Bailey
PAIN. A SEA of it. No, more like a thousand seas of it. I swallowed and heard myself whimper. It felt like razor blades sliced at my throat with each gulp.
Within seconds, I heard a click, and then the pain eased. Sighing, I tried to force my eyes open, only managing to see out of one of them.
“Welcome back,” a kind voice said, and I followed the sound. I blinked until the blur cleared into a young woman with long, auburn hair and hazel eyes, who smiled at me as she held my wrist. “I just gave you a dose of Morphine, but if you’re still in any pain, let me know and I’ll see if we can’t get you something stronger.”
“Where…” I swallowed again, biting back a groan. I noticed a bandage on my right arm and another tightly wound around my middle that kept my breaths shallow and strained.
“Shhh, don’t try to speak just yet. I’ll get you some water. I’m Macey Gilbert. I’ll be your nurse for the next twelve hours. You’ve got a couple cracked ribs, so even breathing will be difficult for a little while. Doc wrapped you pretty tight for the moment.”
I nodded.
Macey grabbed a cup with a straw and adjusted my bed to a seated position. The change increased the pressure on my ribs, but I tried to breathe through it. Macey guided the straw to my mouth and I took a sip and then another. Instant relief.
“Thanks.”
“You’re welcome, hon,” Macey said, and set the water down. “Still in pain?”
I nodded. “A bit, yes.”
“Okay. I’ll be right back.”
I relaxed again.
“Miss Harper?”
I opened my eyes and looked into the face of one of the hottest men I’d ever seen. Dark blond hair, sea green eyes, and a mouth that looked like it could kiss. Full lower lip, thinner top lip and even, white teeth that gleamed when he smiled.
“I’m Dr. Stone. I’m going to examine you, and then the FBI has a few questions if you feel up to answering them.”
I nodded. Macey returned and helped me drink more water. I couldn’t remember when water had ever tasted so good before. The ice soothed my throat and made me feel like I could speak again.
“What’s your pain level?” Dr. Stone asked. “On a scale from one to ten.”
“About a six.”
“What about before the pain meds?”
“Forty-two,” I said.
Dr. Stone smiled again. “Mase, I think Miss Harper can have pudding or Jell-O if she’s hungry. Broth is okay too. Let’s get her some Dilaudid. The morphine’s not as effective as I’d like to see.”
“Yes, sir,” Macey said.
“Do you feel up to speaking with Agent Williams?” he asked.
“Do I have a choice?”
“Absolutely.”
I sighed. “Might as well get it over with.”
Dr. Stone turned and left the room and Macey stepped to my side again. “What culinary masterpiece can I bring you? We have orange, cherry, and lime Jell-O, or for the food connoisseur, tapioca, vanilla, or chocolate pudding.”
I giggled, groaning as a sharp pain shot through my side.
“Sorry, hon. Watch those ribs.”
I licked my lips. “Let’s go with tapioca.”
Macey grinned. “A woman after my own heart. I’ll be back when you’re done with Brock.”
Macey left, and two men walked in. I recognized them as two of the agents who had busted into the room where I was being held. One was tall with dark hair and a day’s stubble over his chin. He had the bluest eyes I’d ever seen, and he was gorgeous. The other man, a little shorter, dark hair with a tinge of red and longer than the first man’s, was also good-looking, but definitely not my type.
“I’m Brock Williams and this is Dallas Stone,” the dark-haired man said.
“Stone…are you related to Dr. Stone?” I asked.
Dallas nodded. “He’s my brother.”
“Where are Cammie and Jay?” I asked.
“They’re being looked after by child protective services,” Brock said.
“I want to see them.”
“What’s your relationship to them?” Dallas asked.
“None of your business.”
Brock nodded to his partner who exited the room, pulling the door closed. He approached the bed and gave me a gentle smile. “Miss Harper, can you tell me why you were in a meth house in Gresham with two children who have been missing for two weeks from their home in Connecticut?”
I gasped. “Two weeks?”
Brock nodded, pulling a chair to the side of the bed.
I blinked back tears. Their parents must be worried sick. “I don’t really remember how I got to the house. I was at a party with my friend and…” I swallowed. I didn’t want to say what I saw out loud. Maybe if I didn’t verbalize it, I could forget it.
“Miss Harper…Bailey,” he said. “I know this must be difficult, but it’s important.”
“I can’t.”
“Ma’am, I really need to know what you saw.”
“They will kill them. And then me.”
“I won’t let anyone hurt you, Bailey. I promise.”
I shook my head, the action causing pain to rip through my skull and I couldn’t stop a whimper.
“Bailey, you’re safe. Jay and Cammie are safe. No one can get to you.”
“Not them.”
“I’m sorry?”
“There are more children. They have them chained up with my friend.”
“Who?” Brock pressed.
“I can’t.” Panic welled up inside me, stealing my breath. A machine started beeping, and then Macey and Dr. Stone appeared, pushing Brock away as they covered my nose and mouth with a mask and injected something into my IV. Then nothing.
* * *
Brock
“Fuck!” I snapped, and then shook my head. “Sorry, Mase.”
Macey chuckled. “Like I haven’t heard that before.”
“What did you say to her?” Dr. Stone asked.
Alec Stone, Dallas’s brother, was one of the best ER docs in the area, and one of the first people my crew and I sought out when we needed medical services or advice. He’d been a medic in the Army before settling in Gresham, Oregon.
“I just asked her a few questions, Alec.” I ran my hands through my hair. “She’s scared of something, but she won’t tell me what.”
Alec checked Bailey’s pulse, and then faced me again, crossing his arms. “She’s gonna be out for a while. Why don’t you come back in a couple of hours?”
I considered the mountain of paperwork I should be working on, and then shook my head. “I promised I wouldn’t let anyone hurt her. Think I’m gonna stick around to see if someone tries.”
Alec narrowed his eyes. “No talking to her unless I’m here. Got it?”
I stared at him.
“Got it, Brock?” Alec pressed.
“Yeah, man. Got it.”
Alec nodded and left the room. Macey followed, and I fired off a text to my team before folding myself into the chair by Bailey’s bed to wait.
Settling an ankle over my knee, I watched Bailey as she slept. The house I’d pulled her from was somehow connected to a drug cartel that may or may not include both Russian and Colombian mob bosses. I couldn’t imagine how the two could coexist without killing each other, but the info I’d received was solid, so I planned to follow it as far as it took me.
The kids were another story. Their parents had been notified and were on their way from Greenwich, which further confused me. How did two kids from a wealthy family in Connecticut end up in Gresham, Oregon? In a meth house, no less, and being protected by a college student who seemed more likely to be involved in the pageant world than the drug world?
I dropped my head back and stared at the ceiling. A groan brought my focus back to the bed. So much for being out for “a while.” I debated whether or not to call Alec back, but I needed answers and Bailey was the only one who could give them to me. I rose to my feet and stepped over to the bed.
“Bailey?” I whispered.
“Mmm?”
I leaned over her, squeezing her hand. “Wake up, beautiful.”
She groaned again and then her blood curdling scream brought Macey running into the room.
“What happened?” Macey demanded.
I shrugged. “No idea. I think she’s having a nightmare.”
Macey checked Bailey’s vitals and her drip levels, and then sighed. “She seems calm now.” She wagged a finger at me. “Don’t wake her.”
I raised my hands in surrender. “I won’t, Mase. Swear.”
She narrowed her eyes at me again and then stalked out of the room. I pulled the chair closer to the bed and took Bailey’s hand, my thumb stroking her knuckles. “What happened to you, sweetheart? What demons are messing with you, huh?”