“Will he be OK?” I ask, sounding like it’s not a question for her, but for the Universe. Only this time, the nurse speaks for it.
“He has everything going for him,” she replies vaguely, but her smile soothes me.
“Thank you,” I take her by the hand.
I quickly let go, realizing how unprofessional that must be, but my gratitude is immense and a mere thank you in words wouldn’t be enough.
“Can I come tomorrow?” I ask her.
“It’s best if you rest,” she advises me. “I don’t know what’s happened, but you all look like you’ve been through Hell and back. Just go home and try to get some rest. We have your contact info, and if there is any change, we shall notify you immediately.”
The last thing I want to do right now is leave my father again. But, I know there is no point in me staying here at the hospital, just waiting. I need to rest. My body has become numb, but once the sensations come back to me, I’ll probably be in a world of pain.
“You’re right,” I nod. “That’s what I’ll do.”
“You can find your own way back?”
“Of course,” I smile. “And, thank you again.”
I turn and walk down the hallway, towards the elevator. I press the button, allowing the exhaustion to take over. Not even those crappy hospital coffees are helping any longer. What I need is a nice, long shower and my own bed.
I wonder if I can sleep in my bed now. Is the nightmare finally over? Am I finally safe?
I reach the lower floors, and see Fynn and Anderson still there. Their presence doesn’t surprise me. I walk over to them, with a smile on my face.
“How bad is it?” Anderson is the first to ask.
“Pretty bad,” I nod. “He looks like a hospital puppet.”
“He’ll be fine,” Anderson smiles. “If I know Hugo, and I do… trust me.”
Fynn walks over to us. He looks embarrassed. It’s the look he had when Anderson told him that he was behaving like an asshole, and Fynn knew Anderson was right.
“Listen – “ he starts, but I won’t let him.
“No.”
I shake my head. I take him by the hand, and I take Anderson’s hand with my other.
“This isn’t the time for more explanations or apologies or anything like that. I just need you guys to take me home. My home. Can you do that for me?”
Anderson looks over at Fynn, then back at me.
“Girl, I thought you’d never ask.”
Chapter 26
We drive back home, and I unlock the door. The familiar smell hits my nostrils. It smells like home. It smells like the carpet mom bought when she and dad went to Turkey on their honeymoon. It smells like the old leather chair that dad never wanted to get rid of because it belonged to some important finance guy dad always looked up to, and then found that chair on some charity auction, then paid a ton of money for it, even though it wasn’t worth even half of that. It smells like our bookshelf, like the potted plants on the window sill, still surviving and blossoming, despite everything.
“Everything OK?” Anderson asks, seeing that I just opened the door, but I’m not going in.
“Everything is fine,” I smile.
I take a step in, but Fynn grabs me by the elbow.
“Let me guess,” I frown, jokingly. “You need to check to make sure it’s safe.”
“See?” Fynn elbows Anderson gently in the stomach. “I don’t even need to say it anymore. She knows everything.”
We all chuckle, feeling like a huge cloud just got lifted from above us. Fynn and Anderson go in first, instructing me to remain downstairs. It takes them a while to check every room, but when they’re finally done, they return with a victorious smile on their faces.
“Milady,” Anderson bows, “thy mansion is clean.”
“Wonderful!” I jump from the little sofa I almost fell asleep in, and start clapping.
“Now, we need to head back to the – “ Anderson continues.
“You aren’t leaving me alone, are you?” I whine.
“Well,” Anderson looks at Fynn. “We could stay, for the night. Sleep on the sofa or the floor.”
“There are plenty of guest rooms, don’t be silly,” I tell him.
“We could just call in tonight and sort everything out tomorrow, at the station,” Anderson looks over at Fynn. “What do you say?”
Fynn sighs heavily, more heavily than in the last few weeks.
“I think that’s the best idea I’ve ever heard.”
“Well, alright then,” Anderson grins. “We got a sleepover on our hands. I’ll quickly ring the station, and then…”
“Shower and bed,” Fynn smirks. “For everyone.”
“Oh, I doubt I could sleep after all this commotion,” I chuckle. “Plus, I fell asleep on the sofa, while you guys were checking the place out. I think I had my power nap.”
“What?” Anderson starts laughing. “You better not try to keep us awake all night long with your girl talk and shit.”
I laugh at his comment, even though that definitely doesn’t sound like a bad idea.
“I promise, if I can’t sleep, I’ll just watch a movie or something.”
But, there is something that won’t let me be. I stop, and turn to them again. Their eyes are inquisitive. They know there are still some questions left unanswered.
“What is it?” Fynn asks. “You look troubled.”
“There is something that’s still bugging me.”
“Tell us,” Anderson urges.
“Kayne mentioned something in my dad’s safe,” I hesitate. “What is it?”
Fynn looks over at Anderson, then back at me again.
“Your dad had Kayne’s dental records,” Fynn explains. “I have no idea how he got a hold of them. But, he was always afraid that we didn’t finish the job. As it turned out, we really hadn’t. So, he kept that record safe, knowing he might he need it at some point, if his worst suspicions came true. Unfortunately, none of us expected the Chief to be… Kayne.”
Fynn’s admission left me confused, but relieved at the same time. So, it wasn’t money or something that might again come back to haunt us. Kayne was dead. For real this time. And, his dental records bore no relevance any longer.
“It’s really over, isn’t it?” I sigh, even managing to smile.
“It really is,” Fynn assures me.
I nod, walking out of the room slowly, my shoulders much less tense than before. After about half an hour, we all meet back in the lounge, all of us having taken our showers and having ordered a pizza, which arrived only a few minutes before. I’m wearing my pajamas, not sexy at all, but comfortable. I guess that’s always been me.
The guys helped themselves to some plain t-shirts from my dad’s closet, and some sweatpants. I’m surprised my dad still has some of those in his closet, always preferring to dress to the nines, but I suppose that’s also one of those things left from the time of my mother. She liked things easy and spontaneous, and with her around, that was always so easy. After she was gone, both me and dad found it difficult to be spontaneous. It was simply too hurtful. So, planning ahead became comforting. Planning what to do, where to go, even what to wear. The heart is pacified by the strangest things, it seems.