I'll Help You Hide From Them

Discharged

The second I get let out of the hospital, I'm picked up by two security guards.

"Why is the Captain wasting money on you two? Usually he'd get at least a team of officers and that didn't work well last time." I ask them.

"We're not officers, Detective. We're private security." The taller security guard tells me.

"Who has the money to throw around getting private security?" I inquire.

"I do." Kier replies, stepping into the room.

I'm mildly surprised to see him here but remember Dr. Illingworth explain how he has to be shoulder to shoulder with me to keep me in line. "Since when did you have the money for this?" I cautiously smile at him.

"It's inheritance from Ralph. I just thought I should spend his money in a way that he would've wanted so I didn't hesitate in paying for private security and apparently these two men are the best money can buy." He explains.

This is heartwarming to hear that he's grateful and mature enough to use Ralph's money not purely for himself.

I am surprised when he gives me another hug but it feels natural enough for me to hug him back.

"I know it's going to be frustrating to you but you need to listen to everything these two men tell you. They are experts in security and I really don't want anything bad happening to you." He tells me gently.

"Thank you Kier." I smile into his shoulder.

He keeps hugging me for a while, patting my back calmingly.

"I'll be okay, Kier. I've made it this long, it'll take a lot for me to go down now." I whisper soothingly to him.

He manages to pull away. "We'll see about that, just make sure that you stay careful, okay?" He tries.

"I certainly will." I try to calm him down, figuring out that he's extremely emotional suddenly. I recall how he was when he found out that I was attacked in the hospital so I don't blame him at all.

"What am I expected to do?" I ask the security guards.

"We have a safehouse which only you and Kier will know about that we are going to escort you to." The taller security guard with dark skin reports.

I nod understandingly. "I might as well state this in advance but I'm going through therapy with appointments early in the morning at the police station." I admit.

"We can work around that, what time exactly?" The man checks, taking out a notebook to write it down.

"5.50am." I honestly reply.

"That's very workable." The man smiles as he seems to notice how ashamed I am.

I do a small nod in reply, not really able to say much.

Kier rubs my back reassuringly. His touch helps my tense shoulders slowly relax.

"How are you feeling Detective Woolnough?" The fairly lighter skinned security guard asks.

"I don't know. The stab wound still hurts but I will try to trust you two with my life." I force myself to murmur just to get it over with.

The two men nod, the lighter skinned one heads straight to the door, checking for any threats.

I wait for there to be a nod in confirmation between the two security guards before I'm carefully escorted out of the building.

As I step outside, I look up at the building ahead. My brow forms a frown when the thought occurs to me that this is the building that Ralph was shot from. My eyes scan the floors until I spot an area with crime scene tape visible from here.

The dark skinned security guard follows my eye line methodically until he suddenly stops me.

"O'Malley to HQ, is anyone investigating the hospital shooting crime scene?" The security guard asks his fancy ear piece.

The lighter skinned one takes this as a sign to check the car thoroughly.

"Did you see something?" I quietly inquire with the guard as Kier tightens his grip on me.

"There's someone in that building watching us." He tells me in reply, pressing the ear piece further into his ear to clearly hear the response. The second he does, he pulls me closer to the car.

His partner announces that nothing has been tampered with on the car so I'm made to sit at the back seat with Kier next to me.

The two guards discuss something briefly before the dark skinned guard enters the car, starting it and beginning to drive off.

"What about your partner?" Kier instantly gasps as the car pulls away from the hospital.

"He's going to join us later, he's just going to secure the area to make sure no one is at the crime scene when they shouldn't be." The security guard answers honestly.

"If it's the shooter that's incredibly dangerous." I warn.

"He's capable Detective." He confidently replies.

Seeing his pride and assurance of this gives me another sharp tug in the chest thinking about Ralph. Kier clearly notices so he tightens his grip on my shoulder. I take in the feeling of his comforting touch for a moment before shrugging him off.

I can't force Kier to take care of me, I need to face up to my losses without bringing him into it. It's not fair on him that he has to look after me because of what happened with his brother. He has his own trauma to get over.

I need to stop being so damn selfish.