Life of a Fool (London Brothers Book 2) (13 page)

“I know.  So, what do we do?”

“It’ll only be a matter of time before The Italian finds out
she was in the hospital.  He knows who I am and where I live.  It won’t be hard
for him to locate us.  As soon as she’s released, I need to take her away from
here.”

“You can come to Denver.  She’d have both of us to protect
her.  He doesn’t know me.”  Craig’s offer was just what I’d been thinking. 

“Actually, I think that would be a good idea.  You sure you
don’t mind?”  I let out a small laugh.  “We can rent a place close by.”

“No, man.  We should have done this in the first place.  San
Diego is like a big fucking bullseye for this situation.  I’ll call Keri and have
her start looking for a place today.” 

“Thanks, Craig.  I’ll call you later.”

“Sure thing.”  We hung up, and I immediately felt better.  I
knew Craig’s girlfriend, Keri, could work miracles for us.  He’d been dating
her for a little over year.  She was a beautiful, young, petite brunette that
snagged Craig’s heart after he’d heard her sing at a small club one night.  By
day, she was a very successful real estate agent.  I’d met her several times
and she seemed nice. 

I walked back into the hospital
and to Lori Ann’s room.  I needed to see her, put my hands on her body and know
that she was okay.  As I approached the door, Joan came out and told me that
she wasn’t awake yet.  I nodded and slipped into the room to sit next to her
bed.  I stared at my beautiful best friend for a long time.  I couldn’t help
but to replay our night, the part where I held her in my arms and made love to
her.  But my eyes traveled to her stomach, and I had to force myself to push
away the sickening thoughts of me coming inside her, marking her, knowing now
that she was pregnant with Antonio’s child.  I didn’t know how I was going to
handle touching her, being with my girl knowing that fact, and it scared the
hell out of me.  At that moment, I was grateful she was still unconscious. 

*****

I left Lori Ann’s room when the OB/GYN that was on call came
in to check on her.  I walked outside for some fresh air and waited.  I didn’t
want to venture too far from her, but needed more time to think and plan.  I
sat on a bench, pulled out my phone, and made several lists of things that
needed to be done in order for us to move temporarily to Denver.  Before I knew
it, I’d been making calls and lists for three hours.  I felt like a fucking
moron.  I rushed back inside just as Joan was gathering her things at the nurse’s
station.

“Hey, is she awake?  Did you have a chance to talk to her?”

“Yes.  I figured you’d already been in to see her.  She’s
been awake for a few hours.”

“Damn.  Sorry, I was making some arrangements for us—to
protect her and her baby.”

“Good.  Let me know if I can help, Jason.”  Joan patted my
arm and walked away.

I pushed the hospital door
open, and as soon as Lori Ann saw me, she burst into tears, and all my
hesitation and morbid thoughts vanished.  She was mine, and I loved all of her.

*****

We lay perfectly still, curled up in her hospital bed.  She
cried for a long time, telling me how sorry she was that I had to now deal with
the pregnancy.  I reassured her that
we
would figure it out and the most
important thing was to keep Antonio away from both of them. 

“So when will we leave for Denver?”  Lori Ann was more than
happy to disappear to another city she believed Antonio wouldn’t think to look.

“In a few days—just as soon as the doctor tells us you can
leave.”  I kissed the top of her head as we lay there in her bed, waiting for
the sun to finish rising in the sky.  “I think you’ll have to stay here a bit
longer to make sure all the bleeding stops.”

“Okay,” she whispered.

“What’s going on in that head, Legs?  I can tell your wheels
are grinding.”  She wouldn’t look at me, so I tilted her chin up, forcing her
to look into my eyes as a lone tear streamed down her cheek.  “What?”

“I’m scared.  If Antonio finds out…”

“Stop!  We are doing everything we can to prevent that.  Let’s
just take it a step at a time, okay?  First, we need to get you out of this
hospital.”  I kissed her lips.

“Jason.” 

“I know, baby.”  I held her against me as we watched the sun
rise.  “It’s a new day.  We can do this.” 

“Yes,” she whispered.

*****

I left Lori Ann to shower with a nurse as I ran to the beach
house and packed a small bag for both of us.  The OB/GYN had informed us that
she would need to stay at least a few more days and have another ultrasound
before they would allow her to leave the hospital.  So, I quickly packed some
things and headed back to the hospital. 

On my drive back to the hospital, Craig called.

“What’s up?”  I answered.

“Two things.  One, Keri secured a small townhouse for you
guys near us on the west side of the city, not far from Broomfield.  Two, you
need to get your ass here.  I’m hearing rumblings of a foreign guy looking for
his wife from some good friends that do a lot of P.I. work.  I asked them to
keep an ear to the ground about The Italian and Lori Ann.  From what they’ve
told me, there is a high likelihood this is him or his people sniffing around.”

“You’ve got to be kidding?  Now?”

“Yep.”

“Fuck!” 

“Just do what you can to get out of San Diego, soon.”

“Thanks.  I’m working on it.”

I hung up right as I was pulling into the parking lot of
Sharp Memorial.  I felt like I was on high alert, looking over my shoulder and
in every dark corner.  I rushed to Lori Ann’s room, scared she might be gone,
but found her sitting up in bed, showered, dressed in a robe and smiling, just
waiting for me. Her smile fell as soon as she saw my face.  “What happened?”

I walked to her side and kissed her pouty lips.  “Nothing. 
I just don’t like leaving you, that’s all.”

She wrapped her arms around my neck and kissed me again.  “Yeah,
I don’t like being here alone.”  Letting go, she looked down at the bags.  “What
did you bring me?”  I handed her the small suitcase and watched as she shuffled
through the items.  “Thank you for bringing me real clothes.  The shower felt
good.”

“I’ll bet.  I took a quick one when I was at the house.”  I
paused, then took a deep breath.  Honesty was the best way to handle what was
coming next.  “So, I talked to Craig on my way back here.  Seems there might be
some stirrings where Antonio is concerned.”

“What?”  Her face turned white as a ghost, and her hands
stopped mid dig.  “Tell me what he said.”  I went over the small tidbits Craig
had given me and the urgency I felt to get us out of town.  All things
considered, Lori Ann handled it well.  She cried a little, then sucked in a
deep breath and said, “So, we just need the doctor to release me, right?”

“Yes, but we need to do what’s best for you and the baby.” 
I watched as her face fell and eyes closed on a long blink when I said “baby.”
She was struggling as much as I was to accept it all.  Curling my hands around
her body, I whispered, “I’m having a tough time too, but we’ll be okay.”

“I just want you…you and me, that’s all.”  She cried.  “This
isn’t fair.  I just escaped his grasp, and now I have to worry about a baby? 
Oh God, this is too much.” 

“I love you.”  It was all I could say.  “You know that,
right?”  She nodded her head as the tears kept coming.  “Let’s focus on you and
me then.  Focus on getting out of here and in a place we can be together and not
worry as much.  We can take long showers, make love, and sleep naked all we
want.”  I heard a little laugh over her sobs.  “How does that sound?”

“Really good.” 

“Okay, then let’s get you dressed.  I’m going to find the
doctor and explain a few things, then hopefully, he’ll let us leave here with
the promise to find a doc in Denver.”  I stood, then leaned over and kissed her
one more time.  “Let me help you, then I’ll go.” 

I carefully helped Lori Ann pull on a pair of panties, a
bra, some black stretchy sort of pants I’d found in her things, and a hot pink
Avett Brothers tee shirt.  She looked beautiful.  “Here are some hair things I
found in the bathroom.  Not sure if you need these, but I grabbed them anyway.” 
I didn’t really even know what they were, but whatever. 

“Thank you, Jason.” Her voice was quiet.  “I love you.” 

“I know.”  I winked, trying to lighten our mood.  “I’ll be
right back.”

“Okay.” 

I walked to the nurse’s desk and asked them to page Dr. What’s-His-Name. 
I hadn’t bothered to learn it.  “Sure, give us just a little while.  I think he
might be making rounds with all his Labor and Delivery patients right now.”

“Okay, thank you.”  I walked back to Lori Ann’s room and
found her dressed and curled up on the bed.  “Hey, what’s wrong?”  I rushed to
her side. 

“I’m just completely out of energy, that’s all.”  Her
relaxed grin reassured me she was telling the truth.  “Can we leave yet?”

I curled up next to her in the hospital bed.  “Just waiting
on the doctor to stop by.  Shouldn’t be long.”  I kissed the back of her head
and whispered, “Mine.”

“Yes,” she sighed.  “I just feel like a target is on my back
sitting here in this hospital.”

“I feel that too.  I want you out of here and somewhere
safe.”  The sound of the door opening startled me.  I turned to see the doctor
walk in.

“So, I hear someone is wanting to go home.”  He raised his
eyebrows, waiting for an answer. 

Lori Ann winced as she turned and sat up in bed.  “Yes.”

I interrupted, “I need to get her out of here and away from
San Diego.  I’m sure Joan has talked to you about our unique situation.  Is it
possible for Lori Ann to travel to Denver, to find a doctor to follow up with
there so I can protect her?”

He sighed.  “Well, it’s against my better judgment to allow
her to leave considering the extent of her injuries and the fragile state of
the pregnancy.”  We were both holding our breaths as he paused, staring at the
two of us.  “However, I think I might just agree with you, Detective London. 
If her injuries are in fact due to the violence of her husband and the
knowledge of this baby could jeopardize both of them, then yes…it’s best you
take her away from here.  It’s all too easy to access patient information
through hacking.  Unfortunately, I’ve had a few experiences with similar cases.” 
I could see deep remorse in his eyes and had to fight not to ask what had
happened.  “I’ll release her, but I want her in a wheelchair, moving as little
as possible not only leaving the hospital, but for the next few days.  Any
strain on your body
at all
, even walking, could cause the bleeding to
start again.  And, it might be impossible to stop it.”

“I think we understand.”  I stood and walked to shake the
doc’s hand.  “We appreciate you being so helpful.”  I looked back at Lori Ann. 
“We feel like we’ve already got so many things against us, and sitting here
just puts a target on our backs.”

“You’re welcome.”  He looked to Lori Ann.  “I’ll get the
release papers together and call a buddy of mine in Denver, fill him in and set
up a follow-up appointment for you for two days from now.  If you can’t get
there by then, or are still in town, you need to call me.  Understand?”  We
both nodded our heads.  “Don’t make me regret releasing you.  Remember, you
should be on bed rest.”

“I’ll be careful.  I’m too sore to do much anyway.  I just
want away from here,” Lori Ann admitted.

Doc nodded.  “I’ll be back.  Give me about thirty minutes.” 
He made eye contact with me, giving me a slight signal that he wanted to talk
to me.

I kissed Lori Ann on the forehead and said, “Be right back. 
I’m sure I’m about to get a lecture on how to take care of you.”  She let out a
small laugh. 

“Good luck,” she said with a grin.

I walked into the hallway, shutting the door behind me.  Doc
was standing down the hall out of earshot of Lori Ann’s door.  I walked over
and stood in front of him.  “Her injuries, especially the ones to her ribs and
the broken arm, are far from healing.  The tear in the placenta is pretty big. 
I can’t predict whether it will heal fully and the pregnancy will survive. 
Only her body can do that.  She’s going to continue to bleed some, but it
shouldn’t be very much, and it shouldn’t be bright red.  You are going to have
to force her to move as little as possible for the next several days or weeks
if that baby is going to make it.”  He paused and put his hand on my shoulder. 
“It’s understandable that she might be having second thoughts about carrying
her husband’s baby, but remember…it’s not that baby’s fault that the dad is an
abusive bastard.  Remember that, Detective.”  He smiled, gripped my shoulder
where his hand rested, and walked away.

I took a deep breath and walked back into Lori Ann’s room.  “So
how bad was his reprimand?” she asked.

“Not too bad.  He just wanted
to make sure I didn’t let you overdo anything.”  I smiled and started packing
some of her things back into the small bag.  “He’ll be back in a minute.  Let’s
get you ready to go.”  I helped her pack and made a call to Craig, letting him
know we were headed his way.  Within the hour, we were in my truck and driving
to the beach house to pack up a few more things. 

*****

Without incident, we landed in Denver a mere six hours after
Lori Ann was released from the hospital.  I was tired, but I could tell she was
completely exhausted and felt like shit. Craig was waiting for us as soon as we
walked outside to passenger pick-up. 

“Hey,” he mumbled as he hugged Lori Ann and stared straight
at me.  “Glad you two are here.  Let me load your stuff.”  Lori Ann looked at
me and smirked, one eyebrow raised.  She was suspicious. 

“What?”  I questioned.

“Is there something you two are keeping from me?”

“No.  I already told you what Craig said.  Someone is
sniffing around.”  I repeated.