Do Not Fall For The Baseball Captains novel Chapter 86

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Stay Away from My Son

Stay Away From My Son

Victoria’s POV

The smell of antiseptic was the first thing that hit me when the hospital sliding doors parted, a sterile, sharp scent that made my stomach twist.

Elijah’s hand was a firm, grounding pressure against my lower back, guiding me down the brightly lit corridor toward the reception desk.

Nova walked fast on my other side, practically dragging her feet to keep up. Ever since Caleb’s mom called with the news, I hadn’t been able to think straight.

The drive from campus back to our hometown went by without me even noticing the road, but Elijah stayed right next to me the whole way.

“I need to know where Caleb Ashfield is.” My voice came out thin as I leaned heavily against the high reception counter, my hands gripping the edge.

The nurse behind the desk looked up, her expression completely unreadable as she paused over her keyboard.

“Are you family?”

“I’m his best friend,” I blurted, my hands trembling against the smooth surface.

“Please, I was on the phone with him when it happened. I just need to know if he’s alive.”

Before the nurse could answer, a heavy door down the hallway opened, and the muffled sound of sobbing echoed into the quiet waiting area. I spun around instantly.

Genevieve, Caleb’s mother, was being supported by her oldest son, Nathan. She looked entirely broken, her eyes swollen and red, her blouse wrinkled as she buried her face in a tissue.

“Victoria?”

Nathan’s voice broke through the quiet hallway. He had stopped mid–stride, his brow furrowed as he stared down at me.

For a second, he looked completely lost, his eyes scanning my face as if trying to piece together a puzzle.

He had left for college years ago and barely ever came back to the neighborhood, and the last time he’d actually looked at me, I was still just a lanky kid sitting on his parents‘ porch.

“Nathan,” I breathed, rushing toward them. “How is he? What happened?”

A look of pure shock registered on his face before his expression softened into something tired but kind.

Away from My Son

He took me in properly then–clearly realizing how much time had passed, how different I looked now that I was actually grown up.

Unlike his father and Dominic, Nathan had always been the one member of the Ashfield family who treated me like a human being.

“He’s in stable condition for now,” Nathan explained, placing a comforting hand on his mother’s shoulder.

“The doctors said he has a severe concussion, a few cracked ribs, and a lot of deep bruising from the airbag, but he’s breathing on his own. They have him on an IV fluid drip to keep him stabilized.”

I moved past him toward the heavy door with the small, rectangular glass pane. My breath hitched as I pressed my forehead against the cool glass, looking inside the darkened room.

Caleb lay there, looking painfully small beneath the white hospital sheets.

There were purple bruises blooming across his cheekbone, and a thick white bandage was wrapped tightly around his temple.

Clear plastic tubes ran from a silver stand beside the bed, connecting directly to the back of his hand.

Seeing him completely motionless like that made a terrifying ache settle deep behind my ribs.

“What is she doing here?”

The harsh, booming voice cut through the quiet hallway, making me flinch. I turned around to see Justin, Caleb’s father, marching down the corridor.

His expensive suit jacket was unbuttoned, his jaw clenched into a tight, furious line.

Behind him walked Dominic, Caleb’s immediate older brother, who was glaring at me with identical hostility.

“Justin, please, not here,” Genevieve whispered, her voice cracking as she tried to reach for her husband’s arm.

Justin ignored his wife completely, stopping a mere two feet away from me.

“I asked you a question, Victoria. Who gave you permission to show up at my son’s hospital room? Haven’t you done enough damage?”

I blinked back the fresh tears stinging my eyes, my voice caught in my throat.

“I… I just wanted to make sure he was okay, Mr. Ashfield.”

“He would be perfectly fine if it weren’t for you,” Justin sneered, pointing a finger directly at my face.

“The police told me his phone was active when the car left the road. He was calling

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you. You’ve been a distraction to him his entire life, dragging him down, and now your little middle–class dependency almost got my son killed.”

A sickening sense of guilt bloomed deep in my gut because, somewhere deep down, a part of me feared he was right.

Why had Caleb called me while driving down that dark highway?

I remembered the tight, strained quality of his voice during the few seconds we spoke before the horrific screech of tires. He hadn’t sounded right.

He had probably just survived another massive shouting match with his father or Dominic, and he had been reaching out to me for an escape.

Before I could sink any deeper into my own head, Elijah stepped directly into the space between Justin and me. His massive, athletic frame completely blocked the older

man from my view.

“That’s enough.” Elijah didn’t even raise his voice, but a quiet, lethal edge in his tone halted Justin instantly. “You’re going to back up, and you’re going to stop speaking to her in that manner right now.”

Justin’s face flushed a deep, angry crimson as he looked up at Elijah, completely unaccustomed to being challenged.

“And who the hell are you? Get out of my way before I have security throw you out of this building.”

Justin made a sudden, aggressive move to charge past him, but Elijah didn’t budge an

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