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"Food."
"I'll make sure I talk to the doctor and let him know your starving. If he won't do anything, I'll sneak something in." She stood beside his bed again. "Get some sleep. Soon enough, physical therapy will be in hounding you to work your shoulder and leg."
"I take it back. I need a gun too."
She slapped his forearm gently. "No guns in the hospital. You know better." She bent, kissed his forehead. "Rest. The others will be in to hound you as soon as they can." She smiled. "Love you."
"I love you too." He smiled.
She turned and started for the door just as the guard opened it.
"See, told you I'd be done." She waved at Trenton and hurried through the door, glad she'd risked trouble to see him. She needed to know he'd be okay, and now, she knew he would.
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
Ben stared up at the hospital, debating on if he really should go inside. Was he out of line coming to check on Trenton? Would he be too big of a memory of what had happened? There was something telling him to just drop by, say hi, make sure he was recovering, then let it go. The worst thing that could happen would be for Trenton to tell him to leave, and Ben understood if that happened.
Still, he hardly knew the guy. They'd both been through hell, but Trenton had been on the worst end of things. Yes, as Noam had explained it had taken both of them to bring things to an end, but he still felt like he was to blame for everything Trenton had gone through. Even if he hadn't been the one to take him, he'd been there in the role of captor and that was bad enough.
"Ben?"
He looked up to see Xander walking toward him. "Hey." He smiled, shifting the small duffle bag he carried from one hand to the other so he could offer Xander a handshake.
Xander shook it and smiled back. "Coming to see someone?"
He glanced up at the tall hospital, then back at Xander. "I was debating on visiting Trenton. I hear they lifted security and he can have visitors now, but the more I think about it, the more I'm not sure it's a good idea."
"He asked about you after he woke up from surgery. He asked us to get you a message and say thank you, but I'm betting we were all idiots and forgot with everything going on. I think he'd be happy to see you. Go on up. He was alone when I left him. He's supposed to go home tomorrow, but he's restless as hell. Maybe take him for a spin down to the courtyard or something." Xander shrugged. "Just don't mention food. He's about had it with hospital food."
"Then he'll like my get-well gift." Ben patted the bag he carried.
"Hell, you have food in there, he'll welcome you even if he hated you. The poor guy thinks they're starving him. We've been sneaking him in fast food."
"It's not a burger or anything good like that, but I hope he likes it." Ben met Xander's gaze. "I feel like I should apologize to all of you for not getting him out faster."
"You didn't know who to trust. We aren't exactly the good guys in many people's minds." Xander shrugged. "We just hope we can trust you to keep our secrets now."
Ben had thought a lot about that. As a police officer, he had a duty to turn them in, but he would never do that. Not after all he'd seen. In his mind, the team deserved to be treated like royalty. "Your secret is safe with me. Besides, I turned in my badge yesterday and quit my job. I'm thinking about working with Noam for a while as I try to figure out what I want to do with my life."
Xander slapped him on the back. "Then I guess we might be seeing you around." He nodded up at the hospital. "Trenton's on the fifth floor, room 506. Go keep him company."
"Thanks, Xander." Ben gave a nod before turning and heading inside.
As he got off the elevator, he slowed his pace, nervous even after Xander's reassurance that the visit was a good idea. But as Xander had said, they would probably see each other around if he went to work with Noam, and it was best to ease the tension now. Ready for any reaction, he headed down the hall and knocked on the open door, sticking his head in.
He found Trenton sitting on a reclining chair, staring up at the T.V. with a scowl. "Not a fan of daytime T.V.?" He stepped into the room so Trenton could see him better from the angle he was at.
"Ben, I'm glad you came." Trenton smiled. "You won't mind if I don't get up?" He gestured to his wrapped leg.
"I'd stop you if you tried." Ben pulled the bag up and opened it. "I come with gifts." He pulled out a large bottle of lemonade and set it on the bedside table. "And I'm not sure if you have dietary restrictions, so speak up if you do, but I thought you'd like some fresh fruit." He pulled out a bin of different sliced fruits and set it on the table. "Then of course, can't forget the cheese and crackers." He pulled that out.
"Give me." Trenton held out his hand.
Ben laughed. "Glad I decided on that."
"Me too. They're starving me here." He pointed. "Will you dump that water out of that cup for me and fill it with lemonade, please?"
Glad things seemed to be going smoothly, Ben did as asked. "How are you feeling?"
