Page 35 of Rescuing Josiah
But he stayed, and that was a win as far as she was concerned.
Together they cleaned up after breakfast, rinsing off dishes and loading the dishwasher, wiping down the table and counters. Then they headed into the living room, and Josiah set up his laptop. They had a video conference with their team this morning, and while she wanted this case wrapped up as quickly as possible, she was going to miss being alone with Josiah.
Right at eight thirty on the dot, the call connected, and a moment later she was looking at the smiling faces of her team. Ava and Teresa were the two very best friends anyone could ever ask for, and Isabella was quickly becoming a friend as well. There were no better bosses out there than Raven, and since meeting Isabella, Tobias was trying to integrate more into theteam, making an effort to form friendships rather than just being a colleague.
The organ trafficking ring didn't stand a chance against them.
“How are you both doing?” Raven asked.
“We’re doing great,” Chelsea assured their boss.
“And you're feeling okay?” Raven asked her.
“A little tired, sometimes a little nauseous, and there is definitely some swelling appearing in my legs and ankles,” she replied. Beside her, Josiah had tensed, and she knew he was thinking about his hands around her neck this morning. He’d already been up when she woke, so he hadn't seen them this morning. The red marks weren't visible because she’d chosen a dress with a high neckline just for that very purpose.
“Good, happy to hear you're not suffering too badly. We all appreciate the sacrifices you're making. The sacrifices you're both making,” Raven added, her gaze shifting to Josiah.
“Do you have anything?” Josiah asked in his usual brisk tone, the lighter one from breakfast was gone, and her heart sank a little.
“We’ve been going through the footage from the surveillance cameras and microphone you planted in Dr. Wood’s office, and we’re compiling a list of all hospital employees that he might be working with,” Raven replied.
“We hacked into his hospital account and were able to get our hands on some of his communications,” Ava added.
“Isabella was the one who cracked his code,” Teresa told them, and Isabella blushed but nodded.
“Helped to know some medical-specific terminology,” Isabella said.
“That’s great,” Cheslea gushed. If they wanted to shut this ring down permanently, they needed to get as many of the people involved as possible. Of course, another ring would riseup to take its place, but that would take time, and lives would still be saved by dismantling this ring.
One thing she’d had to learn when she took this job was to celebrate the wins however small they might seem. There was more evil in the world than most people realized, and no matter how many terrorists or traffickers you took out, there would always be another to take their place, but that didn't mean you still hadn't achieved something.
It was that same attitude she needed to use now with Josiah.
Walking beside him wouldn't be an easy road, especially since he was going to be fighting to shove her off it every step of the way. But each win was a win no matter how small it might be. And over the last couple of days, they’d had several wins.
The future held whatever it held. It wasn't their place to try to figure it all out, just to take the intel you had at the moment and work with it, make the best of it.
Even if the best that came from her time alone with Josiah was one special night where he felt safe enough to fall asleep beside her, then that was a win.
But she’d never stop hoping for more.
Hope for the best, but be content with what you had.
Chapter
Ten
May 15th
8:43 A.M.
He was finding it difficult to stay focused this morning.
Not a problem Josiah usually had when it came to work.
When work was all you had in your life because you had ruthlessly cut out your family, the family of your lost teammates, and refused to allow any new connections to form, it made sense that you threw everything you had into it.
For six years, it had been his only reason for getting out of bed in the morning. The only way he could honor the memories of his fallen teammates was to make the fact that he had been spared mean something.
