Page 284 of Secrets Hidden In The Glass

It still hurt him most that Matthew had been involved in the whole thing—that a good man had gotten caught up in a no-win situation. He’d covered up a crime. All along he’d known what had happened to Samantha Fletcher, but tonight he’d saved Callie’s life. “Accessory after the fact. It’s possible neither of them will do time, but it’s hard to say how things will go.”

“So they might not end up in prison, but Matthew’s going to lose his medical license and you can bet your ass Trace is going to cut Evan out of the business.”

No one was a winner in this mess. A terrible accident and several stupid decisions afterward had cost a woman her life and a daughter her mother, and left a prominent family in ruins. “You’re probably right.”

“And my dad?”

He clenched his jaw, holding Brad’s gaze. How did he tell his best friend that his father was more than likely going away for a long, long time? On the ambulance ride over to the clinic, Thomas had confessed to Dad that in the wee hours of Monday morning he’d shot Lucky first, forced Bob to write the suicide note, then took Bob’s life before he finally ended Lucky’s. “He murdered Bob and Lucky—helped cover up a crime. They’ll probably throw out his misdemeanor offenses here on the island, but he’s most likely looking at murder one.”

“The bastard.” Brad gained his feet, laughing humorlessly. “Good ol’ Mayor Sanderson. How many times did you hear him tell me not to screw up and disappoint our namesake? And he ruined it. They ruined it—fucked up all of our lives. Uncle Derek, my mom, Mini, and Lily…”

Gwen and Mom were over with all of them right now, doing what they could to comfort a house full of shocked, grieving friends—a family officially in shambles. “I wish there was something I could say to make this better, but you know I’m not a bullshitter.”

“I’m not looking for anything but the truth.”

“I’m going to do everything I can to keep the pieces I have control over quiet and out of the press, but it’s not going to be pretty, man. I’d say it’s probably bound to be pretty fucking bad.”

Brad steamed out a long breath. “I think I’m going to have to take a leave of absence from the hospital—come back here and help Mom—keep the clinic going until I can find someone to take over.”

Molly stirred, blinking open her eyes.

“Hey.” Brad moved closer to her side, sitting on the bed again. “How are you feeling?”

She winced, reaching up to touch her injury. “Like I got pistol-whipped.”

He nodded, leaning in to shine a light in her eyes. “Any dizziness or nausea?”

“A little dizzy.”

“What’s the pain like—scale of one to ten?”

“Four, maybe. It’s not too bad since you gave me that medicine.”

He tucked the blankets tighter around her. “You’re warm enough?”

She nodded carefully. “When can I go home?”

“In the morning—to Gwen’s or Nate’s—but I want to keep an eye on you for the next several hours.”

“I’m fine.”

“We’re going to make sure you stay that way.”

Mac came to the curtain. “Brad, I’m sorry to interrupt, but I think Thomas might need something. He’s mostly out of it, but he’s making a bit of a fuss.”

Brad stood. “I’ll be right there.”

“Wait,” Molly said, grabbing Brad’s arm as he turned to leave. “I’m sorry.” She slid her palm down his coat and captured his hand. “I’m so sorry about your family.”

He swallowed. “We need to—we’re going to have to find some time to talk.” He leaned over and pressed a kiss to the top of her head, then turned and left, closing the curtain behind him.

Molly sighed, meeting Nate’s gaze. “Do you think he’ll be all right?”

He nodded. “Yeah, I think so. Everything’s sort of falling apart. He’s going to need us. They’re all going to need us.” He reached for her hand. “I’m glad you’re okay.”

“I’m glad I’m okay—that Callie’s okay too.” She squeezed his fingers. “I love you, Nate.”

“I love you too.” He winked. “Go back to sleep so I can wake you up and piss you off in an hour.”

She smiled, closing her eyes.

Nate settled his head against the chair, nuzzling Callie and holding her closer. The sun would be up in just a few hours. The holiday would be over and he’d have a damn mess on his hands, but right now that didn’t matter. His family was safe; the love of his life was heating his neck with her breath right here in his arms. Everything else was manageable after that.