Rush of Innocence (Rush Series #1) (16 page)

***

The next morning, she groggily made
her way down the stairs. Her father was sitting at the dining room table
reading a newspaper and eating breakfast.

He
smiled gently when he saw her, and carefully folded his newspaper. “How are you
feeling this morning?”

“Fine,”
she answered as she poured herself a cup of coffee.

“I
hate to bring this up again…” he began.

“Then
don’t,” she said, interrupting him, knowing he was about to bring up protection
again.

He
inhaled deeply and let it out slowly. “Trinity, you’re being unreasonable,” he
said in a tone normally reserved for those who were slow-witted.

“They
weren’t after me, Father. They could have gotten me… or hurt
me
,
if that had been their intention. But it looked like they only wanted to ransack
my room. I’m not saying it makes any sense. But I don’t want my movements
monitored.”

He
sat in quiet contemplation for a long moment. “Would you at least consider two
things? Think about what your relationship with Drayton has brought into your
life, and then think about what might happen the next time someone gets close
enough to hurt you. You might not be so lucky.”

“I’ll
think about it,” she said as she rose from the table without eating.

Needing
to get away from the oppressiveness of her father’s house, she changed into
jeans and slipped out through the kitchen’s entry. She walked down to the
Hot Spot
, grabbed a coffee, and once
again called for a taxi to pick her up.

She
had the taxi take her to downtown Savannah and drop her off there. She walked
around the historical district for a couple hours before finally making her way
to Forsyth Park. As the weather was becoming warmer, and more people were
beginning to venture outside, the park was littered with several groupings of
people. She sat on a bench closest to the cast iron fountain for which the park
had been named. She wondered if those who’d sculpted the fountain in 1858 would
have ever guessed that it would eventually become one of the most popular attractions
in Savannah… or if they’d even have cared about that. She’d walked the 30-acre
park many times, and from where she sat, she could see the monuments erected to
the Confederate Soldier, the Marine Corps Monument, and the Fragrant Garden for
the Blind.

Being
here soothed her. It reminded her that time marches on and things that seemed
so difficult today would eventually just fade away, just as surely as the
vibrant blooms on the Azalea bushes fell away. Her father’s words about Rush
came back to her. Rush made her happy… made her complete. She liked what he’d
brought to her life. She would admit her father had a point about not being so
lucky a third time.

Restlessness
settled over her. She knew she was going to have to agree to a security detail
and she hated it. She ran a tired hand over her face. She looked around at the
others in the park and wondered if their lives were as complicated as hers. She
wished Rush was with her. She always felt safer with him… less alone. She rose
from the bench and began walking the grounds of the park. The day was beautiful
and the sun beat down, warming her chilled body. Her stomach grumbled and she
remembered she’d not eaten breakfast. She turned down a side street to cut
through to the food district located on the other side of the park.

She
walked with her head bowed as she thought about her paintings once more. They
would have meant little to anyone but her. It was if they’d been destroyed to
deliberately hurt her. But who would do that? She was almost halfway down the
side street when she heard movement behind her. A group of three men dressed in
biker gear seemed to appear from out of nowhere. She sucked in a deep breath
and turned back quickly only to find her path blocked by three more men dressed
similarly to those behind her. She swung back around and those behind her were
moving towards her quickly. She whirled around in a circle trying to find a way
out, but didn’t see anything.

“What
do you want?” she screamed at them.

Before
she could say another word, one man with a long, scruffy beard reached out and
punched her solidly in the face. Pain as she’d never experience before exploded
in her head at the punch and a warm trickle of blood began to pour from her
nose. She blinked frantically as her eyes watered involuntarily against the
intense pain. She raised a hand to swipe at the tears.

“Why?”
she began as the same man threw another punch which this time connected to her
jaw. She stumbled against the blow and fell hard. She saw a swift thrust of a
boot, and stars exploded in her head as the boot made contact. Her head lolled
as darkness claimed her.

She
woke to a blinding light being flashed into her eyes. She tried to close her
eyes shut against the pain which seem to encompass her entire body. But the pain
in her head was the worst.

Fear
flooded her body and she forced her eyes open. She was marginally comforted to
see the familiar uniform of an EMT sitting above her.

“What
happened?” she asked groggily.

“You
were attacked. Do you know your name?” the EMT asked.

“Trinity
Grace,” she whispered.

“Is
there anyone you want us to contact?”

“My father.
Arthur Grace. His number is on my cellphone in my purse,” she mumbled.

The
EMT looked around. “I don’t see a purse, ma’am,” he said.

A robbery?
Really?
That’s what she needed. Could things get any worse?
“My father is Judge Grace,” she said as she recited their home number.

She
groaned as the stretcher she’d been placed on bumped towards the waiting
ambulance. Once loaded into the vehicle, the EMT began asking a series of
questions:
Where is the pain? Can you
follow my fingers? Can you take a deep breath?

Chapter 8

Her father, of course, completely
freaked about her attack. While she’d refused to have armed guards at her door,
she did relent to accepting protection from Alex and his team. She’d finally
begged her father to leave. She just couldn’t take any more. Her injuries
weren’t as severe as they could have been and mainly consisted of severe
bruising and a minor concussion. Her nose had been broken but was now reset.
Her doctor promised her she’d wake with what he termed ‘raccoon eyes’.
Great
, she’d thought. He’d given her
pills for the pain, but she’d put off taking them until she’d had an
opportunity to talk with Rush. As it was the weekend, and she didn’t know his
cellphone number, as it had been programmed into her stolen cellphone, she had
no way to reach him. She just had to wait until he tried to contact her. A
nurse came in to set up an intravenous drip, which, despite her intentions,
soon had Trinity drifting off to sleep.

She
woke confused at first to where she was until the aches and pains of her body
brought it back to her. She sat up slowly in the now near-dark room, and winced
at the sharp stabs of pain which seemed to explode in her head.

She
was reaching towards the water pitcher on the small rolling table, when a warm
masculine voice said, “Here, let me.”

She
turned her head too quickly and couldn’t suppress the moan. Rush was standing
by her bed looking down at her with concerned eyes.

“Hi,
baby,” he said softly as he brushed hair out of her face.

Tear
sprang into her eyes at seeing him. She attempted to smile but the movement
made her nose hurt.

“Oh,
baby. Please be still. What can I get you? Do you need a nurse?
Water?
Medication?”

“Just
the medication and water, please,” she mumbled.

He
moved around the bed and poured the water into a cup with a straw. He shook the
two pills into his palm from the cup on her tray. He moved back to where he’d
been and helped her take them. He pulled his chair up close to the bed and held
her hand between his.

“Are
you okay?” he asked.

“I’m
fine. It looks worse than it is,” she assured him.

“Do
you know what happened?”

She
told him about walking through the side street and being attacked by the men.

“Oh, baby.
I’m so sorry,” he murmured.

“Do I
look hideous?” she asked.

He
smiled tenderly. “No, you look beautiful.”

She
wanted to roll her eyes, but found they were growing heavy from the medication.

Mumbling,
she said, “Someone destroyed my paintings.”

He
blinked rapidly at her words trying to understand. “You were carrying your
paintings?”

She
struggled to keep her eyes open. “No at home, in my room. They slashed them…
last night.”

He
rose swiftly and moved to the only window in the room.

“Don’t
leave me,” she slurred.

He
immediately came back to sit beside her and stroked her hair. “I won’t, baby.
I’ll stay. Get some rest. Okay?”

“Okay,”
she said as she began to fade out.

“I’ll
protect you. I promise you’ll be safe…,” he whispered.

She
drifted asleep to his strange words.

She
was forced to stay in the hospital for two more days. During which time, her
father was her only visitor outside of the police and Alex and his team. By the
second day, she was getting frantic that Rush seemed to have drop off the face
of the planet. She tried to contact him at his office, but his direct line went
straight to voicemail. His secretary told her he was tied up in meetings all
day, but she’d surely give him the message she’d called.

It
was late on the second day when she finally talked her doctor into letting her
go. She had to find out what had happened to Rush. She was panicked, and not
sure why. But she had a very bad feeling.
Ringo
was
standing outside her room when she’d finally dressed, called for a taxi, and
signed the necessary release paperwork.

They
were descending in the elevator when she said, “I won’t need you anymore
today.”

Ringo’s
shaved head didn’t
so
much as flinch at her words.
“Sorry, ma’am.
You don’t get to make that decision. I don’t
work for you.”

“Well,
here’s the thing,
Ringo
. I am an adult, and if you
attempt to follow me, I’ll call the police. You have no legal right to refuse
my request. Am I clear?”

“Yes.
I hear you. But let me be clear. The moment I step through those doors, my
first call will be to your father, who is in charge.”

“I
don’t care who you call,” she said angrily.

The
elevator doors opened and Trinity stepped swiftly to the waiting cab. She knew
the cabbie must have found it odd for someone to be wearing sunglasses at nine
o’clock at night, but she didn’t care. She gave him Rush’s address and sat back
wearily in the seat. Why had Rush just vanished? Had her father gotten to him?
She’d never forgive him… never!

Her
heart began to pound in her chest as she neared Rush’s house. What if he turned
her away? She was thankful her father had left her money for incidentals during
her stay in the hospital or she’d have no way to pay for the taxi. At least
this way, she could send the taxi away. She’d make Rush deal with her. She’d
just given leave of the taxi when a thought occurred to her – what if he wasn’t
alone? She swallowed hard at the pain of the thought.

With
trembling hands, she rang his doorbell and waited. After what seemed an
excruciating amount of time, the light in the entry sprang on. She blinked
behind her sunglasses. Slowly, the door opened and there he stood, beautiful as
ever. Her heart twisted in her chest at the sight of him. Now that she was
here, she didn’t know what to say.

“Trinity?
What
are you doing here? Shouldn’t you be in the hospital?” he asked.

“May
I come in?” she asked.

He
seemed to hesitate and again her heart squeezed brutally in her chest.
“Of course.”

He
moved aside and allowed her to enter. She took a quick glance around the room,
relieved not to see anyone there… at least not in the living room.

“Is
everything okay?” he asked.

“Well,
I guess if Mohammad won’t come to the mountain…” she trailed off.

He
exhaled heavily and walked past her as he rubbed a hand across his face.
“Please have a seat. Do you want something to drink… to eat?”

“A
glass of wine would be good.”

“Can
you mix wine with your meds?” he asked.

“I’m
not taking any. I felt I needed a straight head.”

“Why?
What’s going on?” he asked.

“I
think that should be my question.”

Instead
of answering, he moved to the kitchen and reappeared after a minute with two
glasses of wine. He handed her one before moving to sit a little ways down the
couch from her. The gulf between them seemed vast. She swallowed against the
pain. She took a fortifying drink of the wine before setting the glass on the
table. She moved close enough to him on the couch to reach out a shaky hand and
place it on his arm. He flinched at her touch and she jerked her hand away as
if she’d been burned. His rejection of her touch injured her far worse than any
attacker ever could.

More
emotional than she intended, she said, “Please tell me what’s going on?”

He
stared down at his glass for a long time. With a decisive thrust of his jaw, he
met her gaze straight on. “I can’t see you anymore.”

Her
breathing and her heart stopped at his words. “What?” she straggled out.

“I
don’t want to see you anymore. What we had was fun while it lasted, but I think
its time for us to part ways.”

Tears
began to streak down her cheeks and she removed her sunglasses to swipe at
them. “Does this have anything to do with my father?”

His
eyes flashed up to hers and he flinched at her discolored eyes. “No, it does
not.”

“I
don’t understand. Did I do something wrong? Is there someone else?” Pain lanced
through her chest and she was barely able to get the words out of her mouth.

He
sighed deeply and stood. “No, you didn’t and no there isn’t. We both knew this
would run its course.”

“But all the flowers… all the gifts… this past week.
Did it mean nothing?” she cried.

Without
turning around, he gave a wry, almost harsh laugh.
“Oh,
Trinity.
You have a lot to learn. This is how the game is played. If you
had more experience you’d know that. Let’s not make this more than what it was.
I had fun, you had fun, but now it’s over.”

She
felt as if he’d kicked her in the stomach. She slumped back down on the couch,
her legs unable to support her.

“Please
don’t do this. I can’t bear it.” She buried her face in her hands and sobbed.
“Please. I’ll do anything,” she begged.

He
was silent for a long moment. In an emotionless voice, he said, “I’ll have
Radcliff take you home. Goodbye, Trinity.”

Without
another word, he left the room.