Chapter 45
Chapter Forty-Five
Cole
“ H ow did this happen?”
“Explain it again.”
“What the fuck?”
My head spun as I sipped water and did my best to follow the conversation. Willa had called all my brothers, and after we went to the lab in Bangor, we headed home, where they were waiting.
“Why were you there?” Gus asked again, his hands on his hips. His beard was mussed, and his flannel shirt was partially untucked.
“He had practice,” Willa snapped from where she hovered at my side. “Catch up.”
“Sorry, I’ve been up all night, and I still can’t understand how the ice rink got destroyed and why my brother was found unconscious in the parking lot.”
They were all trying their best to understand, but I could see the doubt in their eyes. I could taste the questions lingering in the air.
I was asking myself the same damn ones. I knew I hadn’t bought any whiskey, and I certainly hadn’t drunk any. Willa was convinced I’d been drugged, but why and by whom?
I tilted my head back and closed my eyes as they continued to argue.
The world around me blurred. Just getting up from this chair felt insurmountable. The irony was that I hadn’t even had the urge to drink since our wedding. Ever since that day, I’d wanted to be better, both for myself and for Willa.
And the rink? I had learned to skate in that arena. Arthur used to let me come in, day or night, when I had no place to go and home was unbearable. It was the place where I’d found myself and learned countless lessons. The thought of it being ruined, that my kids wouldn’t get to finish the season, was unbearable.
Willa thrust another glass of water into my hand, which I dutifully chugged. I’d never seen her so angry and fierce. Some of the details were foggy, but I recalled her yelling at Souza and then picking me up and putting me in her car before doing a blood draw by the side of the road.
Even now, she was firing back at Gus, pacing around, and demanding they help me.
She believed me. That alone was my saving grace. She held not even an ounce of hesitation. Unlike in my brothers’ eyes, there wasn’t even a shade of doubt in hers.
By now, the entire town had probably heard. No doubt I’d already been condemned in the court of public opinion. But Willa wasn’t buying it. She had done nothing but work to protect me since she found me.
A surge of love for her tore through me as she bossed my brothers around, making phone calls and forcing me to hydrate. I’d spent my life looking for this. My person. Someone who didn’t look at me like I was a disappointment. Someone who believed in me even when I wasn’t at my best.
Silently, I thanked those Bellagio dice. Because with one roll, I’d won this fierce woman.
Several glasses of water and four pieces of toast later, I was beginning to feel more like myself. Finn was asleep on the couch, Gus had gone home to Chloe, and Jude was making scrambled eggs in the kitchen.
When the phone rang, Willa answered and immediately paced the room, asking questions in doctor’s speak.
When she hung up and looked at me, her features had hardened.
“Flunitrazepam,” she said, shaking her head.
“In English, please?” Jude asked.
“Cole was dosed with a benzodiazepine to make him sleepy and confused.”
“You got roofied?” Finn asked, almost rolling off the couch.
“I fucking knew it,” she said, stomping her foot. “Those fuckers are going to pay.”
My thoughts were still jumbled and foggy. Why would someone drug me?
“The good news is, it was a small dose. Well, it was probably a dose that would have done damage to the average person, but luckily, you’re a giant. God, the existence of this shit makes me insane.”
“What does this mean?” Finn asked.
“Cole was set up,” Willa said, snapping her fingers at Jude. “Call Parker. Tell her we need to get in touch with the FBI.”
When he hesitated, she glared at him until he abandoned his eggs and grabbed his phone.
“You,” she said, pointing at me. “Hydrate more. Your liver is angry right now, and you’re going to be feeling sick for a while.”
“What about me?” Finn asked.
“Call your ex. We need a good lawyer.”
“I like this one.” Finn gave me a wink. “Bossy. Reminds me of my Adele.”
Snarling at him, she strode across the room, headed for me. When she got close, I pulled her into my lap, kissing her head and whispering thank-yous in her ear.
“You were set up.” She shook her head.
It was because of the watch. I knew it. “I think it may have been Chief Souza.”
Her mouth dropped open. “Because we saw him the other night during the blizzard?”
“Yes. And because I went to his office yesterday and asked him point-blank about the watch.”
Her eyes widened. “Shit.”
My brain was fuzzy and aching, but I knew in my bones the chief was involved. Whatever we’d stumbled upon that night during the storm, it was something he did not want known. And the look on his face when I identified the watch only made it more clear he was up to something.
So this was how he planned to get me out of the way.
Willa closed her eyes and took a deep breath. “We will fight this,” she said under her breath.
“Parker is on her way,” Jude reported.
“Good.” Willa snapped up straight. “We’re gonna need the FBI too. And probably the whole damn town.”
Burying my face in her hair, I inhaled deeply. “Thank you. For believing in me.”
She turned toward me, cupping my face. “I’m not the only one. You think you’re alone, Cole, but you’re not. We will fight this.”
“You don’t have to.”
“I’m your wife,” she whispered, and I swore my heart seized up in my chest. “I’ll never stop fighting for you.”