Page 94 of Ready or Not
He was in the building… Maybe he still is.
That’s fucking terrifying.
“Could you hand me my baby?” I ask with a weird quaver in my voice.
“Yes.” She strides over. “Again, I’m so sorry. We weren’t notified of anything…”
“It’s okay,” I say as she hands over Aurora.
It’s not her fault.
I really do know that.
I cradle Aurora close. She’s still sleeping peacefully and completely unaware of all the dangers of the world.
It really is time for Andrew to become a problem of the past.
The nurse finishes going over all our care instructions. She reminds me how to take care of my stitches and how to look after the umbilical cord stump.
Cooper’s brother recommended a local pediatrician he trusts. There are three doctors in their office, and we’ve met them all, since they rotate days here in the hospital. It’s a godsend having a doctor in the family because, each day, I realize exactly how woefully underprepared I was for all of this.
Apparently, babies have to be seen two days after leaving the hospital, so for us, that’s when she’s five days old. Then also at one week, two weeks, and a month old.
“I’m going to grab the wheelchair. I know the rest of your pack started carrying out your belongings. We need the baby in the car seat for the trip downstairs,” the nurse says.
“They’re on their way up with it now,” Holt says, coming back into the room without the flowers.
“Perfect.” The nurse smiles and leaves.
“The flowers were from him?” I ask, chewing away at my bottom lip.
Holt gives a clipped nod, coming to sit on the edge of the bed. He runs his hand over the pink cap on Aurora’s head. “The card was more of his bullshit that you don’t need to worry about.”
My anxiety skyrockets to the point I feel like my insides are trying to claw their way out of my skin. “I don’t know how much longer I can do this, Holt. Everything seems scarier now. It’s not just me he could hurt.”
“He’s eventually going to get tired of hiding. Once that happens, we will swiftly wipe his ass off the face of the planet.” He wraps an arm around my lower back, pulling me even closer. “I will die before he gets his hands on either of you.”
My eyes ache. I can feel the sincerity in his words, but that thought scares the hell out of me too. “I can’t lose any of you.”
“You won’t,” Holt says with a conviction I wish I felt.
The ride down to the lobby is rough, especially getting into the elevator as the wheelchair rolls over the bumps in the uneven flooring.
I exhale heavily, studying Aurora’s sleeping face. Holt left with Cooper as soon as the others got up to the room. They’re going to meet us out front with the SUV.
“Let the two of us exit first,” Mercy says to the nurse as we ride down to the lobby. “We’ll give you a wave to let you know it’s safe. One will fall in line behind you, and one will guide the way. We’d like it if you could stop again at the sliding glass doors.”
“Are you sure I shouldn’t call for hospital security? I feel awful about delivering those flowers to you,” she says softly.
“We do this for a living,” Bishop says calmly. “Chances are, he’s already long gone, but it’s better to be hypervigilant.”
The doors open.
Bishop files out, surveying everything.
Mercy steps forward, extending an arm to keep the door open. Bishop waves, and the nurse rolls my wheelchair out.
The process repeats all over again at the main exit, but I exhale in pure relief when I spot Cooper and Holt.