****
Genie tried to focus on the conversation Rafa and Lieutenant Winters were having, but the pain from her shoulder complicated her concentration. She squinted her eyes at the reflecting bright lights of the hospital that bounced off the equally white walls.
“I think she’s waking up. Genie? Genie.” A rough thumb gently glided over her forehead, and into her hair. “Let me see your eyes.”
She heard Rafa’s familiar baritone in a whisper and dragged her lids open.
“Oyé, morena. How are you feeling?”
The smile and dimples greeting her lifted her heart. She rotated her head to view him more fully, and the muscles in her shoulder contracted, causing her pain. She moaned. “Rafa?”
“Hey. It’s about time you woke up. You had us all worried there for a second.”
“What… what happened?”
“You were stabbed, that’s what happened.” Winters came and stood on the other side of her bed. The irritation in his voice caused her to smile. “How are you, Eugenia? The docs say you’re going to be able to get back to work in a few days.”
“Weeks,” Rafa countered, his voice holding annoyance.
“Huera’s… Huera is dead?” Her mind recalled the earlier conversation between her boss and Rafa.
“He is. We’ve got Montenegro in custody and, as always, the FBI will probably swoop in and take credit for his capture, but not if I can help it.” Her boss puffed, hands on his wide hips.
“Montenegro?” she asked.
“In this hospital but not on the same floor. He had a few cuts that needed stitching. As soon as he’s discharged, he’ll be taken down to the county lockup,” Rafa answered.
Genie’s eyes met Rafa’s, her mind summoning the past events at her house — her shattered front window, the body lying still on her floor. “You put him through my window?”
Rafa chuckled. “One solid punch.” He held up his right hand. Genie reached out to touch his bruised knuckles. They were warm, defined, and solid. Her arm, heavy due to the effects of her medication, dropped with a thud back on to the fuzzy, white hospital blanket.
“Always so arrogant,” she whispered, smiling. He gave her a grin that spoke of personal satisfaction.
“Well, Green, get some rest,” Winters spoke. “I’m going to see if I can get in touch with this Compton fellow. We need to give them an update on their case. Whichever one of you feels up to it, get me a write-up of tonight’s events within forty-eight hours. Genie, get well and Santiago, I’ll leave her in your care.”
Genie’s eyes followed her boss out the door and came to rest on dark eyes that stared back at her with concern.
“Are you feeling any better?” Rafa asked again.
“I think so.” She shifted the weight of her shoulders and grunted at the pain. “But not enough to do that write-up.”
“I hope you’re not trying to get up.”
Genie smirked. “No, just trying to get comfortable.”
Rafa gazed at her lips. “Well, at least these still work right.” He leaned in and planted a slow kiss on her lips.
“Don’t stop,” she croaked, barely finding her voice after such a kiss.
His dimples deepened, and he drew a lone finger down her cheek. His eyes darkened with a mixture of anger and desperation. “Genie, tonight, when I saw that knife…”
“Please don’t.” She closed her eyes to him, but couldn’t block the memory. Her dark house, and the menacing figure she fought; the way it moved like a shadow always within reach, and never relenting. What the other victims must have felt to be pursued by such monsters. She winced as she remembered the blade cutting through her t-shirt and then her skin. The sting had seared right through her, and she almost wondered whether the knife had been heated. The pain of it being wrenched from her chest barely registered as every nerve in her body cried out against the assault. But God had rescued her. Thank you, God! She was alive and would heal, and those responsible for the deaths of the others would face retribution. Huera had already paid the ultimate price.
“Genie, are you in pain? Do you need me to call the nurse?”
She tried to put on a brave face, her lips weakly upturning. She opened her eyes, taking in his concerned face. “Yes and no. I’m alright. It’s just this horrible throbbing in my chest. It won’t stop.”
Rafa frowned. “I’m sure it will feel that way for a few days, but at least everything else checked out okay, including the knot on your head.” He lightly fingered the tender bump on the right side of her head.
Her head! She remembered falling after being shoved against her front door. She didn’t have a clue what she hit, possibly the small table situated against the wall below the mirror. Just one more thing to be eternally grateful for and she said another silent prayer of thanks. A head injury could have been deadly serious. “I have a hard head. Ouch!” She pressed too firmly against the lump.
“You’re hard-headed, alright.” He laughed and leaned over, brushing warm lips over the swelling. Genie marveled at how the pain in her head suddenly decreased. Perhaps she was on too many meds…
His face hardened, his eyes serious yet hazy as his gaze leveled on her lips. The look of desire in his eyes tingled her with warmth. Genie blinked back a rush of hot tears. God had taken care of her. He had removed Jeff and sent someone else into her life … someone perfect for her.
“Genie…” He planted a light kiss on her forehead. She watched as his dark eyes stormed. “Rest. I’m going to talk to Montenegro.”
Rafael (The Santiago Brothers Book One) Page 38