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“How is she?” I asked, not wanting to hear what I was afraid I was going to hear.
“She’s pretty bruised up. I can’t tell you the extent, because that’s confidential, but Elphyra, she’s going to need some help recovering from this. You have the background to empathize.” By the tone of his voice, it wasn’t good.
“What about Evan?”
“He’s in custody. We’ll make sure he never touches her again. We were careful to take our time and do everything right so when he goes to court, he can’t claim any technicalities.”
I gulped a shallow breath and tried to restrain my anger. I wanted to kill him—to tear him apart. “Thanks, Arnie. You sure you can’t find a ravine to dump…”
I stopped. I didn’t want to say the wrong thing, to add anything to the chance he might go free. But if I could work death magic, Evan Taylor would be six feet under, never to walk the world again. I’d seen too much death, too much torture, too much evil. I wanted vengeance. I wanted justice.
“I know what you were going to say,” Arnie said. “Trust me, if I could oblige, I would. But you and I know that’s not acceptable in society.”
“I know,” I whispered. “If Faron…dies…then Evan has a murder charge on his hands, as well as attempted murder, kidnapping, stalking, and who knows what else.”
“Let’s hope it doesn’t come to that,” he said.
At that moment, the doctor walked into the waiting room.
“I have to go. The doctor’s here. I’ll have him call you about Daisy.”
“Thanks, Elphyra. You’re one of the good ones, you know?” Arnie hung up.
The doctor had good news. Bran and Daisy were both on the mend. We had gotten to them in time. Daisy was still unconscious, but Bran was awake. May encouraged me to go back with her, though I first declined, wanting to give her time with her son.
Bran was lying there, hooked up to the same sort of machines that had been attached to me the night before. His gown was open, his chest showing, and his hair was still pulled back in a manbun.
“Hey,” he said, his voice weak. He looked groggy, but the three IVs attached to him seemed to be making a difference.
May took his hand, kissing it as she leaned over him. “My dear, thank the gods you’re alive and awake. You have Elphyra to thank for that.”
I couldn’t exactly brush off the accolade, because I had been the one to find them, but I didn’t want the spotlight. “Part of the kudos goes to your son, May. If Bran hadn’t reached out and contacted me…I think that’s why I ended up in the basement on the astral plane. He managed to touch my soul.”
His eyes were shining as he stared up at me from the bed. “Thank you—you saved us. Is Bree?—”
“They found her, along with Evan. They’re bringing her into the hospital now,” I said.
He reached for my hand, holding onto May’s with the other. I wrapped my fingers around his hand and a spark raced up my arm, a spark of recognition and understanding. The look in his eyes told me he felt the connection too.
I caught my breath, then let it out slowly. “Bran…thank you for helping. I’m so glad you’re all right.”
“How are you?” he asked, his fingers caressing mine.
“Don’t ask…not right now.” I closed my eyes, enjoying the comfort I felt coming from him. I needed comfort. I needed a shoulder to rest my head against right now. Part of me wanted to climb in the bed with him, snuggle in his arms, and cry for as long as the tears flowed.
“I’ll be back,” I said, squeezing his hand. “I’m going to check on Faron.”
As I left the room, I heard Bran asking May about him.
* * *
Faron was in a quiet,dark room, resting in a bed. He was attached to an array of machines—a ventilator, several IVs, a couple scanners, probably to monitor his heart, blood pressure, and brain functions. He looked so regal and yet, he felt so distant, a long ways away, out of touch.
His brother Kyle was sitting there, to one side. He nodded as I approached the bed. I held onto the rails, unsure whether I should say anything or not, so I turned to Kyle, looking for some sort of answer.
“Follow me,” Kyle said, leading me out of the room.
“I wanted to say something to him, but given they’re trying to minimize his neural activity, I doubt if I should.” I sat down next to his brother, rubbing my head. The headache was getting worse again and I wanted to go home and rest. But I wasn’t leaving till they brought Bree in.
