Chapter 49 #2
There are several growls and curses from my three guys. Alex grabs me and pulls me against his chest to stop himself from doing something stupid while Theo and Rhys hold my hands. All three of them tremble from barely controlled anger.
“I’ll say it again; that bitch is dead the moment we get our hands on her,” Alex says, his voice the darkest I’ve ever heard it.
Rhys and Theo hum in agreement.
A shiver dances down my spine as heat stirs in my lower stomach, because apparently I’m fucked up enough to find their aggression sexy.
“Good, she deserves it,” Andy says before continuing on.
“When that idiot pointed out that since those security guys are already dead, she can just do it anyway, she blew up at him. Started screaming about how she needed those people alive to trade and that they were supposed to guarantee her and Haven’s future safety from the Scourge.
She was fucking loud too, so I’m surprised no one else heard her. ”
“The isolation ward is supposed to have good soundproofing, so no one outside the ward can hear what goes on. It’s mostly in case of infected people turning.
Don’t want the population to hear them moaning or the gunshot.
” Rhys grimaces at that last part, but Andy doesn’t seem bothered.
If anything, his lips twitch into a wry smile.
“Good to know you were prepared.”
“Dad…” Rachel says, her voice pained. Until this point, she’s been content to sit quietly beside her father and grip his hand while listening to his story.
“Sorry, sweetheart,” Andy says. He pulls her hand up to kiss the back of it before returning to his story.
“After she stopped screaming like a harpy, the two of them left, and since I don’t think either of them spotted me, I thought I was in the clear.
I guess not if the bitch tried to have me killed. ”
“Why didn’t you say anything of this earlier, when you were in isolation?” Rhys asks with a frown. “Would have saved us a lot of grief.” His eyes flick to mine, and we both know what he really means.
It would have saved Rhys and me from being kidnapped.
Andy sighs. “I tried. At first, I kept it to myself and waited for you to come see me, since I didn’t trust the doc. But you never showed up, and before I could tell the doc, a nurse came in, hooked me up to an IV, and after that, I don’t remember much.”
Alex and Theo share a grim look.
“I’m going to assume it was the same nurse who had the venom,” Theo says, his body stiff beside me.
Rhys nods. “Probably. Anthony didn’t uncover any other traitors in the medical team.”
“And the security team?” Tobias asks. He’s been leaning against the far wall, silently listening to everything with a mixture of horror and grim acceptance on his face.
“Uncompromised,” Rhys replies firmly.
My brother doesn’t look convinced. “Are you sure? The entire reason we found so many traitors was because of the names found in Elsa’s files. What if she didn’t record everyone?”
The mood in the room plummets as each of us come to the same horrifying conclusion: there could still be people working with Elsa and the Scourge in our midst.
Rhys clenches his jaw, his amber eyes flashing with fury and pain.
Alex’s arms tighten around me and his chest vibrates with a growl.
Theo flexes his hand around mine and presses into me even as his body trembles from restrained anger.
Rachel and Tamsin share grim looks as Rachel clings harder to her father.
“If my security team is compromised, I’ll find them,” Rhys says in a dark voice.
Andy sighs heavily from the bed, drawing everyone’s attention back to him. He’s slumped back into his pillows, eyes half closed despite the thick tension in the room. It’s obvious telling us what he heard in the isolation ward has drained him.
“Sleep, Dad,” Rachel murmurs as she leans forward to press a kiss to his cheek. “We’ll come see you tomorrow.”
A sleepy smile spreads across his face. “Sleep does sound good. Thank you all for coming.”
We all bid him goodnight and make our way out of his room.
The atmosphere is more subdued than it was earlier, with Rachel, Tamsin and my brother going their separate ways back to their homes, leaving me and the guys to head towards the cabin.
The night air is bitingly cold as we trudge our way through the forest and toward home.
Thankfully, inside is warm thanks to the fire still smouldering in the fireplace.
Harlow greets us with a wagging stubby tail and happy yips before trotting off back to her place in front of the fire.
Rhys kisses the top of my head before striding towards the office to put a plan of action into place.
Alex, Theo and I silently go upstairs to my bedroom, all of us exhausted and still reeling from everything Andy just told us.
While it’s given us some answers, like why Elsa betrayed Haven the way she did, there are still questions without answers. Such as how she even started her arrangement with the Scourge. Or if there are traitors still amongst us.