Chapter 18 #2
“He’ll need to be transferred to another facility.
Normally, we’d have sent him to a hospital, but I understand your circumstances.
You don’t wish for this,” Dr. Sanyal said, his Indian accent making Caitlyn focus on understanding his English.
At first, Caitlyn assumed the man was an intern, judging that he might not be older than his late twenties.
It would be too impolite to ask him about his age and accreditations after saving Daniel’s life.
“Can’t he stay here for a few days until he’s well?” Caitlyn asked, stepping up beside Thomas. She didn’t mind when he put his hand on her back.
Dr. Sanyal frowned at her. “We have patients who come in that are in trouble. I help. I do what I can. I can’t go against the law. If your friend is in trouble.”
“I told you. He’s a cop,” Thomas said.
Caitlyn froze, the icy truth holding her still. Cop? The image of Daniel in a crisp uniform shattered the image of the man she brought into the clinic hours ago.
Thomas’s phone rang, shattering the stunned silence. He held up his finger, a silent apology, and stepped away from the doctor to answer. “Yeah?”
Caitlyn tried to listen, the shock overridden by a need to understand.
“Yeah. Someone shot him. I thought you’d want to know.” Thomas kept his voice lowered, most likely to avoid it echoing down the sterile hallway.
“Depends on who’s asking,” Yeats said and listened before replying.
“Yeah. Just checking. He’s alive, but I’ve got him at a clinic.
We need to keep them from transporting him to a hospital or alerting the local authorities.
The person I suspect who did this most likely has eyes and ears everywhere in the county. ”
After a brief silence, Thomas turned, his gaze locking with Caitlyn’s. “More than his own family. Which isn’t as much as I can say about you. I don’t know you. How can I trust you?”
Caitlyn chewed on her lip as she stood, torn between going to see Daniel or hearing the rest of Thomas’s phone call.
“If you mean sending him a new identification and expecting him to hide, he won’t.
” Thomas frowned. Walking over to the doctor, he held out the phone and said, “You’ll want to take this call. ”
Caitlyn approached the nurse at the station. “What room number did you say he was in?”
The young woman looked up and glanced between Caitlyn and the doctor. “Are you his wife?”
Caitlyn nodded, leaving it to this moment for her to choke up on a lie. What was one more if it got her in to see Daniel? They both had a lot to answer already.
“Down the hall, room 313.”
Trembling, Caitlyn pushed past Thomas, ignoring his furrowing brow.
Each step down the hallway echoed the hollowness in her chest. Hot and scolding, it scorched her.
Had he used her, their connection, Sam, to get to Silas or the Ghost Riders?
But why not join them? Why the secrecy? Tears welled in her eyes.
A cop would want the police involved after getting shot, wouldn’t they?
Unless... a horrifying thought slithered into her mind. Was Daniel a dirty cop?
Hot tears streamed down her chilled skin. Reaching the room, she paused, the urge to storm in strong, but fear slowed her down. Did she want to see him? Yes. But what would she see? A man she thought she knew, or a stranger playing a dangerous game?
Daniel slept. His face was pale, and the hospital gown slipped down from where the wires ran up, and the bandages peeked out. Pulling up a chair near his bed, she sat and wiped away the remains of her tears from her cheeks. Determined to wait until he was awake, she laid her hand over his.
“If you’re okay, then I’m okay.”
This time, she was lying to herself.
The sterile white of the ceiling swam into focus, accompanied by a dull throbbing behind his eyes. The rhythmic beeping of the heart monitor mimicked the frantic drum solo his nerves were playing.
A low moan escaped his lips as a fresh wave of pain rolled down his side. Sebastian tried to shift, but a sharp tug near his shoulder sent a jolt through him. There, a bandage peeked out from under the thin hospital gown.
“Audra.” He swallowed, his throat dry, his voice hoarse.
A cup of water pressed against his lips. “Sip.”
Then he saw her. Caitlyn. Realization hit him like a freight train. Waiting for her in the parking lot. Shots fired—the burning sensation in his shoulder.
Curled up on a chair beside the bed, her face etched with worry as she slept. Relief washed over him, warm and sweet, pushing away the pain for a fleeting moment.
“She’s been here since she brought you in. She refused to leave your side until you woke.” Thomas sat the cup on the tray near Sebastian on the opposite side away from Caitlyn.
“Daniel?” Caitlyn whispered, scrambling to her feet. “You’re awake.”
“I’m a hard man to kill.”
Her smile faltered. She looked pale, her eyes shadowed with exhaustion, but relief flickered across her face. “I’m so sorry. This is my fault,” she said, her voice thick with emotion. Sebastian turned his head to look at Yeats.
“I’ve got it under control. Razek is on his way. I’m sorry, man. I didn’t know who else to call. Figured you didn’t want me contacting the missus.”
“No. You did the right thing,” Sebastian said, grateful to live another day.
“Missus? You are married?” Caitlyn withdrew from him.
His stomach clenched. She deserved the truth. Sebastian lifted his hand, captured hers, and tried to get her to stay. “No.”
“Sorry,” Yeats huffed. “I’m making a mess of this. I need some coffee. I’ll let you two talk while I fetch us some caffeine.”
“Daniel, what is going on?” The fear and hint of betrayal laced in her voice struck him worse than the bullet.
Closing his eyes, he took a deep, shaky breath, fighting the wave of dizziness washing over him.
“Caitlyn,” he said, tugging her closer, his voice a harsh whisper of hoarseness. “Let me explain.”
“Explain? You could have died. Kissing me is not worth your life.”
A smile twitched on his lips. “You’re right. I can’t kiss you if I’m dead, but your kisses aren’t what got me shot.”
Her cheeks turned dark pink, and she held onto his hand. “Does this have anything to do with why you’re hiding and refused to wait for the cops or an ambulance?”
Guilt gnawed at him, but he couldn’t allow Caitlyn to think any of this was her doing. Closing his eyes, he fought the pain medication dripping in his IV, making him drowsy. “Did Yeats tell you?”
Caitlyn released his hand and rolled her eyes. She walked over and grabbed the cup of water. Pressing it to his lips, she waited for him to ease the dryness in his throat.
“I heard Thomas on the phone. Who is ‘the missus’ if you’re not married? And I know this is my fault. I got careless, and one of Silas’s men must have seen us in the parking lot.”
His skin became clammy against the cool sheets. “My name isn’t Daniel Jones. It’s Sebastian Daniels. ‘Missus’ is a code word. I used to be a cop.”
Silence descended upon the room. The sterile scent of disinfectant became stronger.
Sebastian peered at Caitlyn, his heart monitor beeping with the skip of the beats in his chest. Caitlyn stared at him, her face a mask of shock and disbelief.
Mascara smudged under her eyes, making them appear darker.
“Sebastian. Sebastian Daniels,” she murmured, as if testing the name on her tongue. “You’re Sammy’s brother.”
Sebastian forced himself to meet her gaze.
Her brown eyes widened with hurt at the depth of betrayal.
His throat constricted, making simple words a struggle.
“Yeah,” he finally managed, the single syllable a world away from the explanation he wanted to offer.
He could see the wheels turning in her mind, piecing together the fragments of his past actions. His secrecy.
Her connection with his sister, Samantha, made their relationship more complicated, and now it was out in the open. The cold drip of the medication in his IV was nothing compared to the chill spreading through his chest.
“Does Sammy know?”
Would she believe his motives weren’t malicious, that he’d never meant to deceive her? “No. I needed to remain anonymous to protect my family. I never meant to lie to you, Caitlyn,” he said, his voice strained.
Her cheeks turned a dark pink. “I never intended to put you in danger.” Panic rose in his chest, the monitor beeping faster. “I care about you and Owen. I don’t care about Silas. We’ll deal with him. Together.”
Tears welled in her eyes, mirroring the dark storm of emotions brewing in the reflection of her eyes. Anger, confusion, hurt—they all swirled in her gaze. “You’re Sammy’s brother,” she whispered, the words sounding hollow in the sterile room. “She doesn’t know.”
He took a shaky breath. “There are bad men after me,” he confessed.
The gravity of his situation finally laid bare.
“I needed to stay close to ensure they didn’t come after my family.
” His gaze darted to the window. “They wouldn’t hesitate to hurt anyone to get to me, especially.
..” He trailed off, his voice choked with emotion.
“You’re an undercover cop.” She covered her mouth with her hand.
He tried to reach for her, but that arm was heavy, and pain shot through his shoulder. “I’m not a cop. Not anymore.” He needed her to believe him.
Her hand dropped from her mouth, and her eyes narrowed. “Sammy said you were good at your job. You’d do anything…”
“I’d do anything to keep the people I care about safe,” he interjected.
“Did you know Silas was getting out of prison? Is that why you came here? Why did you take the job with Thomas? You befriended my son.”
Her words cut through him like a knife. Everything he’d done, the lies he’d had to live… “Thomas offering me the job has nothing to do with you or Silas, Caitlyn. Listen to me.”
Caitlyn shook her head and backed up. The judgment in her eyes was more painful than the pain from his bullet wound. He hoped a flicker of trust remained beneath the confusion and anger.
“I’m sorry, Daniel. Sebastian. Whatever your name is…” Caitlyn gnawed on her lip until it bled. “Silas is on a manhunt, and he’s been looking for you. I didn’t recognize you because your family is so private, but he’ll find you, and I can’t stop him.”