Authors: Tessa Dayne
“Listen, I know you can’t go to Chicago right now. How ‘bout I go for you and look in on ‘Sleeping Beauty’? Ollie is leaving in a day or so to go back to the set and I’d be here all alone anyway,” John offered.
“What about the girls?” Ollie asked John.
“They’re with their mum. I won’t see them anyway. Let me do this for you, JD. Let me give you some peace of mind.”
“Thanks, John. I know the doctors are doing all they can, but I feel helpless. I’m so far away.”
“You let me take care of things. Go back to Madrid and concentrate on your role. Don’t worry. I’ll take care of things for you in Chicago. It will make me feel useful. Besides, the way you talk about her, I have to make sure she’s real and not some figment of your imagination!”
Despite the rock in the pit of his stomach, Jonas smiled.
Chapter
Fifteen
~*~
Jonas paced the airport first class lounge, impatiently waiting for Ian to pick up the line. He knew that Ian and his mother were planning another trip to Chicago and he wanted to warn them that John would be there as well. And where John was, the paparazzi were sure to follow.
“Hello?”
“Ian? It’s Dad,” Jonas said, staring out the windows at the planes on the tarmac.
“Dad, it’s good to hear your voice. How are you doing?”
“I’m fine. I spent a few days with John and Ollie.”
“So you were in London? Did you get the news about Paige?”
“I did. Darcy called,” he said, running his hand through his messy hair.
“Grandmother and I are headed back tomorrow morning.”
“Good. John will be there in a few days. Make sure he’s on the visitor list, would you?”
“Will do, Dad. Those nurses won’t know how to act. First Luca graces them with his presence and now Lachlann. Good thing Ollie is working or they would have mass heart failure in the ICU,” Ian joked.
“Just be sure to warn your grandmother that he’ll be there.”
“No worries, Dad. And don’t worry about Paige either. I’ll take good care of her.”
“I know. Thanks, S
on.”
His flight information sounded over the PA system and Jonas sighed softly. “Look, they’re calling my flight. I have to go. Give your grandmother a hug and kiss for me. And tell Paige I love her.”
“I will, Dad.”
“Bye, Ian.” Jonas hung up feeling more melancholy than he had before he called. He had wanted to hear Ian’s voice, to reassure himself that Paige was being well looked after. Hearing Ian’s voice had reminded him just how far away he was and how helpless he felt.
Frowning, he picked up his duffle bag and turned to the passageway to board his flight.
~*~
“Who was on the phone, Ian? Not more bad news about Paige, was it?”
Ian turned and found his grandmother standing in the middle of the room, her very presence alluding to dignity and grace.
“No, it was Dad. Uncle John is coming to Chicago to look in on Paige for Dad.”
“Oh dear. We had better warn the hospital staff. And I had better call in a few favors. Where John Benton is, there will surely be unwanted attention. We need to keep the riff raff away.”
Ian smiled again as he watched his grandmother head for the phone. She was the biggest reason his father wasn’t in the tabloids. Sure, he was somewhat of a recluse, but his grandmother had quite some pull in the journalism world. Most of her friends were those in high places, but it amazed him just how much leverage she had over the lowlifes as well.
When Evelyn Barnett Hamilton called in a favor, she got what she wanted.
~*~
Having a lot of experience with the paparazzi, John snuck into Chicago at 2 A.M. the morning after Jonas had returned to Madrid. There was no fanfare, no pictures taken and to be truthful, no one knew he was in town. He got through customs, the bleary-eyed attendant wondering if he had read the passport correctly. Within a few minutes after getting the stamp on his passport, John got his luggage and headed for the street.
By three A.M., safely ensconced in the back of a yellow taxicab, he was on his way to the hotel. Thankfully, his assistant had already registered him, so all he had to do was sign some papers and pick up the room key. Glancing up at the front seat, he noticed the odd look the driver was giving him. Hiding a chuckle, John knew what the man was probably thinking.
’Nah, it couldn’t be.’
He paid the driver once they arrived at the front of the hotel, still silently laughing at the odd looks he was getting from the driver. Inside, he greeted the night concierge, signed the guest book and received the room key. By 4 A.M. John was inside room 545.
Wearily, John stripped out of his travel clothes and slid between the crisp, clean sheets. Within moments, he was sound asleep, his soft snores filling the room.
~*~
The next morning
Evelyn and Ian arrived, settling in to the hotel quickly and quietly. No one knew they were coming into town, so there was no fuss and no intrusions.
“Do you think Uncle John is here yet?” Ian asked.
“I’m not sure. But if your father said he was supposed to arrive sometime today, then he’s here. If I know John though, he snuck into town during the wee hours of the morning and has been sound asleep for several hours.”
“Yeah that sounds like Uncle John. He’s had to avoid the paparazzi more than Dad, especially since he and Ollie got together.”
“I wonder how that young man is?” Evelyn said aloud. “I haven’t seen him in ages.”
“Well, when we see Uncle John, you can ask him. In the meantime, should we order brunch? I’m hungry.”
“You’re always hungry,” Evelyn said reaching for the phone.
“I’m a growing boy,” Ian laughed.
~*~
Jonas called Darcy’s cell phone and tapped his fingers as he waited for her to answer.
“Darcy Milian.”
“Darcy, it’s Jonas.”
“Hey handsome. How you doing?” she asked, leaning back in her chair.
“Fine. I’m back in Madrid. I wanted to give you a head’s up. A friend of mine is coming in to town to check in on Paige for me.”
“Would this friend be of some importance?” Darcy asked.
“He seems to think so,” Jonas chuckled. “It’s John Benton. He should already be in town. I imagine he’ll be stopping in at the hospital either today or tomorrow,” Jonas said, calculating the time difference.
“Wonderful. Robert Quick in all his glory.”
“He’ll like that you know that role. It’s one of his favorites,” Jonas said with a smile.
“There’s going to be trouble in the ICU ward when the nurses see him,” Darcy predicted.
“Speaking of trouble, any word on Darren?” Jonas asked.
“The police had a sketch artist take some information from the witnesses, but they vary too much. And without Paige’s eye witness account, they can’t pin anything on Darren,” Darcy said, bringing him up to date on the case.
Jonas swore, his fingers running roughly through his shaggy hair in frustration. He wanted answers and their investigation was going nowhere.
“We’re keeping a close eye on her, Jonas. Don’t worry. There’s nearly always someone at her bedside; her brothers, myself, her father, someone is close to hand most of the time. It would be near impossible for Darren to get near her.”
Jonas sighed and had to admit that the families were keeping close tabs on Paige. And with John there now, Darren would be a fool to show up at the hospital.
~*~
Darren paced the small apartment, a bottle of beer in his hand. It had been three days since he had last snuck into the hospital to see Paige. Three days of uncertainty and worry, three days of dread that she had woken up and remembered everything from the accident ‘til now.
He reasoned, if she had woken up, the police would surely be beating down his door. That is if she had woken up and remembered. She did have a serious head injury. Maybe she wouldn’t wake up at all. And if she woke up, maybe she wouldn’t have all her faculties. He had heard of cases where a patient wasn’t
‘all there’
after a serious head injury.
Maybe he’d get lucky and that’s what would happen to Paige. It would serve her right, after all. If she woke up, she wouldn’t remember a thing about her life. Her mind would be a blank slate. One he could manipulate and make into what he desired.
He downed the rest of his beer and chuckled to himself. Yes, indeed, wouldn’t that be a hoot. If Paige couldn’t remember, and he could rewrite her past, then he could get back into her life and her finances.
With a wicked laugh, he settled into the busted chair in the corner of the living room. Yes, he could certainly use a change of scenery.
~*~
John woke, feeling slightly refreshed. Running his hands over his face, he groaned wondering why in the hell had he decided to come in to town so damned early. He could have snuck in late at night instead of early morning. It would have served the same purpose and he wouldn’t have had to miss out on the much-needed sleep.
Of course, the paparazzi were on the lookout for celebrities coming in late at night, whereas in the wee hours of the morning, even those vultures had to sleep sometime. Sure, there would be a few of them circling the airports, but nothing like what he would have run into at maybe midnight.
Slipping from under the covers, John padded across the room to the bathroom, the sunlight peeping in from the split between the closed curtains to wash him in warm light as he crossed through the stream. Chuckling to himself, he remembered the last time he had crossed a room similarly unclothed. He had been attacked by flying limbs and a hard body.
Just thinking about that morning made him smile. With a barely audible groan, John slipped into the bathroom and turned on the shower spray. Before the water had a chance to get hot, he stepped under the stream of water and doused himself in the cold spray.
“Wow!” he yelled, his voice echoing in the opulent bathroom. Leaning his head into the water, the icy blast rushed down over his shoulders and fell to his buttocks, a violent shudder racing through him.
John finished his shower quickly, ignoring the thoughts that kept trying to resurface as he allowed the water to reach a more comfortable temperature. He stepped out of the shower stall, wrapping a large fluffy towel around his waist. Reaching for another towel, John rubbed his head briskly, drying his shaggy blonde hair.
A quick glance at the clock by the bedside, John knew he had at least another half hour before visiting hours began. Just enough time to get dressed, head to the hotel café for something quick to eat and a fast smoke on the way to the hospital.
~*~
Evelyn walked down the hallway, Ian at her side, scanning the area with warm eyes. She didn’t see women fainting in the corridors, so she correctly surmised that John had yet to arrive at the hospital. She smiled warmly at the nurse behind the counter as they approached.
“Molly, how good to see you again,” she said, signing in.
“Mrs. Hamilton.”
“Molly, it’s Evelyn,” she scolded lightly.