We had fallen asleep together on the sofa, in the morning the girls set to getting the stables back in business and Amanda and I went to the hospital.
***
“I haven’t got my wings yet… How are you?” I took his hand, thank goodness it was warm and his colour had returned. He had looked so ill in the frigid water, slashed deeply across the chest, he’d been so pale and weak. I’d been holding him up against the tide. I shuddered as I remembered his words, weak, whispered in my ear, ‘leave me, save yourself’. I knew that nothing could be further from my heart. As we heard the boat and I had begged them to take him first, get him safe and the pain of not knowing if he was okay. Well, at that stage I knew that I needed to spend the rest of my life with him, no matter how long that was.
He smiled, how that made my heart melt, that beautiful, innocent smile as he sat in a hospital bed, I so wanted to hug him, to never let him go. I looked around the ward, it was all quiet, so I pulled back the covers, kicking off my boots I slipped into the bed next to him, arms around his chest feeling it’s slow rise and fall. He gripped me tightly, his eyes closing a smile playing on his lips. I felt totally safe in his arms.
***
“Hello…” I opened my eyes, the bright light of the day replaced with the harsh hospital lighting. Looking up I saw that it was dark outside. The nurse smiled. “We thought it would be best to let you both sleep. We know that you’ve all been through a lot.”
I slipped from the bed, mumbling apologies. Of course, we’d been the talk of the area, the story of our rescue and the arrest of the people who had tried to kill us had made the national news. I couldn’t go into a shop without people wanting to know more, excited to discover the gory details.
The nurse was taking Adam’s blood pressure. “He’ll be back home soon, although you had better look after him, he’s had a lot of stitches. No working or riding. I know what you horse people are like. Make him rest!” She smiled, walking to the next patient.
“Hello. Have you just got here? I had some lovely dreams.”
I smiled as Adam babbled about his dream of a red-haired angel comforting him as he slept. He stopped and looked at me, a look of concern on his face. “What’s up?”
“You did say yes, didn’t you?” I nodded. “Thank goodness. I don’t think I want to be without you.”
Okay, this was just too much for me. Days of withheld emotions, shock and fear just came to the surface and I sobbed. Adam reached out for me and I fell into his arms. After a few minutes, I was able to gulp back the tears, sitting back down, wiping my eyes, thankful I didn’t generally wear make-up.
“Oh goodness, is the thought of a lifetime with me that bad?” We both laughed. “Come on you…” He took my hand. “We’re survivors.”
***
I had to be forced to go home. A new and rather cross ward sister told me I couldn’t stay overnight again as Adam slept and so I had better go away. Amanda had been waiting, she had come back to visit and to give me a lift home, so after three hours of chatting his eyes had started to close. She’d told me to say goodnight but it was at least another hour before I came out to the car park where she was sitting.
“Sorry!”
“I seem to spend my life waiting for you two!” She snorted. “But, I am more than happy to do so.”
***
I’d brought him a change of clothes, what he had been wearing were in a bag, however the way they were caked with stinking mud I wished that they had just been thrown away. He looked smart in a button-down shirt and his ‘good’ jeans. These were the ones with only one hoof oil stain on them. He hugged and thanked the nurses and we were packing the few items he had when we were disturbed.
“Mr Bishop?” I looked up a police officer was standing beside the bed. “Could I please ask you to come with me.”
“Oh?” He frowned. “Is there something wrong.”
“It’s about your sister sir, it is rather urgent, please hurry.”
“I just left her parking the…” The officer cut me short and gestured that we should follow him.
***
We stepped into the lift. “What is this about?”
“It is about Mr Bishop’s sister.” The officer glared at me. The lift ground to a halt. “Out!”
I looked around, this was not a part of the hospital I had seen. The ceiling was lower and lined with pipes and cables, it was dimly lit with blinking tubes casting shadows. We approached a set of doors. “The morgue?” The policeman shoved us through the door.
“Rather fitting, I think. Don’t you.”
My scream was cut short as I was grabbed from behind. There was the blond-haired man who had attacked us, the same man who had taunted me when I had been lashed to a chair. He was facing us, holding a gun towards us.
“This will save them a trip.” He sneered. “Tell me, why is it so bloody hard to kill you?”
36
Cold Justice
I did a double-take as I stepped out of the lift. I was sure I’d seen Adam and Kate in the next lift with two policemen. I walked onto the ward, his bed was empty. Running to the nurses’ station I asked where he was. They hadn’t seen him but they were sure Kate had been here and they had been packing to leave.
I grabbed my mobile, letting it ring for a moment
