Frey (22 page)

Troy continued his charade of the caring
husband. “I really appreciate that. Now, I’d like to speak to my
wife. Alone.”

Abbi sucked in a breath. Even though they
were in the hospital, Troy wouldn’t hesitate to punish her. The
doctor had other ideas, though. “I’m afraid that isn’t possible
right now. I need Abbi to come with me and fill out the paperwork.
Mr. Quinn, if you wish to wait here, that’s fine. I’ll bring Abbi
back when we are finished with her.”

Troy sneered at the
doctor. “I’m her fucking husband
and
I’m a cop. If I want to talk to
her, I will.” Abbi took a chance and looked around the doctor. The
first thing she noticed was the twisted scowl on Troy’s face. The
second was the huge hickey on his neck.

Dr. Mooneyham didn’t back down. Instead, he
stood even taller, squaring his shoulders. “And I’m the fucking
Chief of Staff of this hospital. You are in my jurisdiction, and
what I say is law around here. If you do not cooperate, I will have
you removed and banned from these premises.”

“
You can’t do that. I’ll
call my boss and…”

The doctor interrupted him, “I can do that,
and I will. Either you wait here, or I will call Chief Kane myself.
Your choice. Nice hickey by the way.”

Abbi was impressed. She had never seen
anyone stand up to Troy that way. Her husband was livid. His
knuckles were white where his fists were clenched. “I’ll be back,”
he seethed before slamming open the door and stalking off down the
hall.

Abbi was embarrassed. The doctor had every
right to think the worst of her. How could she not press charges
against that man? How could she continue to allow him to abuse
Matt? She couldn’t. She had no idea how she would protect herself
from Troy, but she had to try. “I’m ready,” she whispered.

Dr. Mooneyham nodded. She didn’t have to
explain. He understood what she was ready to do.

“
Very good, my dear.
Please, follow me.”

Chapter Twenty

Sixx’s gesture meant more to Frey than any
apology in the world. He knew the Goyle felt bad, and now he knew
just how bad. Sixx, like Urijah, had given his solemn oath. Frey
climbed in his Jeep and headed home. His heart hurt when he thought
of Matthew and what he’d endured at the hands of such a large man.
Frey was ready to find Troy Quinn and dish out the same punishment
to him.

He arrived home to an empty house. When he
left earlier, he had been full of hope. He had enjoyed the ride to
work, laughing and singing with Matthew. He’d been happy to
purchase new phones the day before, knowing Troy wouldn’t be able
to find them. Even buying groceries had been fun, making sure he
bought what Abbi put on the list plus a whole lot of other items he
thought Matthew might like. The candles he’d bought for the dining
room table would sit in a drawer, unused. There would be no
romantic meals for him now.

Frey grabbed some of the plastic bags from
the recycle bin and carried them upstairs. As bad as he wanted to
place Abbi’s clothes and toiletries in a decent piece of luggage,
he knew that would be a red flag when Troy saw her stuff. With a
heavy heart, he filled the grocery bags and took them to the Jeep.
What he didn’t do was gather Matt’s stuff. Even if Abbi was his
guardian, Frey would die a martyr’s death before the boy stepped
foot in his old house again. He would kidnap him from the hospital
if need be. Matt would not be going back to work at the restaurant.
When he was well, he would work at the gym where Troy Quinn would
not be welcomed.

Frey drove back to the hospital, parking
close to Abbi’s car. He looked around, making sure nobody was
lurking. When he was sure the coast was clear, he deposited Abbi’s
things in the front seat of her car where she couldn’t miss them.
He locked the car and headed to Jonas’ office. The doctor would
make sure Abbi got her keys. As he rounded the building to enter
the door, Troy Quinn came barreling outside. Frey stepped back
quickly before Abbi’s husband had a chance to see him. The man was
so irate, he wasn’t aware of his surroundings. Frey tracked his
movements until he was in his vehicle, speeding out of the parking
lot.

Frey called Jasper, alerting him to Troy’s
whereabouts as he headed into the hospital to Jonas’ office. When
he was almost there, he reached out with his shifter senses. Even
with the door closed, Abbi’s sad voice floated into his ears. “But
he didn’t protect Matty like he promised.”

Shit, she was talking about him. Jonas
responded, “Please, Mrs. Quinn, reconsider. There is no one more
qualified than Geoffrey Hartley and his men to protect you and your
brother. I have known him and his family a long time, and I would
trust them with my own daughter.”

That was good to hear since Dante had just
rescued both his daughter and grandson from the hands of Alistair
Giannopoulos, an old Gargoyle with a huge grudge against Jonas.

“
I…I don’t know. He seems
nice, but I still don’t understand why he’s so interested in
helping me.”

“
It’s who he is. He and
his family are some of the most honorable, uh, people I know. It’s
in his blood. It should be the way of all of mankind, to help one
another, not tear each other down.”

After that, there was silence. Frey wanted
to barge into the office, pull Abbi into his arms, and reassure
her. Instead, he remained where he was: stone still against the
wall, waiting for her next words.

“
None of that matters
right now. I’m not leaving here until Matthew is
released.”

Frey expelled his breath. He had time,
probably not much, but time to set up a security detail for Abbi.
Matthew would be coming home with him.

The phone rang and Jonas excused himself to
answer it. When he hung up, he told her, “That does it for the
paperwork. Matthew is in room 1213. Let’s get you up there to see
him. We will have a security guard stationed outside of his room.
Other than hospital staff, nobody is allowed in to see Matthew
other than yourself, not even your husband. If I might suggest,
please allow Jasper to continue with the restraining order for both
you and Matthew.”

Frey didn’t hear a response. He could only
hope Abbi had nodded in affirmation. When the screech of a chair
being pushed back met his ears, he hurried away to call Urijah,
letting him know what room to guard. When that was taken care of,
he called Jasper, requesting that he or Dane come to the hospital
on the chance Abbi agreed to the restraining order. He knew he was
asking a lot of his fellow Clan members, but that’s what they did.
They were family and had each other’s backs.

Abbi was scared. She was putting things into
motion that could not be stopped. Trusting people she didn’t even
know. Granted, getting away from Troy was something she’d dreamed
about for years, but now that it was a possibility, she couldn’t
believe it might actually happen. After what the bastard had done
to Matthew, there was no way she could continue living with the
monster. Dr. Mooneyham assured her she was doing the right thing.
The doctor, who was walking beside her, spoke softly to the
employees he encountered along the way. He addressed them all by
name and with a smile. There was something calming about being in
his presence.

When they arrived at room 1213, there was a
huge man standing outside the door. She recognized him from the
gym. He was another one of Geoffrey’s friends. As he and Dr.
Mooneyham shook hands, he looked her way, “Abbi, good to see you
again.”

“
I’m sorry; I don’t recall
your name.”

“
Urijah. You may call me
Uri, if you wish. I am taking first shift watching over Matthew. In
the few days I’ve known your brother, I’ve become quite fond of the
boy. Please rest assured, I will allow no further harm to come to
him. To me, this is personal.” Uri placed a fist on his chest and
gently bowed his head. That was the second time he’d done that. His
accent came and went, but she was certain he wasn’t from around
there.

“
Abbi, I believe Matthew
has been waiting to see you. Let’s go on in,” the doctor drew her
attention away from the tall guard. She entered the room but
stopped short when she got a look at her brother. Her knees grew
weak at the battered image before her. Dr. Mooneyham wrapped an arm
around her waist, holding her upright. He whispered in her ear,
“Shh, he’s going to be fine. The bruises will fade. He will heal.
He needs you to be strong for him, okay?” Abbi nodded and steeled
her spine. She took a deep breath and sat down in the chair next to
the bed. She gently picked up Matthew’s hand and held
it.

Her brother’s eyes fluttered open. He saw
Abbi and his eyes teared up. “Abs,” he managed to squeak out.

“
Shh, don’t try to talk.
Just rest okay?” Abbi had to fight back her own tears that were
forming.

“
Water,” he
whispered.

Abbi grabbed the large plastic jug that was
full of ice and water and placed the straw to his lips. Matt sipped
just a little.

The doctor stepped closer to the bed.
“Matthew, I’m Dr. Mooneyham. I know you’re still groggy from the
pain medicine we’ve given you. I want you to rest for now. We will
keep you sedated for a while so the pain level isn’t too much.”

Matthew nodded and turned to Abbi. “I’m
sorry…”

Abbi couldn’t stop the tears. “Shh, Matty.
You have nothing to be sorry for. I’m the one who’s sorry. I should
have tried harder to get away from him. I promise you I’m doing
everything I can to make that happen now, okay? Please don’t worry
about it. You’re safe here now. Urijah is outside the door, and
Troy can’t get you in here.”

“
No, Abbi,” he said
glancing to the door and back to her, eyes wide. She turned to see
the guard leaning against the door frame, listening. He didn’t move
from his post, but he did speak, “Hey kid, no one’s getting past
me, I promise.” Matt nodded again as his eyes fluttered.

The doctor placed a hand on her shoulder.
“Abbi, your brother will be asleep for a while. We want to keep him
knocked out so he doesn’t move around too much. Why don’t we go
back to my office where we will have privacy?”

The doctor had already documented her
injuries. Now all that was left was to file the restraining order
and begin divorce paperwork. The decision to follow through on both
was easy now she’d seen Matthew’s face. She rose from the chair and
placed a soft kiss on his forehead. “I’m so sorry, Matty.” She
grabbed a couple of tissues from the box on the bedside table and
wiped her face. “I’m ready.”

Troy blew through a red
light. Oncoming traffic had to slam on their brakes to miss him.
“Fuck!” he cursed as he pounded his palm on the steering wheel.
Wrecking his truck was the last thing he needed right now.
Goddamnit! I’ve worked too hard and too long to
lose her now.
No, Troy would not lose
Abigail. He’d set his sights on her in ninth grade. It took a
while, but he finally wore her down. He was forced to take some
pretty drastic measures, but in the end they paid off. There was no
way all his sweat, planning, and deals with the devil would go down
the fucking drain now. If her punk ass brother had just told him
where Abbi had holed up the night before, none of this would be
happening. And who did that self-righteous doctor think he was,
keeping Abbi from talking to Troy? Granted, the man was big, but
Troy wasn’t afraid of him. Hell, he wasn’t afraid of anyone. He was
a cop, and his badge afforded him some privileges.

Gravel flew as he pulled into their
driveway. He threw the gearshift into park and cut the engine. He
needed a new plan. The earlier one would have worked if the doctor
hadn’t butted in. If he could have gotten Abigail alone for thirty
seconds, he would have convinced her to get her ass back home. If
he was right, Matthew would have to stay in the hospital at least a
day. Troy was pretty sure he heard some ribs cracking when he
kicked him. Maybe that would convince the kid to stay away from him
now. He never wanted the boy living with them in the first place,
but that stupid bitch Judy had to go and fucking overdose.