by Grant, Livia
“I’m going to kill the bastard,” he gritted out to no one in particular.
“Not if I get to him first,” Davidson promised from across the room where he was taking photos of the crime scene with his cell phone.
Impotent—he’d been rendered helpless, a complete failure protecting his woman.
Shane jumped to his feet, unable to sit still a second longer. Despite Nalani’s renewed groans of pain, he took long strides toward the still open door of the apartment, splashing water as he went.
“Where are you going? You shouldn’t move her any more than necessary. She could have spinal injuries you’re making worse.”
His brain knew Davidson was right, but his brain wasn’t making decisions at that moment. He stopped in his tracks long enough to turn and pin Jaxson with a determined glare.
“Fuck that. I’m not sitting here, waiting for the Calvary to arrive. She needs medical help now. Are you going to drive us, or do I need to wave down a passing car?”
Indecision turned to action in seconds.
“Fine, I’m not sure this is a good idea, but I don’t want to wait to deal with police and fire bullshit any more than you do. Let’s go.”
Shane hated the cries of pain from the woman in his arms as he rushed down the steps and past the man in a bathrobe, still holding a baseball bat.
Jaxson stopped to bark orders to the landlord. “Tell the police to treat this as a crime scene. They are looking for Henry Ainsworth. He’s responsible for the attack on Nalani.”
“How do you know?”
“I just fucking know. He’ll have the money and lawyers to contest anything they find, so they need to be extra careful. You got that?”
Shane was rounding the corner and almost to Davidson’s SUV when he heard the guy shout, “Alright! I’ll tell them!”
“I’m not convinced this is the right move,” Jaxson warned as he reached to open the back door. “We’re removing evidence by taking her out of the apartment.”
Shane took a seat and countered. “We don’t need evidence. We know the asshole who’s responsible.”
“But…”
“Fuck that. I’m not sitting around waiting for the police. It’s too late for that. She needs medical attention, and we can get that for her faster than waiting for an ambulance.”
“Shit. Fine.” Davidson slammed the door closed and ran around to get behind the wheel.
Even in the dim lighting of the interior of the SUV, Shane could see the swelling was getting worse on Nalani’s beautiful face, making her almost unrecognizable.
Davidson’s phone rang.
“They released the fucker, didn’t they?”
“How’d you know?” The voice at the other end of the line filled the car.
“We’re on the way to Cedar Sinai. The bastard beat her within an inch of her life. I need you at her apartment… now! Keep a boot up the ass of the investigators. By some miracle, if I stop Covington from killing Ainsworth, I want to make sure we have the evidence to put him behind bars for the rest of his miserable life.”
“Shit, you got it, boss.” The call dropped.
Despite Jaxson gunning the engine to run a light, he heard her first whisper.
“Shane?”
“I’m here now, baby. No one’s ever gonna hurt you again,” he vowed. He knew Henry Ainsworth wouldn’t hurt her again because dead men couldn’t torture victims after they were torn from limb to limb.
“I’m sorry.” He could barely hear her over the ringing of a phone call Davidson was making over the Bluetooth speaker.
“What the hell could you possibly have to apologize for, kitten?”
“Ruined Oscars night.”
Christ, she was selfless. Even with all she’d been through, she was still thinking of him, instead of herself. He didn’t deserve her.
“Nothing that’s happened today is your fault, Nalani.”
She cried out in pain in response. Despite being wrapped in the blanket and in his arms, she was shivering so hard, it bordered on convulsions.
“Hang on, baby. We’re almost to the hospital. They’ll be able to help with the pain.”
The sound of another man cursing filled the interior of the car.
“What the fuck are you doing calling my cell at this hour, Davidson?”
“Get your fat ass out of bed and get to the Cedar-Sinai emergency room… ASAP!”
“Why would I do that? You get a sliver?”
Shane didn’t know who Davidson had called but knew with certainty, it wasn’t one of his own employees; they’d never speak to their boss like that.
“Shut the fuck up and listen. Henry Ainsworth assaulted one of my employees this afternoon, and instead of you holding him in a fucking cell where he belongs, some idiot on your department let the asshole go. They didn’t even call to warn me.”
Jaxson had to stop his rant long enough to take evasive action to avoid hitting a van as he ran a red light. Once through the intersection, Davidson continued his rant.
“The fucker broke into that same employee’s apartment and tortured, beat, and raped her within an inch of her life. We’re en route to the hospital with her now. You’re gonna meet me there, right after you call and wake up your best detectives and the head of your crime scene investigation team and get them over to her apartment immediately to collect the evidence we need to put the prick away for the rest of his life.”
“Is that all? Anything else? Want me to get someone to shine your shoes while I’m at it?”
Shane had no idea who the asshole on the phone was, but he was lucky he wasn’t there in person because Shane would love to use the fuckers face as a punching bag. Apparently, Jaxson felt the same.
“Listen up, Johnson. I’m doing you a favor, giving you a call to give you a chance to get ahead of this. This story is going to be on the front cover of every newspaper in less than twelve hours. It’s going to be the lead off story on GMA in a few hours and will be trending on Twitter in less than that. You guys fucked-up once by letting Ainsworth out of custody. I’ll be more than happy to throw you under the bus, right along with him.”
“Damn, you have a serious ego problem, you know that Davidson? I agree Ainsworth is an asshole, but why exactly is it you think anyone is going to believe one of your employees over someone with his reach?”
“You’re a real fucker, Johnson. So happy to know the Chief of Police cares so much about the innocent women in his district.”
“Screw you. We both know Ainsworth is gonna buy his way out of this.”
“Not this time.”
“I read the report from earlier. She’s a housekeeper. The press isn’t going to pay any attention. That’s not my decision. That’s just how this works, and you know it.”
Shane couldn’t hold his tongue any longer.
“Sorry to have bothered you, asshole. Jaxson, hang up the phone. We don’t need the police, anyway.”
“Who’s that there with you?” the voice over the speaker asked.
“Hang up,” Shane shouted, angry Davidson had called the police in the first place. “The police can’t help. We’re past that now.”
“What does that mean? Whoever you are, be warned, you’d better not try to take matters into your own hands.”
The men’s gaze connected in the rear-view mirror as they passed under a streetlamp. Shane saw the same raw fury glowing in Davidson’s eyes, he was sure was in his return look.
“Chief, I did you a favor, calling you to give you a chance to get ahead of this. If you’re smart, you’ll get to Cedar-Sinai as soon as possible and get your best people on this at the crime scene.”
The call ended just as Davidson whipped the car around the corner and pulled up to the main entrance to the Emergency Room of the Trauma Center. For a minute, it seemed as if he planned on driving the car into the building before he finally brought the vehicle to a stop, directly in front of the entrance.
Shane had to jostle Nalani to open the door.
Her cry of pain as he pushed to his feet gave him pause, hating that he was bringing her more agony.
Davidson ran around the still-running SUV and shouted, “I’ll go in and alert them” as he took off at a sprint toward the brightly lit entrance. Shane followed behind, hugging the broken, shaking, and naked body of Nalani close, grateful he’d wrapped her in the afghan.
He rushed into the brightly lit corridor, glancing around frantically for help—a doctor, nurse, anyone. As he got to the first doorway, all he found was a room full of injured people, waiting to be seen by the overnight emergency staff.
Nalani would not be waiting even a minute. Shane was determined she was about to go to the front of the line, even if he had to make a scene or bribe the staff.
Shane backed out of the room and headed deeper down the hall where he could hear Davidson shouting for help. He blew by a door marked Emergency Registration and heard a woman yelling at him to stop, but he barged ahead, determined to get Nalani seen as quickly as possible.
“Sir! Sir! You can’t go down there without registering. There’s a line!”
Her yelling only made him go faster, rushing around the corner at the nurses’ station, almost bumping into Davidson’s back. Six medical professionals dressed in scrubs all stood frozen, staring at him, their mouths open.
“What the hell is wrong with you people? Don’t just stand there, we need your help!”
The out of breath administration clerk finally caught up to him. “Sir, you’ll need to follow me back…” Her lecture died away as she joined the others in standing planted to their spots. “You’re Shane Covington.”
“Yes, and I need everyone’s help. Now.”
“But…”
“I promise you, I’ll fill out all the paperwork you need me to, but we have an emergency.”
Finally, one of the older women in the group seemed to snap out of her trance. Rushing to Shane’s side, she pulled back the afghan to take a peek at Nalani’s battered face.
“What happened? Car accident?”
She turned on a small spotlight and lifted Nalani’s swollen eyelids to check for dilation. Shane struggled to form the words to describe the horrors Nalani had been through. He was grateful Davidson was holding it together better than he was.
“This woman was brutally attacked, beaten, and I’m almost certain, raped by Henry Ainsworth. We found her left for dead in her apartment. As it was only a few minutes away, we drove her straight here. I’ve already called the Chief of Police, and he’s on his way. We need to treat her, of course, but we also need to gather evidence so we can press charges.”
“Fuck that. I told you, the police won’t be handling this case.”
“Shut up, Covington. You’re too emotional right now to be thinking straight.”
“The important thing is to get the victim the medical help she needs,” the doctor interrupted. She turned to a nurse and started barking orders. “Joanne, page the on-duty trauma team. Susan, escort Mr. Covington and Mr. Davidson back to the last exam room where we’ll have more privacy. I’ll be right behind you.”
By the time he laid Nalani down on the waiting gurney, she was convulsing. He tried to cover her body, thinking she was cold, but two nurses pushed him away.
“Stand back. Let us do our job.”
He hated to let go of her but did as he was told, stepping back against the far wall as emergency personnel started running in. By the time the doctor arrived, the exam room was getting crowded.
Jaxson leaned closer to let him. “I’m gonna go out and move my car and check in with the head of my security team again.”
“I told you…”
“Shut up. I’m furious too. I want Ainsworth behind bars just like you do, but we need to do this by the book.”
“Fuck the book and bars. I want him dead.” It took all of his self-control to keep from pounding his fist through the wall.
“And I don’t? Nalani is part of the Runway family. This started on my property. She’s my responsibility.”
“The hell she is. I should have forced her to go to the Oscars with me. None of this would have happened if I’d just made her go.”
“You don’t know that. He would have just waited to get her alone tomorrow or the next day.”
Guilt poured over Shane as he admitted, “The first day I met her, I knew the asshole had scared her. I shouldn’t have let him near her.”
“You can’t blame yourself. Thank God, you were a pain in the ass and woke me up. If you hadn’t, she’d still be laying there, alone and in pain.”
Memories of seeing her crumpled body and not even knowing if she were still alive flooded in, and he had to swallow hard to keep control of his emotions.
“Fine. Go call your security guy, but I’m not leaving her. Not again.”
“You’d better not. She’ll want you near as soon as she wakes up.”
Shane wasn’t so sure about that.
Chapter 20
Too bright.
Piper despised waking up to sunlight. Her right arm felt like a heavy weight as she lifted it to try to adjust her sleep mask, connecting with her naked face instead.
Her brain was slow to reboot. The low-level throbbing at her temple was her first clue she’d drunk too much the night before… something she’d been doing much too frequently of late.
She squeezed her eyes tight, the only defense against the sunshine. A low groan escaped as she flopped to her back, reaching out to her right for a pillow she could pull over her face, hitting something hard instead.
A deep chuckle coincided with the realization there was a heavy arm wrapped across her waist.
Her brain’s reboot wasn’t happening fast enough. A panicked disorientation gripped her as flashes of memories from the night before started to come back to her in fits and starts. Each one confused her more, and the glaring sunlight shining right in her eyes wasn’t helping.
Reflexively, Piper tried to roll away from the heat source in bed with her, reaching out to find the clicker on her bed stand that would close the sun-blocker curtains across the wall of windows in her bedroom. Instead of a clicker, her hand knocked over what sounded like a glass. She could hear what she hoped was water spilling across the stand and splashing down to the floor.
“Fuck,” she groaned, regretting it instantly as her head throbbed.
The arm across her waist tightened, pulling her back tightly against what felt like a solid wall of muscle. She only had a split second to enjoy the embrace before her world crashed in.
“I’d love to.” Nolan’s deep voice was still husky with sleep as he thrust his hips against her, wedging his morning hard-on against her ass. “As you can see, The Rock likes that idea.”
Nolan was in her bed. Holy. Fucking. Shit. What had she done?
First things first. Still keeping her eyes slammed closed, she resumed reaching to the nightstand for the clicker.
“What are you looking for, baby?”
“I’m not your baby. And the clicker. I need to close the blackout drapes.”
“I don’t have any blackout drapes, but if you promise to wake up here tomorrow morning, I’ll have some installed today.”
Double fuck.
She had to risk it. Piper opened her eyes just enough to confirm her fear.
She was at Nolan Boeing’s house. In his bedroom… his bed.
“Jesus Christ,” she whispered with exasperation as she snapped her eyes closed again. This time, it was more to try to block out reality than sunlight.
“Nope, just Nolan. I see you’re still a morning person.”
Asshole. He was way too chipper. What the hell had happened between them last night? She scrambled to latch on to any memory that would help fill in the blanks.
They’d been at the Oscars. Attended an after party. Multiple after-parties. She’d drunk champagne. Lots of champagne. They’d danced. Shit. They’d kissed. Things were fuzzier after that.
She had to know.
�
��Please. Tell me we didn’t… you know…”
“Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but we sure did.” He paused just long enough for her to realize she actually regretted not having memories of Nolan fucking her when he added. “We danced up a storm.”
“Danced,” she deadpanned.
“Yep. And…” he paused dramatically before adding, “We even kissed.”
“Kissed.”
“And for the grand finale, you puked all over the back of your limo.”
“Puked?” Piper cringed at that tidbit.
Nolan’s chuckle rumbled against her back. “Are you always reduced to single word sentences in the mornings?”
“Only when the sunlight burns my eyelids before I can get up.”
“Noted. Will call the drapery installation place right after breakfast.”
“Don’t bother. This was a mistake.”
“You’ve been making a lot of those lately,” he countered, much too quickly.
It was way too early, and she was way too hungover to keep up with Nolan banter. She tried to wiggle out of his embrace, determined to find her cloths, and get the hell out of there. She needed to retreat—she was in no condition to go head-to-head with him under these conditions.
Piper was pleasantly surprised when he loosened his grip on her waist, allowing her to roll out of the mammoth king-sized bed. A wave of cold air made sure she knew she was buck naked. Squinting in the bright sunlight bathing the room, Piper spun to face-off with the too-handsome man smiling back at her from the bed.
“Where the hell are my clothes?”
“In the shopping bag over on the desk.”
“You shoved my designer gown and shoes in a bag?”
“Yep, but to be fair, I only did that after you puked on them. I hope you have a good dry cleaner. If not, let me know, and I’ll send them out to the service I use. They were even able to get the blood stains out of the shirt I wore to Black Light the night of roulette.”
Piper’s brain exploded with memories of the strange night he’d spent a hundred thousand bucks just to spend three hours as her submissive.
“I didn’t make you bleed,” she defended.