Page 41 of Breaking the Alpha
The one above his knee had needed thirteen.
His right knee had a torn ligament.
He had a concussion, but no signs of internal bleeding.
Three hours in and the most immediate of his injuries had all been treated, and his doctor was moving on to the rest of the damage.
But exactly what that damage entailed, she didn’t know.And until she set eyes on him herself, no amount of reassurance from the professionals attending to him would be enough to ease the ache in her chest.
Three hours became four, which became five.
Zoe and Jocelyn checked in with her every hour.Zoe texted encouragement, while Jocelyn called with any piece of the police investigation she could garner.The white sedan River had managed to hold on to for four blocks was nowhere to be found, and the unmarked cruisers from three neighboring counties were coming up empty in their sweep of the area.The phone number the men had used to make the piercing booking was disconnected, and the few witness descriptions the cops had gotten of the guys lacked enough detail to be of any use.
“Ms.Watson?”
Snapping out of her daze, she blinked and stood, giving the nurse a tight smile.“Yes?”
“Mr.Baker has been moved into a private room in the recovery wing.You’re welcome to follow me there, but please have your identification ready,” the woman said, her voice soft as she led Angelina out of the waiting room.“We’ve been informed his attacker is still at large, so there’s a heavy security presence around his room.Only immediate family, you, and Ms.Carter have been approved for entry.”
The implication of the nurse’s words nearly brought her to tears.
Birch and Jocelyn were trusting her to be there.To be with River when he needed someone.
Unable to respond without tearing up, she nodded and followed the nurse through the halls and up the elevator to the seventh floor where three armed police officers stood guarding a door.
Pausing while Angelina showed her credentials, the nurse opened the door and stepped back.“When he wakes, please press the call button to the right of the bed.I’ll be by soon to check in.”
“Thank you,” she murmured, squaring her shoulders and doing her best to present an air of calm as she walked into the room and saw River lying motionless on the hospital bed.
She knew he’d been roughed up, that he’d managed to hold onto the car Grey was taken in for the equivalent of four city blocks before he’d been thrown off along the gravel stretch leading out of town.
But knowing and seeing were very different.
Plastic tubes and thin wires ran over and under the pale blue sheet covering him.His face and arms were covered in an array of white bandages and tape.One screen displayed his heartbeats and oxygen levels, another monitored the IV fluids dripping into the lines taped to the back of his hand.His face was bruised and scratched, the little of his shoulders she could see were clearly faring no better.Even covered, she could see the outlines of the dressings on his arms and legs, some bigger than others.
Above all else, he was completely still.
She had steeled herself for any sight, but seeing him motionless, with his expressive green eyes closed and his powerful body broken and damaged, caused what felt like a tangible tear in her heart.
Easing a chair close to the bed, she lifted the thin sheet from his arm to check for any injuries before laying her head on the hard mattress and cradling his bandaged hand to her cheek.
*
River was vaguelyaware of someone beside him as he struggled to open his eyes.Every shallow breath he took sent a small tremor through him while he blinked into consciousness.He flexed his hands, frowning when one met resistance in the form of warm, smooth skin.
“Angelina?”
Her wild mass of cinnamon hair came into view as she sat straight up and her amber eyes snapped to his, the relief in them as pure as the relief in her voice.“Oh my god, River,” she breathed, still holding his hand tight in hers.“How do you feel?Does anything hurt?Of course it does.”She reached over him gingerly.“We need to call your nurse in.”
His mind struggled to catch up with where he was for a moment until his memory took over.“Grey,” he croaked, his throat parched.“Where is he?”
A woman dressed in cheerful, palm tree-printed scrubs entered the room with a smile and a clipboard.“Good to see you awake, Mr.Baker,” she greeted him.“I’m going to check a few things and then let your doctor know you’re back with us.”
Angelina scooted her chair over and stood but didn’t release her grip on his fingers.“They’re still looking for him,” she said quietly, smoothing his hair off his forehead.“But four counties are in on the hunt now.Birch and Jocelyn have been keeping me updated and they’ll let us know the second they find him.”Leaning over him, she kissed his forehead while the nurse examined his IV lines and adjusted a few dials.“Theywillfind him.You gave the cops all the information they need to track these guys down.”
Her words did nothing to ease his guilt, the heaviness of it competing with that in his limbs.
Grey was still missing.
