A Touch Of Sin [BxB]

30.

Callum's POV:

My head doesn't move from between my hands the entire car trip.

He's been admitted to Green Cove hospital.

The officer's words whirl inside my mind, making my head pulse. I'm dying to know what happened and why he couldn't contact me and if he is okay. I'm going crazy thinking about him being alone all day, hurt and confused.

Haze's composure is better than mine but even he looks unwell. He is driving way too fast and my body has slammed into the door several times. I want to be there as quick as possible, too, so I don't complain.

We all rush inside once the car is stopped. Haze parks in an emergency park that has a big, red sign above that says strictly NO parking. The next few moments are a blur of running and slamming through doors, Ellie doing the talking and navigating, since she can remain calm in a crisis. Usually I'm the one who can keep their head on straight in hard times but when it involves Jake, everything changes.

I burst through the door and freeze.

Jake is lying on the bed. His skin is littered with dark purple bruises and ugly red scratches. He has a lump on the side of his head that looks like it could be a tumour. His lip is split and his skin is a sickly, pale off-white. He looks exhausted with his hair messy and deep, dark circles under his eyes. I've never seen someone look so beaten and drained.

"J."

His eyes move from facing the ceiling, to mine and the relief there is like a tidal wave.

"Cal."

I fall to his side, needing to touch him but afraid to. His splotchy hands gather mine and I kiss the bruises all over. Gently, as soft as a caress.

"Thank God."

"Hey."

"Hi."

He smiles. "I missed you."

Tears boil over the edge and fall rapidly down my cheeks. I laugh, the sound is harsh and uneven. "I missed you, too."

"What the fuck happened?" Haze practically shouts. "Who did this? I'm going to kill them."

Jake exhales and the sound is hard to hear. You can hear the tiredness inside it.

"Callum's hotness did this."

"Huh?" we all say in unison.

"Callum has a psycho stalker who wants me to leave town so they can be together," Jake actually laughs at this, as if being almost bashed to death is hardly a spec on his radar. "It sounds so fucking stupid to say out loud."

My face goes white and I suck in a sharp breath. "Rhett? Rhett did this?"

"Yep," Jake nods. "He said this is my warning and if I don't listen, something unbelievably bad is going to happen."

Silence fills the room, everyone too astonished to know what to say. I open my mouth several times but no words come out.

"He's fucking dead," Haze seethes, his fists curled. "Where does he live? I'm going to beat him so hard he won't be able to walk for a week."

"No, no, no!" Ellie cries out urgently, looking hysterical. "No! We need to go to the police. No one is getting hurt over this." She quickly glances to Jake. "Even more hurt, I mean."

"How can we prove he did this?" Jake asks. "I was blindfolded. I didn't even see him but he spoke to me and I know his voice. And the fact that he literally told me to leave Callum is also a very clear indication that it's him. But how can I prove it?"