Brantley let that information bounce off him. He could not worry about the fact Reese was rekindling things with his ex. Right now the only thing that mattered was that Reese was all right.
“Reese was on the ground when the guy shot him,” RT explained. “They said the bullet nicked an artery but the trajectory of the bullet was a blessing.”
Not a fucking thing about this felt like a blessing.
“He’s gonna be all right?” he asked again.
“The prognosis is good, yes.”
Brantley’s knees weakened and he leaned on the nearest wall to keep himself upright.
“He’s strong. He’ll pull through this.”
Brantley nodded. The words were meant as encouragement, but Brantley didn’t want platitudes. He wanted to see with his own two eyes that Reese was all right. At that point, he could leave the man in his family’s capable hands and get out of his hair.
Two hours later, a nurse came out to inform them Reese was out of surgery and that they could go back to see him, but only two at a time.
Brantley hung back with RT and Hugh while Cindy and Z went in first. He was effectively wearing the tile flooring thin when Reese’s brother returned a short time later, his face grim.
Brantley nearly plowed over Z in an attempt to get an update.
“He’s still out of it,” Z said softly. “But the doc says he’ll be fine. They’re keepin’ him in ICU for tonight and they’ll assess his condition in the mornin’, see if they want to move him to a regular floor.”
Brantley took a deep breath in, let it out slowly.
“Go on back,” Z instructed. “My mom’s still in there, but you should be there, too.”
Brantley didn’t argue, stepping around him.
Z gripped his arm, pulled him up short. “Prepare yourself. He doesn’t look good.”
That gaping hole in the pit of his stomach widened even as he nodded.
Shoring his nerve, Brantley made his way into the brightly lit wing of the hospital. He followed the signs until he came to Reese’s room. There was a male nurse standing at a computer just outside the solid glass wall. From where the man was positioned, he could see in, keeping a close eye on his patient.
On the other side of the glass, Brantley could make out Reese’s body in the bed, all the machines and wires, but Cindy was blocking his view of Reese’s face.
Figuring it wasn’t doing any damn good to stand around, Brantley stepped into the large room, his gaze slowly moving until he could see Reese fully.
His heart thumped painfully hard as he gave him a visual assessment. Reese was connected to machines by a myriad of tubes and wires, all doing whatever it was they did to keep Reese comfortable and alive. As though that wasn’t bad enough, Reese looked like he’d gone ten rounds with a freight train. His face was battered and bruised. There was a gash over his left eye, held closed with a white butterfly bandage.
“Hey,” Cindy said softly when she looked up at him.
It was obvious she’d been crying and Brantley felt shitty for intruding on her moment.
“Brantley’s here now,” she said, turning back to Reese as she patted his hand gently. That, too, was bruised, his knuckles swollen and scraped. Looked like he’d gotten in a few good ones of his own.
Reese didn’t move, didn’t open his eyes.
Brantley couldn’t ignore the tightness in his chest or the heat in his sinuses. Seeing Reese like this…
Cindy rose to her feet. “Why don’t I give you two some time. I’ll see if Hugh wants to grab a bite to eat. I figure it’ll be a long night.”
He nodded, unable to look away from Reese.
Once they were alone, Brantley moved toward the bed. Aware of the nurse in the hallway, Brantley knew better than to touch Reese. The man wouldn’t approve of anyone else knowing they’d had a relationship. So he simply pulled over a chair, eased into it, keeping a safe distance.
Brantley sat there, thinking of all the things he wanted to say but never speaking a word.
The night passed in a sleepless blur while Brantley remained in the hospital room with the beeping machines and the antiseptic smell. From time to time, he would stretch his legs, pace the room, return to his seat. Since the ICU had strict visiting hours, Z, Cindy, and RT were unable to come back, so he kept them updated via text message.
All the while, Reese remained unconscious in the bed, the machines continuing to do their job.
When the doctor came in, Brantley would get an update. When the nurse came in, glanced at the machines to read Reese’s vitals, wrote things down, slipped back out, he would simply exhale.
It wasn’t until shortly after dawn broke the next morning that Reese finally stirred.
Brantley had been snoozing in the chair at his bedside when he heard movement, opened his eyes to find Reese was looking at him, his eyes puffy and bruised like the rest of his face.
“Madison,” Reese said in a gruff whisper.
There was no denying the pain that ripped through his chest when he heard that name. Why he’d hoped Reese would think of him first, he didn’t know.
“I’m sure someone’ll call her,” he assured Reese, sitting up straight and stretching the kinks in his neck.
“No,” Reese said, his voice strained from lack of use. “Where is she?”
Brantley shrugged. “I don’t know if anyone knew to call her.”
Reese shook his head, his frustration evident. “They were there for her.”
“Who?”
Reese took a deep breath, winced. “They came for her. I told her to run.”
It took a second for the information to sink in.
“She’s missin’,” Reese choked out.
The nurse strolled in, a young woman who looked bright and chipper this morning. The complete opposite of the man who’d been in charge of Reese’s care through the night.
“Good morning, Mr. Tavoularis,” she greeted. “It’s good to see you’re awake.”
Reese barely gave her a second look, his full attention shifting to Brantley. “Where’s my phone?”
“Cell phones aren’t allowed in here,” the nurse told him with a smile, even as she gestured toward a large plastic bag. “Those are his personal effects.”
While Nurse Smiles took Reese’s vitals, Brantley rummaged through the bag until he found Reese’s phone still tucked into the pocket of his jeans.
“I’ll see if I can get ahold of her,” Brantley told him as he took the phone with him out into the hall, then back to the waiting room.
He was surprised to find RT and Z both there. They’d clearly gone home, showered, and changed and now looked far more alive than Brantley felt at the moment.
They were instantly on their feet when he appeared, their eyes hopeful.
Realizing no one else knew Reese was awake, Brantley gave them the good news.
“Thank God,” Z said on a rough exhale, even as he pulled out his phone, began tapping out a message, probably giving Cindy and Hugh the news.
“He’s askin’ about Madison,” Brantley explained, hating the words as they slid off his tongue. “Said those guys were there for her.”
Z’s eyes jerked up from his phone, studied Brantley’s face. “He was havin’ dinner with Madison?”