Page 72 of Billion-Dollar Attitudes

Carter shook his head. "It made me want to find the sonofabitch faster. And now we'll have the pleasure of pressure from Amber's father on us too. But I'm not letting this go. Whether he left any evidence at the scene or on Amber or not, he'll mess up eventually."

"I just hope it's before he can kill anyone else," I replied.

The evidence team climbed down from the ambulance and gave Carter a nod. "We got some fibers from under her fingernails, but not prints on her mouth. We'll check the tape, but she said he was wearing gloves."

"We're ready to go," the EMT said, leaning in toward me.

Carter nodded. "Go. Get her to the hospital. I'll come by later to ask her some questions, and we'll finish up your interview after. I'm sending some officers over to guard her room as well. They'll be there around the clock."

"Thanks," I said, giving him a hug.

I climbed into the ambulance and sat on the small bench next to the stretcher. The EMT stayed on the other side, monitoring her vitals as we traveled the short distance to the hospital. When we arrived, her father and mother were outside the ER, waiting to escort her in. He shook my hand but didn't look happy. I leaned down and kissed Amber on the forehead, but she didn't look at me. Instead, her face was emotionless, and she stared off in the distance.

"I'm gonna be out here, so your parents can be with you," I whispered. "I'll come in and see you in a bit. You ask for me if you need anything."

I stepped back as they hurried her into ER -- already prepped and ready to get her into x-ray and give her some medicine for the pain. One good thing about having a wealthy father was the hospital would jump through hoops to make them happy. So I wasn't worried about her having the best medical care.

I walked around to the ER waiting room. Two large men stood outside, talking to each other. One of them put their hand up. "I'm Charles, and this is Adrian. We are the private security hired to watch over your fiancé. Did they say whether they would send police as well?"

With a nod, I reached in my pocket and pulled out one of my cards. "Do you have a pen?"

Adrian handed me his. I jotted down Carter's number. "This is the detective on the case. He ordered two officers in rotation to her room. Call him to coordinate. My number is on the other side. If there's an issue, please don't hesitate to call me. Though, I'll probably be in the waiting room until I can go in and see her."

Charles nodded. "Also, Mr. Rothschild asked me to find out if you need any security. He said he would make sure you were protected too."

I shook my head. "I'm fine. And with this attack, the company will probably hire security for me anyway. I appreciate it, though."

"If you change your mind, let us know. We have six men in rotation, and we can move one."

I gave him a tight-lipped smile and shook his hand. "Thanks. Just make sure Amber is okay, and I'll be good."

Guilt flooded me, knowing full well that I had lied to Amber's family and that I was the reason Amber was attacked. Yet still, her father wanted to make sure that I was protected. He had already brought me into the fold, and I had failed to protect his daughter.

I shook my head, sitting down in the waiting room. I rubbed my hands over my face, letting out a deep sigh. My whole life, I had tried to keep a distance from anyone that could break my wall down, and without realizing it, Amber did anyway. And then boom, she was attacked, and anything could have happened. I couldn't take losing her like I lost my girlfriend many years ago. The murderer wouldn't even have to get to me. I'd be done if that happened. And I was pretty sure he already knew that. He knew about our arrangement, my family history, everything. It was like he was right next to me, but I couldn't see him.

I was starting to think the danger was closer to home than I realized.

Chapter Seventeen

Amber

I stared out the window, listening to the steady rhythmic beating of my monitors. My father had me transferred almost immediately to a suite, which they upgraded to the donor's wing as soon as my father wrote them a check. The room was nicer than some of the hotels I had stayed in when traveling around for my father. The bed was an actual bed, not a hospital bed, and my mother had brought in a new comforter and top sheet to lay over me, as well as pillows and pillowcases. She argued about the fitted sheet, but I was too weak from the pain meds to get up to let her change it.

My father and mother had left to go home, change, shower, and eat something. My mother would probably stay behind, but I knew my father would return. He may have been a businessman, but he was a good dad, and I was his princess. It made it all that much harder knowing I was lying to him.

The nurse walked in, smiling. "Hey there. I'm Nurse Kelly, and I'll be with you all day. I see you got some sleep. That's good. Your body needs the rest."

I nodded, slowly turning my head to watch her check my vitals. She hooked up a new bag of saline solution and pulled out three vials. "What are those?"

She smiled. "This one is a more mild pain medicine. I'll alternate between them as long as you're comfortable. This one is an antibiotic, just to ward off any infections of your stitches. And this one is an anxiety medication. The doctor noticed you had several nightmares during your sleep and wanted to help you relax a bit. On the other hand, it might make you a little drowsy…."

I shook my head. "I don't want to sleep."

The nurse paused and sat down on the edge of my bed. "I know you're scared. But there are two huge men outside protecting you, standing next to two armed police officers. Not to mention you are in the donor's wing, which is only accessible with a key card and a code. So any visitors have to be okayed by you, and we show you through a little camera right there."

She pointed at the small screen to my right. I didn't want to sleep again, but I knew I needed to calm my anxiety. I couldn't think clearly with the constant playbacks in my mind. So, after a brief moment of contemplation, I nodded.

The nurse smiled. "Good. I'll come back and give you those. But first, the detective wants to speak with you."

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