Shaking his head, Gavin wiped the sweat from his brow. His breath was still coated with anger. “No, I didn’t kill him.” He glared at me. “I just cut the oxygen supply to his brain off long enough to make him pass out. He’ll come to in a moment.” He examined the numerous scratch marks covering the back of his hand and forearm. “You’ve no idea the amount of restraint it took for me to release him.” Gavin inhaled. “I’ll be damned if anyone’s going to harm you, or think they can have you.”
Red and blue lights swirled across the concrete on the level below us. The sound of tires going over speed bumps echoed off the walls.
“You let me handle this,” Gavin said as he rose from the stairs and made his way back over to Dr. Knight, who was still lying unconscious between the parked cars.
Hearing the elevator doors open, I looked over to see Ashley stop midstride. Her eyes froze when Gavin turned around with his blood-soaked shirt. Her mouth fell open and her eyes expanded twice their size. I’m sure the shock of exiting the elevator to find Gavin covered in blood is what made her drop her purse. It made a loud thud as it hit the pavement. I heard her lip gloss roll across the concrete. Ashley stood there motionless for a few moments, blinking several times as if that would make the scenery change.
A loud gasp flew from her gapping mouth as she asked, “What — the — fuck?” Casting a stunned look in my direction, her eyes widened even more. “Is that Dr. Knight?” Her voice rose to a shrill yell.
I placed my face in my hands and shook my head up and down. Ashley grabbed her purse and ran over to me.
Gavin leaned calmly against my car, just staring down at Dr. Knight. I couldn’t believe how collected he was. He drew in a deep breath as he unbuttoned his dress shirt, peeling the wet material away from his body and slinging it over the trunk of my car. Even his undershirt had been stained bright red.
“Holy shit!” Ashley panted.
The police car rolled to a stop by the stairwell. Gavin removed his undershirt, balling it up and holding it tightly in his hand as he walked over to the officers climbing out of their car. His skin glistened from the moisture left by the blood. Rubbing his forearm over his bare chest, he tried to remove the wet film still clinging to his body.
Ashley looked at me, still slack-jawed as she asked, “Is he dead?” Her head turned back in the direction of Gavin, Dr. Knight, and the officers.
Dr. Knight’s hand feebly rose in the air for a brief second before it fell back down to the pavement like lead. One of the officers knelt down next to him to check his pulse.
Gavin pointed at me and the officer made his way over to me. Rising from the stairs, I wiped the tears from my face.
“Brooke? Is that right?” The officer’s brown eyes were shrouded by confusion.
“Yes. Brooke Davis.”
The officer turned his mouth down toward the walkie talkie that was attached to his shoulder and pressed the button on the side of the large black speaker. “We’ve got two white males. One’s been beaten up pretty good. We’ll need medical assistance.” He released the button.
A voice came over the static. “Ten four.”
The officer pulled his pad out and placed his ball point pen to the paper. Glancing up at me, he asked, “You okay, ma’am?”
“Yeah.” I rubbed my arm tenderly and glanced over toward Gavin. “Just shocked at the moment.”
“Understandable. Now, would you mind telling me what happened here?”
I watched the other officer pull Gavin’s hands behind his back and place cuffs around his wrists.
“Why are you arresting him?” I shouted. I was panicking.
“We’re not.”
Ashley interjected. “You cuffed him!”
The officer looked over at her. “It’s standard protocol, ma’am. He’s not goin’ to jail just yet.”
The officer placed his hand on the top of Gavin’s head as he ducked down and slid into the cop car.
“You just put him in a cop car,” I stated and glared at the police officer. “He saved me from that maniac, and you’re gonna arrest him?” My eyes teared up again and my throat constricted. I thought I was about to hyperventilate.
“Ma’am.” The officer put his pad down and placed one hand on my shoulder. “I’m really gonna need you to calm down.” He paused, gently squeezing my shoulder as he gave me a sympathetic glance. “I need your statement so I can know what to do with these two gentlemen.”
The other officer rolled a dazed Dr. Knight onto his side, pulled his arms behind his back, and cuffed him.
As my eyes slowly shifted back to the officer, I saw Gavin lean his head back onto the seat of the police car. He was staring up at the ceiling.
The officer brought his pad and pen back up. Propping his leg on the stair, he rested the pad on his thigh. “Do you know those two gentlemen?”
“Yes. The one in the police car is Dr. Gavin Hunter. And the one over there,” I pointed toward my car, “that’s Dr. Scott Knight.” I frowned.
The policeman looked puzzled. “Isn’t he the director of Neurosurgery?” he asked. I realized this cop was the same one who’d come up to the office the day Miranda had been arrested for assaulting Nicole.
I nodded and the officer scribbled a note on his pad.
“I was leaving and Dr. Knight came up to me. He pulled that rose,” I pointed to the rose that was trampled next to the rear driver’s side of my car, “out from under my wheel —”
The officer cut me off. “How’d it get there?”
“I don’t know. I’m guessing he put it there,” I paused. “I’ve been finding those on my car at my apartment and I even found one this morning at Ga…” I caught myself and swallowed hard, “Garrett’s house.”
“Who’s Garrett?”
“My boyfriend.” I cringed, fully aware that I was lying to a policeman.
Ashley stepped up. “The note, the note! Tell him about the note. Wait!” She promptly turned her purse upside down and the contents scattered across the concrete. Her compact shattered and glass flew out. Reaching down, she retrieved a white piece of paper that had been folded into a small square. She handed it to the police officer.
Opening it, he quickly scanned the letter. His brow wrinkled when he reached the end. He peered over the piece of paper at Ashley and widened his stance. “Who are you?”
“Ashley. Ashley West.”
“Where’d you find this note?”
“It was in the door of my apartment this past Saturday night,” she responded.
He wrote her name down and glanced back over to me. “You think Dr. Knight’s who left that note?”
“I would assume so. He’s obviously the one who’s been leaving me roses.”
White noise sounded from the walkie talkie. “Medics are on their way,” a voice came over the speaker.
The officer looked back at me. “So, what happened after he got the rose?”
“He dropped it, blocked me in, and pushed himself on me. I tried to push him away, but he pinned my arms down.” Pulling my arms up, I noticed that the backs were scraped from being pinned against the rough concrete.
The officer placed his pen on his pad and rubbed his finger over the scrapes on my skin. “That’s where these came from, I assume?”
“Yeah, he held me down and he pushed his …” I could feel myself becoming sickened recounting the entire incidence. “His, uh …” My breath became slightly labored. “Uh…”
The officer looked at me. “I’m pretty sure what you’re gonna say, but I can’t put words in your mouth, so you’re gonna have to tell me.” He looked at me understandingly.
“His genitals. He pushed those up against me. He was, um, turned on.”
The officer nodded his head. “Okay, I’ve gotcha.”
“I started screaming and that’s when Dr. Hunter came running over.”
“Do you know why Dr. Hunter was out here?”
I shrugged. “I guess he was leav
ing.”
The paramedics drove up the ramp. “‘Scuse me for a sec.” The officer turned away, walking over to the paramedics as they climbed out of the ambulance. He spoke to them briefly and then they went over to Dr. Knight, bending down to assess him.
The officer tugged at the waistband of his uniform and he walked back over to me. He pulled his shoulders back and placed his foot up on the stair.
“So, what did Dr. Hunter do when he came up?” he asked.
I pointed in the direction of Dr. Knight. “He yelled at him. I climbed over the hood of my car to get away from Dr. Knight, and then Dr. Hunter hit him in the face.”
“Did Dr. Knight swing at Dr. Hunter?” The officer’s eyes lifted from his pad and stared at me.
“I don’t know. I was trying to get away. The next thing I know, Dr. Knight’s passed out.” I ran my palm across my forehead and just wanted to leave.
“So,” the officer lowered his pad to his side, “you felt threatened?”
Glaring at the officer, I narrowed my eyes. “Yes, I felt threatened. Who knows what he would have done to me if Dr. Hunter hadn’t have come out here. As far as I’m concerned, Dr. Hunter saved me. He defended me – protected me.”
I had a flash back to when Gavin said he just wanted to protect me. I winced at how ironic that statement seemed now.
“Okay. Thank you.” The officer walked off, leaving me and Ashley by the stairs.
We sat on the stairs for what seemed like hours before they pulled Gavin out of the back of the police car and unfastened his handcuffs.
He coolly walked over to us, his shirt still balled up in his fist and specks of dried blood splattered on his neck.
The headlights of the police car cast shadows across the walls of the deck as it pulled away.
Gavin grabbed the base of my head and gently rested his forehead against mine. His skin felt warm against my chilled skin. My hair tangled up in his fingers. “You okay, love?” he whispered, staring into my eyes.
“Fine.” I closed my eyes, knowing that had he not shown up when he did the ending may very well have been pretty ugly.
His thumbs stroked behind my ears. Pressing his lips lightly to mine, he held them there for a moment. Gavin inhaled through his nose and pulled away. “I’ve never been so livid in my life.”
“Thank you,” I said. I could feel my eyes water.
A look of hurt washed over Gavin’s face. I’d never seen him look so vulnerable. “Please don’t cry, love.” There was a slight catch in his voice as he said, “I’d never allow anyone to hurt you. You’re my world.” He pulled me tightly into him and held me like he was afraid to let go. “Let’s go home,” he said.
Ashley stood up from the stairs. “Well, I’d have never thought Dr. Knight was that psychotic.” She walked to her car and unlocked it. “See you guys tomorrow.” She shut her door and started her car.
Gavin went to my car, grabbing the keys from the door where I’d left them. He glanced over at my hood. “Hmmm, I’d say we need to look for you a new car. That’s a pretty big dent you put in the hood when you jumped across it.”
I looked and saw indentions from my knees and a long scratch from the heel of my shoe where I’d slid off of the hood.
We went to the next floor and got into Gavin’s car. He started the engine and glanced over at me. “I don’t have any patients Friday. Why don’t we just take off and go down to the beach a day early? I could use a nice ocean view after this past week.”
I nodded in agreement as he backed out of the parking spot.
Chapter Forty-six
Gavin
Glancing over at her, she looked distraught. Black streaks had dried on her face where she’d been crying.
I took in a shallow breath in an effort to calm the anger still coursing through my being. The instantaneous rage that had rushed over my body when I saw Scott pushed up against her — I wasn’t even fully aware of what I was doing, to be honest. When I finally realized that my hand was wrapped around his neck, it took every ounce of control I could conjure to loosen my grip.
Who the hell did he think he was? My brain was still trying to put the pieces together because it didn’t make since that Scott would’ve done something so irrational, so out of line, so uncontrolled. Scott was a Guardian, and Guardians were instructed to never interfere with us unless we took from the innocent. And I hadn’t taken anything.
“You okay, love?” I asked. Reaching across, I squeezed Brooke’s knee reassuringly, smiling tenderly at her before redirecting my eyes to the road.
“I’m fine. Just a little exhausted.” She lowered her voice, “I’m just glad you didn’t go to jail.”
Turning off the interstate, I veered onto the highway. I checked the road to make sure it was safe to pull out and I saw Brooke nervously biting her nails.
Turning to me, she asked, “He said you wouldn’t break the agreement. What was he talking about?”
I felt my insides turn. I struggled to keep my gaze focused on the road while I answered her. “I have no idea. I think he’s lost his mind. Nothing about the entire incident makes any sense to me.”
“I feel like it’s my fault,” Brooke said, fighting back tears.
“Brooke, how on earth could any of this be your fault? It’s not your fault.”
She pushed her hair back away from her face and looked helplessly at me.
I pulled up into my driveway and opened the garage. After I turned the car off, I glanced over at her and smiled. She had every right to be upset, but I couldn’t stand that she felt she was somehow to blame for Scott’s irrational behavior. If anything, this was my fault.
My footsteps echoed through the garage as I walked over to her door to open it for her. Brooke climbed out and I went to the trunk to grab my blood-stained shirts.
Tossing my keys on the bar, I walked back to the laundry room. The fluorescent lights flickered and I reached over to open the lid of the washing machine. I turned the dial and ran some cold water in the basin before throwing my shirts inside to soak.
The hallway was still dark. Brooke had neglected to turn the lights on and I made my way to my bedroom in the dark. As I entered I saw Brooke sitting on the edge of my bed, staring at the floor. I walked into the bathroom and flipped the lights on.
I sat on the edge of my tub and took my dress shoes and thin dress socks off. Tossing my socks into the wooden hamper, I thought about how I would eventually have to tell Brooke the truth, or leave her.
The tile was cold underneath my feet as I stepped toward the doorway. My eyes locked onto Brooke and I pulled my boxers down. “Let’s take a shower. Come on. It’ll make you feel better.” I said.
Stepping inside the tiled shower, I gripped the bronze handle, turning it halfway to the left. I moved to the side as the water shot out of the large showerhead. The water quickly heated up and steam billowed out, filling the room. I peered through the glass and saw Brooke standing in front of the vanity. She undressed slowly and walked around to the entrance of the shower. I loved the way her breasts bounced slightly with each gentle step she took.
She leaned her head back in the stream of hot water, and I reached up to sensually rub across her breast. There was no reaction to my touch, her eyes stared down and she was chewing on the inside of her lip. Her body language made it evident that she was distracted.
“What’s got you so bothered that you can’t enjoy my touch?”
Apprehension had drawn across her face. “Gavin, I think it kinda is my fault.”
Looking at her, I waited for her to continue.
“You know how Miranda came up to the office and blew up on Nicole?” A painful look of regret twisted her face as she waited on my response.
I nodded. “Yes, of course I remember that. What does that have to do with you, Brooke?”
Her chest rose and she drew in a deep breath, “Well, when you told me that some girl came in your office, I freaked out
and told Ashley — ”
I cut her off. “Damn it to hell, Brooke.” My voice echoed from the tile and her eyes darted down to the floor.
Brooke’s hand trembled as she brought it up to her shoulder and rubbed across her skin. I stared at her and she refused to make eye contact with me. Pleading, she said, “Just let me finish, let me finish.” She paused, finally looking me in the eyes. “Ashley figured it had to be Nicole and she got all pissed off and broke into Dr. Knight’s office. She found some naked pictures of Nicole in his desk.” Brooke pulled her bottom lip in and held it tightly. She hesitated, releasing a long sigh. “Ashley sent them to Miranda — after she’d taken pictures of them with her phone. After Miranda came up to the office Ashley posted them to Twitter.” Brooke looked down to the floor of the shower and lowered her voice. “Dr. Knight said he knew what I’d done to Nicole, and about us… I guess he thought it was me, not Ashley.”
My pulse quickened and I took several very large breaths. I was furious, but not entirely at Brooke. This was exactly why I didn’t like Brooke having anything to do with Ashley. Closing my eyes, I held my breath in. I opened them and stared down at her. She looked absolutely terrified.
“I told you I would handle that. Why didn’t you listen?” I fought to keep my voice from deepening. I tried to keep myself from yelling at her.
Her eyes lifted, meeting mine briefly. “I’m sorry,” she whispered, her eyes shifting back down to the floor.
“It wasn’t Nicole, Brooke.”
She looked up at me, utterly confused. “What?”
I shook my head. “Wasn’t her.”
The water poured down my body and I stood there staring at her, trying to figure out a way to explain things to her, but I failed. My mind could not formulate a way to even begin explaining any of the things I’d kept hidden from her.
I was furious with Ashley. I knew she’d pounced on the opportunity to use Brooke as an excuse to lash out at Nicole. Brooke had no idea what a deviant and manipulative woman Ashley was. I needed time to figure out how to talk to Brooke about my past; I needed to be in complete control of the situation.
Chapter Forty-seven
Brooke
Bound to the Fallen (Prophecy #2) Page 39