by Erin M. Leaf
“Yeah, no. The Council meeting is over,” Jonathan said, reading something on his phone. “And it looks like the old Head stepped down, according to this report.”
“Is there any news about Theo?” Guy asked, voice tight. He didn’t give a shit about the Council or the old Head of Council.
“There’s some talk that Theo Fraser will be appointed as the next Head,” Jonathan replied, sounding distracted. “That’s your guy, right? Theo Fraser?”
“Yes,” Guy said, about to lose his fucking mind. “That’s him.”
“Shit.” Jonathan looked up. His eyes were haunted.
“What is it?” Guy asked, dread settling in his heart, right where it hurt most.
“He’s at a hospital in DC. Nobody knows what happened for sure, but they’re saying he’s been shot. It’s trending on social media, but there’s no real news story about it yet. It must’ve just happened.”
Guy opened his mouth, but no words came out. His heart banged against his ribs, exacerbating the pain centered in his chest. Just then, his phone rang. The display showed Theo’s number. Thank God. He shoved it up against his ear. “Theo?” he croaked.
“No, this is Rose, Theo’s assistant,” a woman said, sounding frazzled. “Guy?”
Fuck. It’s not Theo. Guy recognized her voice, but he was too upset to be polite. “Where’s Theo? Why are you using his phone?”
“Guy, listen to me. Theo is in the hospital, and he’s in surgery. You need to get here right away.”
Guy was already moving towards the door. “Which hospital?” he barked. “Is he okay?” He banged his arm on the doorframe, but barely noticed. He shoved his feet into his sneakers, then grabbed his keys from the hook below the small shelf he’d installed near the door. “What happened?”
“I’ll drive.” His son held the door open, then locked it behind them. “I’m going with you.”
Guy barely heard him. Rose was still talking.
“He was shot. He’s in critical condition. We’re at MedStar Georgetown. I’ve got tickets for you to take the train down—” Rose was saying.
“Driving’s faster at this hour,” Guy said, kicking the screen door shut. His son was already in his truck, and he hurried to the passenger’s side. “Georgetown in DC,” he told Jonathan as soon as he climbed in. His son nodded, starting the truck.
“Fine. Just get here quick, okay? I know Theo’s horrible father will be on the way here, because this shit is already all over the internet. You need to be here, Guy. You can’t let him make decisions for Theo. As soon as his asshole father sees that Theo is poised to take over the Council, I know he’ll try something.” Rose sounded frantic.
“What the hell happened to his bodyguards? Julio? Nick?” Guy ran a hand over his face as the dread in his chest morphed into full-blown panic. “And how can I make decisions for him? We’re not married.”
“You’re his soulmate. I drew up the paperwork. It’s filed and legal, but you need to be here to take over. I can’t protect him from his father because I only have secondary legal access to him,” Rose said bitterly. “I’m just his best-fucking-friend, not his actual sister.” She made a sound in the back of her throat. “Julio is missing. Nick tackled Theo as soon as the shot happened, but he was too late. Nick is really messed up about it, too.”
“Fuck.” Guy ground his teeth. “Is Theo going to be okay?”
“I don’t know.” Rose sounded like she was in tears.
“I’ll be there as soon as I can,” Guy said, gripping the phone as though it were a lifeline. “Four hours, tops. Hang in there, Rose. He’s gonna make it. I promise.” Because there’s no other option. I only just found him. He didn’t question his sudden resolve. Theo needed him—end of story. All his doubts and uncertainty seemed to fade away. I’ve been such an idiot, he thought, shaking his head.
“We’ll make it in three and a half, maybe less,” Jonathan said, popping his emergency light on top of the truck. Guy had forgotten his son had the device. He thought Jonathan used it for emergency visits for injured K-9 units, but he wasn’t sure. It didn’t matter. All that mattered was that it would get him where he needed to go faster.
“Three and a half,” Guy told Rose. “Is Theo’s family there now?”
“His father isn’t here yet, but the bastard called, and he’s on his way down from Manhattan. I think his mother might be with him. His younger brother is the only one who’s even remotely normal, and I think he’s away at college. Theo hasn’t seen him in years. His parents disowned him when he came out,” Rose said, then cursed. “I gotta go. I can see the administrator on the phone, yelling, and I know it’s about Theo. I bet his father is arguing with the care administrator again. This is the third time that old asshole has called.”
“Jesus.” Guy ran a hand over his face. “Isn’t Theo in surgery? What’s to argue about?”
“His father wants them to transport Theo to another hospital, but if they move him, he might die in transit,” Rose said.
“Fuck.”
“Exactly.” Rose cleared her throat. “I really have to go.”
“Go. Hold down the fort. I’ll be there as soon as I can,” Guy told her.
“Okay.” Rose suddenly sounded like a young girl instead of a grown woman.
“You did good, Rose,” Guy said, willing her to stay strong. “Just hang in there, and I’ll be there in a few hours.”
“I’ll do my best,” Rose said, and then the line went dead.
“Shit.” Guy stared at his phone, and then slid it into his pocket. “Jonathan—”
His son cut him off. “We’re making good time. It’s late enough that we’ve missed all the rush hour traffic. We’re taking ninety-five all the way down.”
Guy scrubbed at his face, then let his head tip back against the seat rest. “I don’t know what to do.”
Jonathan glanced at him. “You’re doing all you can. Just sit tight, and we’ll be there before you know it.”
Guy looked at his son. Jonathan was only twenty-five. “When did you get so wise?”
Jonathan smiled wryly. “I had a great father as an example.”
Guy’s eyes blurred. His chest still hurt, but not as badly. “If I haven’t told you lately, I love you.”
“You tell me you love me all the time, Dad,” Jonathan said. “Now, you need to tell Theo.”
“I already have,” Guy murmured, remembering the way Theo had felt against him right after they bonded. He’d regretted it at the time, because it just felt insane, saying that so soon, but now he was grateful. What if Theo died from the gunshot? A stab of horror shot through him, and he gripped the seat edge tight enough to make his fingers ache. I don’t know if I can do this again, he thought, agonized. Pamela’s death was the worst thing that had ever happened to him.
“I’m glad you told him,” Jonathan said, interrupting Guy’s worries. He shifted lanes, speeding up a fraction. “Because love isn’t something you should pass up on. True love is rare and precious.” He glanced at Guy. “Mom told me that. She said I should grab on and hold tight when I found someone to love, and I have a feeling she’d say the same thing to you if she were here right now.”
Guy swallowed against the lump in his throat. “You’re probably right,” he said. He’d been married to Pamela for over twenty years. If she’d still been alive when he met Theo, she likely would have welcomed the younger man into their home with open arms. She was that kind of person. “Your mother was an extraordinary woman,” he said, and then he closed his eyes and willed himself to be calm.
“She was,” Jonathan said softly. He glanced at his phone, mounted on the dash. “Three hours to go. Let’s see if we can get that number down a bit.”
****
Two and a half hours later, Theo dropped Guy off at the front entrance of the medical center. “I’ll go find parking, and then catch up with you inside. You go take care of Theo,” Jonathan told him.
“I don’t know what floor he’s on,” Guy sai
d, distractedly. He eyed the hospital with dread. “I don’t know where to tell you to meet me.”
“I’ll figure it out, Dad,” Theo said. “I’m a big boy, you know. I’ll find you.”
Guy couldn’t dredge up a smile, even for his son’s teasing. He was too worried about Theo. “Okay, thanks.” He shut the door and watched as Jonathan pulled away. He was lucky to have such a good son. Now, if only Theo makes it through this, so I can introduce them to each other, he thought, then grimaced. He had to think positive. He couldn’t face it if Theo didn’t survive. He rubbed his chest as he hurried inside. The ache was minor now, and he suspected it was due more to his worrying than any kind of mystical connection he had with his soulmate, but who knew? If he were a praying man, he’d be on his thousandth Hail Mary by now. The hours in the truck worrying with nothing useful to do except wait hadn’t been pleasant.
Ten minutes later he found Rose in the waiting room outside the intensive care unit. She’d texted him an hour ago that Theo was out of surgery, and doing as well as could be expected, but he hadn’t heard anything since then. He knew immediately that he’d made it just in time, as she was glaring up at a man who looked like an older version of Theo, except for the cold blue eyes. He stared a moment, not able to comprehend how anyone could disown their own child. He’d cut off his own arm before he’d do that to Jonathan.
“No, you can’t have him transferred, Mr. Fraser. The only person who can make medical decisions for Theo is his soulmate,” Rose said, clutching a folder to her chest. A sour looking older woman watched from the chairs set against the wall as Rose faced off with Theo’s father. “The law is very clear on these things, but Theo also had a medical proxy set up just in case, too. You have no rights here, and you haven’t since you disowned Theo all those years ago. I don’t know why you even came to the hospital.”
That must be Theo’s mother, Guy realized, taking in the woman’s dark brown eyes and blonde hair. The strands were light enough that he wasn’t sure if she was going grey or simply liked the platinum look. The father’s eyes were a steely blue, cold as winter. Wait, medical proxy? What is she talking about? Guy frowned.
“I’m his father. As such, I am his immediate family. I can have you thrown out of here if you persist in blocking my access to my son, Miss Tremaine,” the older man said, looking at Theo’s assistant with contempt.
Rose didn’t back down. “Guy Keaton will be here any moment, Mr. Fraser. The medical administrator already has the paperwork showing that Guy is Theo’s medical proxy.” She glared at Theo’s father. “Once again, I don’t even know why you’re here. You disowned Theo the moment he told you he was gay. Wasn’t that back when he was in college? Ten years ago now?”
Guy hurried forward, not wanting Rose to have to deal with the brunt of this man’s displeasure. He knew she was competent. She had to be, to be Theo’s assistant on the Council, but she was also only one person. “Rose. How is he?” he asked. He’d talk to her about the legal stuff later. First, he needed to know how Theo was doing.
She immediately turned to him and smiled with relief. “Guy!”
“Hey, there.” Guy recognized her exhaustion. He’d been there enough times to know exactly what she was feeling. “I’m here,” he said gently, and opened his arms. He desperately needed to see Theo, but Rose looked like she was about to collapse. She fell into his arms and hugged him tightly. “It’s okay,” he murmured. “It’s going to be okay.” She felt small and fragile in his arms, and his heart broke over what she must be going through. Theo was his soulmate, yes, but she’d been Theo’s best friend for over a decade. “Shh.”
She shuddered, and then leaned back. “The doctor is waiting to talk to you.”
“Okay. I’ll see him in a moment,” he said, searching her face. He saw determination and exhaustion in equal measure. “Thanks for taking care of things.”
“Of course,” she said, then looked over his shoulder. “This is Guy Keaton, Theo’s legal next of kin,” she practically snarled.
Huh. Guess the stuff about me being Theo’s medical proxy wasn’t just her trying to protect Theo from his father. Guy steeled himself as he turned to the older man glaring daggers at him. “I assume you’re Theo’s father?” He liked the fact that he had at least two inches on the man. Glaring doesn’t work nearly so well when you have to look up, does it? he thought, meanly. He held out his hand, nonetheless. He wanted to get a feel for what kind of person he was dealing with.
“You’re claiming to be Theo’s soulmate?” The older man snorted. “Impossible. I don’t know who you are, or what you think you can do, but my son will never claim you as his soulmate. You’re wasting your time here. Theo is an important man, now. He doesn’t have time to indulge himself with the likes of you.” Mr. Fraser brushed past Guy and headed for the reception area just outside the waiting room.
“Was it something I said?” Guy turned to Rose and raised his eyebrows, trying to dispel the tension of the encounter. “Maybe I should’ve changed out of my jeans?”
She smiled tightly and shook her head. “It wouldn’t have mattered. He’s a snob.” She glanced at the woman still sitting in the chairs. “Come on.” She grabbed his arm and towed him out of the room. “The bullet missed his heart and lung, but it caused a lot of damage exiting his body. He lost a lot of blood, and the surgeon had to chase down all the blood vessels and sew them up so he wouldn’t bleed out.” She sighed, running a hand over her eyes. “It was awful. We have no idea who shot him. Julio was missing until just a little while ago when Nick found him passed out cold in the security office. He thinks he was drugged. John is still missing.”
“Jesus.” Guy hugged her again, ignoring the blood streaks on her blouse. He knew it was Theo’s blood, but he couldn’t let his mind dwell on it, or he’d go crazy, and he needed to be calm right now. He couldn’t deal with Theo’s bodyguards, or worry about the suspected shooter until he knew Theo would be okay. “What’s his prognosis?”
She shrugged, leaning into him. “They don’t know. He’s strong, but he lost so much blood.” She glanced at the ICU doors. “I think his surgeon is a Healer, so there’s that. We lucked out. There aren’t that many of them to go around.”
“I know. That’s good,” Guy said, relieved to hear that Theo’s doctor probably had Craft power. That would improve his chances considerably. They may not be able to cure cancer yet, but Healers are great with trauma. He would know. Rose still looked like she was going to break down, and he hugged her again. “Theo’s young. He’s a fighter,” Guy said, swallowing the lump in his throat. How many times had he said those words to Jonathan about his mother? How many times had he said those words to himself? His wife had died anyway. God, I hate hospitals. He glanced around. Theo’s father was gesticulating at the tired-looking nurse behind the desk. “Can I see Theo, do you think?” he asked Rose.
She nodded into his shoulder. “Yes, of course. The doctor told me to text him when you arrived.” She pushed away and pulled out her phone.
Guy watched her type a message and tap “Send”. “Thank you for being here with him,” he said.
Rose looked at him, and then tears welled up. “Theo is like a brother to me,” she said, impatiently swiping at her eyes. “Where else would I be?”
Theo understood. He pulled a tissue from his pocket and handed it to her. “Here.”
She nodded, then wiped her face. Guy looked longingly towards the ICU, but knew better than to try to enter without an escort.
“Come on. Let’s get your ID scanned so you’re in the system,” Rose said, towing him towards the reception area.
Guy was relieved to see that Theo’s father had stalked off somewhere. He smiled at the nurse, then handed her his ID.
“Oh, good, you’re Mr. Fraser’s soulmate,” she murmured, glancing down the hall.
“Yes, I am.” Guy spoke quietly, but the words felt momentous. That was the first time he’d admitted it out loud. He bit back a smile at the glare the n
urse sent down the hall. That must be the direction Theo’s father stormed off.
“There, you’re all set,” the nurse said, handing back his driver’s license.
“Do I have to sign anything?”
She shook her head. “No. It’s all electronic. If the doctor needs you to sign anything, he’ll pull up the document on his tablet.”
“Mr. Keaton?”
Guy spun around. A young man wearing a doctor’s jacket over scrubs headed his way. “I’m Dr. Hamilton, Mr. Fraser’s trauma surgeon.”
“Hello,” Guy held out his hand, bemused. Why do the doctors always look so damned young?
The surgeon took it, and Guy felt a jolt of power. “You’re a Healer?” he asked, feeling his WoodCraft surge a bit. Rose had been right. He tamped down the relief he felt. Healers couldn’t perform miracles, although having the power was definitely a help.
The surgeon’s eyebrows rose. “You can tell?”
“My son is a Healer veterinarian. I know what the energy feels like,” Guy told him. He didn’t mention the power increase he’d experienced since he and Theo had bonded. It wasn’t important.
Dr. Hamilton nodded. “Yes, I have some healing Craft. It helps, but it’s not a panacea.”
“I know.” Guy sighed. “How is Theo doing?”
“He’s actually doing quite well, considering the damage the bullet did on its way out. The next forty-eight hours will be difficult, but if he doesn’t develop an infection, he should pull through without any problems. The round missed his lungs, heart, and spine.” The doctor shook his head. “He’s really quite lucky, but unfortunately, he’s very weak. If he doesn’t improve in the next two days, we might have to go back in. Infection is a real possibility.”
Lucky? That doesn’t sound lucky. Guy raked a hand through his hair. He didn’t think Theo was lucky. Lucky was not getting shot in the first place. “Can I see him?”
“Yes. But only for a half hour at a time.” The doctor led the way to the intensive care unit. “He won’t be awake yet.”