Chapter Twenty #2
After Iona left, Rayne sipped her drink and wolfed down her snack. Even though the Bowen kids ate dinner, the operatives hadn’t.
Thirty minutes later, the surgeon opened the suite door and said, “Rayne?”
“Yes, sir.”
“We’re finished. Mr. Bowen did well. His vitals are stable now and he should recover fully.”
“The surgery took longer than the ER doctor said it would.”
“The bullet nicked his liver. That’s why he lost so much blood. We’ve repaired the damage so he should be fine.”
“When can I see him?”
“He’s on his way to recovery right now. A nurse will come for you in a few minutes and take you to him. He’ll take a while throwing off the effects of anesthesia. Don’t expect him to carry on a deep conversation and make sense or to remember anything you say.”
“Yes, sir. Thank you.”
“Sure. I’ll talk to you in a few minutes when I check on him.”
Rayne resumed her pacing until a nurse arrived to walk with her to the recovery room.
“Rayne? Come with me, please.” The nurse updated Rayne as they walked. “He’ll be groggy because he was under anesthesia for so long.” The nurse led Rayne around a corner and through a set of double doors into the recovery room.
Grant was in a cubicle in the left corner of the long, large room. At the other end of the room in the right corner, Iona and Elias stood watch outside the curtained off area where Grant’s father lay.
The nurse drew back the curtain and motioned for Rayne to go inside Grant’s area. “I’ll check on you both in a few minutes.”
Rayne set a chair alongside Grant’s bed and threaded her fingers through his. Considering he’d just gone through major surgery, Grant looked good. Of course, being in top physical shape helped him tolerate surgery and hopefully recover faster.
Minutes later, Grant’s breathing pattern changed. Rayne stood and leaned close to him. “Grant, you’re in the recovery room. You’re safe. I have your back.”
He groaned. Seconds later, Grant opened his eyes to mere slits. “Rayne,” he whispered.
She smiled, her vision blurry from unshed tears. “Welcome back, handsome.”
“You okay?”
Of course Grant would worry about her when he was the one who took a bullet. “I’m fine. You’re the one who was shot, remember?”
“Teagan all right?”
“You saved her, sweetheart. Seth says he owes you.”
“Dad?”
“I don’t know details yet but he’s in recovery, too.”
A slight nod. “Good sign.”
The nurse walked into the curtained area and smiled at Grant.
“Good to see you’re awake, Mr. Bowen.” She checked his vitals and asked him a series of questions, appearing satisfied with the answers she received.
“The doctor will be here soon. Rest, all right? Give your body time to throw off the effects of anesthesia. Do you need anything?”
“A drink. So dry.”
“Is a clear soft drink all right?”
He gave a slight nod.
“I’ll be back in a few minutes.” She turned to Rayne. “Push the call button if he needs something before I return. Watch for nausea. Many people experience it after surgery.”
“That’s the truth,” Grant mumbled. “It’s bad.”
“I’ll return in a minute.” The nurse hurried off and came back with a clear soft drink in a can. “Sip this. If the soft drink doesn’t help, let me know.”
“Thanks.” Rayne slipped the straw into the opened can and held the can for Grant.
He took several sips of the drink and sat back a moment later. “Better.”
“Tell me if that changes.” She squeezed his hand. “You scared me.”
“Sorry, baby. I reacted on instinct. I couldn’t let Teagan take a bullet because of me.”
“I understand. I would have done the same thing if I’d been in your shoes. Doesn’t change the fact that I thought I would lose you.” Her voice broke on the last word.
“You didn’t.”
“This time.”
Grant studied her a moment. “Do you want me to resign from Fortress?”
“What? No, of course not!”
“It’s the only way I won’t be in the line of fire on a mission.”
“I would never ask you to give up your career for me. It wouldn’t be fair. You’re a brilliant operative, and your team needs your EOD skills. I’ll deal with the fear when you’re gone on a mission. The truth is, my team works with yours most of the time, anyway. That means I can watch your back.”
He remained silent for a beat. “You’re sure?”
She nodded.
“Tell me if you change your mind.”
“What would you do if I changed my mind? This is your job.”
“It doesn’t have to be. I can live without working at Fortress. I can’t live without you.”
Stunned, tears trickled down her cheeks. “Grant,” she whispered.
“It’s the truth. I can find another job. But you own my heart.”
Rayne stood and brushed her lips across his. “I love you, Grant Bowen.”
He smiled. “I love you, too, Rayne Weatherly. I promise I’ll dodge faster next time.”
She swiped tears from her cheeks. “I’ll hold you to that.”
They talked until the doctor walked into the curtained area. “How do you feel now, Mr. Bowen?”
“Tired.”
The doctor nodded. “You lost a lot of blood, and you were under anesthesia longer than I expected.”
“When can I get out of here, Doc?”
A chuckle. “You know, your father asked me the same thing a few minutes ago. Unfortunately for him, he’ll be our guest for a few days. You may go home tomorrow. I want to keep you overnight in case you have a problem. Think you can live with that?”
“I suppose I don’t have a choice.”
“I know you want out of here, and I don’t blame you.
Keeping you overnight is a precaution. If everything goes like I think it will, you’ll be out of here by noon tomorrow.
Now, I think you’ll be more comfortable in a private room.
The orderlies will arrive to transport you to the sixth floor in a few minutes.
Rest as much as you can. The hospitalist will check on you throughout the night along with the nurses.
Do yourself a favor and do what the nurses tell you to do. They know what they’re doing.”
“Yes, sir,” Grant muttered.
The doctor chuckled as he left the curtained area.
“I want out of here.”
“You’ll stay as long as the doctor thinks you should, and you won’t give the nurses any grief, either.”
He stared. “Are you threatening me, Ms. Weatherly?”
“To help you heal, you bet I am. Every member of Echo is stubborn, especially with injuries and recovery. You could have died, Grant. Give your body a chance to recover.”
Grant squeezed Rayne’s hand. “I hear you.”
Footsteps approached their curtained area. Rayne put herself between Grant and the newcomer. When Iona appeared, Rayne relaxed her stance. “Well, looks like Sleeping Beauty is finally awake,” Iona teased. “You look pretty good for a guy who just survived major surgery. How do you feel?”
“Like someone ran over me with a truck. You’ve been guarding Dad. How is he?”
“Still out. He was under anesthesia longer than you were. The doctor was pleased with how the surgery went, though. Your mother thinks your father will be fine.”
“That’s Mom for you, always assuming the best.”
“Lucky for her, the doctor agrees. He said the recovery time will be longer than Mr. Bowen will want, but he would recover.”
Thank God for that bit of good news. “How long is his estimated recovery time?”
“Two months if he follows orders and does exactly what he is supposed to do.”
“Mom, Izzy, and Gabe will see that he cooperates.”
Mr. Bowen might cooperate but he’d gripe while doing it. He didn’t seem the type to allow his body to heal before returning to the fields.
“I’m worried about Dad,” Grant admitted. “He’s not one to sit back and let other people do his work for him.”
“You need to focus on yourself, my friend.”
Grant shook his head. “Dad’s injury was more serious.”
“You almost bled out, buddy. I’d say that makes your injury on the same level with your dad’s.”
Grant’s eyelids sagged, and his breathing deepened.
Good. Rayne adjusted Grant’s blanket, then turned back to Iona. “Any new leads we can use?”
“Not so far. Riley doesn’t have her laptop with her so any progress from that quarter will come after she’s at the hotel. If the Duncan police learn she’s gathering information from illegal sources, Riley will be in hot water.”
The local cops might be sticklers for following the rules but that didn’t work for Riley. In her computer tech work, she was creative. “I understand.”
Grant’s nurse returned minutes later with a soft drink in hand and woke Grant. “You should drink this, Mr. Bowen. The orderlies will be here soon to transport you to your room. Some patients feel sick during the moving process.”
Grant grimaced and took the cold drink. He swallowed several sips of the clear soft drink, then set the can aside as the orderlies walked in. They transferred him to another bed, then rolled him out of the curtained area, through the winding hallways, and into an elevator.
Rayne kept a close watch on Grant as their small group traveled to his room.
In less than a minute, his face lost all trace of color.
While they waited for the elevator car to rise to the sixth floor, Rayne encouraged Grant to sip more of the soft drink.
She also had a barf bag the nurse gave her. She hoped he wouldn’t need it.
By the time they finally arrived at Grant’s room, perspiration beaded on his forehead. He looked miserable.
As soon as the orderlies left, Rayne encouraged Grant to sip the drink again. What he really needed was an anti-nausea patch like Violet used when operatives were injured and nauseated.
Another nurse breezed into the room. “Mr. Bowen, I’m your nurse, Candy. It’s nice to meet you.”
He nodded.
“You look a little sick. Are you feeling nauseated?”
“Oh, yeah.”
“I’ll get you something for that. If you need to throw up, press a pillow against your wound to give it support.” She handed Rayne a plastic tub. “Just in case. I’ll be back in a couple of minutes.”
Rayne went into the small bathroom and dunked a washcloth in cold water. After wringing it out, she carried the cloth to Grant and draped it over his forehead.
He moaned. “Feels good.”