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Ezra moaned, and I brushed my fingers through his hair, trying to give him comfort in the second it took for the operator to respond.
“9-1-1, what’s your emergency?”
I recognized Pamela’s voice. “Pamela,” I wheezed. “It’s Ezra. He was attacked behind his house, in the alley.”
A bare beat of horror flashed through the line before she inhaled and pulled herself together. Good thing one of us had some composure because I was afraid I was going to rattle apart.
I could hear her typing quickly, could hear the harsh quality of her breaths, her professionalism that she attempted to hang onto while worry wobbled her voice. “Police and ambulance are en route. Are you in a safe area?”
I hadn’t even thought to look around to see if someone was still lurking in the shadows, and it was fear and protection that filled me full as I rose up higher, making myself as large as I could, intending to be a shield for Ezra if whoever this bastard was returned.
“I don’t know,” I whispered.
“Go inside,” Ezra demanded through a groan.
“I’m not leaving you.”
“Go,” he grated.
I choked through a disordered laugh, and I ran my fingers through his hair again. There he was, my sweetly overbearing Hot Cop, all grumpy and gruff.
He was going to be fine. He was going to be fine.
“I’m fine.” He said it like he’d just heard me silently trying to convince myself of it and was offering me the comfort. “Go inside until we know it’s safe.”
“I’m not going anywhere, Ezra. Not unless you want me to try to carry you, which I’ve always thought of myself as strong, but I’m not sure I could lift the likes of you.” I didn’t allow myself to evaluate the words that escaped.
I was afraid if I did, they might mean more than this instance, and instead I focused on the pelting of relief when I heard sirens suddenly whirl to life.
They were close.
Really close.
Thank God for small towns.
“I would also recommend that you seek safety until the authorities arrive, Savannah.” Pamela’s instruction was urgent.
“They’re already almost here.” I could hear the whir of an engine, the siren growing louder as it entered the neighborhood. Not that it would have mattered if they were a hundred miles away.
I wasn’t going anywhere.
I wasn’t.
“Dangerous.” Ezra mumbled it, and I tucked him closer and whispered, “Shh.”
I didn’t know if I was distinctly lacking self-preservation or what. But there wasn’t any amount of danger that could get me to move right then.
Red and white lights suddenly jumped through the darkened sky, and a second later, a Sheriff cruiser turned into the alley, followed by an ambulance. The sirens quieted, but the lights continued to flash.
The door to the cruiser opened, and I peered through the blaze of headlights and finally made out the figure approaching.
Samson.
The officer who had come when Ezra had called about the motel break-in. He had his gun drawn as he approached, carefully, eyes hunting through the trees and shrubs to ensure it was clear.
“Perpetrator ran, took a right at Maple,” Ezra grumbled, lifting his grunting voice at Samson.
With Ezra’s explanation, Samson jogged the rest of the way over. “What the hell happened? Are you okay?”
Samson’s attention flashed to me for one single beat, calculating the situation before he returned it to Ezra.
“Find that asshole, and I’ll be just fine,” Ezra grumbled. “And get these emergency lights turned off. I don’t want the entire neighborhood running out here to find their Sheriff like this.”
Samson hesitated before Ezra shouted, “Go!”
“Damn, I guess you are just fine.” Samson almost chuckled before he ran back toward the ambulance. The driver was just climbing out, and Samson shouted orders at him before he darted around the end of the fence and out onto Maple that ran that side.
A couple seconds later, the flashing lights of the ambulance went out, then the cruiser, too, before three paramedics emerged through the haze of headlights that still burned, close to jogging as they carried their equipment.
A female paramedic carrying a big bag rushed to Ezra when she saw him on the ground. “What the hell happened to you?”
“Some bastard got me with a blade.”
“Where?” Worry whipped through her features. No question, they knew each other.
The other two paramedics were right behind. “Fuck, Ezra,” one said as he dropped his bag to the ground.
“What bastard am I gonna have to hunt down?” the last said.
Each of them kept peeking at me like they were trying to discern who I was, though each were quick to cover it.
“It’s not a big deal,” Ezra said, groaning as he sat up.
“Whoa.” The woman put her hands out to stop him. “Don’t move until we get you checked out.”
Ezra placed his hand on his right side. “Asshole got me good enough to knock the fucking breath out of me, but I don’t think it’s deep. I can stand.”
