Chapter Twenty-One #2
“Good.” She ripped open the packet, grabbed the patch, peeled off the paper backing, and placed it behind Grant’s ear. “Takes about an hour for the patch to be effective. If you need more soft drinks, let me know.”
“We will. Thank you.”
After the nurse left, Elias headed for the hallway. “Seth and Teagan will take over the watch in an hour.”
Good to know. She’d been concerned about Elias and Iona staying on duty for such a long time. This arrangement would give Elias and her team leader a chance to rest.
Rayne frowned. But who would watch over the rest of the Bowen family? Someone must keep them safe. If anything happened to more members of his family, Grant would be devastated.
She watched Grant sleep for a while. When he grew restless, she climbed back on the bed and settled beside the man she loved. He opened his eyes for a beat, went boneless, and fell into a sound sleep.
Nice.
Later, after a soft tap on the door frame, Teagan peered inside. She smiled. “How’s he doing?”
“Finally sleeping. The nausea must be gone now.”
“That is the worst. I hate to barf.”
“You’re singing my song, sister.”
Teagan smiled. “Try to rest.”
“Copy that.”
Even knowing Teagan was on watch, Rayne only allowed herself to slip into a light doze. Although she trusted her teammate, every voice or unexplained noise brought her to full alert. With Grant’s life at stake, Rayne was taking no chances.
The rest of the night passed with hourly interruptions from the medical staff checking on Grant’s vitals and his progress. Thankfully, the nausea remained at bay, and her husband-to-be was able to rest in between medical visits.
When the sun finally crested over the horizon, the noises and conversations in the hallway increased in volume, and Grant stirred.
Rayne turned toward him. She smiled as his eyelids rose. “Hey.”
“Hey, yourself. You good?”
Of course he’d be more concerned about her than himself. “I am now that you’re awake. How do you feel?”
“Decent. At least I don’t feel like puking my guts out.”
“Definite progress.”
A tap sounded on the door. Teagan looked inside. “Dr. Green is here.”
“Send him in,” Grant said. “I’m ready to get out of here.”
Twenty minutes later, Green left Grant’s hospital room after giving orders for the operative to take it easy for the next six weeks.
Elias returned to Grant’s room and shut the door.
Rayne knew better than to hope Grant would follow the doctor’s orders. He’d be more inclined to treat the orders as suggestions.
Rayne waited in the hall a few minutes to give Elias time to help Grant with his clothes, then knocked on the door. Grant’s teammate opened the door and motioned her inside.
Grant sat on the side of the bed, pale with perspiration beaded on his forehead.
“You okay?” she asked.
“I will be.” His tone was grim. “I want to get out of here.”
“The doc is springing you?” Elias asked.
He nodded.
Elias stared. “You just had surgery. You must have twisted his arm to get him to agree to that plan.”
“Maybe.”
“We heard the doctor telling you to take it easy for the next few weeks.” Rayne folded her arms across her chest. “Will you follow his orders?”
“I’ll rest when my family is safe.”
She and Elias exchanged glances. That’s exactly what she’d been afraid would happen. “If you ignore his orders, you could set yourself back and extend your time off of work.”
“I’ll be careful.”
“When can you leave?”
“As soon as the nurse brings my discharge papers.”
“I’ll check on the nurse’s progress,” Elias murmured and left.
Rayne wrapped her arms around Grant. When he sighed and rested some of his weight against her, she tightened her hold. “Promise me you won’t push too hard.”
“Rayne….”
“I want your word. You would never lie to me, so I want your promise that you won’t push yourself too far. I happen to have plans for you, Mr. Bowen.”
“Oh, yeah?”
“Uh huh. I’d rather not spend our honeymoon in a hospital.”
He flinched. “That definitely isn’t at the top of my honeymoon destinations.”
“The hospital is not on my list at all. So, do I have your word?”
“I promise I won’t push my body too hard.”
But he didn’t promise not to push himself. She caught the distinction. Still, that was better than nothing. She’d monitor him and enlist their teammates to do the same. Hopefully, between them, they would prevent him from having setbacks. “I love you, Grant.”
“Love you too, sweetheart.”
A brisk knock on the door interrupted them. Elias opened the door and motioned for a nurse to go in. “Julie has your discharge papers.”
Grant loosened his hold on Rayne. “Great. I’m ready to go.”
Julie smiled. “I hear that from all our patients.” She went over the instructions with Grant, then said, “You’ll need someone to stay with you tonight.”
“I have that covered.” Rayne wrapped her hand around Grant’s. Yes, she was acting territorial but she recognized the look in the nurse’s eyes. The other woman was looking at Grant and liking what she saw. Too bad. Rayne had first claim to him.
Julie’s smile dimmed. “I see. Well, if I can be of any help, please let me know.” With a last glance at Grant, her eyes filled with longing, she turned toward the door. “The orderly will arrive with your wheelchair in a few minutes.”
Grant grimaced. “Can’t we skip that part?”
“Hospital policy,” Julie said as she left the room.
“Help me up,” he muttered as soon as the door closed behind Julie. “I can walk out of here before the orderly shows up.”
Rayne folded her arms. “You’ll wait for the wheelchair, Grant.”
“Why? I’m fine. More important, I don’t want to be seen as weak.”
“Why not?”
He scowled. “Allowing the enemy to know your weakness isn’t wise.”
“It is if you’re baiting a trap,” Elias said.
Grant blinked, then a wry smile curved his mouth. “Just like you set that trap for me. Well done.”
Rayne mouthed a silent ‘thank you’ to Elias. A small victory was better than nothing. Keeping Grant from pushing himself too hard would be a challenge over the next few days.
Another knock sounded on the door. A middle-aged man pushed a wheelchair inside the room. “I hear you’re ready to leave our fine establishment.” He grinned.
“You heard right. No offense, buddy.”
“None taken. Let’s get you loaded up so you can recover in peace.” Minutes later, the orderly pushed Grant’s wheelchair onto the sidewalk at the patient pickup area.
Elias waited feet away in their SUV. He climbed from the vehicle and opened the back door for Grant and Rayne. Once they were settled, he slid behind the wheel and drove away from the hospital. “Any stops along the way to the hotel?” he asked, glancing in the rearview mirror.
“Biscuits with bacon, eggs, and cheese.” Grant wrapped his hand around Rayne’s and squeezed. “I wouldn’t turn down coffee. The stronger the better.”
Rayne flinched at that last request. “Your stomach might not appreciate strong coffee. What about a soft drink instead until we’re sure your stomach is back to normal?”
“Don’t live dangerously,” Elias said. “This is Iona’s ride. She won’t appreciate needing to have it detailed inside and out because you barfed in here.”
“Yeah, yeah.” Grant sighed. “Get me a soft drink, then. Not the diet crap.”
Elias gave him a thumbs up.
An hour later, all the operatives polished off their meals and threw away their trash. Seth and Teagan pressed large pieces of paper to three walls of the suite and handed out markers for each couple to use for notes while the others settled around the room.
On the couch, Rayne eyed Grant. The color in his face was almost normal. “Do you want to rest for a while?”
He shook his head. “We’ve already lost too much time in this investigation. The trail is going cold as we speak. I also need to check on Dad.”
“Check on your father first.” Seth uncapped a marker. “The rest of us will start making lists.”
Grant made the call, and had a brief conversation with a nurse. When he ended the call, he said, “No change.”
“Are you sure making lists will help, Grant?” Elias uncapped his marker and grabbed his phone. “None of us found anything useful on the first pass through people connected to Red Dawn.”
“Seeing the information on paper may help us make connections we missed with verbal reports.”
“Our teams have used this method successfully,” Riley said. “Artemis uses the same technique during most of our complicated missions. There’s just something about seeing it in black and white that helps us connect things we missed on the first pass.”
Elias inclined his head and joined Iona in front of a large sheet of paper on the wall. After a quick, low-voiced conversation, Iona began to write.
Grant struggled to his feet. “My handwriting looks like a doctor’s illegible signature. You’re elected as the official scribe for our group.” He handed Rayne a black marker.
She eyed him, noting his renewed pallor. Not good. He shouldn’t be standing. “I’ll agree to writing if you sit down.”
He scowled. “I’m fine. I can handle it,” Grant snapped.
Seth turned to look at him.
Grant flinched, then held up a hand to stop his team leader from reprimanding him even though he deserved it. “I apologize, Rayne.”
Elias handed his marker to Iona and moved the recliner closer to Rayne. “Sit and chill, Grant.”
Grant scooped up his laptop, sat down, and booted up. A minute later, he glanced at Rayne. “Ready?”
“Go for it.”
He rattled off the names of the four men they investigated plus their friends and families.
When she finished writing the last name, Rayne stood beside Grant to study the list of Special Forces soldiers and their families and close friends. “Long list,” she murmured as she stared at the names. “Does anyone stand out?”
He was silent a beat, then straightened, his eyes focused on their paper on the wall. “Maybe. Give me a few minutes.”
Grant shifted his attention to his laptop. His fingers flew over the keys, gaze glued to the screen.
Since he was concentrating so hard on his computer, Rayne went to the breakfast bar and poured coffee from one of the carafes into two mugs and returned to Grant.
The more time that passed since leaving the hospital, the less nausea seemed to plague him.
This was a good time to test his stomach’s tolerance since he’d kept down breakfast.
Finally, Grant’s hands lifted from the laptop and he looked at the mug in Rayne’s hand. “Please tell me that magic elixir is for me.”
She laughed. “It’s yours if you want it.”
“Hand it over, woman.” He took the mug and sipped. Grant sighed. “Perfect. I can already feel my brain cells waking up.”
Rayne sipped the steaming brew from her mug and had to admit the coffee was excellent. “Did you find what you were looking for?”
He nodded. “If I’m on the right track, it explains everything that’s happening.”