Mastering the Devil (Rush Series Book 4) (16 page)

John and Erick continued to stand at attention looking now to Alex, who was contemplating the information given to him. He found it hard to remain focused, due to all the medication he’d received. He exhaled deeply in frustration as he tried to clear his head of the fog which constantly wanted to cloud it.

Finally, he said, “So, we still don’t know who’s behind the heists?”

Erick shook his head. “No, Sir.”

Rubbing a hand against the back of his neck, Alex sighed. “Well, continue the surveillance on the garage and let me know immediately if anyone comes in.”

Erick and John both nodded, just as a knock sounded on the outer door. “I guess that would be my warden,” Alex groused, but secretly glad the other men would be forced to leave so he could get back to the sleep he so desperately needed.

John opened the door with a lavish grin and swept his arm out to usher Ensley into the room. She gave him a cross look and swept past him. Erick smirked at the obvious rebuff afforded his partner. As he moved past, he gave her a nod and said politely, “Ma’am,” before heading out into the hall with John.

Alex could hear the rumbled laughter coming softly through the closed door as they moved away. “Sorry about my friends,” he said to Ensley.

She gave a graceful wave of her hand in dismissal. “I know how to deal with men like that. They’re harmless enough,” she said with a grin.

“They will be crushed to know that,” Alex replied, as he yawned hugely and settled his aching head back down on the pillows behind him. He struggled to keep his eyes on the blonde doctor
and knew she was speaking to him, but for the life of him, he couldn’t force her words past the encompassing fog in his head.

He licked against the dryness in his mouth and his eyes grew heavy as he attempted to remain focused on
Ensley, but the pull of the medication in his IV proved too much and he drifted off back to sleep.

~M~

A sharp stabbing pain in her shoulder jolted Devon awake. Her eyelids felt so heavy, she struggled to open them. Disoriented, her mind swirled as she struggled, still with her eyes closed, to remember why she was sleeping sitting up, and why her shoulder pained her so. Had she gotten drunk the night before? Her head certainly pounded as if she had. With as much strength as she could muster, she forced her eyelids to open, then blinked furiously at the brilliance of the sunlight now streaming into the room.

Her eyes finally focused enough to see Cash’s still body
prone in the hospital bed, a thin white blanket covering his lower half. His bared chest pale in contrast to the redness of his arms and shoulders.

In a rush, the events of the day before flooded her mind and her senses. Her heart clutched so painfully in her chest she gasped at the pain of it. It seemed that all the feelings
and emotions she’d evaded the day before came now with a vengeance. She panted against it and raised a fist to stifle the whimpers which seemed to come from way down deep in her soul.

Like in slow rewind, or
more like her life flashing before her eyes, all the events since the time she reached out her hand and clutched the map with Miguel’s position marked on it, came to her in an agonizing, slamming rush. Unable to remain sitting upright in her chair, her body of its own volition slumped to the floor jarring her shoulder, but she welcomed the pain… deserved the pain.

Curling into herself, she wrapped her unbound arm around herself and lay on the cold tiled floor and sobbed as silently as she could, trying hard not to wake up Cash. She wished more than anything now that she’d heeded the doctor’s words and had gone to her own room. Fire, just as hot as the explosion – and just as powerful – consumed her chest. She released her waist to press her hand against her chest, seeking relief. Had she known how things
would turn out, she’d just have let Miguel give her to Lex Vega.

That
day in Miguel’s office five years before seemed to be the turning point in all their lives. Had she just gone along with it, Roman would still be alive; her mother would be with Miguel – but still alive; and she would never have met Alex Masters. Was there anything the horrible and disgusting Lex Vega could have done to her that would have been as bad as what she was currently enduring? No, she didn’t think so. What did she do now? She had no home… no clothes… and soon wouldn’t have a job. She’d end up like the dozens of people they encountered everyday living on the street in cardboard boxes.

Eventually, her tears and sobs
subsided, leaving only the anguish behind. She continued to lie on the cool tiles, not having the strength or desire to rise. Her mother’s face as she’d last seen it, smiling and shaking her head at Devon as she reprimanded her for not being a good host flashed into her mind. Then an image of her legs jutting out from the table stabbed at her heart. She closed her eyes tight to rid it of that image and whimpered as she struggled to gather enough oxygen into her lungs.

“Devon?” she heard Cash’s voice rasp from the bed above her head.

Scrubbing a hand over her eyes and wiping her nose with the back of her hand. She attempted to smooth her dark hair which she was sure must look like a rat’s nest by now. She rose awkwardly to her feet and went to his side. “Hey,” she said, hating at how watery her voice sounded even to her own ears.

He blinked up at her as he struggled to focus. “What’s wrong,” he whispered, as he licked his cracked lips.

She shook her head and swallowed to stay the tears which still threatened. “Nothing. You’re going to be fine,” she said, as she brushed a hand against his brow.

He screwed his face
up as he concentrated on her features. “What happened? Was I shot?”

Slowly, she shook her head. “No, you were hurt during the explosion. Do you remember?”

His brows scrunched together as he thought. Then his lips tightened. “I’m so sorry, Devon,” he rasped, as he attempted to lift his hand to her, but it proved to be too heavy.

She reached down and clutched it within her grasp. “Me, too,” she whispered back.

Confusion marred his features. “Why were you on the floor?”

She shrugged and grimaced at the pressure it put on her shoulder.

Cash studied for a long moment. Squeezing her hand with as much strength as he could, he finally said, “I want you to do something for me.”

“Of course. Anything,” she replied quickly.

“Find Masters. He can protect you.”

She started at the mention of Alex’s name. Slowly, she shook her head. “I can’t,” she breathed heavily.

“You’re not safe. I can’t help you right now. You need to find him. He’ll keep you safe,” he said, with as much force in his voice as he could manage. When she began to shake her head once more, he said urgently, his hand trembling at the effort. “Promise me!”

Seeing how agitated he was becoming, she nodded. “I will. Now calm down.”

“Today,” he emphasized.

“Yes, today,” she promised.

He stared into her eyes seeking the truth of her words. Finally, seeing whatever he needed, he murmured, “Okay.” Then closing his eyes and releasing her hand, he muttered, “Now, get out of here and let me rest. I was injured, you know.”

She swallowed and nodded even though he couldn’t see her. “Feel better. I’ll be back to check on you,” she promised.

“Not without Masters,” he murmured. After taking a deep breath and exhaling slowly, he was asleep.

She stood next his bed for a long while contemplating their conversation. She knew she didn’t have to keep her promise. What was he going to do to her if she didn’t? Besides, she couldn’t just leave him.
Slowly, she stepped backwards until the backs of her knees hit the chair she’d vacated earlier and sank down. She glanced down at her grungy shorts and blood-streaked T-shirt. She desperately needed a shower. Sadly, she didn’t have any place to go. She sighed deeply and sat back carefully. She thought over Cash’s words. He was right. Miguel was still out there… and dangerous – he’d just tried to blow her up! If she stayed here, Cash would also be in danger. Just look what had happened to him already.

A shiver of fear slithered across her skin and
she trembled. What if Alex wouldn’t help her? Surely he wouldn’t turn her away at such a time. At the very least, he’d allow her to shower, maybe help her with some clothing and lend her money until she was able to secure some new identification so she could get money from the bank. Firming the idea into a decision, she rose and went to Cash and pressed her lips softly against his forehead. “I’ll be back,” she whispered, before turning and heading out of the hospital.

It wasn’t until she reached the lobby that she realized she didn’t have any money; no type of transportation; and looked like a refugee, with her blooded shirt and out-of-control hair. She glanced around and finally saw a woman sitting behind the receptionist desk.

“Excuse me,” Devon said.

The woman glanced up from her computer screen and started at Devon’s appearance. Quickly, the woman fastened a professional smile on her lips. “How may I help you?” she asked.

“I need to call someone to pick me up, but my cell didn’t arrive at the hospital with me. Could I possibly borrow your phone to make a call?”

The woman rose from her chair and turned the phone on the counter towards Devon. “Of course, just punched in 7 to get an outside line,” she said kindly.

Devon gave her a small smile of thanks before quickly dialing Alex’s number before her nerve failed her. Her heart began to pound harshly against her chest and all moisture left her mouth as anxiety filled her.
What if he wouldn’t come? What if he was already back in PUERTO VALLARTA?
Her anxiety wasn’t allowed to take full hold though, as before the first ring could emit, the phone switched immediately to voicemail. A small stream of air left her as she gave a sigh of relief.
But now what
, she thought.

Slowly, she replaced the phone back on the receiver and gave the woman another small smile.

“No luck?” the woman asked.

Devon shook her and clamped her lips together to steady t
hem as the realization that she well and truly had no one now. The full impact hit her. This would be her life now. Good thing she’d learned over the past five years how to be self-reliant. Drawing upon her very small reserve of strength, she attempted to straighten her shoulders and grimaced as the movement once again reminded her of her shoulder. Quickly thinking through her options, logically, she knew she had no other alternative. She’d have to go to Alex’s hotel and at least see if he was still in town. Regardless of their past history, he’d help her, it was his nature.

Giving the woman an insincere smile, she said, “No worries, I’ll be fine.” With one last smile, she turned on the rubber heel of her flip-flop
. She only taken a couple of steps when the woman at the reception desk called out.

“Oh, Miss,” she said.

Devon turned back, “Yes?”

The woman held out the
white bag Devon had been carrying containing the prescription she’d been given earlier for pain. She shook her head at herself for having forgotten it. Stepping quickly back, and smiled her thanks, and walked out through the automatic double doors into the bright sunshine. She glanced around to get her bearings and tried to figure out how far Alex’s hotel was from the hospital. She sighed when the mental calculation filtered through her brain. She bet it was a good five or six miles from the hospital. It’d probably take her all morning. Once more she glanced down at her attire and hoped she didn’t cause a riot. With more determination than she actually felt, she put one foot in front of the other and began the arduous task before her, refusing to even contemplate how much it’d hurt when she saw Alex again.

Slowly and methodically she made the walk, refusing to meet the stares of those she passed. The sweltering heat and unforgiving sun beat down on her causing sweat to run in rivulets between her breasts. By the time she reached Alex’s hotel, the only thing
she wanted to do was collapse into one of the lobby chairs, but quickly dismissed the idea after receiving several startled glances of the other patrons.

With every muscle in her body protesting and her mouth parched from lack of water, she punched the elevator button and heaved a sigh when she was able to lean against the elevator’s cool walls. When her mind
tried to venture into thoughts of seeing Alex, she shielded herself. She had no choice she kept telling herself. She opened her eyes when the elevator doors binged their opening. She stepped into the blessed coolness of the hall and began the trek down its length.

When she reached his door, vanity had her brushing the hair from her face and swiping uselessly at her grimy appearance. Taking one last intake of air to steady her rattled senses, she knocked timidly on the door, then getting angry at herself for being a coward, she knocked a little harder.

It wasn’t long before the door opened and she stood face to face with the pretty blonde Alex had had breakfast with the last time she’d come here. The woman was standing awkwardly behind the door as if she was shielding herself. It was then, Devon noticed the strap of the other woman’s bra, making her immediately realize the woman wasn’t wearing a shirt. Instinctively, Devon took a step back as pain lashed at her. She nearly turned and ran, but refused to give this woman that satisfaction again.