Page 67 of Shattered Hope
“When can I see her?” I asked, rushing my fingers through my hair.
“Not yet, but I will let you know when the doctors allow it,” she warned me. “Tell me. The man who did this… did the police get him?” she asked, after a brief pause.
“Yes, they did.”
“Good. Why don’t you get yourself some coffee and wash up a little? I’ll get you a clean shirt,” she offered, pointing at my bloody sweater.
I sighed and closed my eyes for a moment, the adrenalin rush starting to disappear, leaving behind the stress and tiredness. “Thank you. I would appreciate that.”
She nodded and jumped up from her chair to grab a clean scrub from a shelf nearby. “There’s a bathroom down the hall, and the cafeteria is right after it.”
I nodded and headed to the bathroom. No wonder the nurse asked me to wash up. I looked as if I had come out of a bloody scary movie, with blood all over my sweater, hands, and face. Some of it was Hudson’s, but most of it was from when I picked Ailani up from the floor.
Resting my hands on the bathroom counter, I closed my eyes and took a few breaths, clinging to the thin threads of my shattered self-control.
Guilt and regret gnawed at me mercilessly as images of her battered body kept replaying through my mind. If I had listened to her, I might have been able to protect her, to keep her safe from Hudson.
I had allowed my jealousy and hurt pride to dictate my actions. Because of it, she had fallen into the bastard’s clutches.
Pulling my thoughts together, I forced myself to focus on Ailani and not my feelings. I would have plenty of time to dwell on them when she was out of the hospital.
With the scrubs on, and as cleaned as possible, I went for a cup of coffee. My phone hasn't stopped buzzing ever since I got here, but I wasn’t ready to answer calls that didn’t come from the police or the hospital.
When I went back to the ER waiting room, I was feeling a little bit better.
Marilyn, the reception nurse, called me when I walked by to let me know they were taking her to the OR. The doctors confirmed she had several broken ribs, and some needed to be put back in place before they could do more harm.
“This will take a while. Try to get some rest, I’ll call you when she’s out of the OR,” Marilyn suggested.
“Thank you. I’ll be around.”
I took a seat in the waiting room and only then started to answer the calls. I called my mother first. I knew she would want to know if I had found Ailani, and after spending a few minutes telling mother; she would be alright, without getting into details, I was finally able to end the call.
I was about to call Brad when Josh barged into the ER.
I jumped to my feet, frowning. “What happened?”
“Nothing… just came to let you know we’re staying at a motel in town. Hudson is in custody and waiting for his bail hearing,” he explained. “The local police charged him with attempted murder, rape, and aggravated assault. They are sending a detective, later on, to take your statement and Ailani’s when she’s up to it. The prosecutor will ask the judge not to grant bail, but we’re not sure if the judge will agree.”
“I’ll ask Brad to send the prosecutor all the information we have on Hudson. That might help,” I said in a dark tone. “He will leave the country if he’s granted bail.”
“I agree with you, and I’ve told the prosecutor all we know about him. My boss authorized us to stay here until after the bail hearing, in case he walks out. She’ll need protection if he does,” Josh pointed out.
“You think he’ll come after her?” I asked, worried.
“I’m sure of it. You should have heard him after you left, the way he cursed her and threatened her… the man is obsessed with her. He will do all in his power to get her back and finish what he started.”
“Did you record that?”
“We’re not wearing our body cameras since we weren’t sure we were in a official investigation, but I recorded him with my cell phone and sent the video to the prosecutor,” Josh explained. “It has little legal value, but it might be enough for the judge to consider him a threat to Ailani and keep him behind bars until the trial.”
“You don’t sound convinced,” I pointed out.
“The judge is a war veteran. The minute he finds out Hudson was a SEAL; he might be tempted to trust the man’s word. I wish we could take the son of a bitch back to Seattle, but there isn’t much we can do at this point,” Josh explained, in a stern tone.
“Please, keep me informed,” I asked him.
“Of course. I’ll call you right after the hearing,” he assured me.
