Page 66 of Tempting Devil
“He… I don’t know,” I rushed out. “I came home, and he was on the floor. His breathing is labored. His pulse is increased. I just?—”
“Henry, find the closest vet and call them,” he ordered without hesitation. “Tell them we’re bringing in a dog that needs to be seen right away.” Then he returned his attention to me. “I’ll be right there, Imogene,” he soothed. “It’ll be okay.”
“There’s no time,” I sobbed. “I need to take him in now.”
“I’m already here. Let me in.”
A knock sounded, echoing through my home.
I straightened, not immediately moving. I wasn’t sure I wanted to know why he was already at my house.
Then again, he admitted he’d been watching me for weeks. While a part of me felt it a huge invasion of privacy, I shouldn’t have been surprised. After all, this was a man who had killed to keep me safe. Knowing what I now did about Liam, Gideon wouldn’t have left me unprotected. He promised me as much.
Jumping back to my feet, I ran down the stairs and opened the door for him.
Unlike the suit he wore earlier this morning, he was now dressed in a pair of sweats and a hoodie, much like Samuel used to wear whenever he came from wrestling practice or the gym.
“Where is he?” he asked with a subtle tremble.
“In my bedroom.”
He ran up the stairs, taking them two at a time, and I followed.
During the short time I’d known him as Gideon Saint, he rarely showed much emotion, apart from a few isolated incidents.
But when his vision landed on Ollie, something cracked inside him, the fissure allowing more of Samuel to escape.
“Oh, god,” he whispered as he hurried toward him, carefully scooping him into his arms and cradling him. “It’ll be okay, buddy. I’m here.” He pressed a soft kiss to his head. “You’re going to be okay. I promise.”
He held him for a moment, inhaling a deep breath. Then he stood, carrying him out of the room and down the stairs, murmuring sweet words of encouragement every step of the way.
When we emerged onto the front porch, Henry stood outside an idling SUV with the rear passenger door already open. I slid in before Gideon climbed in beside me.
Throughout the short ride to the vet, Gideon clutched Ollie tightly to his chest, begging him to hold on as tears welled in his eyes.
And like that fissure in Gideon’s hard exterior allowed a piece of Samuel to escape, seeing this side of him again caused the wall around my heart to crack a little, too.
Chapter Twenty-Six
Gideon
“Poisoned?” I repeated, a mixture of anger and despair twisting my insides. The lump in my throat felt like a boulder, making it nearly impossible to breathe. “There must be some mistake. How?—”
“It’s fairly common,” Dr. Albright, the veterinarian at a nearby emergency clinic, informed me with a sympathetic look. “All it takes is for a dog to mistake a puddle on the driveway for water, but in reality, it’s antifreeze.”
“I don’t even own antifreeze,” Imogene interjected, her voice strained.
Over the past several hours, I’d never seen her cry so damn much.
It made me wonder if this was how she reacted when she’d learned about my supposed death.
It was probably ten times worse.
“And Ollie’s never been allowed in the garage,” Imogene continued, desperation creeping into her voice. As if that would change what happened to Ollie. “He stays in the house, except when I take him for a walk.”
“At Ollie’s weight, it wouldn’t have taken more than a few tablespoons for the toxins to do some serious damage. He could have consumed that in a small puddle he thought was water.”
“Is there something you can give him?” I demanded, digging my fingers through my hair. “An…an antidote. Something? Anything?” I pleaded with her.