Chapter Twenty-Five Babe

CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE: BABE

I back my bike into the same spot I used earlier. Getting back to the hospital took longer than I planned. If I was back in San Diego, losing those fuckers would have been child's play, but I don't know the streets here as well. Took some fancy maneuvering and a bit of luck. I know there's a chance they may come back here. If they figure out that this is where they caught a tail.

Of course, there is also the possibility that they already know who I am and where to find me. If the club has a rat, they likely know all about Min and me. The thought of her being on their radar has me checking my phone again. No message from Min. I'm hoping she's busy with the cops, but I don't think I'm that lucky.

The only person who knew I was outside the warehouse was Mode. Is he our rat? But then I remember him speaking to someone else. He told that person where I was and why I was there. When we get back to the clubhouse, I'll ask Mode who he told. In the meantime, I need to get inside and help Min. Taking the elevator to the third floor, I debark into chaos. Several staff members stand in groups, whispering amongst themselves. I hear snippets as I walk toward Jessica's room. The word ‘attack' and ‘doctor' should make me feel confident that Min got her man. However, another glance at my silent phone makes me doubt that assumption. Something went wrong.

A security guard stands to the left of Jessica's room. He's talking to two staff members with his back to me. Taking advantage, I slip inside the empty room. I see signs of a struggle. The visitor's chair is on its side and the hospital bed's pushed almost sideways. My foot sends something skittering across the floor. Bending down, I check under the bed and see Min's knife. Picking it up, I spot blood on the tip. But whose blood? I see something else sticking out from under the blanket that's fallen to the floor. Grabbing it, I realize it's Min's phone. Fuck!

Leaving the room, I run into the guard. He gawks at me before straightening his spine. He's trying to intimidate me, but I don't have time for his bullshit.

"What were you doing in there?" he sputters.

"Where is Jessica?" I demand, ignoring his question.

"Who?"

"The girl in this room, where is she?"

"I don't know. You shouldn't be in there," he says, but I ignore him as I walk away to speak to three nurses gossiping nearby.

"Where is Jessica?" I ask them. "The girl staying in that room?" I point to the room in case they don't know who I'm talking about.

"They took her downstairs for an MRI. Why?"

"Where's the other woman who was with her? She was Asian. About this tall," I ask, holding my arm up to just below my shoulder.

"They took her into custody. Why?"

"Custody? What for?"

"She attacked a doctor and an orderly. Dr. Bishop sedated her. They took her down to the ER. We have a secure room there. Why?"

"Fuck!" I explode, causing the women to jump and the guard to move forward. "Where's Dr. Bishop?"

"I don't know. He went downstairs with the woman and hasn't returned. Look, I don't know who you are…"

"I'm a bounty hunter," I tell her, showing her my badge. "I need to find Dr. Bishop and the woman. You also need to call whoever you have to and find out if Jessica made it to her appointment."

"I can't give out…" the nurse starts, but I'm done playing nice.

"Look. Dr. Bishop is not who he says he is. His real name is Blankenship, and he's wanted for murder. He broke out of jail a few days ago. I'm a bounty hunter," I tell her, showing her my badge. "Now, do what I say. Jessica's life is at stake." So is Min's, but I can't say it. I won't let my mind go there. Not yet.

The nurse gapes at me and I'm about to reach out and shake her, but before I can move, a second nurse picks up the phone and makes a call. I hear her give Jessica's full name. I can tell the news she's receiving isn't good. Turning back to the first nurse, I bark at her. "Call someone to find out about the Asian woman."

She jolts, but picks up another phone and makes the call. I strain to hear the conversation, but the other nurse is talking to me.

"Jessica never made it to imaging," the nurse says. The fear on her face matching what I'm feeling inside.

Turning, I pin the security guard with a stare. "I need access to your security feed. Right. Fucking. Now."

"I can't just…" he starts, taking a step back when I shift toward him.

"Babe?"

I turn to see Schwartz making his way toward us.

"What's going on? Where's Min? Did you get Blankenship and Billings? I didn't see any cop cars downstairs."

"All great fucking questions. Where are the fucking cops you promised Min?" I shout at him as I get in his face.

He doesn't back away, which earns him some points. He'll need them. Because I'm ready to knock his ass out and take him to the Shed. Fucking cop or no fucking cop.

"Back up and tell me what happened?" Schwartz demands. He's keeping control of his temper better than I am. But then he's not the one trying to find the woman he loves. Loves? Fuck, I can't think about that right now. I have to find her first, and Jessica.

"You screwed up. Min didn't have backup. Blankenship and Billings got the jump on her. Plus, they kidnapped a teenage girl. Her name is Jessica."

Schwartz swings his attention from me to the hovering guard. "Call security. Lock this place down. No one goes in or out." He holds up his hand to stop me when I open my mouth to protest. "Get me access to the security feed. We need to see what happened here." He turns back to face me. "You with me or going your own way?"

"I'm with you. For now. But I want to know why the fuck the cops didn't back Min up. Did you call them?"

"I did. I'll find out what happened. In the meantime, let's go to security and track these assholes movements.

Schwartz takes out his phone while I turn back to the nurse who was called down to the ER to check on Min. She shakes her head at my questioning look. "I'm sorry. They didn't know what I was talking about. She's not down there."

Wiping my hand down my face, I take two deep breaths. Schwartz is shouting at someone on the phone. His words confirming my assumption. Someone called off the backup. Jordan had cops in his pocket back in San Diego. He likely has them here, too. My guess is that he used those contacts to delay any response to this hospital. He was protecting Billings and Blankenship so they could grab the girl.

"They called it off," Schwartz says with disgust when he ends the call. "Higher ups said it was a false alarm. Fuckers."

"Jordan." He nods in agreement.

"Let's go see if we can find them," Schwartz says as we take off for the security office.

The guard manning the feed shows us Billings walking down the hall toward Jessica's room wearing scrubs and an office ID badge. "He stripped the guy and took his credentials. Is that your guy?" the guard asks.

I grunt and brace myself when Blankenship pushes his way into the room. The nurses and orderlies move toward the door as they glance nervously at each other. The door opens to reveal Blankenship with a bloody nose. He's explaining to the nurses while Billings wheels out Min. She's propped up in the wheelchair, I can tell she's drugged. They disappear from the screen.

"Where did they go?" I ask.

The guard shifts to a different monitor, leaving the first paused. He locates Billings pushing the wheelchair outside into the parking lot. He switches the view again until we spot Billings lifting Min and laying her in the back of a black SUV. When Billings returns to the hospital, we go back to the view of Jessica's hospital room. Billing arrives back on the screen and soon he's wheeling out Jessica and following the same path. Once Jessica is in the SUV, Blankenship hops into the passenger seat while Billings gets behind the wheel. They drive off.

"Get us a copy of the feed," Schwartz instructs the guard who hands over two USB drives. Schwartz hands one to me. "Finding the women is our priority. Then we'll go after Billings and Blankenship. I'll have my guys track the SUV through the traffic cams. What are you going to do?"

"I'll take this back to the club. They've been tracking down all the businesses owned by Jordan and his church. We might get lucky."

"Keep me posted. Remember, we need Billings and Blankenship alive."

I nod in agreement, even though it goes against everything I believe in as a member of the Demon Dawgs. Images of Blankenship and Billings strung up in the Shed appeals to the vigilante in me. But I'd be an idiot to take them out right now. Plenty of time to get to them once we're back in San Diego.