Chapter 57
CHAPTER FIFTY-SEVEN
SAKURA
Lying in Callan’s bed, I stared up at the ceiling sometime in the middle of the night.
I wished I hadn’t fallen asleep so I could’ve left immediately. But with all the pain, I had found myself dozing off in his arms and listening to him mumble something into my ear about what had happened.
But now, in the middle of the night, he stood outside on the patio with the phone pressed to his ear, talking to his wife’s father. The fun, caring, lighthearted Callan had done it once again—had fooled me into believing that he really cared, that he wasn’t using me for sex.
Tears welled in my eyes, but I refused to let them fall. Instead, I sat up in the bed and stared straight ahead at the wall, where there looked to be a picture frame that had been taken down recently.
Like a zombie, I slipped out of bed, then out of the room. I snatched my keys from the coffee table. I needed a drink, and I never drank.
Without so much as a good-bye or a note that said I had left, I walked out of the front door and to my car. Callan’s voice faintly traveled from the backyard patio to the garage as he spoke with Jett. I gritted my teeth and pushed back more tears.
Fuck, what was wrong with me?
I shouldn’t be crying over him. I was the one who had come to his house in a fit of rage this afternoon and basically climbed on top of the man. I had so desperately wanted him to fucking hurt, to feel guilty.
But it was no use. No fucking use.
After slipping into my car, I swallowed and shut my eyes. A single tear rolled down my cheek. I had barely slept all night, had been tossing and turning in his arms since I had heard him mumble horrid things to me. I might’ve been half asleep, but I remembered some of his words.
“There are girls, Sakura, girls that Redwood is abusing.”
Has he even been telling the truth? Is he really trying to stop whatever this sex trafficking thing is? Or has he been in it all along? Is he trying to get me into this ring, too, so he can pimp me out?
And Vera … maybe she was in it too. Maybe I had gotten this all wrong. Maybe I … maybe I still wasn’t getting it right. I didn’t know what the hell was going on in Redwood, and honestly, I wished that I wouldn’t ever know.
When I reopened my eyes, I glanced at the car clock that read three a.m. in glowing white numbers. I started the car and backed out of the driveway before he could stop me. I should’ve stayed and heard him out more, but I didn’t have it in me.
My heart had been shattered, the pieces stomped on by the man I loved.
The man I love?
Heart racing, I shook my head and continued down the streets. I couldn’t think that way. How could I begin thinking that I loved that man? He had hurt me purposefully one time after another after another.
Gunther … He was protecting me.
Vera … He was protecting me.
Jett … He was protecting me.
I curled my hand around the steering wheel and shook my head. When I stopped at the Stop sign to exit his street, I glanced back into the rearview mirror, hoping his crazy ass had realized that I was gone and was following after me the way he had done to the Overlook.
But I’d expected too much.
He had been outside in deep conversation when I left. Even if he had gone back inside by now and noticed I wasn’t in bed, he would have to search for me through that entire mansion before seeing my car wasn’t in the driveway any longer.
When I started driving, his words from earlier rang through my head again.
“I fucking brought Gunther to the damn hospital for you. For you.”
Shaking my head, I desperately tried to shove the thought away. I didn’t want to believe him. I wanted to hate him so much for hurting me, but my mind wasn’t in the right space right now. I was making rash decisions and couldn’t stop myself.
Dad must’ve been looking for me, calling me, texting me all night.
I should go home.
But instead, I found myself taking street after street away from my home and to Redwood Hospital. If what he had said about Gunther was true, then maybe … maybe it all was. Maybe I was being a hormonal kid right now.
Visiting hours didn’t start until nine a.m.—six hours from now.
Yet all I needed was confirmation that Gunther Zurn was here.
Once I braced myself for the worst, I stepped out of my car and walked to the front entrance. If Gunther wasn’t here, then I couldn’t believe anything that Callan had told me tonight. If Gunther wasn’t here, then I would … I would have to stop this craziness.
My chest tightened as I stepped into the hospital, the air-conditioning making me shiver. I walked up to the front desk and patiently waited for a nurse to spot me. Heart pounding, I bounced on my toes.
A couple of moments later, a nurse appeared from the back. “How can I help you?”
“I’m looking for a patient,” I said.
“Visiting hours are over for the night,” she said. “Come back in a few hours.”
“I just … I need to know if he’s here,” I said.
“Are you a family member?” she asked.
“N-no, but … please,” I whispered. “His name is Gunther Zurn.”
“I’m sorry, ma’am. That’s private information.”
“Please,” I pleaded, heart dropping. “It’s important.”
“I’m sorry.” She glanced at the security guard. “I’m going to have to ask you to leave.”
Not wanting to get into any trouble tonight, I lowered my head and walked out of the front doors. As I turned the corner, I bumped into a tall woman dressed in a white jacket with her curly brown hair pulled back into a bun. Her name tag read Dr. Abara.
Abara? Is she Imani Abara’s mother?
“Excuse me, dear,” she said, walking by me.
“Are you Imani’s mother?” I asked, knowing that this would be my last hope.
She paused and turned around, giving me a huge smile. “I am. Do you know her?”
“Yeah,” I said, smiling softly. “I go to school with her. Um …” I intertwined my fingers.
“One of my friends from Redwood is actually in the hospital. I just found out about it tonight and wanted to know if you knew his room number so I could come back tomorrow during visiting hours. His name is Gunther Zurn.”
“Gunther Zurn,” she hummed, brow furrowing for a moment. “Ah, yes. Mr. Avery brought him in the other night.”
My eyes widened. Oh my gosh.
He had been telling me the truth this entire time. If he had really brought Gunther to the hospital after I begged him to save him, then he had done it for me and for me only.
“I believe he’s on the third floor,” Dr. Abara continued, glancing into the sliding glass front doors. “I would need to double-check, but if I’m still here tomorrow when you return, I’ll show you to his room.”
“Great,” I whispered. “That’s great.”