Divine Obsession (GodHood #2)

Chapter 16

Present

“You can't be here!”

“No visitors allowed!”

“Someone get security–”

Trevor walked straight through the ER nurses and doctors, splitting them like the Red Sea. I followed closely behind, running to keep up with his big steps.

Getting from where the party had been Downtown, to the Mount Sinai Hospital on Madison Avenue, Upper-East Side – with the traffic there’d been on the road – should’ve taken an hour.

We made it in fifteen minutes.

Except Trevor didn’t use the road.

When we hit traffic, he hit the honk – loud – before swerving the car to the side and driving on the sidewalk to overtake the stationary cars. People had immediately moved out of the way, and although I knew he was rushing, he was still taking extreme care while driving.

Couple thousand dollars fine – pocket change to him.

Whole time, I was glued to my seat, holding on for dear life. The only thought grounding me, that we were rushing to Kali.

We knew nothing except that she’d gotten hurt and wasn’t waking up.

She would wake up.

She had to.

Neither had said a word since the phone call.

Trevor had been unsettlingly composed, though I could tell he was anything but.

In the way his hands had fisted the steering wheel of his black Ferrari. How his jaw clenched constantly. The way he drove recklessly through the city to get to the hospital as soon as possible. The way he was pushing through the crowd in the hospital without a care in the world.

He stopped abruptly – and by the laws of physics – I unwillingly hit his back. He grabbed my arm and pulled me in front of him. Usually, I would’ve made a snappy comment about manhandling. I wanted nothing more than to call him an asshole, but this was nowhere near the place or time.

Glancing up, I met the frown of a doctor. Her eyes switched from me to Trevor. “We weren’t able to reach your parents?”

“They’re on a flight to Tokyo. Won’t hear back until morning.” Trevor’s voice dropped dangerously. “ What. Happened. To. My. Sister .”

The doctor swallowed uncomfortably while glancing at the folder in her hands before looking back up again. “Two women saw Kali in a nightclub – appeared to be under the influence. Venue was packed, so no one really noticed or cared when she stumbled off with a man. Except those two women.”

My blood turned to ice.

“She was already beaten and passed out when they found her in the bathroom. Walked in as he was pulling her jeans down. The bathroom mirror was cracked, so police suspect the attacker hit her head since she had cuts and glass shards on one side of her face.”

“ Name .” Trevor’s voice sent a chill down my spine.

“Trevor–”

“I want a fucking name, Sandra. Right now .” It was at that moment I understood she wasn’t just any doctor. But one that worked for the Sus, before she worked for the hospital.

“The man got away. Police are looking for him as we speak.”

“Alright…” Trevor placed his fist in his other hand, cracking his knuckles, making it clear it was anything but.

Especially not the end. He would hunt down that man. And he would kill him. Painfully.

“How’s Kali?”

“She suffered a lot of internal bleeding, and severe wounding to the head. She’s in surgery as we speak. We’re doing everything we can, but… It’s not looking good.”

My heart dropped and I felt my chest crack open.

“I don’t have to tell you that if she doesn’t make it, neither will you or any of the doctors or surgeons in that room.”

Sandra’s throat bobbed with a swallow. “Of course. I’ll pass on the message. Please take a seat. I’ll be back when we have an update.”

Trevor and I numbly sat down on the armchairs in the private waiting area. We didn’t speak for a full hour. While I leaned back, hugging my knees to my chest, Trevor leaned forward, forearms on his knees and staring at the floor.

When the clock hit midnight, I got up and made two cups of tea at the machine in the salon.

I placed one cup in front of him, on the glass coffee table.

He exhaled. “Natalia–”

“ Drink .” My voice left no room for argument.

“Thanks,” He said after a moment, picking up the cup I made for him.

Another fifteen minutes passed and both our teas were finished.

I looked at Trevor from my spot on the armchair next to him. He was in the same hunched-over position, in deep thought.

“She’s going to be okay.”

He shook his head. “You don’t know that.”

“She’s stronger than you think.”

His lip curled, a disgusted look on his face. “I don’t understand why she has to get shit-faced drunk. All. The. Fucking. Time. ”

“Trevor…”

“She won’t stop. And she won’t go to rehab. We tried isolating her for three months. She didn’t even have any of the withdrawal symptoms. Then, went right back to it the moment she left.”

A sigh left me. “You can’t take that step for her.”

“She used to say it didn’t matter. That she just wants a buzz. That I’m ruining her fun. But this was always what I was afraid of: her not being in control of herself, or her body.”

“We’ll have another talk with her when she’s recovered. Maybe this was a wake-up call.”

He scoffed. “She says she’s not addicted. That she just likes partying. Shit, maybe she does. She sure as fuck doesn’t look like an addict.”

Trevor was right. I’d been surprised when I found out Kali got drunk at every party she went to. And she went to a lot of parties. There was no sign on her appearance that she did that.

Leaning closer, I reached out and softly squeezed his shoulder. “ She’s going to be okay ,” I repeated my earlier words, with much more assurance.

He glanced over his shoulder at me, an undecipherable look on his face. “You sound so sure.”

“I am.”

“How?”

“I have faith in the people I love.”

The smallest smile touched his lips, and my heart felt fuller knowing I made him feel just a little bit better.

His eyes were warmer. Not icy like when he was mad. And not full of black fire like when there was tension between us.

But soft.

His hand settled on my thigh, comforting and reassuring. Something we hadn’t ever shared before.

We both looked away when the door down the hall, to the surgery room opened. Sandra was rushing towards us.

I immediately stood, Trevor right by my side.

“She’s going to be fine.”

Trevor exhaled deeply, all the tension and anxiety leaving his chest and filling with ease instead.

They began speaking, but my mind was clouded.

Less than a minute later, Sandra was rushing back to where she came through.

Before the door shut behind her, I caught a glimpse of Kali in the hospital bed. My chest ached painfully when I saw the bruises on her face, IVs and bandages on her arms. None of it had seemed real until this moment.

My eyes filled with unshed tears and I turned around to compose myself.

“They said she’s asleep for now, and high on anesthetics. Won’t wake up for a couple of hours.” I heard Trevor’s voice behind me but it sounded distant; muffled.

I nodded but didn’t look his way. Instead, I absently walked down the corridor, in hopes of getting some private time to get myself together.

I struggled for air, my chest jolting with uneven breaths. My hand touched the wall, using it for balance.

“Natalia?”

My eyes burned, my body felt weak and I just couldn’t stand anymore. Grabbing one of the chair’s armrests, I squatted down and covered my face with the other hand.

I couldn’t help the tears falling down my face.

The weight of a rough hand settled on my shoulder. “Natalia.”

A soft sob that I tried to hide, made its way past my lips.

In the next moment, I was pulled up and wrapped in a tight embrace. It took me a second to realize.

Trevor was hugging me .

And Trevor never hugged. Anyone.

I blinked, confused, as tears streamed down my face.

“You’re okay.” His voice came deep and smooth over the pounding in my temples.

His rough palms were settled along my back as I wrapped my own arms around him. He was so big and muscular, my hands couldn’t surround him, so instead I brought them up and around his shoulders.

God, he could be so… So…

So gentle and comforting if he wanted to.

I couldn’t help but wonder… Was this the real him? Was the ‘bad guy’ just another act, and it ended up fooling me because I didn’t think him capable of being a gentleman?

He seemed pretty gentle and manly to me right now.

“I don’t know how I held it together until now,” I managed to say, my tears soaking his jacket.

“You should’ve told me.” His voice came muffled, and it was then I realized his face was in my hair.

“I couldn’t,” I mumbled through the sniffles.

“Why not?” His voice was safe. So safe, it plucked the truth straight out of my mouth.

“You needed someone to be there for you.”

Trevor tensed, and I wanted to take what I’d said back. Maybe it’d been too much. We weren’t actually friends, just acquaintances by default.

Pulling back, his onyx eyes pierced mine. “So did you.”

He didn’t have to make sure I was okay. He didn’t have to comfort me.

But he did.

What even made someone a gentleman?

Manners? Language?

Or this ?

Growing up in the Bronx meant always looking over my shoulder. And even though since finding my family, I had power I hadn’t even dreamed of – I was still new to everything. I was still jumpy and sometimes insecure.

My eyes burned again, but for a complete other reason.

I’d never felt so safe before.

Of course – with none other than Trevor Su. He was power.

Bringing up a hand, he wiped my cheek with his thumb. “Everything’s gonna be okay.”

Pulling away, I gave him a wobbly smile as I wiped away the remaining tears. “Look who’s the positive one now.”

Trevor flashed one of his perfect smiles, nodding his head towards the exit. “Let’s get something to eat.”

“We don’t have to leave–”

“C’mon.” He winked, his hand finding the small on my back. “I gotta pay you back for that chai.”