Page 72 of Provoke You

“I think so. There are three girls that were admitted at the hospital since eleven. One of them fits Ela’s description,” he said as soon as I slammed the door shut.

“What? You found her? Next time, lead with that.” I crossed my arms over my chest, itching to climb out of the car already. When he parked outside the safe house, he killed the ignition and went inside without saying another word. I followed him to the back room, which looked like it’d been hit by a hurricane.

“Where is she?”

“Well, it’s only a lead. I’m headed over to the hospital to check it out.”

“I’m coming with you.” Why the hell did we even leave the car?

Kitt listened for any sounds in the house. If I’d had my shit together, I would’ve done the same. After several minutes, my heartbeat slowed down to a normal beat and I met his gaze. He nodded and smiled.

“Okay, but I’m driving. Boss, you need to cool off.” He wasn’t wrong, but when it came to Ela, it was hard to find any kind of control.

On the way to the hospital, I texted Chase to let him know we had a lead. Thank fucking God showed up almost instantly on my screen. When we had no luck looking for her at the local bars, he’d gone to the police to see if they’d had received any calls. His next stop would’ve been the morgue.

Kitt dropped me off at the main entrance. He drove away, and I used all my training to calm the fuck down. Nothing I did at this point would change the outcome of what was waiting for me inside. I darted to the reception desk.

“Morning. Could you check if Ela LeBlanc was admitted last night?”

She shook her head without looking at her screen, as if she had already checked. “I spoke to you earlier. I don’t have anyone with that name, but if you give me a minute, I can see if they’re ready for you upstairs to identify the patient.”

“Thank you,” I said. I didn’t bother to correct her to let her know she spoke to Kitt and not me. I paced the length of the lobby for what had to be hours before she called out to me with a smile on her face.

“They’re ready for you. Take the elevator behind you to the fifth floor. A nurse will meet you there. Here.” She handed me a sticker with Kitt’s name printed on it. Again, I didn’t bother correcting her. I pressed the name tag on my chest and darted to the elevator bay.

A nurse who looked tired and very happy to see me met me as soon as I walked onto her floor. “I’m sorry to make you come all the way out here without confirmation, but since the patient has no ID on her, we can’t confirm anything over the phone.”

“So she’s here?” My hands turned cold with relief. She was alive.

“I have someone here who claims to be Ela LeBlanc.” She ushered me to a room three doors down from the nurses’ bullpen. “She had a rough night. It’s best if we let her rest for now. But go on and take a peek.”

I blew out air, using the threshold for support. The woman on the hospital bed didn’t look like the Ela I knew, but it was her. “Yes. That’s Ela LeBlanc.”

“Are you a relative?” She glanced down at her clipboard and made notes.

“No. I’m her boyfriend.” The word sounded so alien to me. “What happened to her?”

Suddenly, I was nine years old again, looking up at a nurse’s face, asking if Mom would be okay this time. She walked around me and closed the door to Ela’s room.

“I’m new here. But it seems she’s been here more than once for the same thing. Alcohol poisoning. It’s a miracle she’s alive. The young man who brought her in was also drunk. He thought she was dead. I think they met up outside the Carousel Bar.”

The image she painted of Ela wasn’t the Ela I’d gotten to know in the past few weeks, though it matched her Instagram persona perfectly. Was it possible? Was Ela so distraught about the sale of the Baroness that she decided to ditch us to get a drink with a friend? I ran a hand through my hair. Why would she do this to herself?

“You look like you could use some rest yourself. Why don’t you go home and come back in a few hours? She needs to sleep it off anyway. We’re keeping her hydrated, and she should be stable by tonight.”

Her words were like a jackhammer in my brain. I didn’t want to hear them. I wanted her to stop talking like that about Ela. This wasn’t her. I took several steps toward the elevator, then stopped to text Kitt and Chase. She’s here. I’m staying until they release her later today.

Both of them replied, but I didn’t bother to read the messages. I dropped the phone in the pocket of my jacket, feeling numb. My mind and body switched to auto mode. I walked to Ela’s room, removed my coat, and sat in the visitors chair next to her bed.

I squinted at the bright lights, the light blue curtains on the window with blinds underneath. The room felt familiar, and I realized I could be in the same hospital where Dad used to take Mom whenever she OD’d. I would sit with him in a vinyl-upholstered chair and wait for her to open her eyes.

Ela stirred in her bed, her face flushed and lips dry. Her hair was wet and shiny. The scene played in my head even though I tried to chase it away with happier memories. Mom in the shower with Dad as she puked her guts out. He’d stay in there with her, both fully clothed, and let the water wash away an entire day of drinking. I was only nine years old, but every detail was vivid in my mind. Years of therapy never made those details blur. I was never able to paint over them.

Ela moved again, and I stepped back, afraid to touch her or mess with the needles and tubes sticking out of her arm. No matter how much liquid they infused into her, she still smelled of alcohol. The whole room wreaked of it. That was something her body had to process on its own. Until then all I could do was sit in my chair and wait. Why would she do this to me?

My eyes drooped closed, and I relaxed against the wooden armrests. The room grew dark for a moment, then came back to focus with a loud slam against Ela’s door. I jerked to my feet and met Ela’s dad’s gaze. Great. Just what she needed.

“I thought you’d left town. I’m glad you stayed to get a good taste of what I have to deal with on a weekly basis.”

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