Chapter Fourteen Cassian
Four hours… That’s how long I’ve been waiting for any news on Zenovia. Four, long fucking hours.
Jordan is about ready to murder the next doctor if we don’t get an update soon. She arrived at the hospital a few minutes after me. Jaylen, luckily, phoned her and told her what happened, and she’s been a mess since.
The door opens, and both of us jump, but my heart sinks as Evy walks in. She walks straight to me, and Jordan puts herself between me and Evy.
“Where is she?” Evy’s voice cracks, and Jordan hugs her.
“We’re waiting for an update.” I’ve never been more thankful for Jordan than I am right now. I know Evy has gotten attached to Zenovia, but I don’t have it in me to comfort someone else right now. Call me selfish, but I want to be with my girl and not be making small talk with others.
Evy pulls away from Jordan as Jaylen walks in. He scans the room before he makes it over to me. He pulls me to the side, and I raise my eyebrow.
“Why did you change your order?”
I furrow my eyebrows. “Last night. Zenovia used a colorant with something in it that some of my students are allergic to. It was to make the blood drops seem more real. Why?”
Jaylen sighs as he leans his head back. He rubs his hand over his face before looking back at me. “This wasn’t to target her. Whoever did this wanted to target the students. I reckon it was to make it look like Zen wanted to poison your students. Get her out of the way.”
I let what he says sink in for a little. They wanted to hurt her in a way they knew she would never recover. Losing her bakery, me, and being sent to prison. Hell, even I might have been held accountable for it. I lean against the wall next to me and take a deep breath.
Zenovia ate the cupcake by chance, and now she’s in the hospital. How do we stop this? Why is this person obsessed with me? I don’t even know who the hell they are… My eyes snap towards Jaylen. “Is the realtor on your suspect list?” She’s the only one I can think of who wanted more than just a sale.
Jaylen shakes his head as he leans closer. “She was one of the couples who was murdered. The first one.” I stumble back as I watch Jaylen. “It was the realtor and her husband, followed by Evy’s parents.” He glances at where Evy is sitting with Jordan.
“Do you think they will come back for Evy?” I have to know. I don’t want her in danger.
“Nah, so far whoever is doing this hasn’t been targeting the kids. Evy only has a few weeks left until she’s eighteen, then she can be on her own.”
Jaylen looks at his watch before he pulls out his phone.
“I’m going to make a call. I’ll be back.”
He pats my shoulder, and I take a moment to process everything he just told me.
The doctor walks in without lifting her head as she reads over something on the tablet in her hands. I move closer as she finally looks up. “Mr. Austin?”
“That’s me.”
“Can we have a moment in private?” She nods towards the door, and I follow her.
Evy wants to follow, but Jordan holds her back.
The doctor leads me into an empty room before she motions for me to sit on the bed.
“I’m Dr. Twain. Miss Moore is stable for now. We had to pump her stomach to get the poison out. I did notice on her chart that she’s been poisoned before, and in cases like this we need to inform the police. We also had to put eight stitches on the back of her head. Luckily,
she doesn’t have a brain bleed or swelling. However, we can’t determine how serious her head injury is until she wakes up.”
She looks towards the door as it opens and Jaylen walks in.
“Detective Lopez, thank you for coming on such short notice.”
“Dr. Twain, we’re already working on the case. You can allow Mr. Austin to see Miss Moore. He’s not the suspect.” I let out a breath I didn’t know I was holding. I get that it’s protocol, but why always suspect the boyfriend or husband? I would never do anything to hurt anyone.
“If you clear him, then I’ll show him to her room. I would like security on her, please. Someone is trying to hurt her, and I am not letting them win. My daughter loves her bakery. She loves the cookies and cupcakes.”
The doctor winks at Jaylen before she motions for me to follow her.
I walk with her, and she opens a door to a private room.
As I walk in, my heart nearly stops completely.
My beautiful girl is lying lifeless in a hospital bed with tubes all over.
The only thing that shows me she’s still with me is the steady beeping of the monitor next to her.
“It looks worse than it is. Go sit with her and talk to her. She needs you to bring her back.”
My feet move on their own as I glance down at my beauty. I take her hand, and the sparks shoot up my arm. She’s still with me. She’s still here. I lean down and kiss the top of her head before I sit in the chair next to her bed.
“I’ll only allow you to stay with her tonight. We can reassess the situation tomorrow.” Dr. Twain squeezes my shoulder before she walks out of the room.
I take Zenovia’s hand and squeeze it. Her hand isn’t as cold as it was when we found her, but it’s still colder than I would like it to be. She needs to rest and heal. I know deep inside me that she will come back to me. She has to.
The door opens, and Jaylen walks in with a smile. I raise my eyebrow, and he sits next to me. He leans closer and speaks just above a whisper. “I need you to still go to the dance tomorrow night.”
“No… I want to be here. What if she wakes up while I’m at the dance? What if someone tries something while I’m at the dance?”
Jaylen smirks as he leans back in his chair. “We’re hoping that they either try something with you or with Zenovia. Jordan will be here with two officers, and I will be with you at the dance. Please. We need to end this.”
I glance from him to my sleeping girlfriend. I want this to end. I want to be able to enjoy my future with Zenovia and not look over my shoulder the whole time.
“Fine, but if Zenovia wakes up while I’m not here, Jordan needs to phone me immediately,” I warn, and Jaylen nods before he gets up and walks towards the door. He opens it to let Evy and Jordan in.
“How is she?” Evy sits in the chair Jaylen was sitting in. She leans forward and rubs her fingers over the back of Zenovia’s hand.
“She’s stable. All we have to do is wait for her to wake up,” I answer as I get up and walk over to the window. I need a moment. I can’t let anyone know what Jaylen has planned.
I just need to be strong. Strong for my girl and strong for my friends.