“Sarah? Honey, can you open your eyes for me?”
But she didn’t and his heart clenched and shuddered. He wondered what it took to bludgeon a woman like this.
“The fucking, cowardly motherfucker,” he hissed under his breath as he cradled his unconscious lover. Molly put her arm around his shoulder, her face deathly pale, her eyes red.
“She’ll be okay, Isaac, she has to be.”
Finn came in, looking as wretched as them. “Air ambulance is on its way. Jesus, is she okay?”
There was a silence then, in a broken voice, Isaac shook his head, never taking his eyes off the woman he loved, lying so still in his arms.
“No. No, Finn, she’s not alright. Not even one little bit. Oh God, Sarah, please….stay with me…”
The hospital was too quiet. In the small relative’s room, Isaac and Molly waited. Sarah had been in surgery for seven hours. When they’d brought her in, the look of concern on the emergency room doctor’s face scared them all. She was in a bad way, the surgeon had told them, the head injury serious but they were going to do absolutely everything to save her. They sat in the small room, watching every movement outside. At one point they saw a doctor run past, his arms full of blood bags and Isaac was terrified they were for Sarah.
He leaned his forehead against the cool window and shut his eyes. He tried to tell himself she might not make it, she might die so that if it did happen, he’d be prepared. But even the thought of Sarah dying was enough to make him want to scream and scream and never stop.
He heard a quiet knock behind him and turned. Finn. He’d stayed behind on the island to help the investigation Molly got up and went into his arms.
“Hey, sweetheart. You okay?” He looked over to Isaac. Isaac nodded, not trusting himself to speak.
“She’s still in surgery,” Molly said, letting Finn go and sitting back down. “We don’t know if…” Molly’s face crumpled and she let out a sob. Finn put his hand on her shoulder.
“Look, we have to think that’s she’s going to be okay.” He looked at Isaac. “Dude, I’m here for you. We have officers fine combing around Sarah’s house, inside it. There’ll be some clue.”
Isaac sighed and stood. “Look, I just found out that Daniel Bailey is back in Seattle. He has been for a while.”
Molly gave a strangled gasp. “Oh god…he did this, didn’t he?”
“I don’t know for sure…but he’s the only person with any motive.”
Finn’s face was like stone and Isaac turned to him. “Finn, I just found out too that he’s been screwing someone. Someone who knew he was back before any of us.”
Finn gave a humorless laugh. “Caroline.”
Isaac nodded. Finn sighed. “Well, I hate to admit it but it’s kind of a relief. Another reason not to feel guilty about leaving her. I wish you had told us before, though, Isaac.”
Isaac half-smiled. “Another bad decision on my part.” His face clouded over. “I did this. I got her hurt.”
“No,” Molly stood and hugged him, “this is not your fault. It’s the asshole who did this. Whether it was Dan or not, I don’t know.”
They all looked up as the surgeon knocked on the door and came in. He was smiling at them, and the sense of relief was palpable in the room.
“She’ll be fine. She has a serious concussion and she suffered a small bleed on the brain but we removed the clot. It’ll take her awhile to get back to normal but we’ll keep her in for a few days for observation. You can see her in a while.”
Finn and Molly crept into Sarah’s room. She was turned onto her side, away from them. Isaac was sitting, holding her hand, his eyes never leaving her face. Finn moved around the bed. Her face, bruised, swollen and crisscrossed with butterfly stitches, was creased with stress. Finn pulled a chair close to the bed and sat down, his hand on her hair. Molly watched them for a while.
“Has she woken at all yet?”
Isaac shook his head. “Doc said they had to sedate her for surgery so she’ll be out for a few hours. Her skin tone is better, though, don’t you think?”
Molly couldn’t see it but she nodded to reassure Isaac. The tall man seemed shattered. This was one problem all the money in the world wouldn’t touch.
Finn cleared his throat. “Police want to talk to you, Isaac, and to Sarah when she’s up to it. I told them where to find Dan and they’ve gone to question him.”
Isaac looked at him. “I wish you hadn’t done that.”
“Why?”
Isaac’s face hardened. “Because I wanted to deal with him myself.”
Finn shifted. “Look, man, as your friend, as Sarah’s friend, I feel you. But as a cop, don’t let me hear you say that out loud again. Please.”
Isaac gave him a half-smile. “Sorry.”
Finn moved back into the hallway, Molly following him. He hugged his sister, feeling drained and exhausted.
And there was something else in the back of his mind too. Something he couldn’t tell anyone. Something he realized when he’d seen Sarah’s broken and bloody body in that wood, seen the bruises on her face, been terrified that she might be dead or dying. Something he’d denied for nearly his entire life.
He was in love with her.
Sarah was in a dreamy world of half-formed shapes and images she couldn’t quite access. There was tremendous pain, she knew that, as she began to surface from her deep coma, as she entered R.E.M. sleep and began to feel the effects of her assault.
She dreamed of being hit over and over, pummeled and battered until she could bear it no more then suddenly she was in a memory, a lush sensual dream. Isaac, bare-chested, just wearing blue jeans and a beautiful smile came to her, wrapped his arms around her and held her close, whispering that he loved her over and over and over. Her pain was gone then as his lips moved over every part of her body, his mouth on her nipples, her belly, on her sex, kissing every single part of her before he took her, his cock sliding into her with such a sweet, agonizingly slow pressure that she moaned a long, shuddering cry of absolute pleasure that seemed to go on and on and on…
She opened her eyes. Isaac looked exhausted, worn down. The way his eyes lit up when he saw Sarah was awake made her stomach hurt but she couldn’t look away.
“Hi.” His voice was gravelly. He leaned forward and smoothed a cool hand over her forehead. “How are you feeling, sweetheart?”
“I love you,” she croaked out, suddenly feeling her tinder-dry throat crack. Isaac smiled and she could see the tears in his eyes.
“God, Sarah, I thought I’d lost you.” He helped her take a drink of water then pressed his lips to hers. “I love you, so much. Thank god you’re okay.” His hand was stroking her hair now and she enjoyed the sensation, relaxing.
“I have a good reason to live.” She smiled at him and he bent down to kiss her again. When they broke apart, she sighed happily. “That’s even better than the morphine.”
He grinned. “You got the good stuff, hey?”
Sarah nodded, feeling her head swim a little. She put a hand up to the bandage on her head. “Am I bald?”
Isaac laughed then, softly. “No. They managed to shave under your hair to operate. You won’t even need one of those cones to stop you scratching.”
Sarah grinned, a genuine smile of amusement. “God, I do love you, Isaac Quinn.”
He leaned in again, rubbed his nose against hers. “Marry me,” he whispered and Sarah smiled.
“Hell yes…”
“You will?” Isaac’s eyes lit up.
“Of course I will, you doofus. But do me a favor? Ask me again when I get out of here, when I’m fully awake.” As soon as she said “awake”, she yawned loudly. Isaac grinned.
“You’ve got a deal. Now, I’m going to find the doctor, tell him you’re awake.”
Before he’d even got to the door, she’d fallen asleep again.
The receptionist looked up at him. “Can I help you?”
The man smiled. “I’m looking for my wife.
I was informed she was brought in here a few days ago with a head injury. Please, I’m very anxious to see her. I’ve been out of the country for quite a while...”
Molly could hear Finn’s voice, talking to someone in the coffee shop. She looked at her reflection in the bathroom mirror and made a face. She looked worn and exhausted. Hardly surprising with what had gone on around here, she splashed her face with water then went out to the front. Finn was talking to a regular at the other end of the coffee house.
“Hey, Sis.” Finn smiled at her as he came to the counter, then pulled her into a hug. He seemed in a strange mood, almost jubilant.
“What’s going on? You’re giddy.” Despite herself, Molly smiled, it was good to see Finn happy but on closer inspection, as she looked into his eyes, she saw something else. Anger.
“Finn.”
Finn leaned over the counter and grabbed the coffee pot. “Just wait a minute, sis, something’s about to happen that I think you might enjoy.”
As if summoned, Caroline walked into the Varsity with Serena, one of her nervous minions, in tow.
“Oh lordy, the Cunt of Monte Christo is here.” Molly pronounced loudly. The few customers that were in the coffee house choked with laughter and Finn grinned widely.
Caroline’s nose went in the air. “I don’t know why you’re laughing. Your perfect happy little lives are about to fall apart and you don’t even know it.”
Finn sighed. “Is that so, Caroline?”
Caroline smirked. “How’s the Chinese whore? Still breathing? That’s a shame but at least you’ll have someone to jerk off over in the shower.”
To Molly’s astonishment, she saw Finn color, his eyes flare up, and waves of anger roll off him. Hurriedly, Molly scooted around the counter and put herself between the two of them.
“Your jealousy of Sarah is quite something, really very pathetic,” she said, her own eyes burrowing into Caroline’s.
“Well, she’s welcome to him, useless fucking loser. Call yourself a man?” She spat in Finn’s face. “You couldn’t even fucking get me pregnant. This baby isn’t yours, Finn.”
Finn wiped his face calmly. “Honey, honestly, I never thought it was.”
Caroline stared at him in disbelief. “You don’t even care why I told you it was?”
Molly rolled her eyes. “Um, to keep Finn locked in your miserable web of crap? To fuck with all of us? Tough one, let me think.”
“Shut up you bitch.”
Molly laughed at her.
She turned on him. “You’re a bastard, Finn and she’s nothing more than a cheap Chinese whore. Are you happy now?”
Finn smirked. “Yes, Caroline, if it helps get through to you how unbelievably happy I am, yes, I am over the moon I’ve left you. The thing is, the thing you never realized, is that Sarah isn’t a possession to be passed from person to person. She’s a self-made woman. A beautiful, amazing wonder of a woman and the fact that she chooses to be friends, the very best of friends, with me makes me the luckiest person in the world. I feel sad for you that you were too stupid, too jealous to realize what you had when you had it. We were happy once, we could have been happy forever but you decided to choose jealousy and hatred over love. So you lose, you absolute horror of a human being. You lose.”
Molly looked at him in admiring astonishment. Finn looked straight at Caroline unwavering. Caroline, stunned, tried to save face.
“Every day you were here, sniffing around her like a lost dog. I don’t get it. What is it about her that’s so special? That perfect face?”
Finn went very silent then and it seemed to Molly that the whole coffee shop held its breath.
“How long, Caroline?”
Caroline looked confused and Finn smiled.
“How long have you been screwing Daniel Bailey – the very much alive Daniel Bailey?”
To Molly’s surprise, Caroline smirked. “Long enough.”
“So you knew he was back? You talk to him about his intentions?”
She was cocky now. “We are honest with each other.”
“Making plans together?”
Another smirk. “Is it any of your business anymore?”
Finn nodded calmly. Okay, then how about I put it like this.” He grabbed Caroline and slammed her down onto a table, cuffing her and jerking her back up by her arms, not caring if he hurt her.
“Caroline Jewell, I’m arresting you on suspicion of criminal conspiracy in the assault and attempted murder of Sarah Bailey. You have the right to remain silent, anything you do say will be taken down and could be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to an attorney. If you cannot afford an attorney, one will be provided for you. Do you understand these rights I have explained to you, you piece of crap? Having these rights in mind, do you wish to talk to me now, for instance, tell me everything Daniel Bailey has told you? No? Thought not.” He was mocking her and she started screaming, kicking out at him but he was too strong.
“You’re a fucking joke, Finn. Your precious Sarah is in love with that fucking billionaire. She doesn’t want you.”
Her screams faded as Finn dragged her across the street and into the police station. A second later, he walked back to the coffee shop. As he entered the shop, Finn’s face was alive with anger. He turned, closed the door and locked it. As he came toward her, Molly looked at her brother in admiration.
“Dude,” was all she said but Finn nodded gratefully at her.
“I don’t know if the charges will stick but it means we can keep her ass in jail for a few hours.”
Molly sighed. She turned to Serena, who seemed frozen as she stood, looking like a lost little girl, someone who had just lost her queen bee. Molly tried to smile at her, feeling sorry for her. “Serena, go home. You’re free, you can do what you want. Go tell the rest of your friends they’re free too.” She said this with a smirk and was surprised to see Serena tentatively return her smile.
“Yes. Yes,” she said, not without a little relief, “I will. Thank you, Molly… Finn.”
After she’d gone, Molly and Finn stared at each other for a long moment then burst into laughter. Wiping her eyes, Molly punched her brother on the shoulder.
“Dude, you might just be a genius, god, she’ll never get over that humiliation. So worth it.” She studied her brother. “So…what now?”
Finn smiled sadly. “I try and get over the woman I never realized I loved.”
The sound broke through her sleep. Sarah opened her eyes and strained to identify it. A steady stream, of water, someone singing. Someone was in the bathroom. It was a male voice. Isaac? Smiling, she slid from the bed and padded across the room then stopped. She could tell now it wasn’t Isaac’s voice. She glanced at the clock. Eleven a.m. No, it couldn’t be. She’d been in the hospital for over a week and she’d made him promise to go back to work.
Trembling, she walked slowly towards it and then yelped in shock.
The man in her kitchen turned and smiled at her. “Hey sleepyhead, I was wondering when you’d wake up.”
Sarah felt her head swirl, her stomach roil and black spots appear at the corners of her eyes, and in the second before she passed out, she heard him say. “I’ve missed you so much, my darling…”
It was Dan.
Maggie brought Isaac a steaming cup of coffee and a handful of messages. “The press,” she said, rolling her eyes, “they’ve gotten hold of your and Sarah’s story. They want to know – and I’m quoting, so don’t shoot the messenger – they want to know “Who tried to kill the Billionaire’s Beauty? I swear to god, five of them said those exact words to me.”
“Shit,” Isaac sighed and sat back in his chair, “Well, it was only a matter of time. They won’t get anything from me, though except a blanket Thanks for your concern, this matter is private.”
Maggie looked skeptical. “Yeah, that’ll calm them down.”
Isaac grinned at her sarcasm. “Haven’t I fired you already today?”
Maggie laughed.
“Twice. But seriously, boss…”
“Isaac leaned back in his chair and gave a frustrated hiss. “Let me talk to Sarah. For now, if you can, just tell them there’ll be a statement but stress this is a private matter.”
“Gotcha.”
When she’d gone back to her desk, Isaac spun his chair and gazed out of the window. The city was gray with rain, sheets of it falling, a low rumble of thunder. Thank god he’d paid for a private room for Sarah. They were well versed in keeping the press out. He wondered if he should hire security for her room – then pushed the thought away. She’d be mortified at the fuss and anyway, with any luck, she’d be released from the hospital soon.
Later, walking back to the parking garage, he swung past a jeweler’s and looked at the engagement rings. He knew Sarah wouldn’t care about a ring but he did. He wanted something unusual, something as beautiful as she was. He’d bring her here and they’d choose together. Soon, he thought, soon.
Finn shifted with irritation. He wanted to get out of this house, away from this woman. He wanted to call Isaac, find out how Sarah was. Caroline took her time reading the divorce papers. She looked up at him in surprise.
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