Chapter 12 - The Hallway Confrontation
|
While the medical staff continued tending to Abigail, I stepped out of the observation room to speak with the lead police officer. I needed to know exactly what was going to happen next.
As the heavy wooden door clicked shut behind me, I found the Ferguson family waiting in the hallway. They hadn't left. They were too arrogant to retreat.
Nicholas was furiously pacing back and forth, dragging his hands through his perfectly styled hair. Gregory stood leaning against a hospital window, typing rapidly on his phone, likely mobilizing their legal team. Patricia remained perfectly still in the center of the hallway. She was trying very hard to project an aura of unafraid authority. But my military training taught me to look for micro-expressions. I noticed her hands. Her left hand, gripping her expensive leather purse, was shaking uncontrollably.
The lead officer walked directly toward them.
"Mr. Ferguson," the officer said, his tone no longer polite, but strictly professional. "We need to speak with you regarding the events that took place at your residence today."
Nicholas stopped pacing and stared at the closed door of the observation room. He let out a loud, theatrical sigh of disbelief.
"This is unbelievable," Nicholas scoffed, pointing an accusatory finger toward the room holding my daughter. "She is lying. She's making up this entire fantasy because she wants a massive divorce settlement. She's after my money."
Even through the thick door, I knew Abigail could hear his booming, angry voice.
I took one massive step forward, placing myself directly between Nicholas and the door to my daughter's room.
"Stop," I commanded, my voice sharp as a razor.
Nicholas blinked, looking at me as if I were a piece of dirt on his shoe. "What?"
"Stop speaking about her," I said. "Stop looking at her door. You do not get to intimidate her anymore."
Nicholas let out a cruel laugh, puffing out his chest. "Or what, Colonel? What exactly are you going to do?"
I did not answer him. I didn't need to. I simply turned my gaze to the two police officers standing beside me. They understood the dynamic perfectly.
"Mr. Ferguson, step away from the door," the officer instructed firmly, placing a hand on his taser. Nicholas was immediately taken aside, his face flushing with angry humiliation.
Gregory immediately stepped up, shouting at the police. "This is targeted harassment! Do you have any idea who we are? We pay your salaries with our taxes!"
The second officer replied calmly, "Right now, sir, we are trying to determine exactly what happened to Mrs. Ferguson, and your attitude is not helping your case."
Patricia suddenly lunged forward, stepping directly into my personal space. "You’re enjoying this, aren't you?" she hissed.
I looked at her with genuine, unadulterated disbelief.
May you like
"My daughter is sitting in a hospital bed with a fractured orbital bone, after being terrified for her life in her own marriage," I lowered my voice to a terrifying rumble. "Do you honestly think I enjoy a single second of that?"
For the first time all evening, Patricia Ferguson had absolutely no answer.
