Page 91 of The Masquerade: Room 2

“Fuck.” His response only gives credence to what I’ve suspected from Pierce’s ramblings during his nightmares. Something triggered him tonight.

“I don’t know if he threw the first punch.”

“There’s surveillance in the hospital, right?” he asks with such cold precision.

“Yes, Sir.”

“Who do I need to talk to to get it?”

“The Chief of Surgery is your best bet. He’s a good friend of Daddy’s. I mean Pierce. I’m sorry.”

“Don’t ever apologize to me for showing your love for Pierce. I’m elated that he’s happy with you.”

“I can contact Dr. Milligan. I’ll go back to the hospital.”

“No. You wait here. Pierce is going to want to see your face when Naddie gets him out of here. I’ll go and speak with Dr. Milligan.”

“Do you think your wife will be able to get him out tonight? The thought of him in there makes me sick to my stomach. I don’t know what provoked the fight, but I know him, and the guy must really have deserved it.”

“Has Pierce ever talked to you about his childhood?”

“Not really, but I have suspicions. He has nightmares.” I won’t say more than that. It’s not my place.

“He’ll open up eventually. Just hang in there. He’s a good man.”

“You don’t have to sell me on him, Mr. Callaghan. He’s the love of my life.”

“Call me, Dalton. Now, I’m going to go and get us that surveillance footage and see about getting Pierce out in the next few hours.”

“Thank you so much… Dalton.”

“You’re welcome. If Naddie comes out, tell her where I went.”

“I will.”

The moment he’s out the door, a silent sob racks my entire body as I drop my head in my hands. How did we get here? And how are we going to get out of this?

Whatever happens, I’ll be by Daddy’s side. He’s mine, and nothing he could ever do would change that fact. A calmness washes over me at the realization. He’s mine.

Chapter 19

PIERCE

“Are you going to tell me what happened so I can get you out of here?” Dalton’s wife, Nadia, sits across from me, her eyes flitting to the handcuffs that chain me to the desk.

“He got a fraction of what he deserved,” I say with cold detachment. If only I’d separated my personal feelings from my patient today, I wouldn’t be in this predicament.

“Start talking, Pierce.”

“What do you want me to say? I hit the guy. He deserved it. If he’d picked on someone his own size, we wouldn’t be having this conversation.”

“But we are. So start at the beginning.”

“One of the residents came to the operating room to tell me they needed me in the ER for a patient. A young boy with major head trauma.”

“Okay. What happened next?”

“I assessed him. His mom was screaming and begging us to help him. She had some bruises on her cheek… a perfect handprint. The boy needed surgery for a suspected brain bleed. The resident brought me his films, and there was more than enough evidence of old injuries and breaks to confirm he was being severely abused.”

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