Page 24 of The Finder

Emma looked around the room, feeling kind of panicky. “I wish I hadn’t been brought here.” What she didn’t say out loud was that she didn’t have money for what she knew would be a hefty hospital bill.

Madison reached out a hand to her shoulder. “You hit your head really hard, Emma. We had to get you checked out,” she said sympathetically. “Speaking of, how is your head? The doctor will want to check on you now that you’re awake. Kyle, can you go tell the nurses she’s awake?” He nodded and left the room.

Emma reached up and felt the spot on the back of her head and winced. “It’s still tender, but I’ll live.” Emma stood to her feet, swaying for a second before she caught her balance. Madison moved in to steady her.

“You shouldn’t probably get out of bed yet until the doctor clears you,” she said gently.

“I can’t stay here any longer,” Emma said. “Where are my clothes?”

“Emma,” Madison tried again. “Please just wait until the doctor gets here to check you.”

“I can’t,” Emma said, panicked. “I can’t stay here any longer. I need to get out of here, and I need to get to work.”

“Emma,” Madison tried one more time.

“Please. I can’t afford to be here,” she finally said and closed her eyes in humiliation.

“Oh, Emma, Garrett’s covering the bill,” she said. “I’m so sorry. I just assumed you would know that. I should have said something.”

Emma looked at her, confused. “Why is Garrett covering the bill?”

“Because it’s his fault this happened to you. He forced you to run away. Men,” she said and shook her head.

Emma suddenly remembered. “Amy and Olivia. I have to tell them what happened,” she said anxiously. She’d let them down when they needed her the most.

“It’s okay,” Madison said in a calm voice. “Garrett got somebody to watch Olivia at Hope House. He explained to Amy what happened. She felt bad for you.” Kyle slipped back into the room at this point.

Emma blinked and stared at Madison in confusion. “He did?” she asked. Madison nodded. Emma looked around the room as if to summon the man. Madison seemed to understand who she was looking for.

“Garrett doesn’t have much of a bedside manner, so we kicked him out,” Madison said. Kyle made a comment Emma couldn’t hear, and Madison elbowed him in the stomach. It didn’t seem to faze him. He just grinned.

“Are you hungry?” Madison asked, changing the subject. “We can order you some room service while we’re waiting for the doctor.”

Emma looked at her. “I need to go to work,” she said stubbornly.

Madison looked at her compassionately. “Emma, I don’t think that’s a good idea. You hit your head pretty hard. It’s going to take a little time to heal. But,” she put her hand up before Emma could argue with her, “let’s wait to hear what the doctor says.”

Emma reluctantly agreed. She sat down on the side of the bed to wait. She didn’t have to wait long. The door opened and a doctor walked in with a clipboard in hand. “Emma,” he said. “How are you feeling?” he asked.

“Pretty good,” Emma said.

“Let's check you out, okay?” he said.

“We’ll wait outside your room, Emma,” Madison said. She and Kyle slipped into the hallway, leaving Emma alone in the room with the doctor.

Chapter 16

The doctor had just started when the door opened and two police officers walked in. Emma startled when she saw them. Her eyes flew to the doctor’s. He looked at her calmly. “Emma, the officers are here to take your statement since you were attacked. I will be back when they finish.” He stood and nodded to the officers and left the room.

Emma watched as the officers crossed the room towards her and felt her panic starting to rise. The door to the room opened again, and Kyle strode into the room confidently. He came and stood next to her. The officers turned to look at him. “We need to speak to the victim alone,” one officer said.

Kyle crossed his arms. “Not happening. She’s my sister, and I'm staying,” he said without an ounce of hesitancy. Emma glanced at the officers. They didn’t like it, but they didn’t fight it.

Emma wondered how they had bought that lie. She and Kyle didn’t look anything alike. She focused her attention back on the officers. “Miss, can you tell us what happened?”

Emma closed her eyes for just a brief moment, trying to collect her thoughts. She glanced at Kyle and noticed he was watching her carefully. Emma got the idea he was worried about what she was going to say. In that instant, Emma decided to just keep the other guys out of it. She wasn’t sure why, but she felt the need to protect them.

Taking a deep breath, she began her story. “I was heading back to where I live yesterday around two fifteen in the afternoon,” she started.

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