Chapter 15
Chapter Fifteen
They were almost at the hospital when Isaac checked his mirrors again and noticed the white sedan had slipped in behind them.
He’d been watching the car for the last few miles.
The vehicle had been about four cars back, but what had triggered his awareness was the way it seemed to weave out a little to see if they were still in the lane and hadn’t turned off.
The fact that it was pre-dawn and traffic was lighter than it would be in a couple of hours, made their amateur movements all the more noticeable.
“Oh I just remembered, there was something about the case that you said you’d tell me this morning.”
Isaac flicked his gaze from the road to Marie, taking in her light blue scrubs.
The faint purple rings under her eyes, a sign of little sleep.
They’d only managed a couple of hours sleep before Marie’s obnoxious alarm woke him.
The last thing he wanted was to add more stress to her, but he had promised he would tell her what he’d learned from Cass.
And he would have to tell her about the car potentially following them.
“I did.” He told her what Cass had told him.
“That’s not much, is it? Do you think she’ll ever find them or the connection to why they want me?”
“I can’t give you those answers. But I won’t give up until I can.”
“None of this makes sense,” she muttered.
It didn’t, and Isaac wanted answers as much as she did.
The white car crept a little closer to his bumper.
Wanting to test his theory, Isaac switched lanes and accelerated.
A couple of seconds later, the car did the same.
They were definitely being followed, if getting right up his ass wasn’t a sign, this sure was. “Shit,” he muttered.
“What?” Marie swiveled in her seat, as if she could see what was troubling him.
All his protective instincts were kicking in, he didn’t want to alarm her, but she needed to know. “We’re being followed.”
There was an exit just ahead, not the one he needed to take, but it didn’t matter, they needed to do something to try and shake the tail they’d adopted. “Hang on,” he said, as he turned the wheel and the car veered violently to the right. The tires squealed and a horn blasted the air.
Isaac ignored it all, his focus on getting them to the hospital safely. He pressed the gas pedal a little harder trying to put as much distance between him and whoever was following them.
He breathed a little easier when he saw that they hadn’t made the exit. He’d left his move until the last minute and it had paid off. It shouldn’t have been so easy to lose them, but he was glad that it had been.
At least he had a camera system installed in his car.
He wasn’t able to get the license plate, but they’d be able to get it from the footage, and Cass could work her magic.
The plates were probably stolen along with the car, but they’d be able to get some pictures of the occupants.
Anything they could get would be useful in identifying them, and trying to piece together the puzzle was a step in the right direction.
Were they the same ones who’d tried to kidnap Marie? There was no way of knowing.
“Are they still behind us?” Considering what had gone on in the last thirty seconds, she didn’t sound freaked out.
“No, we lost them.” He took notice of where they were. The area was a little unfamiliar to him. He was still getting used to being back in LA. “Can you get us to the hospital from here?”
He didn’t want to risk going back on the highway. The likelihood of the people following them finding them again was slim, but it wasn’t a risk he wanted to take.
Wait! How did they find us in the first place?
When they’d left Marie’s apartment he’d been aware of their surroundings and hadn’t noticed anything out of the ordinary. He certainly hadn’t noticed a white sedan like the one that had followed them parked in the street.
“Fuck,” he muttered as the insidious thought that they’d put a tracker on his car took hold. If they’d done that then there was every chance they could find them no matter which route he took.
“What’s wrong? Did they find us?” Now she sounded a little panicked, and telling her his suspicions wouldn’t make it any better either. But he wasn’t going to keep this from her. In order to keep her safe, she needed to be involved in everything and know everything.
“Not yet, but I can only think of one way of how they found us in the first place.” He checked his mirrors again. The road was still clear behind them, but that didn’t mean they couldn’t cut them off the further they went.
“How?”
Isaac made a quick turn down another street. “They’re tracking the car.”
Marie gasped, and he wished like fuck that he wasn’t driving, so he could pull her into his arms and hold her.
Keep her safe against his side. The very thought of leaving her alone at the hospital, where she was vulnerable, ate at him like acid burning through metal.
“If true, no matter which way we go, they could find us again.”
Of course, she would work out the implications of that particular scenario.
Unfortunately it was too early to call the office and get help, he would just have to make sure that they got to the hospital safely, and once there he’d deal with everything else.
His main focus and priority was to get them there without any incident.
One thing he knew for sure, he was staying at the hospital. No way was he going to leave Marie without any sort of protection.
Arrangements would need to be made in terms of where Marie was going to live, because they now knew her address.
So many logistics were running through his mind. Things he needed to attend to, and he wished it wasn’t five-fifteen in the fucking morning.
The lights of the hospital were just ahead, and Isaac counted down every second until they were in the parking lot.
“I’ve got a staff pass now, we can park in the secure employee parking lot,” Marie said, and held out a plastic card for him.
Isaac followed the signage and breathed a sigh of relief when he was able to turn the engine off. Considering it was a busy hospital, there had been no other cars following them in.
“I’ll walk you to the ER. Stay here.” Isaac didn’t wait for an answer, he knew after what they’d gone through to get here Marie wouldn’t argue with him. He closed his door and looked around, the area was well lit, but that didn’t mean someone wasn’t lurking in the shadows. In between the cars.
“Thank you.” Marie smiled up at him and took the hand he held out. He hauled her close, and she sagged against him. He held her tight, needing the hug as much as she did.
“I’m not leaving you today.”
Marie leaned back, smiling softly at him. “I didn’t think you would, and I’m glad you’re not.”
“Let’s get you inside.” Keeping his arm around her, they walked the short distance from the parking lot to the entrance of the ER in silence. He remained alert for anything out of the ordinary, but everything was clear.
The scent of bleach, sweat, and the sour smell of vomit hit them when they walked in, and Isaac swallowed down the bile rising in his throat; he was not good when anyone threw up.
Blood and gore from a gunshot wound he could deal with, someone tossing their cookies had him running in the opposite direction.
The waiting area wasn’t full of people, so he hoped that was a good sign for the rest of Marie’s day.
“I don’t know how you do it.” His stomach was churning, and he tried not to breathe through his nose.
Marie laughed, obviously seeing his distress. “You get used to it, but what’s setting you off?”
For a second he was going to brush off her question. Not let her know about his aversion, but he knew she wouldn’t judge him. “Throw up.”
She nodded. “Yeah it’s not the best for sure. But you get used to it.”
“Not something I plan on getting used to,” he grumbled and shoved his hand in his pocket, his fingers connecting with the plastic bag he’d put in there earlier.
How had he forgotten he’d done that? He’d planned to hand Marie the earrings he’d gotten from Alliez the previous day before they left her apartment.
Considering what had happened to them on their commute to the hospital, he wasn’t sure if he was going to be successful in getting her to wear them. Then again, maybe she would.
“I guess it’s lucky that I’m the medical professional and you’re not. Although,” she canted her head to the side and looked at him quizzically. “You seem okay with blood, because you certainly didn’t look queasy when you were helping me in San Carlion.”
“I’m fine with that, there’s just something about someone losing the contents of their stomach that gets to me.”
“You’re not the only one.” She stepped back and fiddled with the strap of her bag. “I need to go.”
She said the words, but her body language was shouting that it was the last thing she wanted to do.
Isaac was running out of time, if he wanted her to have the earrings, he needed to do something about it now.
Not to mention they were in a vulnerable position standing near the doors where anyone could come in and ambush them, regardless of the security guards that were posted outside.
He pulled the bag from his pocket, emptying the contents into his palm. The lights hit the stones, and he marveled at how Cass was able to get a transmitter inserted into them. “Will you wear these for me?” he held them out for Marie to see.
“Earrings? You’re giving me diamond earrings?” There was no mistaking the surprise in her voice. They looked expensive, and Isaac didn’t question the cost or how they came about. All he knew was there was a variety of jewelry items to choose from at Alliez headquarters.
Part of him wished that he was giving them to her under different circumstances.
That they were a token of how much he cared for her.
And they were in a way. He did care for Marie.
He was attracted to her and wanted to get to know her better.
From her responses to his kisses the previous evening, it was clear she was attracted to him.
There was still so much he needed to tell her.
Not all of it good, and once he told her, he couldn’t take it back.
There were things he’d done that could make her change her mind about him.
But that predicament was for another time. What he needed now was to explain the earrings and their purpose.
He led her over to a corner of the waiting room, aware of the staff behind the counter watching, speculation rife amongst them. “I got them from the office,” he lowered his voice so he was practically whispering in her ear. “They have a tracker in them. Will you wear them…for me.”
Marie clutched her bag a little tighter. “A tracker? What for?”
Isaac cursed himself for not remembering to give them to her earlier, when he had the time to go into the whys and wherefores in more detail. “To keep you safe. After what happened two days ago, if something bad should happen, we have the ability to find you.”
Color leeched from her face, and he gripped her elbows, worried she was going to faint on him. As if his touch grounded her, she shook her head and some pink entered her cheeks. “Right. Of course.” She held out her hand. “I’ll wear them.”
He dropped the earrings into her palm and placed his hand over hers, pressing the studs between them. “Thank you. And we aren’t going to watch your every move. Cass will check in periodically after I tell her that you’ve got them on.”
Marie nodded and pulled her hand away from his so that she could put the earrings in. “I want to say that I think this is unnecessary, but after what happened this morning, it would be foolish of me to say that.”
Isaac should’ve known that she would be amenable to his request. She wasn’t stupid and, although she’d shown hints of stubbornness, she knew when to be sensible.
“How do they look,” she asked, turning her head from side to side so he could see.
“Beautiful,” he cupped her cheek. “Just like you.” Without giving her a chance to respond, he pressed his lips to hers, wishing they didn’t have an audience and he could deepen the kiss.
But he was aware they were in her workplace, and he was sure that after this exchange, the gossip train would be pulling full steam out of the station and it would be all over the hospital in a matter of minutes.
“Have a good day, and I’ll be around all day. ”
“I know. Bye.”
He shook his head. “Not bye, but soon. I’ll see you soon.”
“Soon?” She looked like she was tossing the word around her mind to see if it fit. “Okay, I can do that.” Marie went up on tiptoe and pecked him on the lips. “Soon.”
She turned and headed toward the doors, Isaac stayed where he was until she disappeared behind them before turning and heading toward his car. He had a tracker to find and when he did, he was going to take great pleasure in smashing it.
Then he was going to double down and find out all he could about the fuckers who had followed them that morning. They were going to wish that they hadn’t targeted Marie.
Isaac protected his own, always had, and Marie was his.