34. Chapter 34
Harley
An hour later we were assembled in the waiting area of Darkwater Refuge’s only hospital.
Captain Tripp Rhyner—confirmed Layne’s brother—and Wentworth hadn’t left my side for one second while Kingsley was being treated.
I was beyond grateful for their support and distraction from my churning thoughts.
The doctor had looked downright shocked when he’d seen Kingsley’s back.
I’d only caught a glimpse of it past the bustling nurses, and the sight nearly turned my stomach. It had looked like minced meat.
Speaking of stomach—Baby was okay. I wished Kingsley had been there with me for my first ultrasound, but I’d needed answers. My heart still sang praise to God for protecting us both.
“What does HVT mean?” I asked Rhyner, who sat in the plastic chair next to me. Still wearing camo and face paint, he drew a lot of attention from passing nurses, doctors, and patients. Or maybe it was the intensity he exuded. “Rome mentioned it in regard to Craig.”
“High Value Target.”
“What makes him that?”
Running a hand over his dark beard, Rhyner glanced around. Then he trained his gaze on me. “He’s been on our radar for a while.”
I gaped at him. “Really? Why?”
“All I can say is that you helped to take down a dangerous man.” He punched to his feet and stalked to the sniper who’d just come around the corner with two cups of coffee.
I turned to Wentworth sitting on my other side. “If you guys aren’t allowed to operate on US soil, does this mean Craig was involved in something international?”
“You’re on the right track.” He winked at me.
I took in the other team members. A Caucasian guy with blond hair curling from under his baseball hat was snoozing across from me, arms folded and head down.
Next to him lounged a handsome African American, watching the news on the small TV mounted on the ceiling.
The sniper and Captain Rhyner were quietly conversing while sipping their coffees.
“What unit or team or whatever are you again?” I asked Wentworth.
“’fraid I can’t tell you that.”
I bit my lower lip. “Fair enough. Welp, thank you for coming to our rescue and making sure Craig was stopped.” How blind had I been? How had I not noticed that he was some kind of international terrorist or arms dealer or whatever? I felt so stupid.
The sniper came over and settled next to me. Stunning tattoos peaked from under his pushed back sleeves.
I met his gaze. “What’s your name again?”
“Sean.”
“You saved my life, Sean. Thank you.”
“Just did my job, ma’am.”
“No. You put your job on the line for me.”
“Worth it.”
Rhyner muttered a curse, snapping my attention to him. “We’re busted. Let me do the talking.”
Before I could ask what was up, several DRPD officers came around the corner like a wall. “Captain Rhyner, you’re under arrest.” The police officer gestured at the whole team. “All of you.”
I shot to my feet. “You can’t do that! They literally saved our—”
A hand pulled me back into my seat. “Harley, I need you to stay quiet,” Wentworth whispered in my ear. “No offense, but you’ll make things worse. Let Rhyner handle this.”
But there was no handling anything. The entire team—all five of them—were put in handcuffs, then escorted out of the hospital.
One of the officers stayed behind to ask me questions, which I truthfully answered.
I demanded several times that Rhyner and his team were to be let go because they were the heroes here, but wasn’t acknowledged. When the officer left, I was by myself.
At some point, Keaton showed up, then Tatum with Coco—had they worked after hours?—and eventually Bella and Noa Rose. I gave them a brief rundown of what’d happened, then we prayed together.
“Does this mean the baby is okay?” Bella finally asked.
In my peripheral vision, I saw how Tatum’s brows shot up. He was the oldest Grady and just as handsome as the rest of them.
Keaton coughed. “Baby?”
“Yes and yes.”
“Holy Hades, champ,” he muttered.
I snickered. “A champ, that he is.”
“So, is he gonna marry you or what?” Coco asked.
“If he survives, I sure hope so.” Despite joking, a part of me was still scared that something could go wrong. I just needed to know that he was okay.
Father, I give him into Your loving care. Be with him.
As we waited for another hour, I watched Coco and Tatum interact with each other. She’d been right, the man was a grump. But the way he looked at her when she didn’t notice? Whew. Something was brewing.
Finally, a doctor in her fifties approached us with a bouncing gait. She wore a lab coat, her black hair in a pixie cut. “Grady?”
Keaton and Tatum both rose. I stood with them.
“That’s us,” Keaton said.
Doc pursed her lips. “You Gradys are making it a habit to show up here.”
“You offer amazing food.” Keaton gave her a smirk that would’ve had me swooning had I not been on edge.
Apparently not Doc, because her expression remained stony.
She dove into a monolog about how Kingsley was doing.
All I heard was no damage done to the spine or major organs, and while severe scarring was inevitable, they were optimistic about his recovery.
A collective sigh of relief rippled through the waiting area.
“The family may see him now,” Doc concluded.
“What about me?” I blurted. “I need to see him.”
“Are you family?” Doc asked sternly.
“He knocked her up, so technically speaking she’s his wife.”
I wanted to swat at Keaton for that, but he stood too far away.
Doc eyed me, then nodded. “Fine. He’s been asking for you anyway.”
Warmth spread through me. Out of all the amazing people in his life he wanted to see me first?
Doc led us through a length of disinfectant-smelling hallway to his room.
I let Keaton and Tatum enter first, then, holding my breath, followed.
Kingsley lay in the only bed in the room, to my surprise on his back.
A monitor beeped next to him, displaying his heart rate. His gaze instantly homed in on me.
His mouth stretched into a tired smile. “Sweetheart.”
“Did you hit your head? Why are you calling me that?” Grinning, Keaton ambled up to Kingsley’s bed and patted his chest. “Glad you’re okay, champ.”
Tatum stopped at the foot of the bed, so I eased up on the vacant side and took Kingsley's hand into mine. His calloused palm brought back a flood of memories. “The baby is okay.”
His gaze dropped to my belly, then came up again. “Praise the Lord,” he rasped. His eyes glazed over. “I was so scared for both of you.”
“And I was scared for you.” I squeezed his hand. “Craig tried to flee, but Wentworth’s team caught him. Not sure what they did with him. Either way, we’re safe now.”
“That’s good.”
“I don’t think we’re needed here,” Keaton said to Tatum. When the oldest Grady agreed, they left us to it.
I refocused on Kingsley. “You said there’s so much you needed to tell me?”
“Yeah.” He started to elaborate the revelation he’d had during the flagellation, and I hung onto his every word.
As crazy as it seemed, he’d found healing in that gruesome moment.
That’s what God did. He turned the ugly into beauty.
Sometimes here on earth, sometimes in heaven—He never wasted our pain.
When Kingsley’s eyelids grew heavy, I trailed my fingers along his jaw. “You’re exhausted. Get some sleep.”
He closed his eyes and leaned into my touch. “I am. There’s something we need to do once I get out of here.”
“Oh?” I cocked my head. “Are you planning on telling me what or are you just gonna leave me in the dark?”
A low chuckle rumbled from his chest. “Being patient isn’t your strong suit, is it?”
“No.”
“But you like surprises.”
“Yes. A lot.”
“Good, because this will be a big one.”