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Slowly, Gideon turned me toward the door. He held out a hand, and I grasped it as I lower my legs, until my toes could scrape the sidewalk. The process was slow, but none of them tried to move me faster. Oliver and Jaxon watched silently from the front seats and Aiden stood with the blanket wide open the entire time.
As I stood, my legs started to buckle, but Gideon’s hands were on my hips immediately, keeping me standing as he climbed out of the car behind me. My hands landed on Aiden’s warm chest as he wrapped the blanket around me. Despite the situation, I could tell my touch had an effect, as goosebumps pebbled across his skin. And in that moment, I wanted so badly to lean into him and just let his warmth suffuse me.
The sound of car doors slamming caused me to jerk back, and Gideon’s arms came around me to steady me. Oliver and Jaxon came to stand on either side of me, both of their eyes taking in our surroundings. I realized they were keeping watch, that even here at the hospital they were worried about my safety. Aiden finished wrapping me up and stepped back to give me my space.
“Go ahead. We’ll stay with you the entire way.”Gideon’s soft voice flowed over my shoulder.
“Just look at me, look into my eyes. Don’t pay attention to anything else around. Let us worry about everything else,”Aiden said.
His gray eyes locked with mine and I was lost in the emotions swirling there. I could see the concern and the hard edge of anger. His features softened, encouraging me to move forward. Carefully, I stepped forward, feeling my body and what I was able to do. I hissed quietly at the stretch of the cuts on my thigh. Aiden immediately stopped, and I looked down at the ground.
A soft touch under my chin forced my face up. Aiden was closer now, and he was demanding my full attention.
“I can carry you, or we can take all the time you need.”
I shook my head and took another step, Aiden stepping back at the same time, as if we were locked into some sort of dance.
“Sir, you can’t leave that car there,”the nurse called to Jaxon.
I looked over at him, fearful that he was going to leave my side, leave me vulnerable. But all he did was look at me with an encouraging smile before looking at the nurse.
“Once she’s settled in a room, and we know she’s completely safe, I’ll move the car. Or you can do it.”
The nurse scoffed, but the doctor just shook her head to stop the conversation. The distraction of the conversation helped me forget about walking and before I realized it, Aiden was moving to the side for the wheelchair. Since my arms were trapped inside the blanket, Gideon helped me sit and then bent to slowly put my feet up, mindful of my injuries.
When the doctor turned the wheelchair and started inside, the Knights stayed around me, with a shirtless Aiden leading the way inside. It was a tight squeeze in the elevator, but none of the guys would wait for the next one, insisting they were to stay at my side until I was safe. The doctor took us to a quiet floor, and Aiden spoke with a nurse at a desk in quiet tones, giving them all of my information. He pulled out my wallet, which Lyle must have left on the sidewalk, giving my insurance card over.
I was wheeled into a stark white room with one bed and no windows. Gideon, Jaxon and Oliver followed, while Aiden found a shirt and worked out the paperwork.
“Miss Reeves, I’m going to help transfer you to the bed. Do you think you can climb up on your own?”The doctor pushed the wheelchair next to the bed and locked the wheels.
I looked over, but before I could answer, Gideon came to my side.
“May I, stellina?”
I looked up at my big man, read each new line on his face, the way his hair was hastily pulled into a bun, the dark circles under his eyes. I was surprised by the sudden ache that squeezed my heart, thinking I was completely lost, that my ability to care about anything was gone. But here I was, thinking about how sad I was that Gideon had suffered.
“Please.”My voice was the same harsh croak, but Gideon smiled and his big arms slid under me.
Without effort, he placed me into the center of the bed and the nurse removed the wheelchair, leaving more room for Jaxon and Oliver to be inside with us. I looked at them all and took a moment to really see what hadn’t registered before. Oliver and Jaxon looked as bad as Gideon did, Oliver worse with the split lip and bruise starting to blossom on his face. They had all suffered, been in pain while I was gone, and it was my fault. And I knew that the pain was going to get worse when they knew for sure what Lyle had done to me.
The doctor started with softly touching my throat, causing me to wince. She then probed the bruises on my face and ran her hands over my scalp, which caused me to hiss in pain when she came into contact with the knot Lyle had caused.
“I don’t feel any obvious breaks, but we’ll need an x-ray to be sure. I need to remove the blanket, is that ok?”The doctor looked around the room after asking me the question.
I couldn’t make eye contact with the guys. When the door opened and closed softly, I knew without looking that Aiden had joined us. Eventually, I nodded and started to pull my arms from my wrapping, waiting for the doctor to move on. She pointed toward my thigh that was wrapped in a red stained piece of clothing. It was the first moment I was so terribly afraid of,knowing the Knights would see the brand, something they would never be able to unsee if they stayed with me.
Nodding, I squeezed my eyes shut. The doctor was gentle, and the nurse joined again, assisting and holding my hand. I knew the wound was exposed when I heard a hushed curse and a gasp of breath. Something metal loudly clanged, and it made my eyes pop open and I jumped in the bed. Gideon was standing with his back to me, his shoulders heaving with his breathing, the small metal side table laying across the room on its side.
“Gentlemen, if you can’t control yourself, you’re going to have to leave.”The doctor didn’t cower when Gideon turned and fixed her in his fierce gaze. Instead, she turned to address me in a softer tone.“These are likely going to need stitches—”
“No.”The one word held power, and it stopped the doctor in her tracks. Aiden moved closer.
“Sir, these are still bleeding. They need to be closed.”
“Are you a plastic surgeon?”Aiden asked.
“Well no, but—“
