Chapter 17
17
There she was. Guthrie had waited until Genny was being wheeled into recovery, with Chad sticking to her side like glue, before he headed down to the waiting room. He had gotten an update from Hadassa earlier—Aubrey was in the waiting room with Guthrie’s family.
Aubrey was going to be okay. But he needed to see her for himself.
He would never forget. Never forget what he had seen tonight. Tears stung his eyes, but he battled them back. Now wasn’t the time for him to give in to emotion—not with his family waiting for him to tell them about Genny. He knew they would trust him more than anyone else now.
But he needed to see Aubrey. Make sure she was okay. He just needed to see that she was safe.
His brothers were already storming around, demanding answers. Just like he had known they would be. He was one of the quieter Hiller brothers—not that he couldn’t get riled when needed, but Gene and Grady especially could be intense. It was that animal caveman thing they’d inherited from their father—Gene and Grady had gotten it in spades.
Aubrey looked overwhelmed and defenseless—it immediately had him wanting to scoop her close. Her cheek was swelling, her arm in a sling, and exhaustion was written across her face. She looked at him, those blue eyes practically destroying him. Maybe he had gotten that caveman animal in spades, too.
He strode forward, cutting through the group. He pulled her closer.
And held her, while she just shook against him. Her hands tightened on the material of his scrubs. He’d changed clothes—he hadn’t wanted his family to see the blood, his baby sister’s blood.
Finally, Guthrie saw Caine enter the room. Caine came over, his gaze immediately finding Aubrey. Guthrie watched as Caine studied her, as if making sure for himself that she was okay.
“He went in with her, to recovery,” Guthrie said when Caine asked about Chad.
He turned back to Aubrey, on the bruise forming along her cheek. “Did you get it imaged? How many sutures in your arm?”
She looked up at him. “Eighteen. The eye is just a bruise, Guthrie.”
Every mark he could see just pissed him off even more.
“Your family… has been waiting for you,” she said quietly, almost like she was trying to remind him where he was needed. Or get attention off herself. He suspected that was a big part of it.
Shy. Genny had said she was shy. Now Guthrie believed it.
Finally, the questions stopped, and Caine spoke, giving them all the news they needed to hear. Genny was going to be fine. The damage was mostly superficial. His brother Gunn asked about Hodges, and Guthrie's anger rose again. If that man was in front of him right now, even the Hippocratic Oath couldn’t stop him.
Nothing would. Especially as he looked at Aubrey and the way she shook, as Guthrie’s own mother prodded her to drink the juice one of Genny’s friends had brought her.
“That bastard?” Guthrie couldn’t stop the venom in his voice. “Does anyone know what happened to him?”
“Chantal’s older brother took him away two hours ago. I gave Charlie my statement.”
Guthrie’s hand moved to her shoulder, an instinctive attempt to comfort her. He could feel her tension, her fear. “Is he still saying Chad attacked him first?”
And when his brothers erupted in anger again once they learned Hodges had been harassing Genny for a few weeks—Gene pacing, Grady demanding answers—Guthrie didn’t miss how both Aubrey and Ayla flinched, how they shrank back. Aubrey and Ayla were afraid. Not just nervous—truly afraid. It hurt him to see them so afraid.
Without a second thought, he pulled Aubrey into his arms and whispered into her ear. “It’s okay now. You are safe now. All of you. I promise.”
She let out a shaky breath, her body relaxing against his. Guthrie held her, feeling her tremble slightly. His hand moved to the back of her head, guiding her to rest against his shoulder.
He kissed her forehead, his heart tightening. Hadn’t she been through enough?
Guthrie just held her.