Page 56 of Hush (Fighting Fate)

I watched Mitch disappear into the darkness outside before turning back to the officer. His gaze was on the floor as he walked, but it was unseeing and distant, and his head was turned slightly to the side like he wanted to turn back to see Mitch again.

My frown deepened. If I didn’t know any better, I’d say they knew each other, but that would have to be impossible. Didn’t it? Well, at least in a friendly capacity anyway. The officer looked to be around my mom’s age.

I shook my head a little. I had to be seeing things. There was no way that could’ve just happened. They were complete opposites. No. I was just tired. That had to be it.

Just when I was about to convince myself I had to have been wrong, the officer turned and gazed out the way he’d come, and the pride I saw in his expression hit me like a wrecking ball.

What. The. Fuck? My head was suddenly reeling, frantically searching for the meaning of it all.

Why the hell would an officer of the law look at Mitch like that? It just didn’t make any sense. There just wasn’t a scenario I could come up with that would have a police officer look at Mitch with pride.

Was I not seeing something in Mitch that I should be? I knew I was constantly at war within myself when it came to figuring him out. God, my romantic side was always fighting so hard to make me believe he was a good guy, but I thought it was just my way of making excuses for having feelings for a criminal.

A wall immediately went up with that thought and I instantly pushed it away. No. I felt it deep inside me. Mitch was good. He was just in a shitty situation.

Then something clicked. Little bits of pieces falling into place like tumblers in a lock.

My breath caught. Holy shit. What if he was a good guy? Like, for real? Surely he couldn’t be? But it made so much sense. The need to protect me. The hate I saw towards Pock and Ken. It was all there.

Jesus Christ. Surely Mitch couldn’t be a cop.

I sat in a state of shock the whole time Mitch was gone. I just couldn’t wrap my head around it, but it made so much sense.

When I saw him come back in through the doors, I almost panicked. I didn’t know how to pull myself together enough to appear normal. He would know the minute he saw me.

“Miss Williams?”

I turned at the sound of the nurse’s voice.

“You’re okay to go up now if you want, but you’ll have to be quick.”

I nodded, thankful she was giving me time before I had to face Mitch fully. “Thank you. I will.”

As I stepped away, Mitch caught me, handing me the jacket. “Here, take this with you. I’ll wait here for you.”

All I could do was stare and nod. Taking the jacket off him, I turned for the lift.

Mom was asleep again, just like Dr. Miller said she would be, but this time I was relieved. I was too shaken up to talk to her. I spent the entire fifteen minutes they’d given me calming myself down.

It wasn’t that I was stressed over the thought of Mitch being a cop. If he was, then I was relieved. It meant my instincts about him were good. What made me panicked about it was realizing the whole situation with TJ was a big deal. Mitch was putting himself in danger being in TJ’s gang every single day – and now even more so, just to protect me. The thought nearly made me cry.

Giving Mom one last kiss on the cheek, I pulled Mitch’s jacket tighter around me, inhaling the scent I now associated with feeling safe, and went to find him.

He stood the second he saw me step out of the lift and came to meet me halfway. I swallowed as I stared into the vibrant blue of his eyes. I wondered what color his real eyes were. Not knowing was kind of tormenting.

“How is she?” he asked.

It was amazing how differently I looked at him now. It wasn’t because I didn’t think he cared before. It was because now the doubt about his sincerity was gone, I could see how genuinely concerned he was.

I gestured for him to walk with me, and we slowly made our way towards the exit. “She’s okay I guess. I think her doctor’s purposely keeping her dosage of morphine up because he knows if she’s conscious she’ll just choose to go home instead of staying to heal.”

We walked back out into the warmer night air, our bodies so close our hands kept brushing against each other’s. I probably could’ve taken his jacket off, but I wanted to keep it on for as long as I could.

“How bad are her injuries?”

I could hear the anger in the depth of his voice. He wasn’t going to like my answer. “She’s got a few broken ribs, a broken wrist, and had to have ten stitches to close up a cut on her temple. Apparently there’s quite extensive bruising on her back as well, but I haven’t seen it. I don’t think I want to either.”

I felt, rather than saw, Mitch tense beside me. Giving him a quick glance, I confirmed my suspicions when I saw his jaw tensed tightly and his hands clenched into fists. He ran his hand over his short hair.

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