Page 78 of Devil
“Private hospital in Virginia. Your cousin insisted on bringing you here.”
She wiggled her nose, realizing that what she’d felt, the annoying twitch that had woken her, was an oxygen tube. “He’s not still here, is he? How long has it been?” The thought that she had no idea what day it was caused her heart rate to kick up, and the monitor hooked up to her chest started beeping more rapidly.
“He left with the president Thursday morning, the original departure time. You’ve been here two and half days,” Highborn said. “Your friends arrived a few hours after you did. They were here so quickly, they must have chartered a plane. Right now, they’re at the cafeteria. They agreed to take a break when I got here but issued a death threat if I left you alone.”
Devil managed a smile. “You know they weren’t kidding, right?”
Highborn chuckled. “Yeah, I got that sense.”
They remained silent for a few moments, and she half considered what Highborn had told her and half cataloged the fatigue in her body. Her ears perked up, though, when she heard familiar voices in the hall. Before her friends arrived, she turned to Highborn with one last question. “Did you get everything you need from us to do what you need to do?”
He nodded as the voices grew louder. “Your friends ensured my office received everything you had. It’s been critical in helping us build the cases against all five women.” Sadness tinged his voice on that last comment, no doubt thinking of Tina, a woman he’d once cared about.
She might have offered some platitude, but the door opened, and Darius walked in followed by her friends. His gaze landed on her immediately, but he wasn’t the first to reach her. In fact, he hung back as Six, Nora, and Cyn rushed to her side. Highborn stepped away and with a small wave, left the room.
“Don’t ever do that again,” Six said, tears gathering in her eyes. Cyn and Nora expressed similar sentiments, then started fussing over her. Gavin and Joe remained with Darius near the foot of her bed. Darius gave her friends space, but he did rest his hand on her leg, as if he couldn’tnottouch her.
When her friends had worked through their anxiety and assured themselves that she was really going to be okay, they moved to the side. As one, Joe, Gavin, and Darius came forward. Joe and Gavin brushed a kiss on her cheek and told her they were glad she was feeling better. When Darius approached, he paused and looked down at her. On his face was all the fear, all the anxiety, all the relief he felt. She saw it. Shefeltit.
Reaching up, she touched his hand. In an instant, his was wrapped around hers. Taking a seat beside her, he raised their joined hands and pressed the back of hers against his cheek. His other hand gently stroked her hair.
“Are you okay?” she asked.
He smiled softly. “Definitely better now, although I think you did take a few years off my life.” There were no recriminations, no admonitions to not ever again do what she’d done. Just joy, and comfort, at being able to look into her eyes again.
She smiled and blinked away a tear. His finger came up and brushed it off her cheek, then he turned his head and placed his lips on her hand, still wrapped in his.
Six cleared her throat, then flashed an apologetic look at her. “Just so you know—”
Her comment was cut off when the door opened, and to Devil’s surprise, her parents walked in. They paused inside the room, the door clicking closed behind them. Their gazes took in all the people, lingering on Joe and Gavin before landing on Darius, who still held her hand.
Devil cleared her throat and flashed a look a Six, who mouthed “sorry,” for not telling her sooner that her parents had arrived.
“Mother, Father,” Devil said.
They approached the bed but stopped near the end. “Li Wei called us,” her mother said. “I see you are well, though.”
“A little tired, but I will be,” she answered.
“He said you acquitted yourself well,” her father said.
Darius’s hand twitched in hers.
“I did what needed to be done,” she replied.
Silence fell and again her parents’ gaze danced around the room. Finally, her mother spoke. “I see you are all starting to settle down.”
It wasn’t a question, but Joe moved closer to Cyn, and Gavin placed his hand on Six’s lower back. Devil was fairly certain he’d done it so he could stop her should she decide to go off on her parents for their lack of parental feeling.
“Have you met Darius?” Devil said, bringing her parents’ attention back to her.
Both her parents looked at the man sitting beside her. Her father’s gaze drifted to their interlocked hands, but neither said anything. They just nodded in his general direction, far too polite to show disapproval.
“Well, we’re pleased you are well and getting good care,” her father said.
“We’ll be flying to Toronto tonight for a meeting,” her mother said. “Should you need anything, you know how to reach us.” With one more look around the room, and a nearly imperceptible nod, her parents turned and left.
Tension filled the room, and Devil felt the uncertainty. She’d nearly died, she’d risked her life for the president, and it was clear she had a man in her life. And yet her parents had simply nodded and told her they had a meeting. It was sad. But it was also her life. Or a part of it, anyway.
