THE BILLIONAIRE'S BARGAIN

CHAPTER 32

*****

The rhythmic sound of hurrying feet echoes against the polished linoleum floors of the precinct. Officer Martinez felt the weight of an exhausting day pulling at his shoulders as he headed towards the exit with Officer Riley and Officer Sam. They had just finished a tense raid on a known drug den, which officer Leo left them to handle. After they were done in the precinct, they decided to head over to the hospital where detective Ling was operated on.

As they stepped outside,Martinez phone buzzes violently in his pocket. He pulls it out, the screen lighting up with a message from Leo that stops his heart from racing:

“ How was it? Oh .. Detective Ling is stable now, her surgery went well.”

“Did you hear that?” Leo exclaimed, his voice carrying excitement.

Riley’s eyes widened. “What? Is she okay?”

“Her surgery was successful. But I don't think she is able to entertain guest, do I'll go see her alone”, Martinez said.

“We need to go see her too, we won't cause trouble. She is like my senior sister”, said Riley.

Sam nods, his own expression grave.

“We should get there quickly. She needs to know we’re with her.”

As they piled into Martinez cruiser, the air inside felt thick. Martinez ignites the engine, and the sound of tires on asphalt became their anthem as they made their way to the hospital.

Martinez focuses on the road ahead,

“ Do you think she will be okay?”, Riley ask, glancing at Martinez who was so focus on driving.

Martinez grips the steering wheel tighter,

“ She has to be. Leo said the surgery went well, we just need to get there”.

Sam , sitting at the back seat, nods fervently, but couldn't hide the worry etches on his face.

“ Are we going to tell her that we caught one the men?”, Sam ask.

“ No! If she finds out, she is only going to act aggressively without thinking same with Leo. Let just get the information we need first before we tell them. Am I clear?”, Martinez orders, his eyes so fixed on the road.

They both responded by nodding their heads and glancing at each other.

When they arrived at Hospital, Martinez parks hastily in the lot and they hurried inside. The atmosphere was starkly different from what they were used to — sterile, quiet, almost haunting. The trio approached the front desk, where a receptionist looked up from her screen.

“Hi, we’re here to see Detective Ling,” Martinez said, urgency lacing his voice.

The receptionist, an older woman with kind eyes and a calm demeanor, hesitated for a moment,

“ Please identify yourself, who are you to the patient?”.

“ Detective Martinez, her colleague”, Martinez responded, recalling that he didn't come alone.

“ This two boys are with me too, we're all her colleagues”, he concludes.

She quickly glances at her screen, her face unreadable.

“ Someone else is with her now..”,

“ Yes, that should be officer Leo”, Martinez responded, cutting through the woman's words”.

“She’s in room 304. The surgery was successful, and she’s now recovering. You can go in, but please be respectful of her situation.”

Martinez let out a breath he didn’t know he had been holding, feeling a glimmer of hope.

“Thank you,” he replied, motioning for his fellow officers to follow him.

They walked through the bright yet sterile hallway, the fluorescent lights flickering slightly above them. With every step, Martinez and the others felt a mix of anxiety.

As they reached room 304, Martinez hesitated at the door, taking a moment to compose himself. He glanced at Riley and Sam, whose faces mirrored his own mix of concern and anticipation. They exchanged silent but reassuring nods before Martinez pushes the door open.

Inside, the scene was heart-wrenching yet hopeful. Detective Ling lays in a hospital bed, her normally vibrant face pale and framed by disheveled hair. Bandages wrapped around her upper arm and medical devices beeped softly nearby. Despite the chaos of hospital life around her, she seemed peaceful, as if the weight of the world had been temporarily lifted while officer Leo sat beside her sleeping.

As they stepped in, Martinez approaches her bedside cautiously.

“Leo”, he whispers, unsure of how to break the spell of vulnerability that surrounded them.

He stirs slightly, his eyes fluttering open. Though his gaze was unfocused at first, it slowly sharpens as he recognizes Martinez and his fellow officers. A weak smile found its way to his lips.

“Martinez? You guys are her already”,he croaks, his voice hoarse.

“Yeah, it’s me,” he replied, feeling a surge of relief. “We decided to rush immediately. The surgery… we heard it went well”.

“Yes,” he said , raising himself from the edge where he laid his head.

They all felt relieved, plus seeing Ling resting.

“ We were scared you know. How Ling got shot at the raid, to be honest it felt like she was their target. You know how she is, always want to find out answers. And for the first time, this happened”, Martinez spoke, his eyes fixed on Ling.

Riley steps forward, his presence a comforting one.

“Even after it, she is one tough one. Sometimes, I get jealous of how a lady can be stronger than a man”.

“ She's one tough cookie. I knew she’d pull through,” he assures, trying to lighten the mood.

“ Let talk outside guys, we don't want to wake her up”, Leo suggested, rising from his sit and taking the lead.

They all walked out of the room into the corridor.

“ Is there something wrong?”, Martinez questions, seeing the mood of Leo changed so fast.

“ Like you said earlier, Ling must have been their target. That means this whole operation was just planned by those thugs”, Leo answered, his face full of anger.

Riley and Sam just stood there, watching the scene between Leo and Martinez.

“ Do you think Leo is going to blame Martinez for this, in that case he's right”, Riley said, whispering to Sam who stood beside him.

“ Shh, do you want them to hear you. Now is not the right time to blame anyone. Or else we will be blaming Ling instead, she was the one that insisted on tagging along this operation”, Sam whispers back to Riley.

“ What are you guys blabbing about”, Martinez raises his voice towards Riley and Sam.

“ Now that fell into their trap, we didn't even get any evidence, talk more of capturing any of their men”, Leo raises his voice in a low manner towards Martinez.

“ We…,

“ We will catch them and make them pay for what they did to detective Ling. They won't get away with this”, Sam said, disrupting Riley from completing his sentence.

Martinez places his right hand on Leo's shoulders, trying to calm him down and ensuring that this case would be solved. He urges that they head back to Ling's room without talking about this.

Entering into the room, they saw Ling sitting up in the bed. They rush towards her immediately,

“ What should I do with you? Why are you sitting up, instead of lying on the bed as normal people do”, Leo scolds her .

“ I feel like a dead person by just lying on the bed”, Ling explains, her eyes surprised to them.

“ By the way, why are you guys still here? Shouldn't you be home by this time”, Ling questions, giving each of them a stare.

“ What do mean we should be in the house”, Riley whispers, his head down.

“ How do expect us to sleep as you're in the hospital. It kills us”, Sam added.

“ So, you're telling me that I have good friends, even when I’ve been shot,” Ling jokes lightly, her phrasing causing a muffled chuckle from Sam, who had drifted to the back of the room.

Martinez heart warms at the interaction, but his mind couldn't shake the gravity of the situation.

“We’re glad you’re alive,” he said earnestly, leaning closer so she could see the sincerity in his eyes.

“ It’s my fault that you're in this situation. I can't imagine losing one of the strongest people I know.”

“I’ll be back on the streets before you know it,” Ling promises, her determination as fierce as it had always been. “This won’t stop me.”

Just then, the door swung open, and an older nurse strolled in, her smile warm, yet professional. “Detective Ling! Good to see you awake. How are we feeling?” she asked, approaching the bedside with a clipboard in hand.