“Ms Romera? You’re Alexis’ sister, correct?”

I nod, unable to get any words out.

“Alexis is in the ICU right now. We had to repair two slow bleeds to her stomach and small bowel, but we seem to have gotten everything. We’ve done everything we can. There’s a massive risk of infection from the first time she was opened, but we’re confident, Ms Romera. If Alexis makes it through the night, there’s a good chance she’ll survive.”

A good chance. Doctors don’t use those words lightly. I have never said them—the danger of them backfiring and someone’s chance deteriorating from good to bad is just too high for me. This woman is either one hundred percent sure my sister will survive and simply covering her ass, or she is grossly negligent. I’m praying that she’s covering her ass.

******

Neither of us sleep.

Neither of us eat.

We sit together, waiting for the dawn, holding our breath. If Alexis makes it through the night, there’s a good chance she’ll survive. When the sun rises and we haven’t had any bad news, Sloane loses her fight against exhaustion. She passes out on the uncomfortable hospital chairs and sleeps like the dead.

The nurse comes back at ten to tell us Alexis’ stats are improving. She’s still unconscious but they’re hoping she’ll wake up at some point in the next few hours. I have to say I’m Sloane’s husband so the nurse will tell me any of that shit without waking Sloane up, though, and that feels fucking awkward.

At midday, Cade appears through the glass window of the family room; he sees me, sees Sloane still passed the fuck out, and gestures me to him.

“Man, we’ve been looking for you everywhere. This was the sixth hospital we tried before we saw your man outside.”

So Michael’s waited for us. Goddamn hero. “You get away from Julio’s without a problem?”

Cade rubs the back of his neck. “Had a little Mexican stand off if you will. None of the boys got hurt too bad, though.” He turns and tenses as he looks back over his shoulder; three men are fast approaching down the hall, and the one at the front looks ready to kill. “Oh fuck. I said I’d come find you first.”

I stand my ground, squaring off, ready to start throwing fists if I have to. After everything that’s happened, I could give a shit that we’re in a hospital. I could really use the chance to break someone’s face.

The guy in front’s a monster, and his hands are scuffed and already bloody. Looks like he’s started the fight without me. He looks to Cade and says, “This him?”

Cade nods. “Yeah, this is Zeth.” He turns back to me with a look of apprehension on his face. “And this is—”

“Yeah, I know who this is,” I reply. “You’re Rebel.”

The guy nods. He’s wound up tighter than a fucking bowstring. He clenches his fist by his sides, takes a deep breath and says, “Thank you, man. Thank you for helping my wife.”

My sister is a married woman.

A series of thoughts go through my mind when I learn this. The first and foremost of these thoughts is Hell. To. The. Fucking. No.

My sister was kidnapped. Kidnapped. And then nearly three years later she turns up married? A pretty considerable part of my brain is assuming that this marriage was forced on her. The remaining part of my brain is dedicated to imagining brutal and painful ways of killing this Rebel guy without being arrested for murder. I’m a doctor. I have access to any number of substances that could be used in excessive amounts to cause irreparable damage to a human body. Or in the least I can think of a particular item in Zeth’s duffel bag that would go halfway to fixing the situation. While shooting Rebel with a Desert Eagle won’t undo the damage that’s already been done, it would definitely free Lexi from future torment. But my homicidal plans are brought to a halt when I meet the guy. He saw fit to leave the hospital when he learned that Lexi was still asleep, but he returns a couple of hours later, when we’re waiting for permission to go and see her.

Cade seems as on edge as I am. I can only imagine he’s worried about what Lexi’s gonna say to me if I get the chance to talk to her before Rebel can intimidate her into saying something she might not otherwise. However, his nerves only seem to grow when a tall, dark guy with arms full of tattoos saunters down the corridor towards us. Zeth is leaning against the wall opposite me, his own arms crossed and eyes fixed firmly on me as I watch the guy approach. Cade rubs his hands on his thighs, sucking in a deep breath.

“He’s left the other guys outside, doll. Just go easy on him, okay?” he says to me.

“Go easy on him? I’m gonna tear his fucking balls off.”

Zeth’s mouth curves into the most evil smile imaginable.

Cade on the other hand, doesn’t seem so amused. “Soph’s gon’ be pissed you at if you do that.”

“My sister’s name is Alexis. And this bastard’s probably brainwashed her, haven’t you, you fuck?”

The guy, arriving in front of me, reels back, eyebrows rocketing up his forehead. The most annoying thing about him, aside from the fact that he’s incredibly good looking in a rugged, bad boy kind of way, is that he has the gall to look shocked at my accusation. He gives me an irritated look. “The hell you talking about, woman?”

“I’m talking about you forcing my sister into doing…doing godknowswhat against her will. You do realize that a marriage isn’t legal unless it’s overseen by a state official, right?”