“I will.”

He leaves me at the door, and I walk into the dimly lit room and over to Winnie’s bedside. There’s an uncomfortable-looking chair there and I pull it closer and take a seat. I take her hand in mine and stare at her, taking in all of the red marks, bruises, and cuts. Her wrist is bandaged and her left arm is in a sling.

I hate seeing her like this. I hate that she was hurt at all, but at least the men who came after her and her property have been dealt with. I just hope this is the end of whatever is going on in town.

Winnie starts to stir in the hospital bed, and I lean forward, wanting to be closer to her.

“Hey, take it easy,” I tell her when she starts to sit up.

“Aldis?” She croaks, and I nod.

“It’s okay, Red. You’re okay,” I promise her.

“What happened?” She asks, wincing as she shifts in bed.

“What do you remember?”

“I was getting to work when someone came up behind me. I hit my head when in I was in the van. Then my shoulder and arm,” she says, trailing off as she reaches up to touch her forehead gingerly.

I swallow down my anger and the feeling of helplessness and nod for her to go on.

“I couldn’t get away or scream for help. He had his hand over my mouth,” she says, and I can tell by the faraway look in her eyes that she’s reliving everything.

“Then the one guy threw me in the back of a van and I couldn’t get out. There wasn’t a handle inside,” she tells me, her voice rising with panic.

“I heard you coming. All of the bikes,” she whispers, and I nod.

“I’ll always come for you,” I promise her, and she nods, tears sparkling in her eyes.

“I know. I was thinking that when I heard the bike. I knew that you would rescue me.”

I squeeze her hand and she gives me a weak smile.

“What happened? I remember the van running into the trees, but not much after that.”

I debate telling her that we killed the men and the MC took them and the van to dispose of. Can she handle it? She’s strong, and she deserves to know the truth, so I swallow hard and tell her what happened from my point of view.

“I’ve had someone watching Furry Haven since the fire. I needed to make sure that you were safe.”

She nods, and I go on.

“They called when you got to work and saw you being attacked. I was just headed into work so I turned around and came to Furry Haven with the rest of the MC right behind me.”

“Thank you. I’ll have to thank them too.”

“I’ll tell them.”

“What happened after I was unconscious?”

“The guys tried to run. The van had stalled out,” I explain. “We caught them and… took care of them. They won’t be bothering you again.”

“Are they dead?” She whispers, and I give her one stiff nod.

“Good,” she whispers, surprising me.

“I’m so glad you’re okay,” I tell her, and she smiles. “I don’t know what I would do without you.”

“You don’t have to find out,” she says, and I grin.