When Pop’s cell phone rang, they all jumped. Pop snatched it up and stuck it to his ear. Gray, Micah, Connor and Nathan all stopped and leaned forward in interest.
“Where?” he heard Pop ask. Then, “Thank God. We’ll be right there.”
Pop closed the phone and closed his eyes. His hands shook as he laid the phone down.
“They found her,” he reported. “They’re taking her to the hospital now.”
Gray exploded forward. “Hospital? Is she hurt? Where did they find her? Was Samuels taken in?”
Pop held up his hand. “Slow down, son. I know you’re worried. We all are. I don’t know much. That was dispatch. An on-duty cop found her down in the warehouse district. Apparently she was able to escape Samuels, and she was running. She’s hurt. I don’t know how bad. The dispatcher said the cop stayed with her until the ambulance arrived and that Faith supplied them information on Samuels’s whereabouts. That’s all I have.”
“Let’s go then,” Gray said in a strained voice. “I need to see her.”
Pop nodded. “I’ll drive you.”
Gray stood in the doorway of Faith’s room, unable to tear his gaze from her. She was asleep in the hospital bed, her face so fragile looking. Her forehead was creased, even in her sleep, and he worried about what nightmares she faced in her dreams.
A large bandage adorned her head, and she wore smaller ones on her hands and knees. Even her feet were bandaged.
A comforting hand clasped his shoulder, and he looked behind him to see Pop standing there.
“What did the doctor say?” Gray asked in a weary voice.
“Bastard hit her on the head with the butt of a pistol. She has a concussion. But otherwise she was unharmed. The cuts and scrapes she suffered were from her escape. Doc says he wants to watch her overnight, and if she does well, she can go home tomorrow.”
Gray closed his eyes as sweet relief poured over him. “Thank God,” he whispered.
“Son, you need to get some rest. You’re not doing anyone any good here. You can see her tomorrow.”
Gray shook his head. “I won’t leave her. I can’t.”
“You have two choices, son. You can get your ass home and get some rest on your own, or I’ll have those boys cart you out of here forcibly.” He gestured with his thumb over his shoulder to where Nathan, Connor and Micah stood in the hallway. “It’s up to you.”
Gray cursed long and hard under his breath.
“I doubt she’ll even wake up,” Pop said. “They gave her something for pain, and well, she’s never been able to handle it. Hell, once she went to the dentist and he prescribed a mild painkiller. She was out cold for twelve hours straight.”
Micah walked up to where Pop was standing. “Come on, Gray. I’ll drive you home. We’ll come back up in the morning so you can see her.”
Gray sighed in defeat. “Give me a minute.”
He turned and walked over to Faith’s bed and stared down at her for a long moment. He reached out his free hand and brushed his fingers softly over her cheek.
“I’m so sorry,” he whispered. “I love you.” He bent and pressed his lips to hers, inhaling her sweet scent. “I’ll be back tomorrow. I swear.”
Reluctantly, he turned and trudged toward the door where Micah waited. He looked at Pop and Connor, who had moved inside the doorway. “Is someone staying with her? I don’t want her to be alone.”
Pop nodded. “We’ll be here. You go get some rest. You’ll do her a whole lot more good when you can hold your head up.”
Gray looked him square in the eye. “I love your daughter. I want you to know that.”
Pop’s expression softened. “I know you do.”
Gray turned and slowly, painfully made his way down the hall. Micah caught up to him. “You can crash at my place tonight. You shouldn’t be alone with your injuries.”
Gray nodded, too tired to argue. “I wasn’t out there when the news came in. Did they catch Samuels?”
“Yeah, they got him,” Micah said grimly.
“I want to kill the son of a bitch.”
“Yeah, me too,” Micah said.
“What about her mother?” Gray asked. “Pop said something about her helping Faith escape.”
“Last I heard, they were questioning her. I don’t know if they’ve decided what her involvement has been yet or not.”
Gray nodded. “No matter what, it’s only going to upset Faith in the end.”
“Yeah, it sucks.”
They walked out of the emergency room exit and headed toward Micah’s truck. It was only a few hours until daylight, and he needed about twenty-four hours of sleep.