Never let her go

Chapter 21

Liam POV

I was staring at the door, slowly losing my mind.

Is she okay? Why didn’t she want me to stay with her? Is she hiding something?

Theo wasn’t helping one bit. He was driving me insane. He was pacing in front of the door like a wild animal.

“I’m going inside!” he said loudly, for like the hundredth time.

I took a deep breath, closed my eyes, and reminded myself that it is illegal to tie people up and tape their mouths shut.

“You can’t, Theo.” Ezra sighed tiredly. “Please, just sit down and wait for Nate to call us in. She is okay.”

“It’s been half an hour already!” Theo exclaimed, throwing his hands in the air.

“Theo.” Noah said calmly and grabbed Theo’s hand. “Sit next to me, come on.”

Theo huffed but listened to Noah. He sat down next to him, his eyes never leaving the door.

“I know you are scared, Theo.” Noah whispered. “I’m terrified. But we need to stay calm and wait for Nate. We can’t do anything right now.”

My chest swelled with pride after hearing Noah’s words. I was so proud of him. He is scared for her, but he can control himself and calm Theo down. He reminded me so much of Ezra.

Theo was more me. That’s why he drove me mad all the time. I saw myself in him all the time. I wanted to pace around, yell, and barge into the room as much as he did. But I was an adult and I had to act like it.

The door opened and Nate stepped out.

The four of us jumped up and started asking him questions at the same time.

“Where is she?”

“Is she okay?”

“I want to go inside.”

“Can we see her?”

Nate raised his hands and motioned for us to take a step back. We reluctantly did as he said. I wasn’t sure Theo would, so I pulled him with myself.

“She is okay.” Nate said when we finally gave him an opportunity to speak. “The nurse will come in shortly to take her blood. I need to talk to Liam.”

“Why?” Theo asked, panicked. “Is something wrong?”

Nate looked at me and my blood froze. Something was wrong.

“I need to talk to your brother, Theo.” Nate said calmly. “You need to wait out here for a little while longer. I will let you see her when we come back.”

Theo’s fists clenched, and he wanted to argue, but Noah pulled him back.

“Okay, Nate.” Noah said, forcing Theo to sit back down. “We will wait here.”

Nate smiled at Noah and turned to me. “Shall we?”

“Can Ezra come?” I asked, wanting my brother there with me.

I had a terrible feeling and I needed Ezra there.

“Of course.” Nate nodded and started walking.

We followed him to his office and sat down. Ezra kept fidgeting with his fingers.

“Okay.” Nate sighed. “I will tell you what I found out while examining Lucy. I need you to not interrupt me until I’m done.”

Ezra and I nodded stiffly. To say that I was nervous would be an understatement.

“She has an infection.” Nate said, his eyes hardening. “It was caused by a deep, about 2-inch long cut below her bellybutton. She tried to take care of it by herself, but it got infected and caused her to get a fever and throw up. I cleaned the cut and bandaged it. She will have to come back in two days so I can clean it again. I gave her a painkiller and I will prescribe her an antibiotic. The nurse is taking her blood so we can see if the infection caused any more damage. I will have to see her medical history to determine when her last tetanus shot was, and she will probably need that as well.”

Nate stopped talking so we could process what he had said.

My heart was pounding so hard that I could barely hear Nate speak. I could hear my blood pumping in my veins. Ezra looked frozen. He hadn’t moved a muscle since Nate started talking.

“I’ve asked her how she got that cut.” Nate continued after a few moments of silence. “She said that she cut herself at work. I knew she was lying even before I saw her ribs.”

My world stopped.

My head was pounding, and my throat felt like it was closing up.

“What…” Ezra muttered. “What is wrong with her ribs?”

“I couldn’t see them properly because she wouldn’t let me lift her shirt up, but I would say that they are either severely bruised or broken.” Nate said, making my stomach flip.

Broken? Broken ribs? How?

No, not how.

Who?

I will kill them. I will rip them to pieces. I will burn them alive and laugh while they scream.

I felt anger rising up and I clenched my fists. My nails were digging into my skin, and I could feel it breaking.

“Broken?” Ezra mumbled, his voice trembling.

“Possibly.” Nate nodded. “I need to take her for an x-ray to be sure, but she doesn’t know that I saw it. We need to talk to her first.”

“Okay.”  Ezra said quietly.

I couldn’t speak. I couldn’t move. All I could think about was hurting the fucker who did that to her.

And I know exactly who to hurt.

Jack.

“Liam?” Ezra’s voice snapped me out of my vengeful thoughts.

I looked at him and saw a mixture of anger, fear, and pain on his face.

“We should go talk to her.” Ezra said.

I nodded and stood up.

Ezra and Nate followed me back to the exam room.

Noah and Theo jumped up on their feet as soon as they saw us.

Fuck.

I think I will have to tie Theo up when he hears about this.

“Can we see her?” Noah asked as soon as we approached.

“Did the nurse leave?” Nate asked them.

“Yes.” Noah nodded. “A couple of minutes ago.”

Theo was studying my face with narrowed eyes. He could tell that there was something wrong.

“Noah, Theo, maybe you should stay out here for a little while longer.” Ezra said softly.

“No.” Theo said immediately, not moving his eyes away from me. “Something is wrong, and if you try to keep me away from her a minute longer, I will burn this place down.”

“Theo is right.” Noah said sternly. “We want to see her, and if you don’t let us, I will gladly help him.”

Ezra looked at me, and I nodded. There was no use in keeping them away. They will find out anyway, and it’s better if we don’t keep it hidden from them. They would freak out and never forgive us.

“Before we go inside, I need to tell you a few rules.” Nate said sternly. “Number one, no yelling. This is a hospital. Number two, don’t rush her. Number three, if I tell you to get out, you get out. This may be your hospital, but it’s my exam room.”

Ezra and I nodded. Theo and Noah stared at us with a confused expression on their faces.

Nate opened the door and I saw my Sunshine laying on the bed, clutching the sheets in a tight grip.

She looked up at us and gulped.