Chapter 54
847 Words
One week later
They were all sitting in the hospital, waiting to hear that Emma was out of surgery. The mood in the room was tense; they had all been taken aback when Emma had fully explained the risks of the transplant. All this time, they had thought that once the donor was found, Emma would be in the clear. They had had no idea about the possible post-transplant complications, and they hadn’t known that her body may well reject the donor marrow. They hadn’t known that the transplant may kill her, kill her faster than the cancer itself. But without the transplant, she had no chance at all – so here they were, waiting.
Jim got to his feet and they all looked at him.
“I’m going to get some coffee,” he said quietly. “You all want some?”
They nodded and then Kat got up too.
“I’ll come with you,” she said. “I feel like I need some air.”
“Sure,” he said. “Let’s go.”
Dean barely heard the conversation. He was sitting in his chair, staring at his hands and trying to remember to breathe. The thought that Emma may not ever be in his arms again was firmly in his mind, and he was fighting a rising sense of panic.
Chris leaned over and touched his shoulder. Dean started and looked at his friend.
“We’ll know soon,” Chris said. “It won’t be much longer, man. Just hang in there, OK?”
“Yeah,” Dean said.
Chris shifted his gaze to Jenny. She was sitting next to him and she looked scared to death.
“Hey, you OK?” he said.
Her light blue eyes were teary. “Not really.”
He longed to touch her too, but he just had the feeling that it would be a bad idea. Something about Jenny reminded Chris of a wounded animal, and he was sure that if he reached out to her, she’d turn and run. He settled for smiling at her and was relieved when she tried to smile back.
Liv’s cell phone beeped and she took it out of her purse. She read something and her face turned white. Across the room, Dallas sat very still, studying her. It was clear to him that something had upset her.
Liv stood up. “I have to answer this, guys. Be right back, OK?”
They all nodded again, not even looking up at her. Dallas watched Olivia leave the room and walk into the small kitchen down the hall. Without a word, he followed her. He stood in the doorway, observing her quietly.
She was staring at her phone again, her eyes wide. She glanced up at him and he blinked when he saw her beautiful face: the look on it was terror mingled with disgust.
“Olivia?” Dallas stepped into the room with her. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing,” she said, making a move to hide the phone behind her back.
“Bullshit,” he said, and his voice stopped her movements. “What is it?”
She hesitated, then she handed him the phone. Dallas glanced down at it, and was shocked to see a close-up picture of a p***s ejaculating. Under it, someone had written‘I’LL c*m IN YOUR FACE f*****g SLUT. SUCK AND SWALLOW w***e.
“What the f**k, Olivia?”
She looked shaken, but was trying to stay calm. “It happens all the time, Dallas. I get obscene texts and e-mails. It just – it comes with the job.”
“The hell it does.” He was furious, and he fought to keep his tone pitched low. “You’re going to report this, right? You have a security detail?"
“Yeah, of course. They know all about this guy already.”
He paused. “What? How many other texts has he sent?”
“I don’t know… maybe eighty over the past two months.”
Dallas stared at her. “Eighty? And they’ve all been like this?”
“Oh, no. At first they were just texts, and not even very filthy ones. Just more – I don’t know. Insulting, I suppose.”
“OK. Then they got more aggressive?”
“Yeah. And s****l. Then he started attaching pictures.”
“And all this time, nobody has figured out a way to stop him?”
“Well, I had my PA Nigel change my cell number when it first started, but whoever it is has managed to get ahold of my new number somehow.” She twisted her fingers. “I keep meaning to get another phone, but Emma has been my priority and Greg says it’s nothing to worry about, anyway. It’s just some asshole annoying me.”
“Who the f**k is this Greg? Because he sounds like a moron to me.”
Her eyes flashed. “Greg Wallace.”
Dallas groaned. “s**t, Olivia. From Blue Star Security?”
She bristled. “Yeah. So what?"
- Writer
