Maren hands me back my phone. “They took Tobias to the hospital. The police officer said he was in and out of consciousnessas he left the scene.” She turns to where Trevor is yanking on his jacket. “You need to call your family, because Walker was involved too.”
She turns me toward the door, pushing my feet into motion. “I’m taking her to the hospital. You can meet us there.”
Maren dishes out commands like it’s her job, and I’m shocked when Trevor doesn’t balk at her bossing him around. He simply nods his head and points out the door in the general direction of the security office. “Take one of the guys from Alaskan Security, just to be safe. Tobias will have my ass if something happens to her.”
Everything goes fast and slow as I’m loaded into an unfamiliar Jeep. Seth gets behind the wheel while Maren sits in the back seat with me.
“Did the police officer explain what happened?” I need to prepare myself for what I’m about to find. What I could have to face.
And the possibility that this could be my fault. That Matt discovered the easiest way to hurt me, is to hurt Tobias
“He said it appears they were hit by someone running a red light.” She wraps an arm around my shoulders, pulling me into a sideways hug. “But they were in Tobias’s truck, and he tests out all the after-market modifications on his own vehicles, so I’m sure everyone is fine.”
She’s trying to reassure me, and I appreciate it. There’s only one problem. “They don’t take fine people to the hospital.”
“I don’t mean fine, fine.” She gives me a little shake. “I mean fine,ultimatelyfine.”
Seth manages to get us to the hospital much faster than I expect and pulls right up to the emergency bay, leaving the Jeep running as he walks Maren and me inside.
With him standing next to us, looking official and scary, we’re quickly taken back. But instead of taking me to Tobias, Maren and I are shown into a room with Walker and a set of police officers.
Walker is laid out on the bed while a doctor stitches a small cut on his head. The cops are asking him questions and taking notes.
As soon as I walk in, Walker’s eyes come to me. I try to read his expression, but the man is a freaking rock. He doesn’t give anything away.
The doctor ties off the final knot closing him up and snips the suture, stepping back.
Eyes still on me, Walker says, “Give us a minute.”
The cops and doctor hesitate.
Walker turns his hard expression to the officers. “The guy behind the wheel is her husband.”
My hand goes to my stomach, pressing down at the combination of happiness and dread mixing there. Just thinking about Tobias as my husband usually makes me giddy, and hearing Walker say it out loud sends a feeling of rightness washing through me.
But it’s not true. And that fact causes me physical pain.
Everyone seems to decide it’s not worth arguing with him, so they filter out, the doors sliding closed behind them to leave me with Walker.
“Is he okay?” My voice sounds so small. So afraid.
I’ve heard it like that countless times before, but this fear is entirely different from the type I lived with in California.
This fear is visceral. Deep. Encompassing.
“He has a concussion, and damage to his left leg that required surgery to repair.” Walker motions to a chair. “Theytook him back pretty soon after we got here. I didn’t know how bad it was, because it wasn’t even bleeding.”
I lower into the seat—or maybe it’s more of a collapse—managing to pull in air before asking, “Was it Matt?”
Walker shifts around on the bed, his eyes finally leaving me. “Nothing has been confirmed.”
The room starts to spin, everything moving faster and faster until I’m forced to close my eyes to combat the wave of nausea bringing bile up my throat.
“The car that hit us looked an awful lot like the one Matt drove to our house.” Walker’s voice carries an amount of softness it doesn’t normally have. “But it would have taken quite a bit of work for him to not only get his head stitched up, but also bail himself out of county and get the car released from impound."
I take another deep breath, lifting my lids to find the room is once again stationary. “Are you just trying to make me feel better?”
“Do I seem like the kind of guy who tries to make people feel better?” The twitch of Walker's lips is the only indication he’s joking.
