Claire stepped closer to Anna and gently shook her shoulders. She could see the tear stains on her cheeks and the dark bags under her eyes. She had without a doubt cried all night long.
Anna abruptly woke up with a jolt as she straightened in her chair. "What's wrong?! Is he okay!? How long was I asleep for!?" She rambled on as she looked Colton up and down making sure we was alright.
Her sudden outburst made Claire jump. She didn't expect her to wake up like that. "Anna calm down. Everything is fine. Breath." She rubbed her back while reassuring her.
"Sorry..." Anna slowly calmed down as she got back in touch with reality. "I'm just on edge." She leaned back in the chair and rubbed her forehead. "How is Lily?"
"She just got discharged." Claire replied as she lovingly stroked Colton's hair.
"That's good. And the mission? I heard you kept a souvenir." Anna asked as she stood up and started to open the curtains that covered the windows to let in some much needed sunlight.
"What can I say? I saw the X factor. I had to have him. How about things on your side?" Claire replied while her focus never left Colton.
"Everything was set up and set into motion. The tech team is working on some leads while we wait for the information the guys are getting out of the rats. The company was notified of our absence for today and the new residence is already set. You can check it out as soon as you leave the hospital." Anna did her share of work without ever leaving Colton's room.
"No. I'll take Lily to the base in the city's center. I'm not taking any risks until we know for sure who's behind all this." Even if she already had a strong suspicion about who was responsible, she needed to confirm it. She didn't want it to be true.
"I'll let them know of your arrival then. Anything else you need me to do?"
"Yes. Go home." Claire ordered her as she looked at Anna with a serious expression.
"I'm fine Claire. You know I ca-" Claire cut her off before she could continue.
"Anna your face is haggard, you're wearing the same clothes as yesterday and you spent the entire night crying. I know you're not fine." Claire scolded her. She knew Anna didn't like to lose her composure, let alone others see her when she did. But tough love was the only way to get through to her in times like these. "I know you. And I know you won't leave him unless I order you to so that's exactly what I'm doing." Her voice turned softer as she continued. "Just go and rest a bit. I know you're going to come back to watch over him and that's the only reason why I can stay so calm. Knowing he's with you puts my heart at ease. But I'd prefer to come visit my brother while he's still the only patient in the room. I can't have you falling ill while you look after him. So go home and rest for a few hours. Ben will stay with him while you're gone and then he'll go do the same once you come back. You're both essential to me so there will be no getting sick on my watch. Understood?" Even if her voice was affectionate it left no room for discussion.
"Understood." Anna responded with a sad smile on her face. She knew Claire was right. Getting sick wouldn't help anyone and she refused to become a hindrance. "I'll go as soon as Colton is finished with his morning check-up."
"That's better." Claire smiled approvingly and looked back down at Colton. "Sorry I can't stay longer. Our little flower is waiting for me. I'll see you soon big bro." She gave him a kiss on the cheek and left after giving Anna a tight reassuring hug.
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'Mommy ' Lily started signing to Claire while in the car. They sat inside Cameron's Jeep as he drove.
"Yes sweetie?" Claire answered.
'Who was that big man that was with you last night? Is he a friend too?' Lily's eyes were full of curiosity. Claire's only friend had always been Anna so seeing her around different people was new to her.
"Well..." Claire looked at Cameron through the car's rear view mirror and saw him concentrating on the road. She knew he had to report everything of relevance back to Aiden, so having him hear her opinion about him was somewhat awkward.
'I wouldn't say he's exactly my friend.' She decided to continue their conversation in sign language to avoid feeling embarrassed.
'Then he's a stranger?.' Lily's asked while her eyes filled up with concern.
'No, no he isn't a stranger. He's.... he's somebody that wants to be close to me.' Claire never lied to Lily. And even if the topic was making her want to throw herself out of the car, in Claire's dictionary ignorance was never bliss. If she were to raise Lily like any other child, she would be willingly be putting her in danger.
'Close?' She tilted her little head to the side making her look even more innocent.
'Yes, close. Let's see, you know how in your favorite movie the prince sees the princes and wants to spend time with her because he likes her?' Claire tried to find a suitable example to give Lily. Since the little girl was only ever surrounded by family or bodyguards, she opted to use one of the movies she frequently watched to try and describe her relationship with Aiden.
'He wants you to be his princess mommy!?' Lily got so excited that Claire could almost see the hearts inside her eyes. She was always a sucker for romantic stories. But her reaction only made Claire blush. Hard. The thought of Aiden wanting to make her his princess was absurd, but having Lily say it as if it were true made her feel incredibly embarrassed.
"Ma'am we're here." Cameron said as he turned the car's engine off and got out. Not letting Claire clear up Lily's misunderstanding, he then opened her door. "Are you alright ma'am? You're red."
"I'm fine. Absolutely fine." She turned to unstrap Lily from her car seat and held her in her arms as she got out of the car. "We'll finish talking about that later okay sweetie?" She told her as she quickly regained her composure. "First we're getting you that french toast."
Lily smiled up at her in agreement. Her love for french toast won over her curiosity for the time being.
They walked towards the small cafe where they would have their breakfast when all of a sudden Lily asked Claire to stop.
'Mommy look! It's your prince charming!' And with that Claire froze.