Chapter 33
33
H anna watched the doctor work on her wrists, cleaning them out and making sure the zip ties didn't shred or pieces weren't embedded into her skin. A nurse stood nearby, her name tag said Monique, typing into a computer when the doctor said anything.
She winced a few times as the doctor pulled gently on her wounds or touched a sore spot. At least sorer than the others. Now that the adrenaline was wearing off, her wrists were tender. She saw Quinn's jaw tighten when she winced. It made her heart swell that he cared so much. He'd sent Jared to the job site to explain what happened and to be there and oversee the work being done. Jared seemed relieved not to have to sit here. He smiled at her before he left and quietly said, "I'm glad you're alright, Hanna."
She smiled in return. "Thanks to you and your dad."
His cheeks reddened, and she thought it was cute. Someday she'd have to ask Quinn to see a picture of him at twenty-five years of age. She'd bet he looked remarkably like Jared looked right now.
As soon as Jared left, her parents came bustling into the room. "Oh my God. Oh, praise the Lord my baby is alright." Her mom wailed.
The doctor stepped back a moment. "You all go ahead and have your greeting, then I'll finish."
Her mom hugged her. Then her dad slowly approached. His eyes glistened with unshed tears and his cheeks were red. He slowly leaned down and hugged her. "I'm so happy you're still with us Hanna. I love you so much it hurts, and I couldn't bear it if you weren't in my life anymore."
"I love you too, Daddy. So much."
He stepped back and sniffed. He pulled a hanky from his pocket and swiped his nose, refolding his hanky and tucking it into his back pocket. He moved over to Quinn, who stood and hugged her dad. He then asked him to sit in the seat he'd just vacated. Tears welled in her eyes, witnessing it all.
The doctor stepped forward once more. "May I continue?"
She mustered a smile. "Yes. Please."
Her mom dutifully sat in the second chair in the room but craned her neck to see everything the doctor did. He shined an ultraviolet light on her wounds. "This will show me any pieces of plastic that may have broken off."
Hanna nodded and watched as he slowly moved the light around her wrist. He found one small piece and used a tweezer to remove it, which pinched slightly. She winced and pinched her lips together. Maybe she shouldn't watch what he did .
As soon as he was confident he'd gotten everything out, he stood. "Monique will clean you up, apply antibacterial ointment, and wrap your wrists. I'd like to see you in my office in three or four days, as the swelling goes down, to make sure I didn't miss anything. Right now, you're swollen and that could be hiding some minute threads of plastic."
"Thank you," she offered. He nodded to her parents and shook Quinn's hand. He exited the room and Monique efficiently slid a tray on wheels next to her bed, sat on the stool the doctor just vacated, and gently began dabbing at the dried blood on her wrists.
"How's your headache, Hanna?" Monique inquired.
"It's better, thank you."
"Whatever they used to render you unconscious is what gave you the headache. You don't have any lumps on your head. We only gave you something for that. If it comes back, take something you're used to taking for headaches. But hopefully, once you've eaten and rested, you'll be fine."
Just as Monique mentioned food, her stomach growled. She hadn't even thought about being hungry.
Quinn chuckled.
"I guess I'm a little hungry. What time is it?"
He leaned forward. "It's six-thirty."
"Oh no! We were supposed to have dinner with Sid and Grace."
He nodded. "They understand you’re indisposed and we're to call them when you're up to it. And they're getting married in two weeks. So, hopefully we'll get to dine with them before then, but if not, when they get home from their honeymoon."
"I'm fine other than having two new bracelets." She held up the wrist Monique had finished bandaging and Quinn's lips tightened slightly, but he tried smiling.
"When you're ready, you just let me know and we'll see what their schedule is like."
Hanna's mom fussed a little bit. "We have leftovers at home. Why don't you stop by the house to have something to eat? I'm sorry I didn't have time to make anything else."
She shook her head. "Don't worry about it, Mom. It's alright. I think I have something at home."
Quinn stood neared the bed. "I think you should come and stay with me. Your house is a construction zone and I have a big house all to myself. I'll take good care of you, I promise."
Her mom tittered a bit, and Hanna almost rolled her eyes. "Oh, honey, that sounds really nice. Quinn, you are such a sweet man."
Hanna's lips turned up in a smile and her eyes locked on Quinn's. His cheeks turned pink. He smiled. "See, your mom thinks it's a good idea."
There wasn't much to think about. Of course, she'd stay with Quinn. It would give them some time to really get to know each other.
Trey and Erin entered the room as Monique finished up the second wrist. They shook Quinn's hand, then her mom and dad's.
Erin stepped forward. "How are you, Hanna?"
"I'm good. My wrists are cut up from using the zip ties from trying to escape. My headache is gone and I have everyone around me."
"Good to hear. We have the women and Isaac in custody. They had gotten ahold of him at the hotel and they beat on him pretty good. We had to separate them at the jail because those women are hot mad."
Hanna smiled. "Isaac deserves to be beat on. I wanted to do it so many times and never had the guts."
Her father said. "I wanted to beat on him, too."
Her mom turned and stared at her father as if he'd grown a second head. Her dad shrugged. "What?"
Her mom shook her head and turned her attention back to Erin. "What happens now?"
Erin smiled. "They'll need to make bail. The DA is working on the charges right now. Kidnapping, bodily injury, and breaking and entering to name just a few of the charges. There will likely be others coming too. As for Isaac, catfishing is not explicitly a crime, unfortunately. But he took money under false pretenses, and the women want their money back. They’re pressing charges against him for a variety of things. As soon as they calm down and actually hire an attorney, we'll see what charges come to him. The DA is also working with them on their charges against him. He's working with the DAs in their respective cities because moving money across state lines under false pretenses can be criminal. That'll be up to them, though. For now, we wanted you to know you're safe. They are locked up."
Hanna smiled. "Thank you. I do feel better knowing they are locked up."
Trey nodded. "If it's any consolation, they are both sorry for kidnapping you. They let their rage and hurt cloud their logic. After they've had some time to calm down and get some rest, I think they'll be very embarrassed and sorry. That won't change the charges, though. And I think we can all agree, it was a good thing they hadn’t thought this through very well. They weren’t organized and prepared for…well, anything. In the police business, we like amateur criminals. They’re easy to catch."
Hanna chuckled. "Thank you."
They said their goodbyes and left, and Monique announced that she could be released. "I do hate to tell you, though. You do have to take care of things at the front desk." She glanced at Quinn who turned beet red.
"I'm sorry about my outburst."
Monique shrugged. "It's fine. We all know emotions were high."
Hanna turned to look at her mom. "I don't have my purse, Mom."
"I have it in the car, honey."
Quinn stood and held his hand out. "If you give me your keys, Allison, I'll go to your car and get Hanna's purse."
Her mom tittered again, and her dad shook his head as he stood. He pulled keys from his pocket and handed them to Quinn. "Thank you, son."
Quinn's eyes shot to hers and she smiled at him. That meant a lot to him right there.