CHAPTER 32

The sun wasn’t up, but it was morning. That he was sure of as Jonathan stepped off the elevator, finally making his way to Grace’s room. He had settled his mother in, given the doctor her medical charts from the hospital in London, then made sure she was resting comfortably before leaving the room. One day had run into the next for Jonathan. The long love making session with Grace seemed like a distant memory. The four am call about his mum, the ten hour flight to London, packing some of his mum’s things to bring with her, setting up the payback with Phase, and the exasperating ten hour flight back to Virginia had all but diminished any remnants of his easy going manner.

Myles, Mike, Jerome, Gary and Roark were standing outside the door of the room he assumed was assigned to Grace. The only person he saw was Roark. The adrenaline started boiling under his skin. His mind filled with the color red, the air he was breathing felt like fire coming through his nose. Objects around seemed to vanish as his attention focused on one man. Voices spoke as he approached the group. Myles’ hand was extended, but never taken.

Jonathan’s hand came up in a fist that landed dead center on Roark’s jaw. The agent stumbled backwards. Stunned, Roark never saw the second blow coming. It connected to his nose causing him to fall back against the wall. As he braced his fall, a third blow knocked him to the floor.

“We just going to stand here?” Mike asked not making a move to stop the confrontation.

“I think he deserves one more hit,” Myles replied.

Jonathan stood over Roark daring him to get up. Then as calmly as he walked into the group of men, Jonathan turned, opened the door and walked inside to see Grace.

Gary walked over to where Roark laid against the wall. He extended his hand to assist the man up. “That’s what happens when you fuck with a nerd.”

“He assaulted an FBI agent,” Roark stammered. “His ass is mine for that.”

“It seems to me you incited his actions,” Gary stated.

Roark looked incredulously at him. “The hell I did.”

“You knew when he stepped off that elevator he was coming for you,” Mike said as he handed the man a towel.

Roark took the towel, then pressed it against his nose. “You all saw it. You are witnesses to his assault.”

“What I witnessed,” Myles glowered, “Agent Roark, was that man, who was three thousand miles away, doing everything in his power to find my sister. Even calling you, his enemy, for help.” He took a step closer to Roark staring him directly in his eyes. “In the future, when you are there to see me walk Grace down the aisle to marry Jonathan, and you wonder why. Think back to this moment. Jonathan Michael schooled you on what to do when a man loves a woman.”

Jerome stepped up. “Let’s get that nose looked at, Agent Roark.”

Roark hesitated as he stared at the men. “I will have another agent take Grace’s statement once she is awake.” He turned then walked away.

“I think he broke his damn nose,” Mike chuckled.

“You know, I have a new found respect for Jonathan.” Gary smiled.

Myles glanced at them. “He knocked the shit out of him.” They all laughed.

“Uh..oh.” Gary stood straight as he tapped Myles on the shoulder then nodded.

Myles looked up to see Winnieford, AnnieMarie, Aunt Vivian and Chrystina stepping off the elevator. “They do not look happy.”

Mike patted Myles on the shoulder, as he and Gary took a step back. “We got your six, big brother.”

Winnieford stopped in front of them staring each one of them down. “Which one of you made the decision to keep this from me?”

Mike and Gary took another step back as they pointed. “Myles.”

###

There she was. Jonathan exhaled as his heart rate eased. She was breathing. Anything else in his estimation was noise that could be dealt with later. To see Grace, lying in bed, resting comfortably, replaced the toll of the last twenty-four hours. All he wanted to do was crawl in bed and pull her into his arms.

Jonathan walked over to the bed with tears in his eyes. Were they from lack of sleep, the hurt he had caused his mum, or relief at the sight of Grace, he didn’t know. Whatever the reason he did not bother to wipe them away. Jonathan kicked off his shoes, climbed into bed, wrapped his arms around his Grace, then gently placed her head on his shoulder. He kissed her temple. “I will never leave you again.”

Jonathan sent a thank you to God for her life, closed his eyes and slept.

Grace turned into Jonathan’s warm embrace, wondering why her head was pounding so loud.

“Grace.”

That was weird. She thought she heard her mother’s voice. Grace shrugged her shoulder. That couldn’t be. Why would her mother be in her bedroom?

“Grace Heather Dunning, you open your eyes right now. Do you hear me?”

“Yes, Mother, I hear you,” Grace groaned, her back to her mother. “Can you stop yelling before you wake up Jonathan?”

“Grace.”

That sounded like worry in her mother’s voice. Grace turned towards the door at her mother’s touch. She opened her eyes to see tears streaming down Winnieford’s face.

“What’s wrong, Mother?” Grace tried to sit up but her body was protesting. “Why are you crying?”

“They are happy tears, sweetheart.”

“Oh.” She tried to stretch, but groaned. “Whoa. Why do I feel like my body was run over with a Mack truck?”

“Grace.” Jonathan sat up, looking down at her. “Look at me, Love.”

Grace turned to him then smiled. “I had the most wonderful dream about you. But I can’t tell you right now, shhh. I think my mother is here. Or maybe I’m just drunk. Did we finish off the champagne?”

Jonathan smiled. “Love, your entire family is here.”

Grace turned back to the door. Her mother stepped to the side. Myles, AnnieMarie, Gary, Mike, Aunt Viv and Daisy gathered around her bed. “Why are all of you in my house?”

“You are in the hospital, Love,” Jonathan said as he stood next to the bed, putting his shoes on.

“Hospital?” She attempted to sit up again. “Whoa, that did not feel good.” Her hand touched her head. “What happened?”

“Good to see those eyes open, Ms. Dunning.” The doctor walked in the room with a nurse following him in. “Everyone out, for a moment,” the doctor eased the order. “Now, that you are awake we need to take a closer look just to be sure we aren’t missing anything.”

“You heard the doctor, out of the room,” Winnieford ordered.

Vivian walked by Winnieford and the doctor, kissed her niece on the cheek, then hugged her.

“All right,” she sniffed, then wiped a tear away. She turned back to the family. “You heard the doctor. Out. Let’s go.” She hugged Winnie, then shuffled the other family members out.

Grace took Jonathan’s hand. “What’s happening, Jonathan? Why am I in the hospital?”

Jonathan squeezed her hand. “No worries, Love. I’m going to have you out of here within the hour.”

“I don’t think so.” The doctor glared at him. “Would you mind? I need to examine her.”

“I am not leaving.”

The doctor glanced at Winnieford. “Doctor Worrell, please go on. Grace is going to need you to clear her so we can take her home.”

“Winnieford…”

“Duncan…” She raised an eyebrow.

The doctor shook his head in frustration. “You’re a hard woman to bargain with, Winnieford. But in this instance, if I don’t like what I see, Grace is not moving from this room.”

“I agree with the doctor on that note.” Jonathan nodded.

Dr. Duncan Worrell was the Dunning family’s physician. He knew all the children and was present at Hepburn’s death. When it came to medical issues, his word was law. He checked her pupil size, eye movement and sensitivity to light. He then held up a finger.

“How many fingers do you see, Grace?”

“Ten.”

Dr. Worrell laughed. “This is not the time for jokes, Grace. How many fingers?”

“One that seems to be moving.”

“Follow it with your eyes.”

He moved his finger to the left then the right, down then up.

“Hmm.” Grace closed her eyes.

“Okay…okay.” The doctor nodded. “How bad is the headache from one to ten.”

“Twenty. And that’s not a joke.” Grace sighed. “What happened?”

Jonathan was about to answer when Dr. Worrell stopped him. “It will be better for her to respond.” He turned back to Grace. “What is the last thing you remember?”

Grace thought. Figures were moving around in her mind but she couldn’t focus enough to give a straight answer. “Jonathan and I….” She glanced at her mother.

“Making love?” Winnie raised an eyebrow. “That’s a good memory.” She smiled.

“Well, yeah it was good.”

“Thank you, Love,” Jonathan smiled as he squeezed her hand. “It was good for me too.”

“I take it you are Jonathan Michael.” Dr. Worrell looked him up and down, then extended his hand. “I was beginning to wonder if you were a figment of Grace’s imagination. Are you in the States to stay?”

Jonathan raised an eyebrow. “I am.” He nodded.

“Good. How long ago was the memorable night?”

“What’s today?” Jonathan asked.

“Thursday,” Winnie replied.

“Tuesday night, Wednesday morning.”

“All night long?” Dr. Worrell smiled. “Good for you, Grace.” He smiled. “Well, your CT scan looked good. No swelling or bleeding on the brain. I will let you rest here for a few hours, as a precaution, and then maybe you can go home later this evening.” He stepped away. “I’m going to order a painkiller for the headache. I will assess you in another two hours. Sleep for now.”

He stopped at the door, spoke with the nurse, then left the room.

“So is one of you is going to tell me what’s going on?” Grace glanced from her mother to Jonathan.

“You heard the doctor,” Winnie commanded, “Sleep. We can go over the details later.”

The family walked back in the room. “The doctor said it was okay to come back in,” AnnieMarie said

“How are you feeling?” Vivian asked as she brushed Grace’s hair away from her face.

“Mack truck.” Grace eased back down in the bed. She was feeling drained. From what, she didn’t know.

“That’s an ugly scar on your face.” Myles attempted to hide the anger in his face.

“Do you remember who did this to you?” Mike asked.

“Yes, do tell, Grace,” Gary pressed her.

Grace looked at them confused. “Harpo, who these people?”

AnnieMarie laughed. “Oh, Grace, always with the jokes.”

“Two minutes,” Jonathan said as he stepped towards the door. He could see Grace was struggling trying to stay focused each time someone asked a question. “Myles, may I have word with you?” They stopped at the door. “Between Grace and my mum, I must stay at the hospital,” he whispered. “Someone needs to handle the situation with Elaine and get eyes on Walker.”

“Did Grace say anything about who took her? Did she see anything?” Myles asked.

“She does not remember anything at the moment.”

“I cannot see Grace going to a shipyard in Newport News, locking herself inside, then knocking herself out,” Myles declared. “Someone put her in that container. I want to know who.”

“I agree.” Jonathan nodded. “Dewberry was behind it, but he is also the reason she is still alive.” He looked over his shoulder to ensure no one was listening. “The name Dunning was mentioned. Though he never said Walker I am willing to bet my bank account that he was there.”

“Walker’s in rehab.”

“People have been known to leave rehabilitation centers undetected before.” Jonathan sighed. “Have Jerome check into it. If I am not mistaken, as soon as Walker realizes Grace is not dead, he might come after her again. That’s why I want her out of this hospital.”

“Are you certain it is Walker?”

Jonathan exhaled, ran his hand down his face. “I have no proof, Myles, but my gut is telling me Dewberry was talking about Walker. What other Dunning could it be?”

“Until Grace is able to tell us what happened, that isn’t enough to go after Walker.” Myles exhaled. “I will see what answers I can get out of Elaine.”

“You realize you will have to let her go.”

“I know.” Myles motioned to Mike. “Mike, we need to get to the office.”

Gary joined them. “I will ride back with you.” He gave Myles that ‘don’t try to stop me’ look.

“All right,” Myles sighed as he walked out the door. Chrystina and Sydney were in the corridor conversing.

“How is she?” Sydney asked.

“A little sluggish, but alive,” Myles stated.

“May I go in?”

“Yes, I’m sure Jonathan needs you,” Myles replied.

Chrystina began walking, with Myles at her side, and Mike and Gary following. “I called Cainan. He is on his way into the office now. He called Elaine and asked if they could meet regarding concerns about the manner Jonathan was placed on the board. She jumped right on it. They are scheduled to talk around eight. That should give Jerome enough time to get there. Mrs. Vazquez has arranged to have a little extra security in the building. She asked one of the hostage negotiators from the police department to meet us upon arrival. The exit package is on your desk, a fresh suit is at the office. For each of you,” she said over her shoulder as they reached the elevator. “The showers in Myles’ and Jonathan’s offices are available for you to use. I’ve ordered a hot breakfast and coffee for each of you. I know you’ve had a long night. But today, we are all on high alert.”

The elevator door closed just as Gary chimed, “Damn, you did all of that and it’s not even seven o’clock in the morning. Do you want to come work in my department?”

“Oh no, my brother. This one is all mine.” Myles smiled. “You have to get your own.”