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The doctor exhaled a breath, his body visibly slackening. "Okay," he said, grabbing a rolling stool and moving toward Amy. He grabbed gloves and sat down, reaching out toward her face. "Let's just take a look at this, shall we?" he asked, pressing around the gashes. "This could use a couple stitches, but you shouldn't have much of a scar. We're going to want to do a CAT scan to see if you have a concussion and we'll get your arms wrapped up." He scooted back on his stool, snapping off his gloves and jotting something into a chart.
Outside the door, I could see the outline of Lo and Breaker talking to the lady at the desk who was shaking her head at them.
"Alright, hold tight, Amelia," the doctor said. "I am going to send a nurse in to clean you up real quick and then you'll be taken down for your scan."
The doctor left and the silence in the room was deafening. I needed to do it. I needed to get it over with. I knew that, but the piercing in my chest was drawing all of my attention. That was until I felt her delicate hand wrap around my wrist. "Johnnie..."
Fuck her voice was sweet. I could listen to it saying my name until the end of time.
But I couldn't.
Because that was selfish.
I had to get it over with. I had to let her go.
My gaze went to hers and she saw something there, her head starting to shake. "No..."
"I can't do this to you, angel. You don't belong in this life. It's no good for you. You deserve better."
"Johnnie... no..." she said, her voice getting thick as the tears pooled in her eyes.
"I'm sorry, honey. I'm so sorry," I said, my own voice a little thick as I pulled my wrist from her grasp and moved toward the door.
"Johnnie, don't..." she called and the effect of those words was physical, a blow right to the center and I swear I could have doubled over from it. But I sucked in a breath and I walked out, closing the door behind me.
I stood outside the door for a second, my gaze moving up and finding Breaker's who took one look and pulled away from Lo.
"Fuck," he said, moving toward me.
Lo's gaze snapped up at Break's voice, eyes landing on me and sighing.
"Seriously?" she asked, looking annoyed. "After all that, you're walking away?"
"She deserves better," I said simply, moving past her.
"That's not your place to decide," she countered, sounding angry.
"It's done. Let it go, sugar," I said, taking off out the door and making my way to my car.
It felt like the swirling hollowness in my chest was spreading.
That's what leaving Amy felt like - like the darkness was going to swallow me whole.TwentyAmeliaI cried through the nurse swabbing the blood off my face and arms, through her numbing and stitching my face, through her wrapping up my arms. I laid as still as possible through the CAT scan that did, in fact, prove that I had a slight concussion. Then I cried while I waited for the pain medicine to kick in and dull the jackhammering in my brain.
A while later, sitting there, trying to figure out what I was supposed to do since Johnnie made it clear I couldn't go back to his place, the door slid open. There was a surge of hope that welled up inside despite my better judgment before my eyes landed on a middle aged man with a hangover of a waistline in moss-green colored slacks and a cream dress shirt with a badge on his belt. Great. Cops. Just what I needed.
"Miss. Alvarado, I am Detective Collings. I know you're not feeling so great right about now, but I have a few quick questions about your... mugging earlier today." He said 'mugging' like he knew it was a lie, but nothing about his presence seemed the least bit threatening. Besides, the pain medicine was making me feel nicely numb inside and I didn't really care if he was going to be a jerk.
"Okay, shoot," I said and a strange smile pulled at his lips.
"Shoot, huh?" he asked, pressing his lips together as he reached for a pad and pen. The way he said "Shoot" made it sound like he knew exactly what went down that afternoon. I felt myself stiffen, my defenses slipping into place. "So, Miss. Alvarado, can you tell me exactly what happened this afternoon?"
"I was walking down the street," I started, realizing what I was doing; I was lying to the cops. I didn't do that. I had never been in the position where that was necessary before. But instead of the sinking, swirling sensation I expected to feel, I felt nothing. I was empty. "I'm not familiar with your areas around here, Detective. I had no idea that it wasn't a safe place to be..."
"Down by Madison?" Collings asked, looking up at me from under his lashes.
"I guess. I wasn't really paying much attention to the street signs," I lied, remembering how I had been trying to memorize them. "Then, someone was behind me and I ran down this street." That, at least, was true. "But it wasn't a street; it was an alley and there was no way out. I got slammed up against the wall," I said, gesturing toward my head. "Then one of the men choked me." Again, not a lie.
"And your arms, Miss. Alvarado?" he asked, his keen eyes landing on the gauze wrapping them.
"The, um, the wall was brick. The... mortar scratched me."
Collings let out an exhale that sounded a bit like defeat as he scribbled away. "Did you know a man was shot in a building right around the area you were mugged today, Miss. Alvarado?"
"Wow. How unfortunate, Collings," a female voice that was vaguely familiar said, making a wry smile tug at Collings' lips. I looked over to see the woman from earlier; the one who had got me free and hugged me, whispering things in my ear to try to calm me down. She was gorgeous in her badass kind of way: tall and all hips, legs, boobs, and ass in a pair of army green shorts and a tan tank top. Her long blond hair was tucked slightly behind her ears, her brown eyes on me, giving me a small wink, before looking back at Collings.
