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“That won’t be necessary—”
“Son,” Robert cut in. “Do this for us, please.”
Jack nodded reluctantly. “Doc, I would like to hear about my wife’s condition.”
“The bullet went through and through and hit mostly muscle, but it grazed some of her intestinal walls and damaged some blood vessels. They had the best surgeons in Paris work on her, and I won’t lie—they did lose her a coupleof times, but she made it. Her brain function is normal, so we expect her to wake up with no problem.”
“When could you bring her out of the coma?” Jack asked.
“We could do it as soon as tomorrow. Her test results are very promising, but with the extent of her injury, infection remains to be a possible complication.”
“How long before she gets to move around?”
“She’ll be ambulatory in another two weeks,” Dr. Henderson replied. “Jack, there’s something else you need to know.”
Viktor watched all the McCords stiffen and realized he did the same.
“Maia was pregnant.”
“Was?” Jack’s voice was strangled. Frances McCord started sniffling.
“She miscarried,” Dr. Henderson said. “It’s hard to tell the age of the fetus without knowing when her last cycle was. I doubt if she was even aware that she was pregnant.”
“She was pregnant?” Jack repeated the words in a gruff whisper.
“Jack—” Frances McCord was openly crying now as she laid a hand on her son’s back.
Jack’s shoulders slumped, his head dropping. “I’d like to be alone with Maia, please.”
Frances held back a sob and quietly walked out. Viktor was the last one to leave the room. Jack McCord was one of the strongest men Viktor had ever known. But even the strongest of men had a breaking point. McCord just hit his.
Before Viktor closed the door, he saw Jack bend over his wife, and gingerly wrap his arms around her. His body shook as he allowed his grief to take over.
“How is he?”Derek asked. They were hanging out at the ICU waiting room.
Viktor shrugged. “He’s taking it hard. But that’s expected after what he’s been through. We need to debrief him.”
“Can’t you leave him alone for a few days?” Derek asked incredulously. “The man thought he’d lost his wife. He was tortured and starved for three weeks. Cut him some slack.”
Viktor nearly lost his cool. Men like Derek just didn’t get it. Friendships made you weak and clouded your judgment. Derek and Jack were partners in McCord Defense Industries and the two were the best of friends. Derek used to work for AGS and that was how he and Maia had become buddies as well. It was Derek who had recommended Maia to head up protective custody for Jack’s brother. And now here they were.
Viktor had strong reservations about Maia getting involved with Jack, and he’d done his own share of meddling. But Jack had more than proven his worth to Viktor and married Maia despite knowing how crazy her job could get. McCord had even invested in AGS to become privy to mission details, and because he was part owner, Jack had access to the codes to the AGS database.
“This is bigger than Maia and Jack,” Viktor said in a low voice. “A week after Maia was hit, an ex-Guardian who had worked as a Lacrosse coach in Georgetown University died of a heart attack. He had been as healthy as an ox.”
“Are you saying someone is targeting Guardians?”
Viktor nodded. “I had my suspicions. After McCord told us what his abductors were after, I’m more convinced someone is acting on a vendetta. Maia was the target, not Nasir.”
Derek’s eyes widened. “And you’re only telling me this now? Should I be worried about Sophie?”
Viktor didn’t answer.
“Damn you, Viktor,” Derek said. “If anything happens—”
“Calm down.”
“How dare you withhold information from us—”
