“I need you to find Patti, you have her info right?”
“I’m on it.”
I wasn’t sure what I was going to do to her or them; all I could see was Carrie. She’d been prodded and poked a fuck of a lot in the last few weeks and I wasn’t too sure how much more she could stand, she’d already passed her breaking point and this shit might just set her back. Fuck if I’d let that happen.
Her attending physician was now explaining her condition to her and I since the Captain had to leave to get to the station.
“She’s fine there’s no trauma, looks like he didn’t get any further than knocking her out there’re some scratches on her cheeks and hands most likely from being carried through the bushes but other than that she’s none the worse for wear. Now you said she was just released from hospital a few short weeks ago, maybe we should....”
“She’s not staying here.” That much I was sure of, she’d be lucky if I let her out of my damn sight ever again.
He seemed like he wanted to argue but my hard glare settled the matter. He just shrugged and left the room.
“I’ll be back soon baby, I’m going to send mom in here in a minute, don’t leave here until I come back for you.”
She grabbed my shirt and refused to let go.
“Where........?”
“Ssh, I’ll be back soon, I don’t want you to worry okay, everything’s going to be alright.” I kissed her, one hard, short kiss and left before I couldn’t.
I went outside the door where my mom and sister were waiting.
“Mom stay with her.”
“Son where are you going?”
“I’ll be back.”
“Joshua.”
I grabbed her and kissed the top of her head while hugging her.
“I’ll be fine mom don’t worry, just watch over my girl ‘til I get back.”
She called after me a couple times but I didn’t look back.
I called James on the way to the Rover.
“You find that bitch yet?”
“I was just about to call you, she’s in Chelsea at a hotel, at least that’s what the last transaction on her Amex shows.
“Which one?”
He gave me the name of a high-end boutique hotel plus Patti’s room number.
It would take me a little more than an hour to get there if I drove the speed limit; I made it in half the time.
I didn’t stop at the front desk, just walked towards the bank of elevators like I belonged there, it’s amazing what designer wear and a nice appearance can achieve.
On the fifth floor I walked to her room and being careful to stay out of view of the peephole I knocked.
I could hear movement from inside, footsteps approaching the door.
“Who is it?”
“Room service.”
“I didn’t order any fucking.......”
She made the universal mistake that most people make, she took the safety off, and half opened the door.
I pushed hard against it knocking it into her face and throwing her back into the room.
Her precious face was bleeding, her lip split, her nose gushing blood.
“You bastard.” Her hands went to her face.
Her words were barely legible.
“Did you think you would get away with this shit?”
I advanced on her as she retreated towards the middle of the room.
“How do you know Travis?”
“I don’t know any Travis what are you talking about?” She ran to the standing mirror and checked the damage.
“Look what you did to my face.......”
The vain bitch was more worried about her appearance than the reason I was here.
“Dyson already talked so you might as well come clean before I break your fucking neck, no one saw me come in here, it’ll be no skin off my nose to end you right here.”
“Matthew.....” She backed up even farther as she held a shirt to her bleeding face.
“Matthew? Do you really think my brother would go against me for you? See that’s where you fucked up, you never understood our family even after all this time.
You thought you could talk shit about my girl in front of him and it’d be cool because we were on the outs, what you didn’t know and could never understand is, she’s in, she’s always been in, my family knew that even if you didn’t. You were never in, my mother hates your fucking guts, she’s always seen through you, and so have I. Funny thing, she took one look at Carrie and knew she was the one, she fits into our family like she was born there.”
“You’re full of shit, you’re just saying that to piss me off, why would Margaret choose that little nobody over me, I’m beautiful, I’m smart and I come from a great family....”
“You think any of that really matters, what the fuck do we need with your money, we’ve got more money than we can spend in ten lifetimes, as for beauty and smarts we both know Carrie has you beat in both. That’s part of your problem isn’t it, that she’s so effortlessly beautiful while you have to work so hard for it, who cares about this shit, what I want to know is how you know Travis and how you set it up for a rapist to kidnap my girl?”