5. Zombie #2
“Here’s something for you to change into. Now before I let you go, I have one more question for you.”
She gave me an expectant look. “Okay.”
“Did your kidnapper… sexually assault you?” I asked hesitantly.
Her eyes went wide before she shook her head from side to side. “Thank god, no.”
I nodded, not showing the relief I felt knowing that the sick fuckers hadn’t had their way with her.
I gave her a curt nod before grabbing the pill bottle off the table and handing it to her.
“What are they?” she asked, her voice small.
“Oxycodone, to help with the pain. You should only need to take them for a couple of days, but it should help a lot. Take them every four to six hours based on your pain with at least six ounces of water. You will need to stay hydrated and get lots of rest.”
Lennie inspected the pill bottle and bit her lower lip before looking back up at me. “Thank you, Dante.”
My name on her lips was like my favorite song. I wanted to hear it over and over again. I gave her another nod, losing the ability to speak for a moment.
After we stared at each other for a few more seconds, I heard footsteps approaching. Bohdi walked in with his phone up against his ear.
He looked at me with a stern expression. “Kade would like to speak to you.”
I grabbed the phone from him and placed it to my ear.
“How is she?” Kade asked, skipping the pleasantries.
My jaw ticked as I felt a burning need to give him a piece of my mind. This woman was badly hurt because of his actions.
“She has a laceration on her cheek along with a lot of bruising and a cracked rib on her left side.”
Kade let out a curse in Italian.
“You know who did this to her, correct?” I bit out, more harshly than I had planned.
“Yes, Zombie. We know who did this and are dealing with it.”
“Good. You better,” I threatened.
Kade ignored my tone and continued to speak. I knew I was playing with fire since he was the Don of the Mafia. But I didn’t care. He didn’t scare me.
“I will have Bohdi escort her home if she doesn’t need any further care.”
The thought of someone else bringing her home irked me, which I refused to think about too closely.
“Would you like me to run forensic tests on her belongings?”
“No, that won’t be necessary. We know who is responsible, and he’s dead. Just make sure she gets meds to help with her discomfort.”
“Already handled,” I stated firmly.
“Excellent. Thank you, Zombie, I will make sure you are compensated for the trouble.”
I let out a noise of agreement before ending the call and handing the phone back to Bohdi.
I turned to Lennie with a small smile. “I will let you get dressed. Would you like me to dispose of your clothes? Kade doesn’t need me to run any tests.”
Lennie looked at me with adoration I was not used to. “Yes, that would be great. Thank you again, Dante.”
There it was again; my name coming out of her mouth. I gave her a nod before walking toward the front entry of the building with Bohdi behind me.
I walked over to the front desk, grabbed a piece of paper and pen, and wrote my number on it to give to Lennie. She came out a few minutes later, dressed in the oversized scrubs. She reminded me of a child wearing adult clothing.
Bohdi let out a chuckle. “Hot outfit, Len.”
Lennie gave him a bright smile and cautiously turned around in a circle. “Right? I think I’m going to tell Kade that this is the new uniform for The Hive. They are so comfy.”
How was this girl joking right now?
Bohdi laughed and put out one arm for her to come to him. Before I had to see them touching, I cleared my throat and handed her the folded piece of paper.
“Here’s my number. Please text or call me with any questions or concerns.”
Lennie took the paper and gave me a nod with a soft smile. Without a word, she walked over to Bohdi as he wrapped his arm around her waist.
“Thanks again, Doc,” he called over his shoulder before they left the building.
As I worked on sanitizing my lab, I couldn’t stop thinking about Lennie.
Was she home and resting? Was someone with her?
I would have offered to stay with her. Or would that have come off as weird?
I was almost done with my lab two hours later when I felt my phone buzz in my pocket.
I took it out to see a text message from an unsaved number.
UNKNOWN:
Thank you again, Dante, for your help today.
My heart began to speed up as I realized it was Lennie.
DANTE:
You’re welcome. Are you home safe?
LENNIE:
Yes, currently in bed watching New Girl.
I rolled my eyes. What was the obsession with that show? Phantom, Arrow, and Badger never could stop quoting it when we were together, and now I was finding out that yet again another person in my life watched it.
When I didn’t respond, she sent another text.
LENNIE:
Should it feel like I can’t breathe at times?
Her text put me on high alert. She’d been breathing fine when she was with me. Had something happened? Did she have internal bleeding that I missed?
DANTE:
Are you experiencing chest pain or tightness?
LENNIE:
No. Just hurts when I breathe.
I let out a sigh of relief.
DANTE:
That is normal with a cracked rib. If for some reason you are gasping for air, have chest tightness, or severe chest pain, then I need you to call me right away.
LENNIE:
Aye, aye, captain.
I smiled at her response and imagined her giving me a salute. As soon as the thought crossed my mind, she sent me a GIF of Tom Hanks saluting on a boat.
I placed my phone back into my pocket with a smile on my face. I quickly replaced it with my usual frown.
“You like her.” Arrow’s voice echoed in my head.
He wasn’t wrong. I was so screwed. For a moment, all was forgotten about giving Chief the folder of evidence showing my “relationship” to Ricci and instead I was focused on a blonde-haired pixie with beautiful blue eyes. I would get the folder to Chief the next free moment I had.