“Did he say anything else?” Tanya stepped closer to the nurse. “Is he saying anything else? Can we see him? This might be important.”
The doctor stepped between them, “You can’t see him right now because he is clearly delusional and might hurt you. We are going to sedate him and hopefully, he will be much calmer when he wakes…”
“Did he say anything else?” Tanya raised her voice, looking at the nurse.
“Umm…” the nurse hesitated and looked at the doctor who nodded. “Well… he is not making any sense. Keeps repeating that he needs to go and save someone. That’s all he keeps saying … and…”
“What?” Sanjay asked this time. “What else?”
“He keeps saying a name,” the nurse informed them.
“What name?”
The nurse looked thoughtful, “Something with A… I think Aria?”
Tanya’s eyes widened and her jaw dropped open as she turned to Sanjay, who looked taken back. Their fears were confirmed.
Chapter 9: Run!
“What do you think? Should we tell her?” Tanya asked Sanjay. The two of them were meeting Diaz and Jake at a café to update them about the recent happenings. “I feel it might take her back a few steps from the progress she made.”
Diaz shook her head, “She is a strong woman. We all know how much she has already handled and has survived. I think we should tell her so that she is prepared for things that might be coming her way. I honestly thought that we were past this. What the hell is happening?!”
“I agree. I feel we should tell her about Wayne,” Sanjay chipped in and Tanya nodded, “Okay. If you guys think that she should know then we probably should.”
Jake cleared his throat, “Are you guys serious?”
They all looked at him.
“Are you sure this is the right way?” asked Jake. “The poor girl has already suffered so much. She is finally out of the mess she was forced into and has started living her life and trying to leave it all behind. Do you really want to do that to her? I mean, you don’t even know if there’s actually anything to worry about. Just because Wayne was saying her name doesn’t mean her life might be in danger. You guys would only cause her more pain and mental discomfort…all for nothing. I honestly feel this is not the right way unless you are absolutely sure she should know. Did Wayne say anything else?”
Sanjay shook his head, “No, he was getting more and more agitated, and they had to calm him down immediately by giving him a sedative. He has been going in and out of consciousness and hasn’t said anything further.”
“See? It could be nothing. Didn’t you say the doctor told you that he might be delusional and talk about things that aren’t true? I think that’s common with patients who come out of a coma. I suggest we don’t bother Aria at all. Leave her be. If we find out something that truly concerns her, only then we should fill her in. Until then, I think it is best that we keep on working the case and hope Wayne recovers soon so find out more details of what happened.
Everyone was silent for a while, lost in their own thoughts. While they wanted to make sure Aria was aware of any danger that may befall her, they knew Jake was right. They could be alarming her over nothing. Tanya sighed, “You’re right. We have seen her struggle after getting out of jail. It took her a lot of time and effort to return to normal life. Things are finally going her way with the recent win on the case, getting an apartment, and working with Diaz. Let’s leave her alone for now.”
Sanjay nodded in agreement, but Diaz was reluctant. However, she didn’t say anything and agreed to go with everyone’s decision.
“What about the search of his place? Did you guys find anything that might connect the incident to Coons’ murder?” Sanjay asked Jake.
“Weren’t you going to lead the search?” Diaz asked Sanjay.
Jake answered, “He received a call from the hospital and had to leave. I offered to lead the search. We did a thorough sweep of the place, but we found nothing important. A few work files but they were all the clients he was working with. We verified it with his office,” he nodded toward Tanya.
“Yeah, they are all active client cases, and all the team members have copies of them,” she pitched in.
Jake shrugged, “Nothing of any relevance. I’m thinking we should close the case and label it a random attack since the perp has been caught and he confessed. There is nothing more we can do.”
“Are you absolutely sure there was nothing there?” Diaz asked, raising her eyebrow. “He might have hidden something in a secret place…?”
Jake sighed, “I assure you. We searched every nook and cranny of the house. To be honest, we didn’t really have to search his place since someone already confessed to the crime, but I convinced our Captain that we should make sure all loose ends were tied.”
“Hmmm…” Diaz replied, lost in her thoughts.
“Do you have something to say?” Jake asked.
“What? Oh no. No, no. I am just wondering to what extent these people will go. I mean we already know how dangerous they are and honestly, they could have searched his house way before you guys, which means we can’t be sure about anything.”
“Of course we can’t Nicole!” Jake instantly responded, shaking his head. “All the people here know very well that this was no freak accident. They went after Wayne because he knew something. That’s a given.”
Diaz sighed in frustration, “This is ridiculous!”
Tanya patted her shoulder, “Yeah, it certainly is.”
“Don’t worry, Nicole. Between us, I promise, we will find something soon. They must
