Wife's Bitter Revenge Against Neglectful CEO Husband-Chapter 115: Surgery and Punches

"He flew you out in a helicopter?" Bea asked from her hospital bed.

"Well, he didn’t, but he called for a rescue team, and a half hour later, I was being lifted into a helicopter and rushed for emergency care."

"But you’re alright, yes?"

"Sure, I’m fine. Nothing that won’t heal in a few days, but what about you? Are you ready for your surgery?"

As soon as we arrived back in civilization, Stiff pinged me with the news a donor match had been found for Bea. In half an hour, she was scheduled for surgery with one of the best surgeons in the nation. In a week, she would likely be home in a couple of weeks, she could start working her way back into the office, provided she didn’t overdo it and rested frequently.

"Oh, I’m fine. Ready to go home."

"Me too! And I’ll be there for you every step of the way."

"Wait, I thought you were all lovey-dovey with Alec now. Stiff said you’d practically moved in with him. Shouldn’t you finish the job now that you are engaged to be engaged?"

"Absolutely not until I know you are fully recovered. Then, we’ll see. Besides, you and CK need a chaperone. I can’t have you defiling Father DiMarco’s church."

"I’m a fully grown adult. I know how to control my urges. I also have a credit card and a cell phone. A hotel room is just one call away."

"No hotel rooms until the doctor gives you the all-clear," I said.

"Agreed, but Teela, in all seriousness, the renovations at the church are almost done. We should all be looking for somewhere else to go. Father DiMarco will need the space to conduct holy business."

"I guess you’re right, but it won’t be the same once we move out. Especially for Father DiMarco. The rest of us work together. We’ll have to make extra efforts to keep him included in the inner circle."

Bea said, "It won’t be that hard. We have taekwondo to pull us all together on a regular basis. And, dare I say it, we could start attending Sunday services. We owe the Father at least that much for all he has done for us, at least until he builds a congregation."

"Whatever it takes, Bea, but first, we’ve got to get you healthy."

A team of nurses came in to prep Bea for surgery. I was relegated to the far end of the room, out of their way, since I refused to leave until they wheeled Bea out for surgery.

Bea was right. We would have to find new lodgings soon. It gave me a good out for moving in with Alec, who would already be over at the church packing the last of my belongings if he didn’t think I would fight him on it.

On the other hand, I grew up without siblings. The comradery I’d experienced while staying with Father DiMarco had been amazing. I didn’t want to lose it.

But change was inevitable. Bea had CK. CK was responsible for his family and his dad’s shop. In time, she would want to spend more time with him than us. Jake had his boys. While we were a good support system for them, in time, he would likely want to buy a house and give them a sense of normality that the church didn’t provide. And there was always the chance his wife would recover and move in with them, or Jake would find a way to divorce her and retain custody of the boys. Then he could remarry. We wouldn’t always need extra security—I hoped. Sampson, Roscoe, and the others would drift away to other jobs.

In a way, it was only right that I left first. After all, I was the first stray that Father DiMarco took in. I was pretty sure, in his position, he was accustomed to transient strays in his life. Who knows? He might even feel relieved or accomplished by sending me on my way now that I was on my feet.

I’d have to talk to Father DiMarco. See where his head was, but it could wait for after the surgery and after I’d had a little chat with Anya and the police—not necessarily in that order.

One of the nurses approached me. "Miss, if you want to speak with your friend, we’ll be taking her down the hall to surgery in about ten minutes."

Bea didn’t look like herself with her gorgeous curls covered by a surgical cap.

"You look tired," I said.

"Yeah, they put something in my IV to relax me. I’ll take a nice long nap here in a bit and wake up well-rested."

"You better."

"I won’t let you down, Teela. I love you."

"I love you too, Bea. You are the light of my life."

"Too much pressure. That is Alec’s job now."

"Not so much pressure, I hope. It is a position of honor. And Alec has lots of roles in my life. He can leave this one for you."

"Gotcha."

The nurses returned with a gurney.

Bea said, "Well, looks like my ride is here. See you on the other side."

"You bet you will."

Alec

Alec looked up from the quarterly financial statements as soon as he heard the commotion from the outer office. It wasn’t unusual for one of the more troubled patients to make their way to the administrative offices, but it was unusual for his staff to let them get this far.

He darted toward the door but stopped short when Stiff came in throwing fists. While the first blow glanced off his chin. It barely hurt. Stiff’s technique was full of fury but not much power or skill. Alec was able to dodge the remaining punches before he captured Stiff’s wrist and twisted it behind his back. He pinned Stiff’s body to his and held Stiff in place until Stiff stopped struggling.

Men who didn’t know how to fight shouldn’t go around throwing punches. Stiff deserved to get knocked on his ass, but out of deference for Teela, Alec took it easy on the man.

"What’s going on, Stiff? What beef do you have with me?"

Stiff reared his head back and caught Alec in the nose with the back of his head. Now that hurt, and it felt like he had a nosebleed too. There went his shirt.

Alec took Stiff down to the ground and planted a knee in the middle of his back. "Now, like I said, why did you attack me?"

"We trusted Teela to you, and you damn near got her killed. What the hell were you thinking taking her up a mountain without any training?"

It made more sense now. Stiff was in love with Teela. He’d made that clear from day one. Fortunately for Alec, Teela only saw Stiff as a friend.

Alec let Stiff up with a warning to behave or spend a night in jail.

Stiff snorted. "My attorney will have my bail posted before I ever see the inside of the police station."

"Well, good for you, but I won’t let you disrespect me in my own company. So either have a seat, and we’ll talk or get out."

"I’m not sitting down."

Such a child.

Alec sauntered to desk for a handful of tissues to sop up the bloody nose. Later he would have one the doctors verify the nose wasn’t broken. "Very well, stand. I didn’t practically kill Teela. She has minor injuries that should heal just fine in a few days, and I didn’t put her in any more danger than you two get into without me. Do you really think it was fun for me to watch from a distance as she faced known criminals without so much as a pepper spray on her body?"

"She had us. We are better than any pepper spray."

"And I didn’t send Teela up the cliff without safety equipment and me at her side. She was safer with me than those degenerates."

Stiff said, "Teela is an adult woman. Do you honestly think she would let us stop her?"

"No, I don’t. Not any more than she would have taken it well if I’d stopped her from climbing once she had it set in her head that she wanted to propose to me once she reached the top."

Stiff froze, pain written across his face. "Propose? She proposed to you?"

"Call it a pre-proposal, but yeah, she asked if we could be together."

"And you said yes." It was a statement, not a question.

"I did."

Stiff’s expression went from serious pain to stubborn denial. "It won’t happen. You’re not good enough for her, and once I make her see that, Teela will dump you."

"And what? Come back to you? Because if that is what you think, you are sadly mistaken. Teela’s already made her choice. Respect it. Give us your blessing. I don’t expect to get between you and Teela, Stiff. She’s still your best friend, and from everything I’ve heard, you are a loyal friend and a skilled teammate for her. Not too many people can say that."

"We’ll see about that," Stiff said as he made his exit, slamming the door behind him hard enough to jar a painting off the wall.