“Can I see him?”
“Briefly. He’s still disorientated from the anaesthesia and the pain meds. He’s sleeping. You might have more luck tomorrow morning.” She offers a small smile and leaves.
“Mrs Locke? Something you want to tell me about?” Landon asks as he pushes the door back open.
“Landon, gosh, you made me jump. They only allow relatives or next of kin to visit.”
“So, you went with his wife?” he says, a rise to his brow.
“Why not?” I counter, steeling myself. I’m not going to shrink away from this conversation. Might as well have it now if he wants to. His brow arches higher, showing me he's not happy with my snappy comeback. At the moment, I don't care.
“Calm down, Neve. I haven't come to argue. Certainly not after today.” His shoulders relax as he pushes his hands into his trouser pockets and walks to the other side of the room.
“That must be a first.” My mumbled comment is probably unwarranted, but it’s been a stressful couple of days. “How is everyone?”
“Fine. Persephone took in some smoke, but they’ve both been checked over and are ready to go home to rest.”
“Okay. Good. And Tallington?”
“The fire’s out. Scaffolding going up as we speak. The bomb disposal unit is still there, scouring for more, but they think it’s clear.”
I look at the floor, unsure what to say about anything. There’s nothing I can say, is there? This is all my fault, and I’m lost but for the thought of seeing Noah.
“I’m going to visit Noah. Will you be here when I get back?”
“I thought you might need a lift home. As the doctor said, there’s nothing else you can do tonight.” He stays looking out of the window. Thankfully, it feels much less threatening with the lack of eye contact. He’s also right.
“Alright,” I agree. My head is groggy, I haven’t eaten in hours, and honestly, I feel completely at a loss. Like a ship with no anchor floating in the ocean after a storm. “I’ll go and check on him first.”
The nurse is pleasant and shows me through to his ward. He’s surrounded by machines, beeping and pulsing away. I expected to see him still intubated, but he’s not. That’s a good thing. Breathing on his own. Recovering.
There’s a chair that I pull up to the side of the bed. I’m careful not to touch his hand as there’s an IV drip in the back of it, but part of me is desperate for contact again.
I rub my own hands nervously, unsure what to do. “You had me worried for a minute,” I mumble, looking around the room.
I can’t think of what else to say other than that. What am I meant to say? Thank you for saving my life? Thank you for staying with me? Those aren’t the words I want to say. I want to ask him if he’s reconsidered the now or never part of his offer. I want to tell him that despite him pushing me away, my feelings haven’t changed.
This proves it.
“Time to go, Neve.” Landon’s at the door.
I stand and look over Noah sleeping. “Get better.” I kiss his forehead, not caring that Landon’s hovering, then keep looking at him as I back out of the room.
Landon leads me down and out of the hospital before opening the door to his car for me. The silence between us is palpable, each of us waiting for the other to start with the questions or tirade. But it doesn’t come. Landon gets in, starts the ignition, and pulls out into the late evening traffic without another word.
I stare out of the window, unsure what the next step is. Will I have to speak to the police? What’s Landon already arranged? Because he certainly kept details hidden after Lewis shot my father. But none of this can be hidden now.
He takes the road that heads back into town. I assumed when he said he’d take me home, he meant Tallington or Earlwood. My hands clench in my lap at the realisation that I might be going home, to my actual house. Not my place in Morocco, not a hotel, not Noah’s. Mine.
My heart rate skips up, and I know I don’t want to go there. I’m not ready. Not tonight. There’s too much to process, to go through. And despite staring at Lewis’ dead body, a part of me still doesn’t feel safe. Especially with Noah in the hospital rather than sleeping next to me. Maybe in the morning.
The morning would be better.
“Landon, can we just go back to Tallington tonight?”
He doesn’t respond, but he does take the next exit, eventually turning us in the opposite direction.
“Thank you.”
