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Chapter 24
Clay
I’ve had Shay at home for two days. Today is the first morning that Chris knocked on the door at eight a.m. to start Shay’s therapy. She went eagerly over to the gym with him without a backwards glance. I’m glad she’s getting used to Chris, because he’s a big teddy bear. He will help anyone, but he never pushes himself into someone’s life. This will be good for him too. Besides, I think Shay could really use some different company. She must be sick of the sight of me already.
The last couple of hours without Shay in the house has left me at a loose end. I’ve paced around my house, going from room to office, kitchen to living room. I bang down my laptop and leave my house. I find myself gravitating toward the gym without really thinking about it.
“Clay, wait up.” Caleb catches up to me with a file in his hand. “First training session. Does Shay know what she’s let herself in for?”
I snigger at my brother. Shay might look like a little shy bird, but believe me, she’s anything but. She was always up and willing to train in the army. She could give any man a run for his money.
“It’s Chris I’m more concerned about. Shay will hold her own once she gets back on her feet. What do you have there?” I point at the file.
“Mike did some digging into this Michael character. There’s nothing. He does live an extravagant lifestyle for an army salary, but we can’t see where the money is coming from. It certainly isn’t going into his known accounts. His wife and daughters’ accounts are clean, too.”
“You’re the detective. What does this mean?”
“I’ve called in a favor from an old friend who works in the fraud department. I trust him. He’s going to dig deeper. Maybe offshore accounts, anything that will give us a connection.”
“We can’t trust anyone in the army, Caleb.”
“We’ll find something. I know we will. It won’t beat us. Nothing beats us.”
I push open the gym door, and there in the middle of the mats is Shay doing sit ups while Chris holds her feet to the ground. The sweat is pouring off her, but she’s smiling through every agonizing sit up.
“What has that got to do with her leg?” Caleb says a little too loudly.
“That’s why I’m the personal trainer, bro. If your core muscles are weak, your whole body is weak. PT in the hospital was starting at the wrong area. We’re starting with the head and upper body before we move forward. We’ll see bigger, better results faster.”
Chris is confident at his job. He puts us all through our paces, but none of us smile like Shay.
“You did good, Shay. We’ll take a break.” Chris holds his hand out to Shay to pull her to her feet. I’m about to go and help her when she gives Chris her hand, and he pulls her carefully to her feet. No stagger, no look of pain across her features, nothing.
“I probably sound like a weirdo, but I feel good,” Shay says.
“Good to hear, short stuff.” I walk closer to her and Chris.
“You need to occupy the brain where pain is concerned. She wasn’t getting that in the hospital,” Chris speaks to no one in particular. “Do you want to walk to your chair?”
“Yes.”
Chris holds her hands out in the middle of them both. He takes a step back and Shay takes a step in. In a few steps, they’re walking in sync over to her wheelchair. It is indeed the strongest I’ve seen Shay on her feet. She is walking with purpose. In the hospital, it looked like a chore and she was dragging her feet.
“How do you feel?” Chris asks, offering her a bottle of water.
“Amazing,”
“Good. You up for another hour at lunchtime?”
“Absolutely. Meet you back here at twelve.”
“You’re on. What are you two doing here anyway? I told you to stay away, Clay.”
I sigh. I know what my pain in the ass brother told me, but I needed to see that Shay was doing okay.
“I was just checking in. He followed.” I point over to Caleb and he hits me with the file.
“I actually have something to tell you since you’re all here. I was heading to Clay’s house when I spotted him, so it’s his fault I’m here.”
