Justice for Breeze

by Melissa Kay Clarke

  "We're staying until Lily can go Home," she stated even as she fought to keep her eyes open.

  "Lily?" Adeline glanced up in confusion.

  "Breeze calls Sarah that," Hayden clarified. "And she calls Lorelei, Gaia."

  "Why?"

  "Because that's their names," Breeze bit back. Unraveling herself, she gently tugged at the child. "Come on Gaia; you've played with the dog enough. Come sit with me again."

  Gaia sighed heavily but stood. "Okay, Bees." She climbed up into the seat next to her and laid her head on Breeze's side.

  There was a ding coming from Hayden's pocket. She drew out her cell phone and glanced at it. A smile lit her face. Turning to the others, she lifted the object in her hand. "He's here."

  Breeze drew her arms around herself and watched the door for whomever was coming. There was something about the way Hayden spoke that brought a return of the goose bumps on her arms. She rubbed them gently. From anticipation that filled the room, she couldn't help but wonder who it was and what it would mean for her and more importantly, for Gaia?

  Chapter 5

  The scene outside the hospital was a miniature nightmare. Local news vans filled the lot and a small sea of reporters crowded the entrance. Barging through, Finch ignored the questions and followed TJ to the elevators, anxious to get upstairs as quickly as possible. Normally, he was patient but the time apart from Lolly weighed heavily upon him. He would feel better once he had her in his arms again. Glancing up at the numbers that slowly climbed over the door, he muttered to himself as they changed. "Come on, come on," he muttered impatiently.

  "Whoa, man, calm down." Beside him, his friend and fellow teammate, Hudson "Railroad" Houseman gripped his shoulder and squeezed.

  "My friend, Hayden, is with her," TJ told him. "She's a Sheriff's deputy. Your daughter is fine."

  "Yeah, I know." And he did, on some basic level, know she was fine. But she wouldn't be really fine until he had his arms around her again.

  "Thanks for coming with me, Rail. I know you didn't have to."

  "No, I didn't have to, but I wanted to. The others would have come, too; you know that. Brothers to the end."

  "Yeah, I know. Remind me to thank Miley and Annabeth for grabbing us some stuff and shipping it to San Antonio."

  "We'll have to do something nice for them," Railroad agreed. "I'm a little afraid of what's going to be in the box, to be honest."

  "Me too. I'm hoping they've forgiven me for keeping them in the dark about Lolly."

  "They both know how important this is for you, Finch. Everyone is grateful that she's been found. We may pick on you about keeping secrets, but in the end, we're family." He nodded at TJ. "Thanks for letting them ship it to you."

  "No problem."

  The ride up continued in silence. Finch rubbed his chin with his fingers, feeling the stubble that clung there. Part of him wished he could have shaved, but he had been in too much of a hurry. He had hoped to catch a nap on the plane, but it hadn't panned out. He could go for days on little sleep - it was trained into him for missions, but coming off a rough one, added to the emotional stress of Sarah and Lolly's being found, was taking its toll on him. He knew he would crash soon, but not before seeing his little family. Thankfully, Railroad had taken care of a hotel for them on the way over. He was too focused to think about it right now.

  The bell dinged, and Finch was pushing his way out the door before it was completely open. Hesitating in the hall, he looked both ways, unsure which way to go. "Right. At the end of the hall take a left," TJ pointed the way.

  Barely keeping himself from running, Finch hurried as fast as he dared, muttering his apologies when he accidentally bumped into a young couple staring at their phones. Taking the last turn, he saw the double doors leading into the Intensive Care Unit and beside it, the waiting room. Stepping inside the room, his eyes flickered over the people assembled there. Several had stood when he entered, but returned to their seats when they realized he was not a medical professional. His gaze stopped when he found what he was looking for. In the furthermost corner, several women watched him, including one sitting in the floor with a large black Labrador beside her. He didn't think twice about them. Instead, all of his attention centered on the slight form curled up in one of the big lounge chairs that littered the room. Approaching slowly, he stopped next to the dog and knelt on one knee. He ached to reach out, to touch his daughter's arm and verify that this wasn't one of the many dreams he'd had since she went missing. Instead, he curled his fingers and rested his hand on his knee.

  "Lolly-pop?" The woman on the floor got up and pulled her dog out of the way. "Hey, there, baby. Do you remember me?"

  The little girl canted her head to the side a moment then grinned. "Yush. You're my Daddy."

  Finch's heart exploded with those words. Lolly remembered him! He held out his arms, and she jumped into them, wrapped her arms around his neck and hugged him tightly. He closed his eyes and held on tighter. There was no way he was going to let her out of his sight for a while. Just having his daughter in his arms again went a long way in soothing the fear that had clamped on him since he received the message Sarah was leaving.

  "Daddy, you were losted," Lolly admonished him. Leaning back, she put her little hands on his cheeks and scrutinized him carefully. Leaning in, she kissed him on the nose. "Don't get losted again."

  Finch couldn't help it. He chuckled at her innocent words. "I'll try my best."

  She grinned. "'kay." She hugged him again then blew a raspberry on his neck. "I splurburt you, Daddy," she giggled.

  She remembered their little routine. Just when he thought his heart couldn't fill anymore, she made it swell again. He blew a raspberry on her cheek. "I splurburt you, too, Lolly-pop."

  "That tickles," she laughed loudly.

  "That means they are working," he told her. "Do you remember what a splurburt is for?"

  "Uh huh. It delivers kisses to your heart. Mommy told me every day." Her smile turned serious. "Mommy is sick."

  "I know, baby. The doctors are working on making her feel better."

  Her big blue eyes filled with tears. "Make Mommy feel better, pease."

  He swallowed a lump that filled his throat. "We're trying, baby."

  "Okay. Sing my song?"

  Finch swallowed hard. Not only did she remember him, she remembered he used to sing Lollipop to her every night before bed. "I'll sing it tonight before bed. Is that okay?"

  "Yush. Can I see the doggie, Daddy?"

  "I don't know..."

  "Coco is a gentle service animal. They are already good friends," the woman beside the dog said softly.

  "Okay," he capitulated and let her squirm out of his embrace. She sat down beside Coco and began to pet and talked to him.

  He felt a hand on his shoulder and looked up. Railroad stood beside him. "They're letting people in to visit now. Do you want to go in?"

  He looked at the little angel at his feet, torn between the need to keep her in sight and the need to see Sarah. He already knew they wouldn't let her go into the back with him.

  "I can't..." he started as worry sunk into his heart.

  "You trust me, right?" Railroad waited for his nod.

  "With my life."

  "All right, go see Sarah. I'll be right here. She's playing with the dog, and I swear to you on my life I will not let her out of my sight for a second. Go on; she's safe." Railroad lifted his chin toward the door where several people were now moving into the ICU rooms.

  Finch nodded. Leaning over, he kissed his fingers then pressed them to Lolly's blonde curls. "I'm going to go see your mommy for a few minutes. This is my friend, Railroad. He's going to stay with you until I get back."

  She raised her eyes and grinned. "Okay, Daddy." Throwing her hand up, she waved. "Hi, I'm Lolly." Her head canted to the side and she pointed to TJ. "I 'member you."

  "I remember you, too, Miss Lolly."

  "We f ends," she agreed then returned her attention to the d
og.

  Finch hesitated a moment at the door, then forced himself to leave his daughter to go see Sarah. If it were anyone else, he wouldn't have been able to do it. However, his team was closer to him than his family. He knew Railroad would give up his own life rather than let anything happen to her. Making up his mind, he turned to go see Sarah. Afterward, he'd take his daughter to the hotel room to get some rest. Once he had his head on straight, he wanted to talk to the woman that had been found with them. He needed answers, and he hoped Breeze could give them to him.

  Breeze realized her mouth was hanging open, so quickly snapped it shut. The man who had just left to see Lily was huge, much bigger than the ones who lived back Home. Not even Coal, who kept an eye on everyone, was muscled up like this man. Even as big as he was, she couldn't help but see that he cared for Gaia a great deal and she for him as well. She remembered Lily talking about the man that was her daughter's father, and Gaia had asked to see her Daddy on numerous accounts, but some part of her didn't think they were that close. How wrong she had been! It was painfully obvious she adored him and him, her.

  He was tall, handsome with intense eyes that took in everyone, a short beard covering the lower half of his face and wearing a mottled green outfit that looked like some sort of uniform. She had seen some of the Fires wear something similar from time to time. They had a name for it but she couldn't remember what it was.

  She was shaken out of her stupor by the second man that had come with him. Reaching over, he offered his hand. "Hudson Houseman. People call me Railroad or Rail for short."

  Looking at his hand, she hesitated a second. "Breeze," she muttered then slowly extended her hand and touched his. She gave him a pinched smile when he grabbed her fingers in his hands and shook her hand up and down.

  "Nice to meet you." His smile was warm.

  He let her go then turned away. She watched as the big man introduced himself to the others and did the hand ritual with them. She studied him carefully as he did. Like Gaia's father, he was huge, with lots of muscles showing through his uniform. He was very tall, even taller than his friend, with skin the color of fresh tilled soil. His hair was cut very close on top of his head, and his eyes were so dark they seemed almost black. When he smiled, his teeth were white and straight. He oozed control and made Breeze feel small and insignificant. She didn't fear him, exactly, but a part of her wanted to grab Gaia and push her into the corner. She didn't, though. Something told her this man wouldn't be happy if the little girl started to scream, so she sat back in her chair and watched the people in the room with curiosity, categorizing them.

  Gaia continued to pet the dog, talking to him as if he were an old friend. Around them, the adults spoke in whispers. Everyone around her seemed bigger, more vibrant than she was used to, which made her feel smaller and less significant. Breeze drew her knees up again and wrapped her arms around them. She should go. She should find her way back Home again and leave Gaia and Lily in the care of these people. She should return to what she knew and understood.

  Even though she wanted to leave, she couldn't. She was charged with making sure Gaia was taken care of. She could never leave the little girl.

  After what felt like hours but was most likely only ten or so minutes, Finch returned.

  "How's she doing, Finch?" The big man stood from his seat as Gaia's father entered.

  "Not good. The sepsis isn't responding to the antibiotics. They have her heavily sedated to try and keep her calm. They're afraid she's going into organ failure."

  "Not good, man," Railroad muttered.

  Finch reached down and picked up his daughter when she tugged on his pants leg. He situated her on his hip and slowly swayed back and forth. "I know. They asked me if I knew if she had some sort of immunity deficiency. I don't know. Honestly, I don't know much about her at all. They asked me to get in touch with her parents to find out." He glanced at his daughter. "I told them her parents were on the way. Maybe they would know."

  "What about," Rail lifted his chin to the corner where Breeze sat watching the two men.

  She felt her heart speed up when he turned and walked the last few steps to her. Sitting in the chair beside her, he pulled Gaia around and cuddled her in his lap. She immediately laid her head on his shoulder and dug her fingers in the front of his shirt as if afraid he would disappear. Breeze's heart stuttered in her chest at the sweet innocence of it.

  "Hi, Breeze," Finch smiled warmly at her. "I'm Asher Finchly, but my friends call me Finch. I guess you've figured out by now; I'm Lolly's father." He pressed a kiss to his daughter's blonde curls. "I hear I have you to thank for getting my girls some help."

  Breeze swallowed and nodded slightly. Finch was even bigger sitting next to her than he was when he entered the room. Not only was he physically bigger, he just felt bigger as if he consumed all the air in the room just by being here. She reached down and grabbed the seat under her to keep from being devoured just by his presence. He felt... dangerous, but not exactly scary.

  Finch's brows drew in a frown. Canting his head slightly, his eyes slid over her from the top of her head to the bottom of her feet, scrutinizing her. She felt as if he could see through her, deep inside. Oh, he was dangerous all right - a Fire for sure. His name, Asher, fit him perfectly. There was more, though. He wasn't just dangerous in a physical sense but deeper inside. There was a well of power that overwhelmed her and that made him more than just precarious. She wasn't afraid of what he could do physically, but the way he held his daughter and scrutinized her with that knowing gaze, he could fathom all her thoughts and lay them bare for the world to see. Unconsciously, she leaned away from him.

  He let out a sigh and slid his fingers through Gaia's hair as she closed her eyes. Carefully, he eased over, putting an empty seat between them, giving her some room. The panic inside eased slightly as she gulped a breath. Her gaze flickered to the child in his lap, and she followed his fingers as they tenderly soothed his daughter. It was mesmerizing, and when he spoke again, in a lower tone, she jumped.

  "Are you afraid? Do I scare you?"

  She swallowed and met his gaze. Hesitating a moment, she shook her head. She wasn't exactly afraid, just cautious. Even though these men reminded her of Fern, who always made sure she had what she needed, and they radiated warmth like the sun after cloudy days, she still didn’t know them.

  "I'm glad. Breeze, nobody here will hurt you. You have my word on it. We are just, a little confused about how everything happened. Sarah and Lolly were gone for a long time, and nobody knew where they were. I was worried they were hurt, or scared. I didn't know if I'd ever see them again. Now they are back, but Sarah is sick, really badly sick. The doctors are trying to make her better, but there's something wrong. Do you know anything about her?"

  Breeze shook her head. "I don't think so," she whispered. "She fell when we were walking through the woods. I tried to clean it and bandage it for her but she got sick." Her gaze lowered to Gaia. "Can I hold her, please?"

  Finch's fingers stopped, and he looked down at the sleeping child in his arms. Breeze could see the indecision on his face before he slowly nodded. Gently, he slid her over into Breeze's arms. Something inside of her calmed as the girl's weight settled in her lap. Pressing a kiss to the blonde head, Breeze closed her eyes and sighed. She felt better having her charge back in her care again.

  "Breeze?"

  She opened her eyes to find Finch watching her. She drew her arms around Gaia as if daring him or anyone else to take her away. "Yes?"

  He placed a hand on her shoulder. The heat of the contact raced through her arm, warming her blood and making her skin tingle. She gasped at the sensation but didn't pull away.

  He frowned again, lifting his hand and looking at it before clutching it in a fist and letting go. Looking into her face, he smiled warmly. "Nobody is going to hurt you. I don't know what you've been through, but I do know that."

  If it were only true. Breeze knew, down deep in her very soul, that these st
rangers would hurt her in a way she may never overcome. Not for the first time, she wished she was back Home, back where everything made sense. Looking down at Gaia sleeping in her lap, something told her, things would never make sense again. Finch wouldn't let her go and neither would she.

  "Visiting hours are over for tonight," TJ said. "Lolly is worn out. Why don't you go to your hotel and get some rest?"

  "Sarah's parents are arriving tonight and mine will be here first thing in the morning. They're driving over from Tennessee. I need to make sure they are taken care of. I also need to get Lolly some clothes and dinner." Finch frowned as he gazed at his daughter. "I don't want Sarah left alone."

  "First off, you don't have to do everything. You don't know it yet, Finch, but you have a big support group here for you." Hayden stood from her seat. "Adeline and I will go shopping and get the munchkin some clothes and things she needs."

  "You can take the rental car back to the hotel." Railroad pulled a card out of his pocket and handed it over. "Here's the address for the hotel. I got us adjoining rooms and reserved two sets for your parents and hers. I'll stay here with Sarah and let you know the minute anything changes."

  TJ stood. "My wife, Melina texted me a few minutes ago. She's making dinner for you. I'll run by, pick it up and bring it to your room when it's done. I asked one of our friends to pick up Sarah's parents. He'll bring them to the hotel or the hospital, whichever they prefer."

  "I don't know what to say," Finch glanced around the room.

  "You don't have to say anything. Take care of that precious girl and let us take care of you." Adeline grinned. "You're part of our family now. May as well get used to it." She stood and made a motion to Coco. Immediately, the dog went to her side and sat, looking up at her with devotion.

  "Thank you. All of you," Finch told them simply. Standing, he turned toward Breeze who had been watching everyone. He held out his hands to take Gaia from her. Forcing herself to let the child go, she felt tears gather in her eyes. He was taking her away, and she had no idea what she was going to do.