Chapter 27

The intercom came on, interrupting Wayne's worry. He checked his phone again and gritted his teeth at the temporary block of signals in the hospital elevator. The doors opened, and he stepped out, looking down at the screen. None of the Notus members had texted him after they forced him off the road, promising to find Gracie if he went back to the hospital to check on Clara.

He wasn't good for anyone when he couldn't control his need to make sure Clara was okay.

The time after arriving at the crash a blur as he went through the steps to contact his club, get the details from an upset Paxton, and most of all, find out the condition of Clara while only wanting to be by her side.

He stopped at the nurses' station. "Clara Nelson's room?"

The attending nurse took one look at his vest and said, "Room 312."

He was halfway down the hallway when the nurse called for him to sign in. Ignoring the request, he pushed through the door and spotted Paxton hovering beside the bed. He dropped his gaze to the white sheet, and his chest tightened. Clara, half reclined, laid with her eyes closed, white gauze wrapped around her head like a headband, a slight lump peeking out at the edge of the bandage. He looked down the length of her sheet covered body and back up to her face as he stepped forward.

"How is she?" he whispered, slipping his hand under her limp fingers, unable to take his gaze off her beautiful face, marked by the accident. A swollen eyebrow, a couple shallow cuts on her forehead seemed to be the only injuries outside of the bandage covering her hairline.

"They sedated her." Paxton shook his head. "She kept screaming for Gracie. The poor thing was distraught. She and her sister are so close. I could tell that from day one of working for them. They do everything together."

"Yeah, they're close." He'd never seen two women, two sisters, twins, closer than Clara and Gracie. It wasn't only the way they finished each other's sentences and looked the same. They touched all the time, reassuring each other that they were together as if they needed to connect.

Clara moaned, and her head turned on the pillow. Wayne leaned down and whispered, "You're okay, sweetheart. I'm going to bring Gracie back to you."

Her eyelids fluttered open, and she sleepily said, "Wayne?"

"Yeah, it's me." He stroked her cheek gently, careful not to hurt her more. "I'm right here."

Tears filled her eyes, and she squeezed his hand. "There was a man."

"I know." He brought her hand up to his lips and kissed her fingers. "Don't worry. Paxton gave us a good description of the man from the accident. The police, Notus, even the media, is on this. We'll find Gracie and bring her back to you."

"I need to talk to you." A tear fell from her eye. "You need to go look—"

"Ms. Nelson?" A male voice spoke behind Wayne.

Wayne looked over his shoulder, not moving from Clara's side. Nobody was going to get close to her.

"I’m Dr. Sabough." The doctor walked to the end of the bed. "I was the attending doctor when you were brought in after the car accident." Dr. Sabough flipped open a metal folder. "You've got a mild concussion, which can leave you slightly nauseous and give you a headache, along with some blank spots in your memory around the time you hit your head. We've given you twelve stitches in your hairline that'll need to come out in ten days. The good news is you can go home if you have someone who can monitor you for twenty-four hours."

"I will." Wayne squeezed her hand.

"Good." Dr. Sabough wrote on the paper. "I'll write a prescription for eight hundred milligrams of Motrin. She can take one pill every six hours as needed for pain. She'll be tired for a while because of the sedative we gave her upon arrival. Your job will be to check on her when she's sleeping. Every two hours, you'll need to wake her. You can call her name, touch her arm to see if she responds to you. You don't have to fully wake her. Just check that she's responding to your voice and touch."

"Okay," said Wayne.

"Motrin can upset her stomach, so make sure she eats a little food or drinks milk when she takes the medicine. If there's any vomiting or her headache gets worse, bring her to the E.R." Dr. Sabough stepped around the bed, shook Wayne's hand, and held his hand out to Clara.

Clara let go of Wayne and shook with the doctor. "Thank you."

"You're welcome. The nurse will be in with your discharge papers, and we'll call your prescription into the pharmacy downstairs. It should be ready to pick up when you go down." The doctor nodded at Paxton and left the room.

"Can you take me to the police station?" Clara touched the bandage on her head. "Shit. I don't have a car anymore. Can someone bring me Gracie's car? There's an extra set of keys in my purse." She winced. "Where is my purse?"

"The police took care of the crash, sweetheart. I'm sure they have your purse. We'll find it." He looked up at Paxton. "Can you drive her to my house. I've got my bike."

"Sure will." Paxton stepped closer to the bed.

The nurse came in. Wayne moved out of Clara's way. He should've ridden home, picked up his truck, and came to the hospital, but all he'd thought about was getting to Clara's side.

Wayne interrupted the conversation. "Sweetheart, I’m going to step outside the door and make some phone calls."

Clara nodded, sitting on the edge of the hospital bed. Wayne stepped out and put another text out to all the Notus members to check in. The man who caused the wreck abducted Gracie and had to have been on foot because the sedan—which turned out to be stolen—had remained at the crime scene.

Then, he made a call to update the Police Department in hopes he'd get any new information.

"Lieutenant Gomez," answered Gomez.

"It's Wayne." Wayne turned his back to the couple walking down the hospital hallway. "Anything?"

"No. The local news stations have alerted everyone within a block of Lombard that there is an abduction and the abductor is on foot and possibly armed. The streets are practically cleared. With most everyone notified, if he's in one of the houses, hopefully, we can flush him out."

"Good. Do not give up." Wayne thrust his hand in his hair. "Clara's been discharged. I need to stop downstairs at the pharmacy and then I'll be taking her to my house. It'll probably take me an hour. I'll call you when I've got her settled."

He pocketed his phone and walked back into Clara's room. He caught her gaze. The pain, both physical and emotional, in her eyes, punched him in the gut.

"I'll go get a wheelchair and take you down to the front door. If you want to get your car and park in front, I'll have her down there in a few minutes," said a female.

Wayne lifted his gaze and discovered the nurse had directed the instructions to him. He looked at Paxton and nodded for him to go ahead and go out. "I'll stay with Clara."

The nurse left with Paxton. Wayne squatted in front of Clara, rubbing her thighs. "Hang in there, sweetheart. I'll get you home, and you can rest."

"I can't. I need to talk to you about Gracie." She clung to the front of his vest.

"I've got the search for her covered. Gomez has a whole team out looking for her." He straightened, looking at the top of her hair, knowing the pink tint in her blonde strands were blood they'd tried to clean off her. He was going to kill the motherfucker who hurt her and took Gracie.

"Wayne, the man who has Gracie. He's the sa—"

"Here we go." The nurse rolled the wheelchair clear to the bed. "Go slow when you stand up. You could get dizzy and feel sick to your stomach if you move too fast."

Clara pressed her lips together in determination and stood, reaching out for the arm of the chair. She cried out before she made contact and brought her shoulder up near her ear before she sat down.

"Slow down." The nurse stepped around the chair and slid her hand under Clara's arm. "Your muscles are spasming from being in the accident. The Motrin you'll be taking at home should help with some of that. Also, a heating pad will loosen your muscles as they get sorer over the next few days."

Wayne took note of the nurse's advice and would ask for a pad down at the pharmacy. Afraid the physical pain would increase when he got her home, he wanted to make sure he had everything she'd need because he planned to lock her in his house with protection twenty-four/seven.

Clara stared up at him, the bandage only emphasizing the frown pulling her brows down. The sheer panic he understood. She worried about her sister. But, there was something more. A leeriness lurking below the surface and he had no idea where that fear came from. She belonged to him. They'd been seeing each other, practically living together. She had no reason to be afraid of him.

He followed the nurse pushing Clara out of the room. He passed them in the hallway and pushed the button for the elevator. Clara rode with her head cradled in her hand, her gaze on the floor. He stood beside her and laid his hand on her shoulder wanting to ease the pain and fear and knowing only one person could help her. Gracie.

He had to figure out how to take care of Clara, make sure she remained safe, and get out on the streets and hunt for Gracie.

The elevator dinged and the doors slid open. He stepped out and held the doors from closing until the nurse could push the wheelchair over the slight bump on the floor.

"I'm going to stop at the pharmacy before we go." Wayne put his hand on the handle of the wheelchair closest to him. "I'll take her from here."

The nurse nodded and bent down and spoke to Clara. "Read the after-care instructions on your paperwork. If you have any changes, come back to the emergency room."

"Thank you," said Clara.

Wayne pushed Clara to the pharmacy on the other side of the lobby. Not wanting to leave her sitting, he took her with him to the window, then stood off to the side with her until they called her name five minutes later, and again when he paid and picked up the items he bought.

Outside the hospital, Paxton sat in his truck waiting to chauffeur Clara back to Wayne's house. He helped Clara go from the wheelchair to the truck seat and buckled her in.

"I'll be right behind you on the way to the house." He kissed Clara's upturned lips.

She stared at him as he shut the door and jogged to his motorcycle. The hollowness and lack of reaction from her bothered him. Hopefully, when they were alone, she'd open up. It wasn't good for her to keep everything bottled up inside. They would find Gracie. She had to believe in him and stay strong.