“Good,” I sniff. “They deserved it, and more!”
“I heard you pepper-sprayed Leopold when you came to look for me. I overheard them talking about it, and they mentioned you by name. Leopold bragged about how he killed you, but I guess it was his fragile ego talking,” she says, running her eyes over me like I’m the injured one. “God, I could have died when I heard him say that. But you’re here. You’re alive.”
“And so are you.”
“They scared me,” she whispers, her voice trembling. “They threatened me. But they didn’t…touch me. Not like that. They said they had to…save me for a buyer.”
Relief and disgust hit me so hard, my eyes burn all over again.
We sit in silence for a moment, and for the first time in days, I feel that tight knot that’s been sitting in my chest loosen a bit. “They destroyed our place, Kristin. We’ll have to move somewhere new.”
“We?”
My brows furrow at her tone, and when I glance at her face, I catch the ghost of a smile. “What?”
“C’mon, Rosy. Are you sure there’s room for me where you’ll be going?”
“What are you talking about?”
“I saw you and...him.” Her eyes flick to the shut door for a moment before turning back to me. “The way he ran to you when you fell and how he held you. I don’t need to know who that man is to know there’s something between you two.”
I look away, picking at the sheets. “It’s nothing.”
“Try again.”
“Well, it was something, and now, it’s nothing. He made it clear that he doesn’t want anything lasting.”
“And you?”
“Well...you’re here now, and we have to figure out how to start over again, and...” I stop when I see the look in her eyes. “God, what do you want me to tell you, Kristin?”
“Everything.”
I bite hard on my lip, holding back feelings I haven’t dared speak out loud, but when I open my mouth, everything spills out. From the moment Beau and his dogs rescued me from that monster, to every moment since. She doesn’t interrupt as she lets me bare my heart, and when I’m done, I feel worn.
“So yeah, that’s everything,” I finish.
“You’re in love with him.”
It’s not a question but a statement of fact. One I don’t bother to deny. “I love him.”
“Then go and tell him!”
“What? Like, right now? I can’t leave you—”
“Rosy, I haven’t had decent sleep in three days. Not since those assholes kidnapped me.” She squeezes my hand again. “Go and let that man know you love him and kick him in the shin if he says something stupid.” The smile is back again, wider now, and it does my heart good to see it. “Life is short and unpredictable, as I’ve come to learn. So go and make that man see it too.”
“Are you sure?”
“Do you want me to kick you in the shin?”
I chuckle, throwing my arms around her and hugging her tight, reminding myself that she’s alive. Shaken, but alive. Safe. “I’ll be back soon,” I say when we break apart.
“I’m not going anywhere,” she says, nodding to the hand hooked up to IV fluids. “Bring me some coffee when you come back though.”
“Will do,” I kiss her cheek, push back from the bed, and with a small wave, rush outside, nearly bumping into a cop. He’s in plain clothes, but he has a badge on a chain around his neck. I greet him with a smile before turning to seek out Beau. He’s not in the hallway, and I figure he must have gone to the restroom or hospital cafeteria to grab something to eat.
“Are you looking for Donovan?”