Maylin reached out hesitantly, unsure if her touch was welcome despite the initial hug. “How did you know? How do I help you now?”
A tired smile appeared on her tear-streaked face. “Their imposter always asked me to take medicine and never, ever mentioned I should have something to eat, until I stopped eating because I realized they were drugging my food.”
Maylin bit her lip. This was probably the least of the things they’d done to her.
“There could be addiction to deal with,” Gabe said quietly. “Can we take some blood samples? Our medical team has the resources to do a full workup and find out what’s currently in your system.”
An-mei considered for a long moment, then nodded.
Gabe gave Maylin’s hand a squeeze then released it. He took out a smartphone and showed it to both of them before he slipped it into Maylin’s robe pocket. “I’ll go let our medics know and leave you two alone to talk for a while. I’m just a phone call away.”
An-mei had been keeping her attention on Gabe from the moment she recognized him. When he left, she watched him go. Then she finally looked at Maylin.
Maylin had no idea how to prove to her sister she was who she was. All she could think of to do was wait, patiently, and meet An-mei’s searching gaze with as open a return gaze as possible.
“I’m so afraid this is another one of their tricks. Their mind games to get me to do the research they wanted,” An-mei whispered.
Maylin ached for her. “No one here is going to ask you to do anything. You’re safe.”
An-mei licked her lips and swallowed. “Can we go outside?”
“I think so.” Maylin blinked and glanced back at the wheelchair. “I’m pretty sure I can walk, whether he thinks I should or not. Do you think you can? If you do, let’s find a robe for you and make a break for it. It’s all green and wooded outside. Nice for a walk. I know where there’s a decent kitchen and I can make you some congee. Easy on your stomach.”
The tension melted out of An-mei and she lay back against the raised back of her hospital bed. “It is you. Food is the way you heal everything.”
Relief filtered through Maylin with her little sister’s acceptance. “The right food can make anything better.”
An-mei sighed. “Next time, you go to China and I’ll stay home. They had I don’t know how many kinds of dumplings you’d want to try.”
“Okay.” Maylin huffed out a laugh. “I think we’ve both had a lot of adventure lately, though. Maybe hold off on any more continent-hopping until we’ve had a chance to catch our breath.”
“You’re going to be right here with me, for the next few days?” An-mei’s voice got small and timid again. “The medics said I should stay at least that long and that there’d be people to talk to about what happened to me. What happens next.”
“I’ll be here as long as you need me.” Maylin gave her a smile. “I promise.”
“What about your catering company?” Her sister bit her lip.
Maylin took a deep breath. Of course her sister would think about it. It was the reason Maylin hadn’t been with her in China in the first place. “Well, I’ve taken a leave of absence and they can do without me a while longer. So you have my undivided attention.”
Her sister didn’t answer, but the next question hung in the air between them. This one, too, was a familiar one. But for how long?
“And we’re less than an hour out of Seattle, so if there’s any dire emergency, we could both drive in for the day, if you feel up to it—probably with an escort. But overall, I’ve realized I need to restructure the way I’ve been managing the company anyway. I’ll adjust my work schedule accordingly so we can stay here as long as you need.”
Maylin paused. Considering. “An-mei. You mean everything to me. Whatever the next steps are, I’ll adjust to what you need. Don’t worry about the catering company.”
An-mei reached out to her then, her fingertips touching the back of Maylin’s hand in a brief moment of contact. “I don’t want you to give up the catering company.”
“I would, if you needed me.” Maylin was absolutely sincere on this point.
“And that’s all I needed to hear. It means a lot.” An-mei smiled. “ But I don’t want you to actually do it. There’s a lot of next steps after this and it’d be more than enough if you were there with me.”
Maylin smiled in return. “I will be. Huān yíng huí jiā. Welcome home, mèi mèi.”
An-mei laughed, finally sounding more like the little sister Maylin knew. “So I think there’s a robe on the wall over there. If you can grab it, we can make a break for it, and you can tell me how you met that incredibly hot man and what’s going on between the two of you while we find ourselves some food.”
Chapter Twenty-Four