Page 88 of Phoenix Rising

The next few hours dragged on for an eternity. Reese’s boss from the FBI arrived. Technically, he’d been hers, too, when she’d worked for the Bureau, though Reese had been her direct supervisor. He’d encouraged her to stay after the Wanda Bunker incident. She greeted him and exchanged pleasantries.

He brought a crew of public relations personnel with him. Reese was being hailed as a herofor bringing down two wanted criminals, though when the FBI arrived, they’d only known about Richard Caraway. William Rian Farmington had been a pleasant shock. It was a strange coincidence that two wanted killers lived in the same zip code. Audria was sure a hefty promotion and raise would be offered.

Audria’s bosses also sent a team from TKO Productions to handle the media onslaught that came with not one but two significant busts. Three wives of her coworkers owned the company: Taylor Hudson Costa, Kendall Buckley Demarchis, and Olivia Larrson Mylonas. Sadly, she and her coworkers would also be forced into giving interviews. She hated that part of it, but it was worth it to give credit to the company and the people who didn’t doubt her when she doubted herself. She owed them more than she could ever repay, so a few minutes of her life singing their praises was worth it.

The nurse who assisted her earlier came over. “Mr. Reneau’s doctor will speak to you now.”

Audria didn’t want to go alone and was relieved when Christian stood and accompanied her. The nurse opened the door to a small room and turned on the light. “Dr. Marshall will be right with you . . . oh, here she is now.”

A tall woman in a white coat with dark hair twisted into a bun and black-rimmed glasses thanked the nurse and closed the door, trapping them inside. Or at least that’s how Audria felt. She suddenly couldn’t breathe.

“Mr. Reneau is out of surgery. Both bullets were through-and-throughs, and he was lucky. There was no significant damage. One nicked his scapula, but it didn’t break. We cleaned everything up in there. He should make a full recovery. He will need to rest for a couple of weeks to recuperate, and I’d like him to stay here for a few days to make sure there are no complications from blood loss.”

The doctor said other things, but Audria was stuck on one sentence.He should make a full recovery.Tears of relief stung her eyes, surprising her. She wasn’t a crier. It pained her to know that if they’d been wearing their Kevlar vests, he wouldn’t be in the hospital. They thought they’d captured the person responsible for the crimes and removed them. Plus, they’d been at the police station for hours. What kind of psycho would wait outside that long for them to exit? William Rian Farmington, that was who. She cleared her throat. “Can we see him?”

Dr. Marshall stood. “The FBI has arranged for him to be moved to a private room with security. They were afraid paparazzi might try to sneak in.”

Good. Reese didn’t need the hassle of pushy media types wanting a sound bite or snapshot. He needed to concentrate on getting better.

When she and Christian returned to the waiting room, they filled Talia and Hunter in on the news. Both were relieved to know he would be okay. Hunter and Christian approached the group of cops gathered for Detective Beaumont to see if there were any updates.

Audria turned to Talia. “I haven’t had a chance to ask you about Tilly. How is she holding up?”

Talia sighed. “Not well. She saw her brother fly through the air and hit the ground. Despite being a murderous monster, she did not know that about him and loved him unconditionally. She was still in shock when I left her.”

“I can’t believe he knew she was inside the building he’d wired to explode, and instead of protecting her, he tried to save himself.”

Talia shook her head. “When it came down to it, the only person Elijah cared about was Elijah.”

“If Christian hadn’t found his garage, he would’ve escaped.”

“Yes,” Talia agreed. “We would have found him again, but he is where he belongs now—

burning in the fiery pit of hell.”

“What will happen to Tilly?”

“One good thing her worm of a brother did was to make sure she was set for life. He might have forced Josiah Porter to sign over his money and then killed him, but I hope his will is legal and will stand up in a court of law.”

“Me too. Will Tilly stay here?”

“Hunter and I have discussed it, and as much as I would like to move her close to the compound, she loves it here. She feels like they have become her family. I do not want to uproot her again since that is what Elijah did to her all her life. We are going to talk to a lawyer to become her legal guardians.”

Audria knew they would make sure Tilly was cared for and happy for the rest of her life. The instant she told them she wasn’t, they’d move heaven and earth to have her close to them.

Hunter and Christian returned. Hunter shook his head. “Still no word on Detective Beaumont.”

Fifteen minutes later, a nurse gave them Reese’s room number, and they took the elevator to his floor. It was easy to spot his room. It was the one with an armed guard. They had to show their identification and sign a clipboard. The cop said nothing when they all piled inside.

Audria’s heart stuttered seeing Reese’s pale face, with tubes sticking out of his body. His chest was bare except for a large bandage around his left shoulder. The blanket only came up to his belly button. He had to be cold. She hurried forward and arranged it to cover him. She glanced up at Christian. “What?”

He shook his head innocently. “Nothing. His blood pressure is strong.” He hitched a thumb at the monitor beside the bed.

The door opened, and a nurse came inside. “There are entirely too many people in here.”

“You guys go back to the house. I’ll stay here with him.”

“We’ll return in the morning,” Hunter said as Talia hugged her. She waved to them, and after the nurse had checked his vitals and left, she pulled up a chair. Audria glanced around. It looked as if he’d been given the best room in the place, as he should have since he was a hero. It was a corner one with windows on two sides and plenty of space. The television was larger than the ones she remembered being in hospitals. He loved sports, so she turned it on and found a game, lowering the volume so it didn’t disturb him.

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