“You.”
“You’ve been shot. Do you understand that?”
“Yes. I remember.” She tried to be serious but his expression kind of reminded her of an astonished fish. She laughed again. “You’re too cute.”
His chin jerked up and he growled as he glared at something. “What is wrong with her?”
“She’s higher than a kite,” a male voice answered. “They gave her the good shit. It’s normal. She’ll be dopey for a while. My wife laughed like a loon when she broke her leg and they gave her a shot for pain after she came out of surgery. You’d have thought she was drunk.”
Joy turned her head to peer at the cop leaning against the wall next to her bed. He winked. She figured he was there to take her statement. That didn’t seem so funny.
Poor Douglas.
He might be beyond help. She felt guilty for not realizing how unstable he’d grown. She’d actually believed he was starting to become a more adjusted individual. Moon brushed her hair off her cheek and she looked up at him.
Moon leaned in closer to peer into her eyes. “I am glad you’re feeling good enough to find humor in something. I can’t.”
She reached up and cupped his face. She realized her fingers must be cold against his very warm skin. She hoped he didn’t mind. “You look like hell.” His hair was messy, as if he hadn’t combed it in a while and the whites of his eyes were a little red. “What are you doing here?”
“Did you think I’d allow them to take you away without going to the hospital with you? I haven’t left your side.”
She didn’t doubt it. Moon was honorable and protective of women. Two of the many traits she admired about him. “I meant
here
. Why did you leave Homeland?”
“You left me again but this time I wasn’t unable to do something about it. I know how to read a map and looked up your address.”
He’d come to find her. He had either been so angry he needed to yell at her because she’d left or he cared enough to come after her. “I went home to pack my clothes. I was coming back. I didn’t even have a phone number to call you. Didn’t you read the note?”
“What note?”
“I left it taped on the door in case you came back tonight. Isn’t that how you found out I’d left Homeland?”
“No. I didn’t go back to human housing. You were planning to come back?”
“I’d say so. Those suitcases on her bed were heavy.”
They both glanced at the cop who’d spoken. He smiled.
“I left a message too. I was planning to leave a message at the gate but there was a doctor there who said he was on his way to your home. I talked to him while they were searching my car. He offered to relay my message.”
“Kregkor,” Moon mumbled then growled. He had to suppress the urge to hunt down and beat on the shrink.
Joy turned Moon’s face toward hers so she could see his eyes again. “You thought I took off on you again, didn’t you? Did you come to my place to yell at me or to ask me to go back with you?”
He licked his lips, hesitating.
It hurt when she decided it had been anger that had driven him to seek her out. “I see. I know you have reason not to trust me but I was called away by my boss on an emergency. I had to go to my office. Someone broke into our file cabinets. Douglas admitted doing it but we didn’t know that at the time.”
“Why did he do it? Did he say? Why was he at your condo with a gun?”
She turned her head to answer the cop’s questions. “He’s a client of mine with emotional problems. I can’t tell you too much more. It’s a matter of confidentiality. I will highly recommend he be held on a seventy-two-hour observation though. I’m assuming he’s been admitted to the hospital too?”
“He is. I’m guessing he’s lucky to be alive.”
“It wasn’t luck.” Moon growled the words. “She didn’t want him hurt and begged me to tie him up. The bastard is here, Joy. The police have him in the emergency room restrained with handcuffs and he’s being watched closely by them. I was promised he would be sent to jail after the doctors are done giving him treatment.”
The cop cast a knowing look at Moon. “The perp is still breathing. I’m not sure of how severely he’s hurt but it looked damn painful when I entered the residence. The—” He paused and gripped the mic attached to his arm. “Understood.” He released it and pushed away from the wall. “The NSO has arrived. They just landed.”
“Damn,” Moon grumbled.
“What’s wrong?” Joy hated the way he pulled away from her touch to straighten, stepping out of her reach.
“Will you do me a favor, John? Stay with her.”
“Sure thing. I won’t leave her side until you get back.”
Moon quickly left the room and closed the door behind him. She tried to sit up. The officer gently slid a hand behind her back to give her a boost while using the control for the bed to lift up the back so she had support.
“What is going on?” she asked him.
He took a seat in the chair. “My guess? It is a guess. I don’t think the NSO knew where he was until you were hurt. I’ve been listening to the chatter.” He pointed to his ear. “Moon came alone. Some bigwig from there called our station after the 9-1-1 call was placed from your residence to demand immediate and full police protection for their New Species. They were frantic to make sure we got as many available officers on scene as soon as possible.”
He leaned in a little, lowering his voice. “We were asked to lock down your entire building and clear it of everyone except you and him because we were told he was in danger without an escort. If they wanted to make sure he was safe they wouldn’t have let him go anywhere without adequate security in the first place, right? It took them almost an hour to arrive.”
Joy’s mind was still a bit sluggish from the drugs but it was clearing fast. “An hour?”
“Yeah.” He glanced at his watch. “They flew here by helicopter. I’m assuming it took that much time to assemble a team and put them in the air. I served six years in the army. You add in distance to here from Homeland, the time it takes to warm up the blades, and that’s a fast response.”
“He couldn’t leave without permission. You should see the security they have at Homeland. It took me almost ten minutes to be processed out when I left. They search your person and car going in and out. There are guards on the walls and at the gates.”
The officer shrugged. “Did he seem happy to you to go out and meet them? He did bust up your shooter but that was self-defense. Will the NSO have something against that?”
“No.”
“I rest my case.” He leaned back. “I also noticed you two seem tense with each other. I’ve overheard enough to piece some of it together. You left and he thought you weren’t coming back. You’re obviously a couple.”
She said nothing. It wasn’t any of his business and she didn’t want her relationship with Moon to become a story on the evening news if he repeated anything to reporters.
“Whatever argument you had, whatever it was about, that guy is crazy about you. I’ve been on the job for twelve years and seen a lot of shit go down. Excuse my language. He looks pretty tough but he lost it when you passed out. Maybe he doesn’t talk enough the way you want him to or doesn’t show his feelings easily.” He paused. “One thing he couldn’t hide though was how much you mean to him, okay? Give him a break by not busting his balls if you two had an argument. He almost made the staff here piss their pants because he threatened to toss them around if they tried to make him leave your side when they were stitching up your arm. They got you in and out of the trauma bay so fast because they were terrified of him mistaking any drag time as not giving you the best care possible. He demanded it.”
“Thank you for telling me that. I don’t remember much after I was shot.” She looked down at the thick white bandage on her arm. “I think I fainted.”
“You’re going to be weak for a few days and the doctor suggested you try to get plenty of bed rest and fluids. They want to keep you overnight. You’re also not allowed to move around without assistance. He said something about dizziness and possible fainting spells. The doctor discussed giving you other medications besides something for the pain but Moon refused to allow it.” He chuckled. “He said the NSO doctors could treat you. He wasn’t really trusting of anyone.”
“He wouldn’t be.”
The cop nodded grimly. “Right. I bet doctors and nurses aren’t his favorite people.”
“It’s tough for Species to trust us. The only people they dealt with most of their lives were the ones you handcuff and haul before a judge.”
“Understandable.”
Joy glanced at the phone on the table, debating if she should ask the officer to hand it to her. She should call her family and tell them she was in the hospital.
I’ll have to explain about Moon.
She discarded the idea. It was best if she waited to see if they even had a future before she involved them in her personal life. It would only hurt their feelings that she’d kept him a secret for so long. It had been to protect Moon’s privacy but they wouldn’t understand.
“Do you want some juice?”
She forced a smile. “I’d love some. Thank you.”
She stared at the door while she pondered what was going on out there. Had Moon left Homeland without permission? She dismissed it. There wasn’t any way to get over those thirty-foot walls without someone knowing about it. The 466 she’d known would have enjoyed the defiance of the act. It had been almost a game to him to lose the guards and explore wherever he wasn’t allowed at site four. As much as she wished time could stop so they could step right back into the past, things had changed a lot and so had he.
She’d said “I love you” to Moon. The words had slipped out when she realized she might never get the chance to tell him if things went wrong. It had suddenly been important that he know how she felt. His reaction had been one she’d never forget. He’d taken a step back. It had been a very slight motion but she hadn’t missed it.
She closed her eyes.
Slow things down. Don’t rush him. I never stopped loving him but he’s probably tried really hard to forget about me.
Moon knew he was in deep shit when Tim Oberto stomped down the hallway with six team members in full riot gear in formation behind him. The male didn’t hide his annoyance. “Moon.”
“Hello, Tim.”
He caught Trey’s eye. The male didn’t show any signs of his normal humor. His lips pulled into a grim line as he stared at the task force leader’s back.
“Where is Harley?” Moon was pretty sure he’d asked for him though the details were a little vague since he’d been so stressed at the time.
“He’s been ordered to stay inside the helicopter, out of sight. We didn’t want to draw any more attention than necessary. There are four news crews camped out down in reception.” Tim’s tone implied his disgust.
Moon muffled a groan.
“Let’s move out before it gets any worse. Every minute on the ground will bring more of them. You’re to go straight to Justice’s office when we land.” Tim jerked his head to indicate Moon should walk first. “That way.”
“I’m not leaving without Joy.”
Tim’s features reddened and his voice lowered as he glanced around to make sure they couldn’t be overheard. “Your orders are to immediately return to Homeland.”
Moon growled and took a step back. He’d fight anyone who attempted to prevent him from returning to her room, if they dared. “Not without Joy.”
Trey stepped up next to Tim. “We don’t want to leave Dr. Yards here. The reporters will be all over her if we do. They’ll try to sneak past security and you know they are way more lax about that stuff than we are. Hell, all they have to do is put on a pair of jeans with a T-shirt, stop at the gift shop to grab flowers and a teddy bear, and they could walk right into her room before anyone is aware.”
“She’s not my problem. He is.” Tim pointed at Moon.
Trey sighed. “Think, Tim. I know we’re all grouchy after being pulled out of bed to fly here. She’s important enough to Moon that he left Homeland to come all this way to see her. She’s also hurt. How do you think he’s going to react when he sees her on the news tomorrow, lying in a hospital bed with a camera shoved in her face? Do you really believe he won’t find another way off Homeland to get to her?”
“Fuck.” Tim gave in. “Fine. Grab her and let’s go. I mean that—grab her now. I’m not sticking around for them to do paperwork to release her into our care. We’re off the ground in four minutes. No excuses.”
Moon spun around and rushed down the hallway. Heavy footsteps followed him into Joy’s room. He eyed the stuff hooked to her and began jerking off the clip on her finger that tracked her oxygen level and the wires from her chest that monitored her heart rate. The machines protested loudly. Trey was there to push buttons to silence them.
“I have some experience at this,” he explained when Moon glanced at him.
“What are you doing?” John didn’t attempt to stop them.
Moon paused to study the human. “We’re leaving. She’s coming with me. She’ll be safer at Homeland.”
The officer turned and grabbed a bag of fluid that was hooked to Joy’s arm. “Don’t pull out her IV. Take this. Keep it elevated.”
“Thank you for everything, John. I deeply appreciate it.”
“No problem. I was glad to finally get to meet a New Species.”