Above the Law

Chapter Thirty-Three

Four hours passed before Eden was jolted awake. She blinked away from the bright lights. Lily was slumped against her, sound asleep in a contorted position. Eden let her body relax into the warmth of her little sister. And then she heard the voices. Low and sharp. She held her breath, staining to hear the tail end of a conversation. She only caught a few words, but all made her hair stand on end. "Shadow Killer... escaped... all lies... Parker."

The words played back in her mind, on a constant loop spiking her anxiety. Shadow Killer... escaped... all lies... Parker. Shadow Killer... escaped... all lies... Parker. Eden tried to make sense of the words, but her attention was forced on a pair of nearing footsteps.

It was John, looking exhausted and distraught. "You're awake."

Eden gave him a small, uneasy smile.

John cleared his throat once. Then again. "Parker just got out of surgery."

Eden sat up straighter, too fast to keep Lily asleep and upright. Her mouth went dry. "Can we see him?"

Even if Parker wasn't his biological son, John still shook his head in a way that was all too familiar to Eden. "He's in the recovery room, but the doctor said once he's moved they'll let us see him." There was something in his voice, something hidden and wrong, but Eden couldn't pick up on it. She didn't know him well enough to know what he was hiding, or if he was hiding anything at all.

Eden wilted against Lily in relief, ignoring her paranoia. "So... so he's going to be fine?"

"We won't know for sure until they run more tests." He stared at Eden long and hard. "But yeah. It's looking... promising."

She was speechless; it would be too naïve to think Parker would be fine, and too wise to hope he would be.

"Why don't you get some sleep?"

"I don't think I can sleep anymore." It was a lie, she was exhausted and sore and in dire need of quality sleep. However long she had been in Fisher's imprisonment, she had tried not to sleep. She didn't want her guard down, didn't want to add another vulnerability to her situation. And now she didn't want to sleep because she was scared he'd be back in her head, back in control.

"You're a convincing liar, I'll give you that," John said. "But I can see how drained you are. You need rest. Reagan and Penelope slept at the hotel. Let me drop you and Lily off there."

Eden couldn't help herself, she smiled. A sad little smile. Because here John was, neither her nor Parker's actual father, but that didn't stop him from filling the shoes of a concerned parent.

"I... could I stay at Parker's? I don't have my key anymore, but you'd have one right?"

John swore under his breath. "Yeah. Yeah I do. Someone needs to take the dog outside anyways."

Eden felt the guilt build inside her. How had she forgotten about Bear? How had she forgotten what had happened to him? What she let happen? "Bear... Bear's alive? He's okay?"

"He's fine. A little beat up, but he wound up on the neighbor's porch. It wasn't your fault, Eden," John said sharply, accurately reading her emotions. "Luckily the neighbor's a retired veterinarian and he got Bear the care he need right away."

Eden exhaled softly, then nudged Lily awake again. "Come one, John's going to take us to Parker's."

Lily blinked at Eden a few times before standing and stifling a yawn.