Page 62 of Betrayal & New Beginnings

“Anything?”Iasked him.

“Not a word,” he said.

I sighed and ran my hand over my face, part relievedIdidn’t miss anything, but also frustrated that they hadn’t been out to tell us what was going on.Iturned to seeJackstroll up to me.

“Shit circumstances, but glad to see you, man, and really glad you were there to help tonight,”Jacksaid as he walked over to me, and grabbed my hand, and pulled me in for our usual half shake, half hug.

“Where’s my girl?”Iheard yelled from across the room, andIlooked up to seeTammyprowling in like she was on a mission and would kill anyone who got in her way.

She was closely followed byChuck, who looked calm as a cucumber, butIknew that was only on the surface.Histightened fists and hard eyes told another story.Tammycame straight to me.

“How is she?Where’sBeth?Didyou kill that asshole ex of hers?Whatroom is she in?Iwant to go see her,” she asked in rapid fire, but beforeIcould even attempt to answer any of them, a doctor came into the room.

“EllianaHutchinson?” the doctor said to the room.

Almost every one of us in the room spoke up to let the doctor know we were all here for her.Thedoctor gave a small smile and looked at all of us.

“She has multiple contusions on her neck, face, and wrists,” the doctor explained. “There’sswelling around her neck, and while her voice is raspy, there appears to be no permanent damage to her vocal cords.Shealso suffered a mild concussion from the blow to the head.She’sawake now, but we can only let one person back at a time.We’llstart with her fiancé.”Helooked at me, andIassumed the nurse must have passed along my fiancé comment to him. “Thenthe rest of you can come back one at a time only, please.”

“Her what?”Jackalmost yelled asIgot up and went to follow the doctor. “Wait.I’mher brotherI’dlike to see her,” he told the doctor and started to walk to the door.

“She’s asked for her fiancé first, so let’s start with him, and then you can go back,” the doctor explained calmly.

Sheasked for her fiancé?IknewI’dused that term in hopes it would get me extra access to her, but why had she used it?

I could feelJackglaring at me behind my back.Ineeded to talk to him aboutEllie, butIwanted to talk to her first.Theneed to see her myself and know that she was okay was a higher priority than talking toJackat the moment.

The doctor andIcleared the door asIheardJackaskVincewhat the hell was going on.Ifelt a little bad forVincebecauseIwas sure he wasn’t thrilled at having to be the one to tellJackI’dbeen seeing his sister and no one had told him.

“Her bruises are starting to set in,” the doctor explained to me as we walked down the hallway. “Andthe marks are going to be more pronounced than when you brought her in, so just be prepared.Thecops would like to speak with her, butI’llhold them off for a little bit so you can visit with her privately.”Hepointed to the room on the right, andIthanked him before opening the door and going inside.

I walked in quietly and noticed her eyes were closed.Itook the moment to just look her over asIwalked a little closer to her bed.Despiteall the marks on her body and bruises starting to appear, she was still the most beautiful thingI’dever seen.ButGod, seeing her broken like this tore me up.Guilt, sadness, and anger battled inside me, along with so much more.Iclosed my eyes and took a few deep breaths to calm myself.

“I hear myfiancéWadecame in with me,” she said softly and a bit raspy asIopened my eyes to see her looking at me. “Youwouldn’t happen to know anything about that would you,fiancé?”Thegrin on her face grew.

“I’ll admit, it may have started as a white lie to give me access to you thatIotherwise wouldn’t have had, but mark my words, babe, one day youwillwear my ring and that fiancé comment will no longer be anything but the truth.”

She gasped, andIsaw tears start filling up in her eyes.Idecided to go for it and tell her everything so she knewIwas serious.Becausewhen her brother walked in,Iwanted us all to be on the same page.

“You own me,Ellie—lock, stock, and barrel,”Itold her. “You’rethe best thing that’s ever happened to me, andIcan’t lose you.Evenwith all the battlesIfought overseas,Ihave never felt fear penetrate so deep inside me like it did whenIwalked into that room and saw that fucker on top of you, choking you.”

I took a few breaths, trying to calm myself down because the last thingIneeded was to scare her with my anger.

“Come here,” she said, reaching out.

I walked toward her and took her hand in mine, leaning down to cup her cheek with my other hand.

“I love you,WadeWatson,” she told me softly with a smile gleaming on her face.

Damn.Thosewords.Inthat moment,Ivowed to myself to do whatever it took to never see this brave and beautiful woman in this state again.Iwould show her how much she meant to me every day for the rest of my life.

“I love you too, baby,”Itold her and then leaned forward to kiss her.Iwanted to kiss her hard, butIknewIhad to be gentle because of her injuries.

“The hell are you doing to my sister?”Jackgrowled behind me, but beforeIcould fully turn around, another voice spoke up.

“Move it, young man.Ineed to see my girl, and your big head is blocking me,”Tammyall but hollered atJack, using her arms to shove her way around him.

Tammy gasped loudly when she sawEllieand then her face turned red.

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