Chapter 28
TWENTY-EIGHT
MAX
Footsteps slapped against the vinyl hospital floor, and I turned toward the door, my heart lifting as Bailey hurried into the room, her gaze roving over me as if I was the one who’d been abducted by wannabe murderers.
I sat up, ignoring the pounding in my skull. The painkillers they’d given me were helping, but every time I moved, my head throbbed.
She sobbed, her hand flying to her mouth and her eyes gleaming with tears.
Then she rushed to my side and bent awkwardly over me, as if not sure whether to hug me or not.
I pulled her into my arms. It didn’t hurt, but I wouldn’t care if it did because holding her and knowing that she was safe mattered far more than any passing pain.
“I’m so glad you’re okay,” I murmured into her hair. “I’m sorry I wasn’t able to stop them from taking you.”
She tsked and kissed my cheek before straightening. “Don’t be silly. You literally risked yourself for me, and you saved me by giving me that tracker. If you hadn’t thought of that, I might be….” She shuddered delicately. “Never mind.”
“Thank God they were able to find you quickly.” I reached for her hand, and she intertwined her fingers with mine. “I hate to think what could have happened if they’d noticed the tracker. They didn’t hurt you?”
She shrugged. “Not really. They were rough with me but didn’t hit me or anything after they threw me in the back of their car. I don’t think they really wanted to hurt me. Or at least, one of them didn’t. They just wanted to shut me up.”
My mind ached like someone was wringing it out. “Isn’t that the same thing?”
Tilting her head thoughtfully, she replied, “I think they legitimately did hope we could get out of it without violence that first day, but they didn’t expect me to fight back and then one of them lost their temper and…
well, you know. Then, after they realized I’d survived, they knew that I might be able to identify them and get them arrested for assault or attempted murder. ”
I didn’t think that was any better. Sure, their intentions might not have initially been violent, but the end result was the same.
“How do you feel?” she asked, leaning against the bed, her teeth caught on her lower lip.
“Apparently, I have a concussion and a minor skull fracture. I’m supposed to get plenty of rest and use painkillers as needed.”
The doctor who’d examined me had been surprised it wasn’t worse, but perhaps if what Bailey said was true, the man hadn’t swung the bat with his full strength. He’d have had no reason to do anything more than incapacitate me, after all.
She huffed and squeezed my hand. “How do you feel?”
“Oh.” I supposed I had given her my prognosis rather than anything else. “Sore. But honestly, I’m mostly just relieved you’re okay. I’ve never been that scared in my life.”
I lifted her hand and brushed my lips over the back of it. There was a soft knock on the door, and Summer entered. When her gaze alighted on Bailey, she rushed over and swept her into an embrace.
“You’re okay,” Summer murmured, rocking slightly from side to side. “Don’t you dare do that to me again. My heart can’t take it.”
“I’m safe and sound,” Bailey assured her. “I’ll try not to get kidnapped again.”
“I’d appreciate that.” Summer let go of Bailey and grabbed onto me. “You too. You’re my nicest brother and I don’t want to lose you.”
“You won’t,” I assured her, my throat tight with emotion.
Drawing back, she glanced down at our joined hands. “Oh, so you guys have sorted everything out?”
Bailey met my eyes, and I smiled at her, hoping she could see everything that was in my heart. Her expression softened. “Yeah, we have.”
“Great. I expect you to take care of each other properly or you’ll answer to me.” Summer rubbed her palms together. “So, I had a quick chat with Nate. Apparently, the man they caught is talking.”
“What did he say?” I asked, eager for answers.
“That they suspected the hike might be a trap, so they used the opportunity to set their own trap. I don’t know more than that, but Grace is on her way, and she’ll probably have details. I’m going to grab some food. What would you like?”
“Anything is fine with me,” Bailey said.
Summer turned to me. “Max?”
“Er. Perhaps something soft?”
She grinned. “Done. I’ll be back soon.”
“Thanks.”
When she left, Bailey moved a chair closer and sat right beside me, holding my hand and clinging as though she was afraid I might vanish any second.
“I’m so sorry I brought all of this trouble to your doorstep,” she said. Her head was angled down, the slope of her neck graceful, but I hated that I couldn’t see her eyes. “You have a skull fracture and won’t be able to work for a while just because you were trying to take care of me.”
“It’s not your fault.”
When she made a doubtful sound, I tightened my grip on her.
“It’s not,” I insisted. “This all started when you went for a hike on a recognized trail that you’ve been on before. You had all the right safety equipment and should have been perfectly fine. You couldn’t have known that someone would attack you. Blame them, not yourself.”
I sure as hell was. Bailey didn’t deserve to suffer even a moment of self-flagellation. The violent criminals were the ones who’d done wrong, not her.
She sighed. “Part of me wishes that none of this had happened because it’s messing with my head, and I hate that you were injured protecting me, but…
.” She swallowed, then lowered her voice and continued, “Part of me wouldn’t take it back even if I could because we finally get to be together properly. Does that make me a bad person?”
Something sweet unfurled in my chest. “No, sweetheart. It doesn’t. But it does mean that next time, we should probably suck it up and act on our feelings before the universe pulls a nasty trick like this to force the matter.”
She laughed and tucked her hair behind her ear. “You won’t get any arguments from me.”
My eyelids grew heavy, and I allowed myself to drift off to sleep, knowing that Bailey wouldn’t leave my side. When I woke again, Summer had returned, and she had Grace with her.
“Mum and Dad are on their way,” Summer said, setting down the large paper bag she’d been carrying and unloading different types of food onto the small table. “They promised to call Bailey’s mother and update her too.”
Bailey nodded in acknowledgement. “Thanks for sorting that out.”
Summer waved the gratitude off. Grace approached me, her face pale and brackets of strain around her mouth.
“What’s wrong?” I asked, trying to shake off the last remnants of sleepiness and push myself to pay attention to her.
She grimaced and looked everywhere other than at me. “This is all my fault. I’m really sorry to both of you.”
Bailey and I exchanged glances. How could this possibly be Grace’s fault?
She perched on the edge of the bed and forced herself to look me in the eyes. “Nate wanted me to tell you that they caught the other guy too.”
A coil of anxiety in my gut loosened.
Thank God.
If both men were in custody, then it meant Bailey was safe. I wouldn’t have to worry about her like this again any time soon.
Summer squeezed Grace’s shoulder. “It isn’t your fault, and I’m sure they’ll see that when you explain.”
Grace’s features pinched. “If I hadn’t asked questions—”
“They might have gotten the idea into their dumbass brains anyway,” Summer interrupted.
“Um, can someone explain please?” Bailey asked, saving me the job.
“I’ve been talking to Corie—Pearl’s descendant—about my book pretty regularly. She’s who told me about Pearl’s supposed lost inheritance. Apparently, she was excited about the book and mentioned it and the legend to her cousin to see if he remembered any details she’d forgotten.”
Bailey gasped. “Those men said something about a treasure! Was it really that?”
Grace nodded. “Corie’s cousin and his brother are both in debt to some bad people.
I don’t know who, exactly, and Nate didn’t say.
But according to the brother, he did some research and thought there was a strong possibility the treasure was real and that it was somewhere in the forest around Destiny Falls. ”
“Why in the forest?” That made no sense. If Pearl’s father had left her an inheritance, surely he’d have stored it somewhere within the township.
“Because no one ever found it in town even though quite a few people looked and Pearl’s father was known to be fond of taking long walks in the forest as he aged.”
“So, what?” Bailey asked, frowning. “They just started digging in random places?”
“They had a metal detector,” Grace explained. “They were searching near walking paths and digging anywhere it detected something underground.”
Summer offered me a bowl of steaming soup propped on a tray. “But they didn’t find anything?”
Grace shook her head. “I’m really sorry, you guys. If I hadn’t started that book, all of this might not have happened.”
I took the tray of soup and made sure to position it carefully so that I wouldn’t spill it all over myself. “None of us blame you. People do crazy things.”
“Like trying to fight off two armed assailants to save their one true love,” Summer teased, although there was a trace of darkness in her voice. “I don’t want either of you to be in danger ever again.”
“Nor do we,” I assured her with a soft smile. “Besides, we all know I’m the boring one in the family. It will be all board games and white picket fences after this.”
Bailey brightened, and I stared at her like a lovesick idiot. “That sounds really good.”
“Then let’s do it.”
She leaned in and sealed the deal with a kiss.