AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Burke pinched the bridge of his nose and released a heavy sigh before he lowered his arm. “You’re a lawyer too?” There was no heat in his voice, only frustration.
Dr. Rashid didn’t take his question personally. She smiled gently and patted his arm. “No, but my father is one of the best defense attorneys in the state of Colorado. I’m pretty sure my first spoken words were the lawyer lingo I picked up at the dinner table. I’m also married to a prosecuting attorney. You never want to watch an episode of Law and Order or Grey’s Anatomy with me. I’ll ruin the magic for you.”
“Defense versus prosecution, huh? Your family gatherings must be very interesting,” Nick teased.
“Interesting is one word for it.” She shooed everyone out of her way so she could examine Keegan. Dr. Rashid ordered several lab tests to determine the severity of his condition and determine his treatment.
Keegan looked wild-eyed and mumbled something Cash couldn’t understand, and he looked downright terrified.
Cash returned to his bedside. “Are you afraid of needles?”
Keegan shook his head and beckoned for Cash to come closer. He attempted to speak again and this time Cash understood. Keegan was worried about money.
“I’m not,” Cash told him. “And I’m not just doing this because you took an enormous risk to help me. I offered you my assistance when I saw you at the feed store. Remember?”
Keegan nodded.
“This is me helping anyway I can,” Cash told him. “I just want you to relax and do whatever Dr. Rashid thinks is best for you.”
Keegan inhaled deeply and nodded slowly. “Will you stay?” His voice rasped like dry leaves rasping against pavement.
“Of course.”
“We both will,” Nick told him. “Burke has a case to make against the people who hurt you. And when you’re stable enough to answer questions, your statement will be the icing on the cake.”
Keegan closed his eyes and surrendered to the blood tests. His severe dehydration made it difficult to find a good vein to draw from. It took two different nurses and a vein finder before they achieved success. That paved the way to hook Keegan to IVs to address the dehydration and malnourishment. The nurse also said they could give Keegan tiny sips of water but cautioned they needed to space them every ten minutes. Cash set a timer and encouraged Keegan to take a drink when he was awake.
Dr. Rashid returned with the test results faster than Cash expected. Her somber expression promised the news wouldn’t be good. She attempted a gentle smile to soften the blow before speaking. “I’m going to admit you to the hospital for treatment, Keegan. You’ve barely avoided a crisis with critical organs.” She looked up at Burke. “This is one of the worst cases of neglect and abuse I’ve ever witnessed. It kills me to say this, but you’ll need to wait at least three days before you can interview him.”
“Fair enough,” Burke said, but it was obvious he hated the delay. He gentled his gaze when he looked at Keegan. “Nick’s right. I’ll work my ass off building a case until then. You just get better.” Burke returned his attention to the doctor. “I need him in a private room because I’m putting security on him around the clock.”
Dr. Rashid nodded her approval. “No problem.”
Burke stepped out of the room, presumably to arrange Keegan’s protection. Nick engaged the doctor in a quiet conversation about treatments. But Cash kept his attention on Keegan to see how he reacted to the news. The young man’s chin quivered, and his eyes welled with tears again. For someone who’d just escaped a hellish prison, an extended stay in a sterile hospital room must’ve felt like jumping out of the frying pan and into the fire.
“Hey now,” Cash whispered. “There will be plenty of time for tears, and you sure as hell deserve the time and space to shed as many as you want. But you heard the doc. You’re severely dehydrated, so you should hold on to those tears for now.”
Keegan released a noise that could’ve been a choked sob or an attempt to laugh, but it sounded like an animalistic, mournful whimper. Cash hoped to go the rest of his life without hearing it again. Keegan turned his head, and his expression was just as pitiful. Cash’s heart ached, and he wanted to close his eyes against the pain, but he couldn’t—wouldn’t.
“You will not be alone,” Cash promised. “One of us from the ranch will be by your side for the duration of your stay.” He turned and interrupted Nick and Dr. Rashid. “I’ll pay for a double room just so we’ll have a spare bed to sleep in.”
“I was just discussing that with Agent Scott,” Dr. Rashid said. “We’ll also make sure he’s admitted under a false name. We have protocols for when patients arrive here under these circumstances.” She smiled gently at Keegan. “We won’t let you down.”
Such a thoughtful remark would’ve normally warmed Cash, but his heart stalled when Dr. Rashid addressed Nick by his professional title. Why had he used his FBI credentials while he was on medical leave? Habit? Did he think they’d persuade Dr. Rashid somehow? Technically, he was still an FBI agent until he officially resigned. Had he changed his mind? Cash reined in his wild thoughts and put his attention where it helped most. He turned back to Keegan and noticed he’d fallen asleep again.
“I’ll go upstairs with Keegan.” Cash didn’t know how comfortable he would be with someone else from the ranch in his present state. Keegan obviously cared a great deal for Rue, but he would need a good night’s rest after his ordeal. “We’ll sort the rest out later.”
“I’m not leaving until Burke has a man outside Keegan’s door,” Nick said.
Dr. Rashid held up her hands in surrender. “I’ll let you guys battle it out with the floor nurses. I’ll try to get his admittance pushed so we can get you upstairs quickly.”
“Thank you for everything,” Cash told Dr. Rashid.
“You’re welcome.” She narrowed her eyes and pointed at him, then Nick. “I don’t want to see either of you or anyone else you care about in my ER anytime soon.”
“We couldn’t agree more, Doc,” Nick said.
Once she left, Nick crossed the small gap and placed both hands on Cash’s shoulders. He leaned down and kissed Cash’s cheek. “You’re an idiot,” he whispered.
