Chapter Twenty-Three
Noah
Bree and Noah had been sitting in the family consultation room listening to the clock tick for so long that he was about to chuck it out the window. Theo had called on their way to the hospital and said there was nothing on the man who left the pictures. Nothing new, anyway. It was the same man who broke in at Bree”s. Average height, average build, average, average, average. Frustration was his constant companion. Their perp must have staked out the place pretty thoroughly to be able to avoid Theo”s cameras. How was anyone that invisible?
”I can see why Captain Hook hated clocks,” Bree muttered under her breath. Noah chuckled as a middle-aged gentleman in a white coat walked through the door.
Noah and Bree stood from their chairs, and the doctor reached out his hand. “Thank you for your patience. You must be Miss Gray.” He said warmly, shaking Bree’s hand.
“I am.”
“And you are?” The doctor asked, turning to shake hands with Noah.
“I’m Noah Hawthorne, sir. Aubrey’s boyfriend.”
“Pleased to meet you both.” He said, sitting down behind the desk and looking at the two of them with a serious expression on his face.
Noah squeezed Bree’s leg in a reassuring manner as they waited patiently for the doctor to let them know why he wanted them here. Her quiet look of joy when he had referred to himself as her boyfriend was playing on loop in his mind and was a memory he’d treasure forever. It was quick, but he was all in, and she seemed to be too. Then again, he’d thought that before.
Noah stopped the spiraling thoughts before they metastasized and brought his attention back to the present. The doctor leaned forward and folded his hands seriously. “Miss Gray, your sister has been on the ventilator now for several years.”
“Yes, sir,” Bree said quietly.
“And in that time, from my understanding, after viewing her charts, she hasn’t had any changes in her brain function?”
“No, sir.”
“I’m sorry to say that your sister had a series of seizures yesterday that were difficult to control. Her brain was further damaged by the seizures, and she has an infection.”
“What does that mean?”
“It means while her recovery before was nearly impossible, now I can say with certainty that she will not recover.”
Bree’s lip quivered, but she nodded and kept her voice steady. “I understand.” She said softly.
“If you have questions you’re welcome to check in with Jessica’s nurses or we can connect during my rounds.” He said, before standing up and walking out of the room.
Bree sat there in a daze, and Noah waited for her to process whatever was going on in that beautiful head of hers. She turned to him about five minutes later, tears filling her eyes. “We can’t let her keep suffering, Noah. It isn’t right.”
Noah reached out to her and pulled her into his arms, tucking her against him securely. He’d never experienced fear like he had when that picture showed up on his door, and he thought Bree was gone. Taken. Being assaulted. They were the longest and worst minutes of his life. Now every time he got to hold her in his arms, he relished it. Though he much preferred holding her while she was happy or just because. He hated seeing her in pain, but he’d hold her through it as well until she could withstand it or get to the other side. He’d forever be her biggest cheerleader. The brief thought of forever didn’t send his mind into an automatic tailspin, which was progress.
Noah rubbed his hand up and down Bree’s back in soothing motions until she pulled away and looked up at him through tear-filled, red-rimmed eyes. “Thank you for being here, Noah.” She whispered softly, her lip still quivering slightly.
“There’s nowhere else I’d rather be.” He told her truthfully. He held her for a few more minutes while she steadied herself and then stepped away as she went to grab a Kleenex. “Ready for billing?” Noah asked.
Bree looked confused. “I’m not sure what they want with us. We’ve paid them on time.”
“Maybe just some paperwork to sort out.” He suggested.
“Maybe,” Bree said.
Noah reached out and brushed his hand against hers as they walked and then caught her hand in his as it went by on the next swing. He laced their fingers together, a feeling of warm rightness settling over him. This was his woman, and no one was taking her away from him. They reached the elevators and, with the help of a friendly housekeeper, found themselves in front of the head of the billing department’s desk.
“Miss Gray, unfortunately, your parents have not returned any of my calls, and you’re technically the financial party responsible for your sister’s treatment.”
“I’m aware, Mrs. Johnson,” Bree said respectfully. “I’m happy to help with whatever you need.”
“Here is an invoice for the service costs for the last six months.” Mrs. Johnson said, handing some paperwork over to Bree. Noah looked over at the figure and his eyes nearly came out of his head like one of those cartoons he watched growing up. The amount was astronomical.
“Yes ma’am,” Bree said, confusion still clear in her voice.
“They need to be paid,” Mrs. Johnson said kindly.
Bree stilled in her seat, and Noah’s heart stuttered in his chest. Did she just say…
“I’m sorry, I’m not understanding. What do you mean they need to be paid?” Bree asked, hysteria creeping into the edges of her voice.
“Miss Gray, no one has paid your sister’s medical bill since April, when you made the payment directly yourself.”
“That’s—that’s not possible,” Bree said, sinking back in her chair, her cheeks pale and eyes wide. Noah scooted his chair a little closer to hers and wrapped his arm around her shoulder, drawing her close, still reeling from the shock himself.
“Aubrey’s parents haven’t been paying the bill?” Noah asked Mrs. Johnson. She looked a little disgruntled that he would even ask.
“No, sir. As I said, we haven’t received a payment since April.”
“But...but…but...” Audrey’s breaths started coming in quick pants, and Noah squeezed her shoulder.
“Breathe, Bree. In for four. One. Two. Three. Four. Hold it. One. Two. Three. Four. Out for four. One. Two. Three. Four.” He repeated the breathing exercise with her a couple of times until she had herself back under control. She looked crushed.
“You seem rather surprised by this news.” Mrs. Johnson said cautiously.
Bree let out a near-hysterical laugh. “I am surprised by this news. I’ve been giving my father money to pay for Jessica’s treatment every month. So I am very freaking surprised by this news.” Hurt replaced the hysteria, and Bree looked to be on the verge of tears again.
“So what do we need to do?” Noah asked Mrs. Johnson, hoping that practical steps could help them refocus.
“Getting a good lawyer would be my first recommendation.” Mrs. Johnson muttered, though her eyes widened immediately afterward like she couldn’t believe she’d said that out loud. Bree laughed, so Noah let it go. Honestly, they probably did need a really good lawyer as a first step. They needed to try to have Bree given Jessica’s medical power of attorney. And that started with making sure the bills were paid.
“Mrs. Johnson,” Noah said, holding Bree’s hand tightly in his own. “Could you make a note in the file that Bree came to see you as soon as she was asked and document our confusion over the lack of payment and the fact Bree said she’s been paying her father so he can pay the medical bills?”
“We document everything, but I can make sure to add that in my notes.” She said, clicking away at her keyboard a few times until she was satisfied with what she’d written.
Bree looked at him, a question in her eyes.
“That way when you fight for power of attorney they can see that you were not complicit. You showed up when you were asked, were surprised about the money, and the wires you sent to your father will back up the missing funds.” Bree nodded quietly.
“Great. Before we take care of the bill, Mrs. Johnson, can we get an itemized bill and is there a cash discount?” His mom always told him to ask. Rule number one: get everything in writing. Rule number two: get an itemized bill. Rule number three: Ask if there’s a discount for paying in cash or in full. It’s saved him money frequently enough that it was worth asking.
Mrs. Johnson nodded and ran the numbers. It was still insanely high, but Bree and Noah nodded. “I’ll call my bank and get that squared away shortly,” Bree said softly.
Mrs. Johnson printed a copy the notes from today and an itemized bill of the last six months—He’d need to plant a few trees in the rainforest to pay for that request—and they said their goodbyes with another promise to make payment arrangements shortly. They walked out of the hospital hand in hand, silent until they got into the car.
“How are you feeling, Bree?” Noah asked her as they pulled out of the parking lot. She shook her head, her quivering lip giving away the fact she was overcome with emotion. Noah rested his hand on her knee and drove across town to her favorite coffee shop in Trenton so they could pick up an iced coffee—or two. She could definitely use the pick-me-up today.
Bree smiled her megawatt smile when she noticed where he pulled in and gave his hand a tight squeeze. They walked into the coffee shop, and she smiled at the barista over the counter. “One large iced vanilla latte with caramel drizzle, please.” She said with a smile.
“Make that two,” Noah said, whipping out his wallet and handing the kid a twenty.
“Thanks,” Bree whispered as they dropped the change into the tip jar and moved down to the end of the counter.
“You’re welcome, babe.”
They grabbed the coffee—both of them actually for Bree—and headed back to the car to head home. It didn’t feel like a ‘sit in the coffee shop’ kind of conversation. When they got back home, Noah sent a quick text to the rest of the guys to let them know there may have been a development and there may not be the normal group dinner this evening, depending on how Bree was feeling. They all sent back a thumbs-up emoji except Theo. Noah”s phone rang seconds later, Theo”s face flashing on the screen.
”Hey, is Bree okay?” Theo asked, concern lacing his tone.
”I’m not sure—she’s been quiet the whole way home. Only drank a quarter of her coffee so far, too.” Noah said, frowning.
”Oof. So she’s not good at all.”
”Not really. Hey, while I”ve got you, can you do me a favor?” Noah asked. He needed to get information—and get it quickly—but he also needed to stay nearby for Bree.
”Of course. What’s up?”
”Will you look into the financials for Bree’s parents? Specifically, their finances in the last six to eight months?” Noah had a sinking suspicion that he knew what Theo would find, but the paper trail would confirm it.
”On it. I’ll call when I have something.”
”Thanks, man. I owe you one.”
”The hell you do. Give Bree a hug for me.”
Noah hung up and went down to Bree’s bedroom, knocking softly on the door.
“Come in,” Bree called softly.
Noah opened the door and found Bree looking a little forlorn in her bed—a comfy blanket perched in her lap while her fingers ran over the fabric. He walked over to the bed and sat down next to her, wrapping his arm around her and tucking her into his side. She leaned into him, her hands still moving rhythmically against the blanket. “Want to talk about it?”
She sighed. “Not really, but I guess we should. Maybe we should just get it over with when the guys are here tonight? That way it only has to be dealt with once?”
“We don’t have to host if you aren’t feeling up to it,” Noah told her seriously. “They’ll understand if you want some space right now.”
Bree smiled up at him gratefully. “I like having everyone here. They don’t drain my social battery as quickly as other people. Besides, they’re your team. We should tell them.”
“And until dinner?”
“I think I’d like to unwind for a little bit. Maybe take a nap.”
Noah kissed her forehead softly. “Sounds like a plan. I’ll let the guys know, and then we can chat about it tonight. I also asked Theo to look into your parents” financial situation for the last six to eight months. I didn’t tell him why, but I figured the more information we had going into this, the better.” Bree nodded, and Noah stood up, leaning down to give her a gentle kiss. “I’m going to work in the dining room for a bit. Let me know if you need anything.”
“I will.” She breathed gently.
Noah walked out of the room, closing her door behind him. He sent a quick text off to the guys letting them know that dinner was a go, but asking them to bring the meal instead so they didn’t have to figure out what to cook—and actually cook it—on top of the information bomb that had just been dumped on them.
Pulling out his laptop, Noah spent the next several hours elbows-deep in administrative work for the business while the same question percolated in his head. Where did all of that money go?