Katie punched the third floor and specifically stood next to Dean as everyone else filled in the elevator. Anne walked next to him as her father made it a point to be as far away from her as possible with Helen by his side. They reached the third floor and Katie led them down another hallway and stopped in front of one door. She opened the door and let all of them in. The room was a spare patient room with just a bed, two chairs, and a small table.
"This is the best we can do for now. We'll try and find you something more comfortable as soon as we can."
"This is fine, thank you," Dean told her with a smile.
“I’ll check back later to see if there is anything else you need.” Katie winked and headed back to her nurse’s station.
Ken led Helen to one of the chairs and sat down beside her. Anne walked to the window and just stared at the highway in the distance. Jeri knelt beside Helen and took hold of her hand. She squeezed it to give her some reassurance that everything would be all right.
Helen looked over at Ken. “Ken, maybe you could go back…”
“I can’t. You know that.”
“If only Evan was awake.” Helen whispered, “He could help Missy.”
“Shh, not now,” Ken whispered back to her.
Anne felt tears sting her eyes. Why wouldn’t Dad go back in time and tell Missy and Evan to take side roads? Or maybe even tell her to come later? After his whole speech about family he really wasn’t one to be able to give her grief.
And Evan. She wiped away a tear that escaped her eye. Evan had the gift of healing and used it often in his job as a paramedic to help people. If he were awake he would be able to heal her but he always temporarily lost it when he became sick. Would the same thing happen if he were injured?
Chapter 3
Dean's high-pitched ringtone cut through the silence in the room. He picked it up. "Miller here."
"Dean, it's Stan. First off, how 's Missy?"
"We don't know anything, yet. They are still assessing her and will let us know how she is."
"Call me as soon as you hear anything. Everyone in town is worried about her and Helen and Ken."
"Will do.” His gaze went back to Anne, who nibbled on her nail as she intently stayed focused on the highway.
"We finally got a bit of information on what happened. Looks like it was Evan's car that started the whole pile up. He ran into the median and then bounced off to the middle of the road and that's when the other cars started hitting each other in a chain reaction."
"Can you tell why his car would do that?"
Anne slightly stiffened and turned to look at him. Confusion mixed with fear were plastered on her face as she continued to listen.
"No, not yet. We are still investigating what happened."
"Let me know as soon as you find anything out."
"Of course. Take care."
"Bye."
By this point, everyone else looked towards him as he hung up the phone.
No point in keeping anything from them. They needed to know the truth. "Evan's car was the one that started the pile up."
Anne was the first one to speak. "What? That's impossible! He took care of his car so well."
"It may not be a mechanical failure… it may have been Evan's fault. We don't know. Maybe he swerved to avoid another car or a deer."
It would be hard for everyone to accept this fact since Evan was such a great driver with probably the cleanest record in the whole state. Still, Dean thought Evan may have just gotten lucky and known where all the speed traps were.
A knock interrupted them and Dean walked over to open the door. A gray-haired man in blue scrubs walked into the room. "Are you the Stevens family?"
"Yes," Anne acknowledged.
"I'm Dr. Jim Winston and I was the first to assess Missy when she came in."
"How is she?" Helen whispered.
"Right now, we just wheeled her into surgery because there was some internal bleeding. We don’t know how bad it is until the surgeon can get in and take a look."
Helen started to sob uncontrollably. Ken wrapped her arms around her as Jeri rubbed her hands.
*
Anne couldn’t believe what she was hearing. Internal bleeding? She heard that term many times during one of the movies that she filmed and the person who had it ended up dying. Her back stiffened as she pushed that thought away. This was Missy, and she would pull through. "How long will the surgery take?" she asked the doctor.
"We don't know because it depends on how much damage is found. I'll have the staff bring you more chairs so you can be comfortable. Is there anything any of you need? Something to drink or eat?"
Anne's dad shook his head. "We can't eat anything right now, doc."
"I understand. I will come back with another update as soon as I know anything."
"Doctor, what about Evan?” Ken asked as he looked at the older man. “He was with Missy in her car."
"Yes, the young man. He's still unconscious and, fortunately, he has no internal injuries. They're running tests on him right now. I believe his father just arrived."
"Please, have him come here, doc.” He told him as he continued to hug Helen. “They're very close family friends."
"Of course. Please, if you need anything, don't hesitate to ask."
"We just want to know if Missy’s going to be okay," Helen told him in between sobs.
"As soon as I know anything, you will be the first to know."
He then turned and left them.
"Why? Why did this happen to them?" Helen asked between her sobs.
"We'll find out, Helen. We'll figure out what happened." Jeri grabbed a tissue from the tissue box by the bedside and handed it to her and she blew her nose and dabbed her eyes.
There was a knock at the door and a man brought in a few more chairs. They each took a seat.
Anne never sat down. Instead, she stared out the window as still as a statue. She could feel Dean’s eyes on her but she didn’t turn around. He could stare at her all day. She’d had enough of his help, with him criticizing her, and leading the charge to attack her that her dad finished neatly. He didn’t know anything about her or what her life was really like. Most importantly, he didn’t know about her gift. It was the one thing that she didn’t disclose easily, as opposed to what her father thought. Their argument started to reply in her mind again. Suddenly, the room felt tight and airless. She needed to get out.
Without a word, she quickly turned and walked out the door.
*
Immediately, Dean got up and ran after her as she weaved her way through the hallway and bolted to the left through a door. When he reached it, he saw that it was the staircase and he followed close behind her. The stairs ended on the first floor and when he opened the door he saw Anne hurrying down the hallway and then she turned right down another corridor. Swiftly, he walked down the hallway, careful not to knock over any of the patients or staff as he rushed to find out where Anne was going. When he turned the corner he saw her go out the last door at the end of the hall clearly marked with an 'Exit' sign.
Is she nuts? he thought. No wonder her mom wanted him to follow her. There could be a boatload of paparazzi and reporters waiting for her out there.
Fortunately, the hallway was less crowded than the previous one so Dean sprinted and opened the door, following Anne through.
Nothing could prepare him for what he saw when he opened the door. He was out in the back of the hospital by the loading dock and there were around 15 cars, all running but not a person in sight except for Anne who sat on the hood of her black sports car. She sobbed and when she sobbed louder, the car lights would turn brighter as if they fed on her sorrow. Dean just froze, staring.
None of the cars had drivers but yet they were all running and somehow they had to have gotten here. They were also in a circular pattern with Anne’s sports car at the center and they were the rays emanating from it. How did they get there? Did she move them telekinetically? There was no way
she could carry them like his team mate Tiny did.
Another car slowly drove towards the circle. There was no driver, and it drove perfectly into the circle and stopped between two cars. Instantly, he understood her father's concern for her safety. Any maniac could bring a city to a standstill with the kind of power that she had. And now, with her being more popular and in the public eye, she would be instantly recognized. Fortunately, it seemed like the world still didn't hear about Missy's accident or they didn't think of that fact that Anne would be sitting in the back of the hospital alone. Still, the roar of the engines would attract someone's attention. He had to keep her indoors.
He jumped down and tried to get in between a Buick and a Ford. The Buick revved its engine and started to move forward, pinning him to the Ford.
"What the hell!?"
Anne’s eyes widened. "No! Let him go!"
The Buick moved back and let Dean free.
Tears streamed down her eyes as she looked at him. "Why did you follow me!?”
“I’m supposed to protect you,” he told her without hesitation.
“So you’re going to follow me everywhere I go? My other body guards gave me space.”
And they were morons for letting you out of their sight. “I’m not like your other bodyguards, and you’re not like the other celebrities, are you?”
*
She stared at him in silence, not knowing what to tell him. All she wanted was a few minutes with the cars to help her keep it together. In her emotional turmoil dealing with Missy’s accident and her dad’s outburst towards her, she didn’t think that anyone had followed her. Dean managed to, yet, he didn’t run away when the cars tried to protect her. Instead, he just stood his ground and his look indicated he wanted answers.
Cautiously, he walked in between the cars towards her. "What is all this?"
She sighed and looked up at the sky. Part of her wanted to lie and tell him he was just imaging things, then try and knock him out and convince him this was all a dream. Staring at him, she saw that there was no way she would be able to pull that off with him. Based on the stories her mother told about him, he was very strong-willed and persistent, which is why he did very well out in the Middle East. She felt as if those hazel green eyes could see right through her. There was no way she could lie her way out of this. If she didn’t tell him, she knew that either her mother or father would.
"This is my gift."
Slowly, he approached her and watched the black sports car as if it were a panther ready to pounce on him. "What gift?"
"It's something I was born with. Cars just become awake around me."
As he stood in front of her he stared at her car. "Awake?"
Calmly, she placed her hand on Hawk and pet it gently. "Yes, if I’m around a car, they awaken."
"Like that horror movie where the car tries to kill its owner?" His serious demeanor showed no sense of humor or sarcasm with his statement.
The tension was clear in his voice and she tried to ease it. "Not really. They are only awake when I'm close by. When I leave, they go back to sleep." She then looked at Hawk, "Except for the cars that I'm around for long periods of time. They stay alive."
Dean raked his hand through his hair and Anne could see him struggle to make sense of everything. "Do you control them?"
"Not really. It's more like I ask them to do something and they have the free will to decide whether they want to do it or not. Most of the time, they don't mind."
"So how did all these cars..." He gestured to all the cars around them.
"I'm really distraught. They just flocked to help me."
Dean looked at all the parked cars around them and sighed. He scanned the area and noticed that there were no cameras anywhere in the back, which was a relief. If anyone had pictures or videos of this, it would be all over the Internet in moments and that would put Anne in greater danger.
He never heard of anyone with the kind of power she did. Granted, he had a power himself, but it paled in comparison to what she could do. If she was on his Marine team, she would have been one hell of an asset or a threat if the enemy got a hold of her.
His eyes swept the area again to make sure there were no hidden visitors.
"Let's talk about this inside."
"No, I need to stay here for a few minutes. Being around them makes me feel better."
"You know you are not making one bit of sense."
She nodded. "I get that a lot and it's so hard to hide it all the time."
"Then, why did you become an actress? It puts you right in the spotlight for everyone to see."
"I love to act. It's my passion and I'm careful."
"I’ll be the judge of that."
"I don't need a babysitter."
"You don't have a choice."
A loud engine roar from Hawk interrupted them.
Her hand sprawled out on the hood of Hawk as if to calm him down. “It’s okay, Hawk. It’s all right,” she murmured to the car. She glanced up at him, eyes wary. "I always have a choice."
"Getting killed is not a choice."
"How do you know that I'm going to get killed?"
"Because I've met some really shady people that would just love to capture your power and they would kill to get it."
"You're nuts. No one's going to kill me."
“No, but they’d kill everyone around you to get to you, and then they’d never let you go.”
Dean leaned forward and placed both hands on either side of her, his face a mere inch away from hers. The instant he did so, he knew it was a mistake to get that close to her. Her scent was so sweet and feminine, her tear stained face showed true sorrow and how vulnerable she really was, and yet she still tried to stay strong and kept pushing him away. Is that what enticed him to stay close to her just a little bit longer?
"I’m going to keep an eye on you whether you like it or not. Now, you can cooperate and make this easy or we can do it the hard way."
Hawk roared at him.
He glared down at the hood. "I know how to take out your spark plugs so you better support me on this."
He looked at all the cars and told them. "That goes for the rest of you. I'm trying to keep her safe from the bad guys."
"You're crazy." Anne glared at him through her glossy eyes as she kept her hands glued to Hawk.
Dean peeled her hand from the hood. "You're better off being with crazy me than the other lunatics out there."
"We'll see about that." She slid off Hawk and murmured to the car, "Go to the parking lot. I'll come out later."
His lights came up then went back down in acknowledgment. They made their way through the maze of cars.
"This really is amazing," Dean told her as they inched past a minivan. "I can see now why you were a stunt driver."
Anne smiled. “Yes, it is amazing. Every car understands me. I have no problem telling them what I need from them.”
"It all makes sense now," he whispered as they reached the back door. It was locked and Anne sighed.
"I should have thought that would happen."
Dean saw that no one was around. Walking to the front of the hospital was not an option, because it would draw in a huge crowd as well as strange headlines that they really didn’t need. He glanced at Anne, seeing her in a different light than before. No longer was she the stuck-up diva that he met a few hours ago. She was now a friend who had a secret that he had to keep.
"Not a problem," Dean told her as he gently moved her aside, and he placed his hand on the lock, closed his eyes and visualized the locking mechanism. A second later the door unlocked and he pulled it open.
"You're not the only one with gifts."
Anne looked at him in shock.
He grinned. He guessed she probably hadn’t met many people with gifts. Dean had met his share.
They moved quickly inside and closed the door behind them and headed back into the hospital to their waiting room.
When they entered, they found that George
Tensel, Evan's father, had arrived. He sat next to Ken and spoke in a hushed tone. George and Ken had met during the Vietnam War and they became as close as brothers once they both learned of each other’s powers. When they both returned to the States they decided to move nearby each other; by being closer they were able to keep their families safer. When George’s wife left him for another man, having the Stevens family close by helped him and his children fill the hole his wife left behind.
He got up when Anne entered the room, and she went over and hugged him.
“Is Christina coming?” she asked.
“She's on her way,” he told her. “She loves her big brother so much it's just tearing her right now.”
“It's hard for all of us,” Kenneth said. “We just have to keep thinking positive. Evan's a strong guy and Missy is, too.”
George sighed and sat back down.
Anne walked over to her mother and Helen looked up at her and extended her hand. Anne grabbed hold of it and knelt in front of her. As she leaned over, she whispered, “Dean knows.”
Her mother looked at her and, for the first time since the whole accident started, she smiled.
There was a knock on the door and then it opened. The doctor entered again and closed the door behind him.
“I have more news about Missy.” He paused as if gathering his thoughts. “The surgeon was able to repair the bleeding, so they have that under control. They have her now in the recovery room.”
“Does that mean that she's going to be okay?” Helen asked.
He shook his head, “We won't know until we get the results from all the tests and the key will be what happens when she wakes up.”
“When will that be?” Kenneth asked as he held on to his wife’s hand.
“We don't know. Right now, she's still under the anesthesia. Once all the tests are run and we know what we're dealing with then we'll take the next step.”
“What about Evan?” George asked.
“Are you a relation of his?”
“I'm his father.”
“They finished running some tests on him and are waiting on the results. I'll let you know as soon as we have them.”
Driven By Love Page 4