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My head snapped up, and I looked past Mom to meet my aunt’s green gaze.“It was Amy, wasn’t it?”
One blond brow lifted.“What made you think it was her?”
“I have my reasons.”I let her see the truth in my eyes before I schooled my features.
“Then it’s a good thing she’s no longer working here,” Mom said as she walked around the bed to smile down at Nishia.“How about a protein shake, sweetheart?”
Nishia grimaced.“It doesn’t sound appealing, but it’s better than nothing.My stomach feels empty.”
“Raven and I will get your meal replacement, give you a moment alone with Jack.”She brushed Nishia’s dark hair back from her face.“I told you everything would be fine, didn’t I?He’s back where he belongs now.”
Pink filled Nishia’s cheeks.“I’m sure everyone will be relieved he’s back.”
Mom fought a grin, and I glared at her for embarrassing my little fairy, which seemed to make it harder for her to keep the smile from lifting her lips.“Are you hungry, honey?Marcy made a chicken casserole.”
“I’ll eat later.We can talk then.”A glance at my aunt earned me a nod from her.“With everyone.”
“Bash, Spider, and your dad are all here,” Aunt Raven assured me.“I’m sure Max will come for Delaney sooner than later.Meet us in your mom’s office in an hour.”
“No, we’ll meet downstairs,” I told her.“I want the office searched before business is discussed there.”
“Sounds like your trip was more productive than planned.”
I shifted my gaze back to the IV in Nishia’s hand.“Obviously, the information didn’t come soon enough.When did she get sick?”
“It happened yesterday,” Mom supplied, and I pressed my lips together.“We were alerted when Marcy couldn’t get Nishia to respond to her knock, and then when she came in to check on her, Nishia was disoriented.Things were a bit crazy after that.Your dad wanted to call you, but I thought it would be too distracting.Worrying you was the last thing any of us wanted, including Nishia.”
I hadn’t gotten Amy’s name out of Fanuco until the early hours of the morning.The bastard had been hard to crack, but once I did, he’d been exceptionally forthcoming.Max and I had decided to wait to tell our dads about what we’d learned until we got back.
Fuck, I should have just killed Julio and focused on Fanuco the entire time.Instead, I’d made Julio pay, not only for his own crimes against Nishia, but Nestor’s as well.
My need to make the other man scream and bleed had put her in more danger, and I hadn’t even known it.
CHAPTERTWENTY
nishia
There wasn’t muchI remembered from the previous night.The fear, the ache to have Jack beside me, all of that still felt raw, but actual memories were nothing but a haze, so that I couldn’t figure out was reality or just something my drug-fogged mind made up.
Gracie didn’t leave me the entire time except for one or two short moments, and each time she did, there was always someone else there.The woman who was introduced to me as Raven Reid, Jack’s aunt, or the sheriff’s wife, Lexa, were usually the ones who stayed with me when Gracie had to take care of something.I didn’t know either woman, yet I felt oddly at ease knowing they were there.
It was an unusual sensation, feeling safe with a complete stranger, yet I could sense that Raven and her daughter were there to protect me, not harm me.It wasn’t the same nurturing feeling I got from Gracie, but I liked it just as much.None of them made me feel as comfortable as Jack, but in my moment of weakness, it was enough to calm me so I didn’t panic.
Other than that, I didn’t remember much else after Marcy had come to check on me the previous evening.Gracie brushing her fingers through my hair as she sat beside me while people talked in hushed voices that I couldn’t understand.Raven and Lexa there to assist her in watching over me, filling me with a sense of safety.Missing Jack…
I didn’t start to understand anything until late morning, and even then, I couldn’t really comprehend what had happened.Deborah had given me my shot the day before and then left.From what little Gracie explained, Deborah had administered the syringe Amy had filled with what was supposed to be my anti-inflammatory.I knew that was a huge no-no, and I wasn’t even in the medical field.But she’d trusted Amy, which was reasonable.
Now Amy was gone, fired, and Deborah was on suspension.Gracie hadn’t kept the results of my tox screen from me when I was able to comprehend what she was saying.The shot I’d been given the day before hadn’t been my medication, but something much, much stronger and twice the dose than what any doctor would have even risked prescribing for me.
I’d nearly overdosed, and it was thanks to Marcy breaking protocol to check on me that I hadn’t vomited in my sleep and choked to death.
Once things calmed down, I was able to analyze it a little better, but some things weren’t adding up for me.I’d come to the conclusion that I hadn’t actually been afraid of Amy.My jealous, territorial instincts to keep her away from Jack had confused me.I hadn’t wanted her near me because I didn’t want her near Jack.He might not have been there, but that didn’t matter.If she was near me, then there was the potential for her being near him, because I knew he would be near me if he were home.
Other than her obsession with Jack, I hadn’t sensed any true animosity toward me from her, but what the fuck did I know?
I’d only just met the woman; it wasn’t like I knew her.
Maybe my fight-or-flight reaction really had been because I subconsciously sensed something off in her.
