Sins of the Father Read Free Page B

sighed, conveying
her thoughts pretty well. “I think Becks is preparing herself for
it.”
    “ She needs
to. I found a weasel sneaking around the ward. Needless to say he
has now left the building.”
    “ I wish I’d
been there to witness that little confrontation.” She stopped when
they reached the coffee machine. “I’m so glad you’re
here.”
    “ Sweetie, you
couldn’t keep me away.”
    “ I
know.”
    They exchanged a goofy
look, one that never failed to make Alicia laugh. “You grab the
coffee and I’ll phone Greg. I could be a while.”
    “ In that case
I’ll see you back there.”
    Alicia walked further
down the hall. Some of the other visitors had recognised her. It
was because of such scrutiny the media were now making a home in
the foyer.
     
    ***
     
     
    A few hours later, she
walked into Jack’s room with a feeling of trepidation. Despite what
the doctor said, she was still fighting the fear of losing him. She
moved forward, pushing aside the wave of panic when she saw the
machines monitoring his progress.
    His face looked swollen
and bruised; the stark white bandages covering his head highlighted
the shadows under his eyes – it broke her heart.
    She wanted to touch him
but she was afraid he would feel pain even as he slept, so she
settled for a feather-light kiss on the dressing.
    “ He was
mumbling your name earlier,” Rebecca whispered, observing her from
where she sat.
    “ He was?” She
could see a tuft of dark blonde hair poking its ways free. He
looked like a boy.
    “ It sounded
like he was dreaming.”
    Alicia sat down in the
vacant chair and put her hand in his. “I can’t stand to think of
him in pain…all this equipment. I hope it looks worse than it
is.”
    Rebecca glanced at the
machines and away again; she didn’t think it could look any worse.
After a moment, her eyes drifted to the window behind Alicia.
“Where’s Sarah?”
    “ She had a
few things to take care of. She can’t resist organising things –
she likes to take care of people.”
    “ I’ve
noticed.”
    “ How do you
think this happened, Becks? Jack isn’t careless. I can’t understand
how…”
    “ I know. It’s
been driving me crazy too.”
    Alicia let out a breath.
“I’m just glad we didn’t lose him.”
    “ Me too, I
don’t know…I’m glad too.” She rubbed her hands over her
face.
    “ Did you see
Sam out there?”
    “ No.” Alicia
frowned. Sam Morton was Jack’s agent. He was hard to miss with his
unconventional style and oversized entourage. Alicia didn’t like
him very much, but she knew Jack trusted him so she kept that to
herself.
    “ He wants to
make an official statement to the press and to liaise with the
hospital about their response.”
    “ Just make
sure you vet his statement. He has a habit of embellishing
things.”
    “ What do you
mean?”
    Alicia didn’t miss the
irritation in Rebecca’s voice. She cursed herself for her lack of
sensitivity. “Nothing, I’m just saying you should be happy with
what goes to print.” She didn’t elaborate. It was not the time to
question Sam’s work ethic.
    “ Any chance
Sarah will deal with that too?” Rebecca asked,
hopefully.
    “ She’ll do
anything you ask, Becks. If it helps I’ll hunt her down right
now.”
    “ That would
be great. I can’t think of anything but Jack right now.”
    Alicia was already on her
feet. She bent to touch her lips to Jack’s bandages. “I’ll round up
more coffee too.” She dropped a kiss on top of Rebecca’s
head.
    “ Thanks.”
    She paused at the door to
look back at her brother. The rise and fall of his chest was enough
to satisfy her that he was putting up a fight.
     
     

Chapter
2

    "Can you believe this?"
Alicia stormed into Stuart’s office and threw a paper on his desk.
Startled, he stared down at the front page.
     
    'LOVE HURTS'
    Jack Murphy, star of
Blind Spot and
    The Last Strike, was
involved in a car
    accident last night. As
he was undergoing
    major surgery, the