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Voices around me erupted, but they sounded far away and tinny. I was vaguely aware of a needle poke in my thigh. The pain didn’t register so much as the intake of air I was able to get. I moved my head back against the chair, opening up my airway even more.
I could breathe.
My eyes fluttered open. Gray squatted down next to me. He held something small in his hand. He cupped my head with one hand, with the other he poured a liquid into my mouth. The taste of cherries exploded on my tongue. I gagged on it. It tasted gross. Chemically induced cherry-flavor didn’t taste anything like real cherries.
EMT’s cut loose my wrists and ankles. I was shuffled onto a gurney and whisked away. Once again, I heard Gray arguing until he was allowed in the back of the ambulance with me.
“You’re my hero.” The words come out garbled and sloppy through my swollen throat. One of the EMT’s checked my airway again. He said the swelling had subsided quite a bit, but I was still given another injection of epinephrine and Benedryl.
Gray reached around the guy to put his hand on my head. He brushed my hair back. My eyes met his.
“It’s over, Regan. Anais and Seth have been arrested. You figured it out.”
I wanted to reply, but my body had a different idea. I was beat up and scared. The adrenaline had worn off. I closed my eyes and drifted.
I woke up next, groggy and sore. Anaphylactic reactions were tough on the body. I would feel the effects all day today until I could get another good night’s sleep. I looked around the room, taking in my surroundings. I was in a hospital and alone. I took a moment to adjust to my surroundings. The blood pressure cuff on my arm eased. It must’ve been what awakened me. An IV solution dripped into my arm.
I didn’t know how anyone found me at Anais’s, but I was thankful. Sunlight glistened through the curtains. I replayed the past few days in my head. What a whirlwind! Ben back in my life after all these years. Jax was in love. Gray and me breaking up, making up and engaged all in a matter of days. I was still having trouble wrapping my mind around everything, the least of which was Anais and Anya and Seth.
“Welcome back, sleepyhead.” Gray stood in the doorway, holding a can of Coke. “I bought this for you. You were starting to stir, and I thought you’d like a treat.”
When he crossed the threshold, I could see the wear and tear our journey had taken on him. Stubble marred his face, his hair stood on end. His clothes were wrinkled and looked past due for a washing. He could’ve passed as one of the many homeless in Chicago.
“Hi.” I pinched the covers between my fingers, nervously. I hadn’t felt this unsettled around Gray since we met.
“How long was I asleep?” I asked.
“A day and a half.”
“What?! What’s happened? Where’s Anais? How did you find me?” A thousand more questions went through my brain. But mostly, why had I been asleep for so long? I started with that one.
“A lot has happened. We were all worried when you didn’t wake up in the ER. Joe says hello again, by the way. I think you are his favorite patient.”
“Why did I sleep so long?”
Gray sat in the chair next to my bed. “The doctor said your body needed a reset. You’d had two reactions close together, a seriously bruised foot, glass rained down on you and two doses of a stun gun.” The confused look on my face must’ve prompted him to continue. He ran his finger down the side of my neck, touching on the marks left from Anais. “Your exam showed these.” His voice sounded gruff and angry.
“I’m sorry.”
“For what?” Confusion caused a dimple to form between his eyebrows.
“I should’ve listened to you and let you come into the office with me.”
“If you apologize, then I will have to, too. I shouldn’t have let you go in there alone. I just never thought you’d walk out the back door.”
“It wasn’t by choice.” Gray’s hand slid down my arm, ending at my hand. I squeezed his hand in return, so glad to see him again.
“We’ll get to that stuff later. Now, back to your first question. The doctor said some people who experience high stress levels need a ‘reset.’ Like a computer reboot for your brain. That is what you were doing. When the peanuts closed your airway, you gave in. Your family has been here, too. We’ve all been praying around the clock.”
“Where are they now? My parents?”
“I talked them into getting something to eat. They needed a break. You are supposed to call Peyton, too. She had to stay home with the kids.” I was glad they all weren’t here. I still had questions for Gray.
“I think the doctor was right. I do feel clearer. I would like to know about—"
“About Anais?”
“Yes and no. I am curious, but I want to know about you. I would like to know your story now. Please,” I said.
“My story?”
“You showed up, in the nick of time, to save me at the house. How did you find me?”
“That part was easy. I went looking for you. I bullied the kitchen manager to unlock the office when you didn’t answer. I literally dragged him off the kitchen line. He was none too pleased.”
“But, how did you find me at Anais’s house?”
“I called Liam and was frantic. He was with Jax. She tried calling your phone. It rang in your bag next to me. When I pulled it out, I noticed your running app.”
“My running app?”
“You know. The one that connects to your watch? GPS tracks your run, distance, speed, all that. I turned it on. The connection was spotty because of the distance, but it was enough to get us to the general location. Once we hit Bridgeport, I knew exactly where you were.”
“Who’s we?”
“Liam picked me up in a squad car. We hid outside of the kitchen window. We could hear Anais talking to you, admitting what they’d done. I wanted to go in right away, but Liam held me back. The cop in him needed to hear the confession.”
“What else?”
“When Anais gave you the piece of chicken, my heart stopped. It definitely took ten years off my life. Good thing I’m so good-looking to start with, it won’t show.” Gray winked at me.
“Did you see what else she did?”
“What do you mean?” Gray pulled my hand up to his mouth and kissed it before holding it between both of his hands.
“She let up and made me spit it out. I don’t think she could go through with hurting me.”
“That doesn’t matter, Regan. She did hurt you. You can’t change your initial intentions with something like that. Even if she did change her mind, it was too late. You were lucky we were there.”
“You still had my purse?”
“Yes.” He laughed. “I picked it up at the pub and just never set it back down. I didn’t even realize I was holding it until I tried to break through the door. Liam wasn’t stopping me at that point.”
“You broke down the door and came to my rescue. What about Seth and Anais?”
“Both arrested. Seth is in jail. Anais is here.”
“Here?” The surprise caused me to sit up. The quick movement made me dizzy after laying down for so long.
“She took a turn for the worse. She isn’t expected to make it long. I think she gave up her will to live.”
“She accomplished her goal. She wanted to protect Peter. Leave him a legacy with the pub. It was failing. Everything was working fine until Anya tried to blackmail the mayor about his daughter being an escort.”
“Anais killed her?” Gray asked. “We heard her but I just couldn’t believe it.”
I understood his reluctance. It would’ve been to me too if she hadn’t tried to kill me. “Yes, she did it in a fit of rage. Anya was stealing from the clients. She padded their invoices and reimbursed herself and Seth for the amounts she faked.”
“Greed was at the heart of this?”
“I think so. And pride for Anais.” I reached out to touch Gray’s hair. “You need to go to Peter’s. Take a shower. Change your clothes. You’ll feel better.”
“I can’t leave yet.” A slow grin spread across his face. “We still have one matter left to discuss.”
“What’s that?” I asked with a smile.
“We never picked our wedding date.”