Page 6 of Zombie

I moved to the control panel and snapped a few pictures before repositioning the machine to get a different angle. Once I finished, I led her back to the examination table and looked at the images. Rage bubbled inside me when I noted the cracked rib on her left side. Once again, I couldn’t help but wonder how she’d gotten tangled in some of the darker aspects of Kade’s mafia business. From my observations, she didn’t seem like someone who would have been doing the dirty work.

Then again, I was one to talk, considering I was the son of a deranged sex trafficker and member of a team who killed bad people regularly.

I closed out of the images and changed my gloves. Lennie sat on the table, fidgeting with her fingers. Her eyes met mine, brimming with questions.

“So, Lennie, it would appear you have a cracked rib on your left side. The bruising on your torso would also indicate localized trauma to that area.”

She nodded as more tears welled up in her eyes.

“The rib could take six to twelve weeks to heal, but you should notice a significant decrease in pain after a couple of days. I’m going to give you some pain medication to help reduce your discomfort. If you have any shortness of breath, call me immediately.”

She looked at me, confused. “Call you? Not 911? I shouldn’t go to the ER?”

Shit. Why did I say that? It would be better for her to use emergency services. But for some reason, I hated the idea of her going to anyone else.

I grabbed an antiseptic and some gauze so I could clean the wound on her face.

“I have more connections and would be able to see you more quickly. At the ER, you might have to wait.” This wasn’t a lie; however, I was definitely making myself seem more important than I actually was.

Lennie gave me a small smile. “Well, okay then.”

As I tended to her wound, I noticed she was looking at my name tag.

“Doctor Dante Spinelli,” she said to herself before looking back up at me. “They call you Zombie, right?”

My nickname on her lips took me by surprise. She’d probably heard Phantom—Kade’s girlfriend—say my name in passing, but it was still weird to hear my nickname come from a stranger.

“Yeah, but you can call me Dante or Z.” Only the ones closest to me called me by my actual name or Z. Now that Phantom’s secret was out, we weren’t as vigilant about using our code names, only really using them out of habit or when we were on a mission.

Lennie gave me a warm smile before wincing as I dabbed the laceration on her cheek.

“Sorry,” I grumbled. “Almost done.”

Thankfully the cut didn’t need stitches, but it would definitely take some time to heal. I continued to do a quick physical on her and found no evidence of internal bleeding or infection. With that determination I felt a little more at ease knowing that the injuries she sustained could have resulted in much worse outcomes.

Once I was done cleaning the wound and covering it, I disposed of the used gauze and gloves before walking over to my medicine cabinet. Unlocking it, I quickly grabbed the painkillers that I planned to give to Lennie and turned back to her. She was looking at the deep red gashes on her wrists. Rage boiled inside me once more.

My rope marks should be covering her beautiful skin instead.

The thought took me by surprise. I was very much into shibari and rope play, but rarely ever had that desire when I first met someone, and now was certainly not the right time to entertain the idea.

I opened a drawer under the medical table and grabbed more supplies.

“It will take a little bit for the marks to go away,” I mentioned as I began to wrap her wrists in the bandages.

A tear fell down her cheek, making me clench my jaw. I hated seeing her like this.

Without thinking, I brushed the tear away from her cheek with my thumb. She looked at me questioningly, but remained silent.

After I finished wrapping her wrists, I grabbed a pair of my extra scrubs for her to put on. I knew she would be swimming in them since I was over a foot taller than her; however, I assumed she wouldn’t want to put her blood-stained clothes back on. It would also give me the opportunity to run some forensics on the fabric of her clothes.

So many emotions filled her eyes that I had to look away.

“Here’s something for you to change into. Now before I let you go, I have one more question for you.”

She gave me an expectant look. “Okay.”

“Did your kidnapper… sexually assault you?” I asked hesitantly.