Chapter Seven.

Elara let out a heavy sigh. She had expected her father to be worried, but as she looked closely at his face, she realized this went far deeper than basic anxiety.

His eyes weren't just wide with fear, they were entirely wide from horror.

"Tell me, Elara..." he choked out, his fingers digging into her arms. "Please... please tell me you didn't–"

He never finished the sentence. His words catch into a harsh gasp, and his hand instantly flew to his chest, clenching it.

His breathing turned shallow, his complexion turning pale as a full blown panic attack seized his chest.

"Dad! Dad, look at me!" Elara freaked out, as she grabbed his shoulders to keep his trembling frame upright. "Take a breath, please!"

Killian didn't hesitate, he tilt of his head and caught the eyes of the two officers standing by the secure doors.

The officers immediately rushed forward, expertly taking her father from her arms and guiding him quickly out of the lobby, Elara and Killian followed.

"Dad!" Elara cried..

She was about to run after them, but she didn't even make it a single step before a grip wrapped around her wrist.

The restraint pulled her to a halt. She snapped her head back, her eyes colliding with Killian's unblinking stare.

"Don't worry." he said "He will be fine."

Elara looked over, watching the facility's transport unit prep to move him to the nearest hospital.

The protective instinct to chase after him burned through her veins.

"I need to go with him! Let me go, Killian–"

"I can take you." he stated, his grip not loosening an inch.

Elara opened her mouth to argue, but the screech of tires, midnight-blue Bugatti pulled to a reckless halt.

"Elara!"

The driver's door swung open. A handsome man with waves of thick blond hair stepped out, wearing casual but visibly luxury designer clothes.

His face was pale with panic as his eyes locked onto her.

The exact millisecond the blond man stepped into view, Killian all vibe shifted to lethal.

Killian’s fingers tightened around Elara's wrist, she hissed in pain, her eyes darting up to his face. Killian wasn't looking at her anymore.

His jaw was locked so tightly and his eyes were pinned on the approaching man.

"Elara?" Patrick called out breathlessly, as he came to a halt a few feet away.

"Pat.."

Patrick’s eyes flicked upward, instantly colliding with Killian’s gaze. Killian wasn't glaring, there was no display of anger. Instead, his expression was entirely dead and hard as he stared down at the blond man with unblinking intensity.

"Come on. Let’s go." Patrick said, his eyes darting to Killian’s grip on her wrist.

Killian didn't break eye contact with Patrick..

"We can take my car, Elara. I will drive you to the hospital." He said calmly.

"I really appreciate your help, Killian.." she said with a tight smile. "Thank you so much for getting my father out. But... I will take it from here."

She gently but firmly pulled her hand out of Killian’s slackened grip.

The moment her hand left his, Killian’s fingers curled into a tight fist beside him.

He didn't say a word, but just stared deeply into her eyes, his gaze made a shiver of discomfort run down Elara's spine.

"Elara... come." Patrick insisted. Reaching out, he took her wrist and firmly pulled her away from him.

She hurried along with Patrick’s quick strides, slipping into the passenger seat of the Bugatti and Patrick drove off.

Killian’s eyes remained locked onto the back of the car, until the vehicle turned the corner and vanished from sight.

Only then did he slowly turn, step into his own car, and drive off too.

~♠︎~

The engine died, and Elara was out of the door before Patrick could even park.

They walked through the sliding glass doors and rushed straight to the front desk.

"We're here for my father... Mr. Pierce." Elara said, her voice trembling as she pressed her palms against the counter.

The receptionist looked up..

"He was just rushed into the emergency room, ma'am. The doctor are currently attending to him. While you wait, I need you to fill out these admission and insurance forms."

Elara nodded quickly, as she grabbed the clipboard and a pen.

"Yes, of course."

Moving to the waiting chairs, she quickly filled out the medical lines..

The second she signed the final signature, she walked back to the desk and handed the file over.

"Here.."

Patrick sat in one of the waiting chairs, his eyes tracking Elara as she began to paced..

"So, you really did meet with him?" Patrick asked.. "You willingly walked into Killian Vane's orbit."

Elara stopped, closing her eyes, letting out a long, exhausted sigh.

"I had no choice, Pat. The Feds dragged my father out in handcuffs while our so called peers were treating it like an elite evening entertainment. Roman turned his back on me. What was I supposed to do? Sit there and watch the ship sink?"

"He looked entirely intimidating.." Patrick muttered, as he recalled the cold, dead eyed stare Killian had given him on the sidewalk. "How were you even able to stand that close to him and stay firm?"

"Desperation has a way of blurring reality." she murmured, "When you're suffocating, you don't look closely at the hand offering you oxygen. You just take it."

"Fair enough.." Patrick said, standing up to join her side. "I just hope to God this is the end of it. You don't want to owe a debt to a man like Vane. Ever."

Before Elara could reply, A doctor in blue scrubs walked out, checking a chart.

She rushed straight toward him, Patrick falling into step right behind her.

"Doctor? My father–is he stable?" she asked breathlessly.

The doctor nodded.

"He’s stable, Miss Pierce. He suffered a severe panic attack brought on by acute stress, but his vitals are recovering well. We've given him a mild sedative to calm his system."

Elara’s chest finally eased.

"Thank you. Can we see him?"

"Yes, but keep it brief. He needs rest, Room 402, down the left hall." the doctor replied, stepping aside.

"Thank you."

~♠︎~

The moment they stepped into the room, Elara’s heart dropped.

Her father was lying beneath the stark white hospital sheets, looking entirely frail and drained of all his usual sef.

An IV drip was hooked to the back of his weak hand, humming quietly as it hydrated his system.

Elara moved quickly to the side of the bed, gently clasping his fingers in hers.

"Dad..." she called softly.

His eyelids fluttered open. He looked up at her, but there was no relief in his expression.

He looked past her shoulder to see Patrick, before his gaze locked back onto hers.

"Why did you ask him for help, Elara?" he whispered..

"Dad, please listen to me. The world was collapsing around us. Nobody else was coming to save you. He stepped in, his legal team cleared the federal warrant, and he got you out overnight. I couldn't just ignore the only door that was open."

"I don't trust him." her father said, his grip tightening on her fingers. "I would rather have rotted in that federal cell for the rest of my days than owe a single breath to a man like Killian Vane."

"Dad, please, just breathe.." Elara pleaded softly. "Whatever his reputation is, he is the reason you are lying in a hospital bed right now instead of a concrete floor. We have to at least accept the reality of his help, regardless of his ruthlessness."

Her father shook his head against the white pillow.

"You don’t know him, Elara. What did he demand from you in exchange? Look me in the eye and tell me the price."

"Nothing, Dad." she said. "He asked for absolutely nothing."

"No... no, a man like that never says nothing." he rasped, a bitter laugh escaping his chest. "Killian Vane doesn't deal in charity. If he didn't name his price, it means he intends to take everything."

"That’s exactly what I told myself.." Elara admitted, the exhaustion of the last twenty-four hours finally breaking through her stoic defense. "It feels entirely too good to be true. But right now, we can’t afford to overanalyze it." She gently smoothed the blankets over his chest, effectively cutting off the conversation.

"Can we please just stop talking about him? Let’s focus on getting you stable so we can finally go home."

Her father stared at her for a second, the unspoken secrets of his past, contemplating if to let her know or not.

He finally offered a weak nod.

Elara let out a trembling sigh. She turned her head toward the doorway, catching Patrick's anxious gaze.

"Look after him for a moment." she murmured to him as she approached the door. "I’ll be right back. I need to get a clear update on his health."

Patrick nodded, stepping deeper into the room to take her place beside the bed as Elara stepped out.

She caught up with the doctor a few paces down the hall, near the central nursing station.

"Doctor? Please give me the truth about his condition."

The physician offered a reassuring smile.

"He’s out of immediate danger, Miss Pierce. There is no permanent damage, but his cardiovascular system cannot take another shock like this. You need to ensure he stays entirely insulated from stress. Rest, quiet, and a complete break from whatever structural crisis your family is facing, that is his only prescription right now."

"I understand. Thank you."

He offered a polite nod and walked away.

Elara turned to walk back into her father's ward.

But she froze.

At the far end of the long, standing completely still was Killian, his eyes locked onto her from across the distance..

Instantly, Elara’s palms felt sweaty. She looked back toward the door of her father’s ward, then back down the long corridor, she began walking directly toward him.

Killian’s eyes track her every movement until she stopped a few feet away from him.

"Killian..." Elara began,"What are you doing here?"

"I own this facility.." he stated flatly, "I came to ensure your father's medical expenses were completely cleared."

Elara blinked,

"What? No... Killian, you didn't have to do that. My family‐we would have taken care of the financial arrangements ourselves."

Killian didn't reply immediately. His gaze drifted past her shoulder, fixing on the distant door of Room 402 before snapping back to her face.

"How is his condition?" he asked smoothly.

"He’s stable. The doctor said it was an acute panic attack brought on by severe stress. And... thank you, Killian. Seriously. Between the federal cells and this facility, I feel like I owe you an impossible debt."

He took a step closer, his eyes dropped to her lips.

"You owe me nothing, Elara." he said..

Elara stared up at him, unease running down her spine.

his gaze made her feel entirely naked..

He has a bad habit of staring too intensely.. she thought.

"Right..." she stammered awkwardly, taking a step back to break the suffocating spell.

"Take care, Killian."

She turned around and she quickly walked back down the hallway, to her father's ward.

He watched until the door of her father's room clicked shut, severing her from his sight.

A dark victorious smile finally touched the corner of his lips. He checked the custom luxury watch against his wrist.

"Just twenty-four hours left." he murmured.. then he turned and walked away..