Rejected: A love story-Chapter 137: This wasn’t an accident

As Caleb drove into the parking lot, he didn’t even notice the rain dripping down the windshield. His brain was reeling with thoughts of Fiona’s death and Nathan’s collapse. He parked the car quickly, not even bothering to straighten the wheels before he got out into the chilly night air.

He ran up the steps, shaking the rain off his jacket as he went through the doors. The smell of disinfectant hit him immediately. Caleb didn’t like hospitals, he never had. But he didn’t have time to think about it.

At the reception desk, a nurse looked up, her eyes tired but pleasant. "Can I help you?"

"Yes," Caleb said quickly, his voice low but insistent.

"I’m here to see Nathan Keith," Caleb said quickly, his voice low but urgent.

The nurse nodded and tapped at her keyboard. "He’s in Room 214. Second floor. Take the elevator to your right."

"Thanks," Caleb muttered, already heading toward the elevator. He tapped the button repeatedly, as if that would make it come faster. His foot tapped impatiently. When the doors finally slid open, he stepped inside and hit the button for the second floor.

The ascent seemed to take an eternity. His phone buzzed in his pocket, but he didn’t answer it. He just couldn’t handle anything else right now. When the doors finally dinged and opened, Caleb walked out, looking for Room 214, and saw Detective Ben standing near the door to the room, his phone to his ear. Ben looked as grim as Caleb remembered from his last conversation with the detective.

"Detective," Caleb called out as he walked up to him.

Detective Ben looked up, and his call ended. "Mr. Caleb, thanks for coming."

"What’s the update? Have you figured out anything?" Caleb asked, his tone impatient. He wasn’t in the mood for small talk.

Ben sighed and gestured for Caleb to follow him to a more secluded area of the lobby. "We are still trying to piece together all the information."

"Have you told Fiona’s family yet?" Caleb asked.

Ben sighed and ran his hand over his face. "Yes, I have spoken with Fiona’s father, Duncan Brown. He’s... still in shock. The whole family is.

Caleb exhaled, his chest tightening. Duncan Caleb let out a breath, his chest constricting. Duncan didn’t behave like he gave a damn, but something like that? Something like losing Fiona? That would kill anyone.

"What about the driver?" Caleb asked, his tone low. "Have you found that guy yet?"

Ben shook his head. "No, we haven’t found that guy yet. We’re still working on that. But the hospital has already confirmed what we suspected. It was a hit-and-run. They brought her in, unconscious, and...she didn’t make it. They did what they could, but it was just too severe."

Caleb’s jaw locked. Hearing that, saying it out loud, made it sound too real, and Caleb hated that. "So, that’s it? No foul play? Just a freak accident?"

Ben hesitated. "It looks that way. But until we locate the driver and get a full statement, I can’t say for sure. For now, all we know is what the hospital told us." 𝗳𝐫𝚎𝗲𝚠𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝘃𝚎𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝗺

Caleb ran a hand through his hair, his frustration boiling just beneath the surface. "And her body? Where is she now?"

"They’ve taken her to the hospital morgue," Ben replied. "She’ll be there until the family decides what to do about her body. I can take you to see her, if you’d like."

Caleb nodded, his expression wooden. "Yeah, I need to see her."

Ben nodded to the other young cop, who stepped forward to escort Caleb down the hallway. Caleb’s mind whirled as he walked, his brain working to make sense of what had happened. He wanted to believe it was just a terrible accident, but there was something about it that didn’t feel right to him. He needed to know what had really gone on, but all he could do was say goodbye to his sister.

◆◆◆◆◆◆

"We’re working on it," Ben said, his voice firm. "The cameras outside the hospital did not capture the license plate number, but we do have a partial description of the vehicle. Not a lot to go on, but a start at least."

Caleb shook his head. "A start? Fiona is dead. A start is not enough."

Ben held up a hand. "I understand, Caleb. I really do. But these things take time. You want to solve this? Let me do my job."

Ben sighed. "We don’t know that for sure. It might be nothing. But it is certainly... unusual."

Caleb was infuriated "Unusual? That’s all you’ve got? This wasn’t just an accident, Ben. Someone did this to her."

"We’re not ruling anything out," Ben said. "But we need more evidence before we can treat this as anything other than a hit-and-run." He continued

"If you know something that could help this investigation, Caleb, now’s the time to tell me. But I need you to stay calm, Caleb. Let us handle this."

Caleb snorted. "Stay calm? My brother’s falling apart, Fiona is gone, and you’re telling me to stay calm?"

"I’m telling you not to do anything stupid," Ben said sharply. "If this wasn’t an accident, the people responsible are dangerous. Let us do our job."

Before Caleb could respond, Ben’s phone buzzed. He glanced at the screen, his expression tightening. "I have to take this," he said, stepping away. "Stay here. I’ll be back."

Caleb watched him walk off, his fists clenched at his sides. He didn’t want to wait around for answers. He wanted to do something. But for now, he had no choice.

He stood outside the door for a moment, his hand on the handle as if unsure of what to do. He had no idea what kind of shape Nathan was in, or if he was ready to deal with it. But he had no choice. He took a deep breath and opened the door.

Nathan was sitting on the edge of the bed, his head in his hands. His shirt was rumpled, his hair was messy, and his eyes were bloodshot. He hadn’t slept in days, that was for sure. A nurse was adjusting the IV stand nearby, but she glanced at Caleb and nodded before quietly leaving the room.

"Nate," Caleb said softly, stepping inside.

Nathan didn’t look up. "You didn’t have to come."

"Of course I did," Caleb said, pulling up a chair and sitting down in front of him. "How are you holding up?"

Nathan made a bitter sound, finally raising his head to look at Caleb. "How do you think? Fiona is gone, Caleb. Gone, and it is my fault."

"Don’t do that," Caleb said. "Don’t even think about blaming yourself."

Nathan shook his head, clenching his fists. "I should have been there. I should have protected her. She called me the morning she died, Caleb."

Nathan buried his face in his hands, and Caleb reached forward, elbows on knees. "Nate, listen to me. This is not your fault. You didn’t have any idea this would happen. None of us did."

Nathan didn’t respond, his shoulders shaking as he cried. Caleb just sat there for a moment, unsure of what to say. Nathan was always the strong one, the one who had it all together. Seeing him like this was... hard.

After a moment, Caleb cleared his throat. "Look, I talked to Ella and Julian before I came. They’re safe. They’re staying put."

Nathan looked up at that, his eyes narrowing slightly. "Why? What aren’t you telling me?"

Caleb hesitated. He did not want to add to Nathan’s stress, but he could not lie to him either. "We do not think it was just an accident," he said cautiously. "The driver who hit Fiona... he ran off after dropping her at the hospital. That’s suspicious, Nate. And Fiona... she had enemies."