Page 56 of The Last Call
“He’s dead.”
Son of a bitch. Phillip’s finally grown a pair of balls that I’m unfortunately going to have to slice off slowly and painfully for defying me. No one dies until I order it or I kill them my damn self. Which is exactly what I wanted to do with Sydney’s bastard father. I guess Phillip can infer the irritation on my face because he jumps in with more details before I can even respond.
“Brain tumor. From the records Mitch accessed, it looks like the cancer was diagnosed in July before Sydney’s senior year and then he died in October.” He scrolls down the screen reading more while I try to calculate the timing from what limited information Syd shared with me. “Aggressive and untreatable. He suffered from headaches, dizziness, confusion, memory loss, and personality changes, so they ran a bunch of tests and found it. Really bad off at the end with paranoia, hallucinations, seizures, and physical attacks against his wife and the hospital staff.”
Fuck. He’s been gone all this time, and she had no idea. God damn. I fall back against the cushion. She’s been berating herself because of someone who literally wasn’t in his right mind. Ruining her life because she thought he didn’t want to talk to her. Destroying herself because she believed he never wanted to see her again.
All of which crushes me because she’s been suffering for no reason. I lean forward again and cup her silky cheek. Comforting her from grief she doesn’t even know about yet. “What about her Mom?”
He taps a few more times. “After he died, she moved to Arizona and lives with her cousin. Works as an aide at the elementary school. Not much else. Doesn’t look like she dates anyone or goes out much. Doesn’t even own a car. Takes the bus to work. Keeps to herself.”
Probably suffering from fucking guilt as well she should be. She may not have been able to keep her husband from breaking Syd’s heart, but she sure as hell could have reached out to her daughter on her own.
“Do you want the guys to go and get her?”
“No. Not yet.”
“Okay. Whatever you want boss.”
His tone isn’t as confident as his words. He’s questioning me. Hell I’m questioning myself. I haven’t really slept in almost five days. I’m fucking exhausted. My damn head is pounding, and sometimes I literally can’t see straight. Wavy lines rolling in front of my eyes marring my view of my lion. But I’m not sure if I can sleep even if I tried.
“One more thing. Detective Clark is on his way up for you to sign your statement.”
Fucking great. Dumb ass is just trying to annoy me because he can’t pin anything on me. Ironic that I’m actually innocent this time. Except for failing my lion. It should fucking be me in that bed instead of her. “I don’t want him in here with her. Find a place for us to meet so I can get it over with.”
“Will do.”
The quiet, red-haired nurse sweeps in with her cart of supplies as my captain leaves. Her gaze locked on her towels refusing to look at or address me. I know she’s terrified, but I think she’s naturally timid too. Which is fine. I’m not in the mood to talk either. She can bathe lion while I take care of this prick. Relieved she won’t be alone while I’m gone.
Motherfucker stalls for as long as he can. Making a lot of lame insinuations and daring me to challenge him with a bunch of bullshit insults. I let all of his antics roll off me until he finally gives up and shoves the tablet across the desk to sign. Not that I can claim to be that tolerant but despite how spent I am I have enough wits about me not to get my ass hauled downtown. Don’t want to waste a fucking second waiting for my lawyer and the cops on my payroll to garner my release when I should be with Syd.
I toss the stylus toward his disappointed face and stride away. Missing her so much my body actually hurts. Fire hotter than hell blazes through my muscles as I sprint closer to her room. The door is open. The door is never fucking open. Privacy. Noise. Germs. I’m not sure why but the damn door is never open. And her bed is never empty.
She’s gone.
The woman I love is gone.
Just crumpled sheets and quiet machines remain behind.
Hell the fuck no.
I spin back around. Scanning both directions of the hallway. Nothing and no one. Pain radiates out from my chest, and I can’t catch my breath but I keep moving. I keep running to find my lion. My shoes pounding on the white tile. My pulse pounding in my ears. My heart pounding against my rib cage.
Around the corner, the first doctor I fired stares at a tablet. His thick black glasses perch on the edge of his nose before they smash to the floor when I grab him. Shoving him against the wall with my forearm jammed in his throat. I push and push until his eyes bulge from the force. Clawing at my skin and kicking at my legs. “Where the fuck is she? Where the fuck is Sydney?”
He tries to shake his head. A slight movement fighting against my weight crushing his windpipe. He’s out of his god damn fucking mind to think I’m going to accept he doesn’t know. Or that he’s not going to help me find her.
Hands grip my shoulders. My arms. My waist. Pulling me off of him. My damn men have the fucking audacity to try and stop me from fucking killing him. Fucking killing anyone who keeps her from me.
I swing out. Clipping Bex in the jaw and then Tobias in the gut. Before Phillip’s voice booms through the chaos. “She started coming to and freaked out. They’re sedating her and repairing the damage to her wound from her fighting them.”
Coming to.
Freaked out.
Fighting them.
Lion. My body sags as my weary mind races to catch up. To understand the meaning of his explanation. To revel in the relief of his description.
