“There may be someone watching the house. Have him come through the yard to the back door. I’ll let him in.”
“Got it. We’ll meet at the warehouse a few blocks from the restaurant. Twenty hundred hours.”
Zale stared at the now black screen. His team had already figured it all out. Immediately, he pulled up the Tavern on his phone to review the surroundings and where it would be best to intercept Scroggins. The man would take advantage of the valet at the entrance. How could Zale intercept him? An idea formed in his head.
“You’re going to pay me to do my job? That’s weird, man. I don’t know,” the young man told Zale. “I don’t want to get in trouble.”
Zale peeled another hundred-dollar bill off his money clip and added to the two he held in his hand. “Pretend I have a car parked. You’d have to go get it, right?”
“Of course, sir.”
“In that case, I need to pick up a Mercedes SL550. Silver.”
Zale saw the young man’s mouth move as he repeated that information to himself and processed what Zale had asked him to do. With a nod, he took the money Zale offered. Running past the valet stand, the teenager headed the same direction he’d run all night.
Jacob Scroggins, Senior exited the Tavern and headed for the valet stand. “Are you ready for your car, sir?” he asked.
The older man sneered at Zale, who’d dressed in the equivalent uniform for the valets. “You’re old for a valet. Must be crap to have no skills. Red Lamborghini. There better not be any scratches in the paint,” he warned.
“If you have your claim check, I’ll be right back,” Zale said politely.
“How many Lamborghini keychains are there hanging in the case?” the man scoffed. When Zale did not turn to search, he swore under his breath and pulled his wallet out of his pocket and retrieved the card from his clip. “Here.”
“Thank you, sir. I’ll be right back. You said red, right?” He needed to give Max time to work his magic.
“Yes. My car is red.”
Zale took off running. He returned a few minutes later with the Lamborghini and parked at the curb. Politely holding the door open for Scroggins, Zale waited silently as the self-inflated man walked around the car. When he got close, Zale handed over the keys with a message. “I’m only going to tell you this once. Leave Pippa Twinner alone.”
