Page 106 of Vengeful Guard

I have to do this alone.

I take a deep breath and push the door open. Machines whir and buzz to help my father breathe. He’s hooked up to all kinds of wires.

A sob hitches in my chest.

“Oh, Da.” I sit down in the chair next to his bed.

I take his hand, so cold and swollen from all the fluids they’re giving him. I squeeze it, hoping against hope that he squeezes back.

Of course, he doesn’t.

I put my head down, pressing my forehead to his hand, and start to cry.

28

KAEL

I pace around in the waiting room for what seems like hours before I can’t ignore the rumbling of my stomach anymore. I haven’t been eating or sleeping well since Patrick was shot, and I need to start taking care of myself.

I can’t take care of Paige if I pass out in the waiting room. And taking care of Paige is all I want to do. It’s all I can think about, keeping her safe. I’ve been so focused on protecting her that I haven’t really been able to talk to her, and now it feels strange to have her out of my sight.

But she’s going to be with her father all night, so I have to occupy my time somehow.

I head down to the cafeteria, grabbing myself a burger and fries, and I sit in the lunch area while I eat, watching the doctors come and go.

I recognize Patrick’s doctor, a trauma surgeon, and I can’t help myself from going up to him after finishing my meal. He’s picking at a salad.

“You worked on James Smith, right?”

He looks up at me, eyes widening. “Listen, I don’t want any trouble.”

I frown. “What makes you think I’d start trouble?”

He looks around, and seeing no one around us, he heaves out a breath. “I know who he is. I know who all of you are.”

“Oh,” I say flatly, narrowing my eyes.

Patick is here under an alias because we don’t want anyone knowing how bad he is. If the doctor knows, that can be a problem.

“And I’m no longer Mr. uh, Smith’s doctor. He’s been passed off to a cardiologist for the rest of his care. Dr. Brooks, I think.”

I nod slowly. “Thank you for your time.” I pause. “And thank you for saving his life, even knowing who he was.”

The doctor just nods, and I walk away, feeling uneasy. If the doctor knows who Patrick is, doesn’t that mean that word could get through the grapevine easily? How many people know Patrick is injured?

I pull out my phone to call Declan, and he answers right away.

“Is Paige okay?”

“She’s fine. Sitting with your father now.”

Declan sighs. “Thank god. Everything’s just been so crazy, I automatically assumed...”

“Nothing’s wrong. I just wanted to ask you, is the doctor who worked on him one of ours?”

“No, why?”

“Are we telling people how hurt Patrick is?”

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