I stirred in my sleep. The faint sounds of constant beeping awakening my senses. I moved a little then stilled gasping lightly at the pain that surrounded my entire body. I felt like I had been in a car crash.
I opened one eye at a time, allowing them to adjust to the burning lights above me. Did I die? Was this the light to heaven?
"Emily?" A voice sounded from beside me, a voice I knew very well.
Was my mind taunting me? Was I having visions of my life before I left this earth? Was my life playing in a flashback before my eyes?
"Open you eyes baby, your ok." The voice gently urged me again.
I opened my eyes from slits to a more fuller stance, the bright light shining above me from a ceiling light. I looked down to realise I was in a bed, cables connected to my arms and a machine to my left beeping away.
I turned to my right and I stilled. I couldn't have been dead because Grey was there, he was holding my hand and I could feel the warmth of his skin. I was here, I was alive.
"Your really here?" I whispered as tears welled up in my eyes causing him to frown.
He looked like shit to say the least but he still looked delicious. Dark stubble lined his jaw, wearing the same clothes he had on when I left him. Dark circles were under his eyes and his jaw was set.
"I'm here." He confirmed with a small smile, reaching out to move hair away from my cheek.
"I'm alive. I'm ok. I'm here." I rushed out with a sob. It was almost like I was in a blind panic but I wasn't I was happy, I was so very very happy.
"Shhh." He hushed me moving from the chair beside me and onto my bed placing a gentle kiss on the back of my hand. "Your fine and your going to be fine, I promise." I nodded and took a few deep breaths to control my sobs, thankfully it worked.
"Where is everyone?" I asked looking around the empty room that housed only me and Grey.
"I told them to go home and freshen up." He smiled lightly, "You've been out for four days Ems." He told me before frowning again and clenching his jaw.
"Are you mad?" I asked looking at how tensed up he was.
"Yes." He simply told me as his lip thinned, "We can deal.."
"Where's Charlie?" I suddenly asked trying to sit myself up on the bed as realisation hit me like a tonne of bricks.
"Don't." He ground out through clenched teeth, "I don't want to hear that fuckers name leave your lips again do you understand me?" He looked at me like he was ready to commit murder.
"Grey.."
"Unfortunately he's not laying in a morgue and that's all you need to know." He shut me off looking lethal.
"Ok." I nodded not wanting to upset him.
In that moment, there was a gentle knock at the door and I froze feeling my body tense up. When a doctor popped their head through I breathed a sigh of relief but it never went unnoticed by Grey. He knew I thought it was Charlie.
"Miss Theron." The older gentleman nodded before reaching to push his glasses further up his nose, "How are we feeling? It's nice to see you awake" He smiled warmly while looking to the screen beside me and taking notes into a clipboard.
"I'm sore but other than that I feel fine." I smiled back at him but winced due to the bruise on my cheek. "I'm hungry." I told him truthfully the same time my stomach rumbled causing him to laugh.
"I'll have a nurse bring up some food for you." He smiled closing his clipboard, "As for the soreness...you've been through a lot Miss Theron, your body needs rest." He nodded with a smile before turning to look at Grey.
"Your partner was telling me.."
"I'm not her partner." Grey quickly cut him off, "I never meant that to sound like a bad thing...it's complicated that's all." He continued as both myself and the doctor smirked at his flustered moment.
"Friends then?" The doctor asked hopeful with a smirk still on his face.
"I'll let Grey explain, he does it so well." I smirked as Grey glared.
"Friends." Grey nodded before a devilish smirk appeared on his face. "Friends with benefits but I'll let Emily explain that, she does it so well." He smirked mockingly as I felt my cheeks heat up.
"Well I thought that I wasn't anything to you?" I declared with a shrug causing him to wince slightly as he looked at me directly staring through to my sole.
"You mean everything to me." He promised.
But not everything for you to say that I'm your partner?
"Nevertheless." The doctor coughed to interrupt whatever conversation he sparked, "You have extensive bruising Emily...both internal and external. I've been informed by Dr Matthews notes that you attended the hospital last night with your friend, detectives have informed me through your friends knowledge that this was regarding the same case." I looked to Grey but he moved his eye contact away from me, he was mad and I knew why.
"Yes." I managed to mutter out.
"You have a further contusion to your jaw, we have undertaken X-rays and nothing seems to be fractured. We also had our dental specialist team examine your mouth and all teeth appear well and seem intact. There is however a cut on your buccal mucosa, hence the bleeding. The soft tissues of the mouth heal quickly so we aren't concerned about this, it will most likely ulcer though which we will prescribe an ointment for." I nodded listening to his information.
"Again, a further contusion to your neck. However this has been examined by the forensic medical team and we were informed it's to the contact of ones hands. Of course we passed this information onto the detectives.."
"Why?" I asked curiously.
"Unfortunately in a case like this Miss Theron, you are the evidence." I nodded slowly but they had to understand that Charlie was clearly unwell?
"More signs of contusion to the area of the left rib cage, Dr Matthews confirmed this was from your previous visit but nevertheless, regarding the same case. You have a stab wound to your lower left abdomen, approximately three inches of depth. This has received surgical treatment and our surgeons have informed me that all is well. We had to undertake a small blood transfusion, you reacted well to this which is good." He smiled as I frowned taking all this information in.
"Why did I need a blood transfusion?" I asked with a frown.
"You had been stabbed Miss Theron, you lost quite a lot of blood from this injury. The shock didn't help the situation but your stable now and that's all the matters." He smiled warmly, "I advise that we stay another night just to make sure everything is fine with your stats and tomorrow we can sign you out and you can head home. I'll let my secretary know that I need you back in a weeks time to check those stitches on the stab wound and change your dressings. If there is any discharge at home or any kind,if your having unbearable pain or if there's blood come in instantly. Please don't wait." He told me firmly.
"I understand." I told him with a small smile before turning to Grey who was listening closely to the doctors words.
"What about Charlie?" I asked the doctor curiously, something he looked shocked at.
"Normally when one is the victim of attempted murder Miss Theron, they don't care for the health of the offender." He stated with raised brows looking at me under the rim of his glasses.
"You don't understand." I shook my head, "I don't think he's well, he needs help." I stumbled out and the doctor recoiled shocked at my statement.
"I'm sure he will get the help that he needs Miss Theron but in hindsight, let's not focus on his needs right now but yours." He smiled looking across to Grey with a small nod, "You need to understand Miss Theron that had that knife been inserted an inch to the left, you wouldn't have been here to have this conversation with me." I swallowed at that statement with a frown. I would have been dead. That was clear to understand.
"I shot Charlie." I whispered out with a frown, "I know what he did to me was wrong but can you please just let me know if he's fine? I couldn't live with myself if I done something that was.."
"He's stable." He smiled, "He's recovering well and once that's over with, he will be taken into police custody." He told me with a light smile on his face, he was a kind old man.
"So...Charlie is in this hospital?" I asked trying not to panic at the thought, what if he's recovering better than me and knows which room I'm in? "Does he know where I am?" I asked as tears welled in my eyes.
"Yes he's in this hospital but don't worry Miss Theron." He crouched beside the bed, "He has two armed officers outside his room, it would be a suicide mission for him to come near you." He promised and I sighed with relief looking to Grey who reached out for my hand with his jaw set.
"Thank you." I breathed out with a smile.
"Your welcome." He returned, "I'll have a nurse attend with medication to help with the pain and something to eat. I'm sure one of the detectives will attend at some point today now that your awake for a statement, so rest for now." He smiled with a nod heading towards the door and exiting.
I looked to Grey yet again, his jaw set and his muscles clenched like he was fighting an internal battle.
"Everything ok?" I asked him giving his hand a squeeze causing his attention to divert to me.
"Yeah." He replied quietly, I knew he was lying though.