Ride Or Remember

CHAPTER 17

RYDER

She is fine.

Those three words were the only thing keeping me together tonight.

Standing on the hospital rooftop, I took another drag from my cigarette and exhaled slowly into the cold night air. The doctor’s words kept replaying in my head over and over again.

They had found an excessive amount of drugs in her system, confirming what I had already suspected when I discovered the empty drug wrappers scattered across her room. She had tried to end her life. First with the pills. Then by slipping beneath the water in the bathtub.

I drew another breath of smoke into my lungs before letting it out, fighting with everything I had not to let my thoughts wander back to the past.

“Ryder?”

I sniffed and turned at the sound of my name. My gaze briefly met Logan’s before shifting back to the city lights stretching endlessly below us.

“She’s stable now,” he said as he stepped beside me. “Hunter got in touch with one of her colleagues. I think his name is Marcus.”

I took another drag from my cigarette. “What does her colleague have to do with any of this?” I asked flatly.

He hesitated before answering.

“I think she was losing her grip before she tried to…” He released a tired sigh and rubbed the back of his neck. “Marcus said he found her on the rooftop at work. She was screaming at the top of her lungs, begging him to make the voices stop.”

My head snapped in his direction. “That bad?”

He nodded grimly.

“Yeah.” His eyes dropped to the ground for a moment before returning to mine. “She’s really f****d up in the head Ryder. We just didn’t take it seriously.”

I stared out at the glowing city beneath the dark sky, the cigarette burning slowly between my fingers.

Jesus Christ.

Running a hand through my hair, I let out a shaky breath. "Have you tried contacting her family?"

Logan shook his head. "She only moved to this city not too long ago. She doesn't have any family here."

She needs someone around her.

"What about friends?"

He shook his head again. "People at her office call her a lone wolf," he said quietly. "I don't think she has any close friends."

I nodded slowly, then tossed the cigarette to the ground and crushed it beneath my shoe.

"The doctor wants to speak with you," Logan mumbled. "I... kind of told him you were her fiancé so they'd let us stay with her tonight."

I gave a brief nod and turned toward the elevator without another word.

"Ryder!"

I stopped mid-step and looked back at him.

Logan's expression tightened."This isn't the same thing that happened six years ago," he said carefully.

Every muscle in my body went rigid.

"You didn't cause what happened back then," he continued. "And you didn't cause this either."

"Drop it," I growled.

"I know exactly what you're thinking," Logan said, ignoring my warning as he took a step closer. "I just don't want you listening to that voice in your head again. Don't let it drag you back into that dark place."

My jaw clenched.

“I said f*****g drop it!” I roared, the veins in my neck pulsing with anger. “Whatever is going on inside my head is none of your business!”

Without waiting for a response, I spun around and stalked toward the elevator. I jabbed the button repeatedly, my patience hanging by a thread as I waited for the doors to open.

The moment they did, I stepped inside and watched the doors slide shut, cutting Logan off completely.

The truth was, there were some ghosts that never stopped haunting you.

No matter how many years had passed.

No matter how hard you tried to bury them.

****

By the time I sat across the doctor, I had managed to force my expression back into something resembling calm.

I just wanted this conversation over with so I could return to Liora’s room.

“How long has she been taking this medication?” the doctor asked, glancing down at the notes in his hand.

“I don’t know,” I answered honestly.

His eyes lifted from the file and settled on me. “I was informed that you’re her fiancé.”

I met his gaze. “That doesn’t mean I knew she was taking medication.”

The doctor tilted his head slightly, studying me with obvious skepticism before looking back at the documents.

“Well, the drugs she overdosed on aren’t medications you can simply buy over the counter,” he explained. “They require a prescription, which means she’s under the care of a medical professional.”

A doctor.

The thought immediately dragged me back to Hampson.

I should find her a new one.

That bastard had nearly pulled her into a murder investigation.

“You need to contact her therapist,” the doctor continued. “Find out whether she’s still attending her appointments. If she stopped going, it’s important that she resumes treatment and receives consistent support.”

I glanced toward the office door, my thoughts already drifting back to Liora lying unconscious in her hospital bed.

“I understand,” I said with a nod.

The doctor placed the file down on the desk.

“Recovery isn’t just about surviving tonight,” he said. “She’ll need ongoing care, support, and people who pay attention to the warning signs.”

“Yes, Doctor,” I replied quietly.

“I understand that you are busy with your own life, but I need you to make sure she is not left alone. At all. She is clearly suicidal. If you cannot stay with her yourself, then you need to arrange for someone who can.”

I gave a short nod. “I hear you.”

He slid a prescription slip across the desk.

“Get these from the pharmacy,” he continued. “She has trouble sleeping, so these will help with that. She is also malnourished, so this should help improve her appetite.”

I picked up the paper and quickly scanned the list of medications.

“Is that all?” I asked.

He nodded. “That will be all.”

I stood up, pushed the chair back, and walked out of his office without another word.

At the pharmacy, I collected the medication and left immediately, my mind already back in Liora’s room.

When I returned to her private ward, Logan was seated beside her.

He straightened up the moment I walked in. “What did the doctor say?”

I closed the door behind me. “We need to find her a new therapist,” I said flatly. “And clear the guest room at my house.”

Logan blinked at me like he didn’t hear me properly. “What guest room?”

I looked at him, unimpressed. “The guest room in my house, Logan.”

His eyes widened slightly. “You’re bringing her to your apartment?”

My jaw tightened. “I didn’t stutter,” I hissed. “Get someone to clean the damn guest room.”