I’m on the phone when my little sister comes storming into my office like a tornado on steroids.
“Kat is really sick,” she shouts, completely ignoring the fact I’m busy.
“I’ll call you back,” I say to the asshole I was talking with so I can give her my full attention.
“You need to get her to the hospital. Now.”
“Like fuck I do. What the hell do you think you’re doing coming into my office —”
“She needs a doctor,” she shouts back at me.
I cross my arms over my chest and glare at her. “So the two of you can plan another escape attempt?”
“You know, I would never have done that if I’d known she was pregnant. Dante, I’m not kidding around. She says she has something her mom had. Hyper gravity or something?”
“She’s a goddamn nurse. She’s baffling you with medical nonsense so you’ll fall for her bullshit.”
“She’s not eating. That can’t be good for the baby.”
“She’ll eat when she’s hungry,” I say, picking up my cell to make another call.
“Dante, please just come see her for yourself.”
“For fuck’s sake!” I pocket my cell and follow my little sister up to Kat’s new bedroom. At least I can put an end to this nonsense so I can get back to work.
When I walk into the room, Kat is propped up in bed with some pillows.
“I sat her up so she wouldn’t choke if she was sick again,” Joey whispers, and I roll my eyes. I’ve never known anyone be able to fool my kid sister so easily.
“Kat?” I snap as I draw closer to her.
She’s pale, but then she would be if she’s refusing to eat. Her lips are cracked and dry. She’s wearing one of my t-shirts and that rattles me more than I care to admit. Part of her plan, no doubt, but I can also see she’s lost weight. Nothing so far that can’t be explained away by her refusal to eat though.
“Kat?” I say again as I sit on the bed beside her.
Her eyelids flicker, but she doesn’t focus on me.
“You need to eat and drink something.”
“Okay,” she mumbles sleepily, a goofy smile on her face.
“See,” I say to Joey who is staring at Kat with concern.
I take the bottle of water from the night stand and unscrew the cap. Holding it to her lips, I play along with her little game, if only to prove that I’m right. “I’m gonna give you some water, okay?”
“Hmm,” she mumbles, and I tip the bottle, allowing some water to spill out. She swallows greedily, and I allow her some more before I pull the bottle away.
I look up at Joey. “I told you it was all…”
But before I can finish that sentence, Kat groans loudly and throws up the mouthful of water I just gave her. Her head rolls back against the pillows and her eyes close again.
Fuck!
“No, I told you, asshole!” Joey snaps.
“Go tell Maximo to get the car. We’re taking her to the ER.”
Joey runs out of the room and I scoop Kat into my arms. She murmurs softly, but her body is limp and far lighter than it was just a week ago. I press a soft kiss on her forehead.
“I’m sorry, kitten. I’ve got you now.” The guilt of leaving her to rot in this room almost overwhelms me. If anything happens to her or our baby, I will never forgive myself. I don’t care if Kat hates me right now, or if I can’t trust her. I will never let her go.
