Merrick was thrashing so hard, as unintelligible pleas tore from his lips; I knew if we didn’t get him out of here now, he would end up bleeding out in his attempt to get to her. Tearsstreamed down Sophia’s cheeks. She tried her hardest to keep Merrick still as sobs wracked her chest, and I numbly pressed the elevator button.
Giana had made up her mind, and now we would just be a distraction. Every second we gave Tommaso to heal put Giana in even greater danger.
Every muscle in my body groaned in protest as I heaved Merrick into the elevator, but we had to go.
Giana trusted us to help her with this plan, and I had to trust her now. She knew what she was doing. Tommaso no longer held any power over her. She wasn’t the same woman who came to my tattoo shop, hiding the evidence of his abuse. There was a fire in her that refused to be extinguished.
I held on to that as Merrick slumped against me and the doors rolled shut, blocking my view of the penthouse and my little devil. My heart sank as though she’d torn it out the moment she’d told us to leave, and it was still there in her palm. A heavy weight settled over all four of us, and I knew without words they felt the same way I did. Spade stared vacantly at the doors, his body so still I could barely tell whether he was breathing or not. Merrick’s strength drained from him as he lost sight of our woman, his eyes fluttering closed.
“Stay with us.” I shook him, gritting my teeth.
That jerked Spade from his shock. He pressed the lobby button and rushed to take Sophia’s side, supporting Merrick’s weight.
“Giana,” Merrick growled, his protest weaker than before.
Sophia’s lips tightened, and she patted her dress like she was looking for her phone.
“Give her your phone, Spade, so she can call Zane.” I pressed my jacket harder into Merrick’s chest, hoping I was keeping the wound sealed tightly enough and that the bite of pain would keep him conscious.
Merrick’s eyes flickered open, a groan tearing from his lips.
“Why—” Sophia blinked as she took the phone, glancing down at the screen that was already open to Zane’s contact. “I mean, shouldn’t we call an ambulance instead?”
“He and Sebastian are outside waiting nearby with a medical team,” I explained, barely keeping the tension out of my voice. An ambulance and cops were not something we needed to deal with, especially when I was struggling to stop myself from going back up there.
Her eyes widened, and she nodded, putting the call on speakerphone. Seconds ticked by as we waited with bated breath for the call to connect, the floor numbers slowly lighting up on our descent.
“You have her?” Zane barked.
Relief flooded my veins at his terse words, but it was sucked away into the cavernous hole in my chest as Merrick’s legs gave out.
“We need a stretcher or a medic or something.” Sophia’s heels tapped against the tiled floor, the sound only adding to the pressure mounting in my veins. “Merrick’s been shot, and Giana—” Her gaze drifted to the floor, refusing to meet ours.
“Sophia?” Zane’s voice softened for only a moment before he cleared his throat. “I’ll bring them through the back.”
The call cut off abruptly, leaving Sophia to blink down at the phone before snapping back into focus.
There were only ten more floors between us and the lobby now, but every second seemed to take an eternity.
“Please tell me one of you has a plan.” Sophia chewed at her bottom lip, her eyes flicking between Spade and me before settling on Merrick with a wince.
I pressed the jacket tighter into his chest, sighing in relief as he let loose a pained groan.
“We get him to the medics the second those doors open.”
It was simple, but it was the only thought my mind could form because if I let it wander—
No. I had to stay in the present for Merrick, for Giana.
Sophia nodded and stepped to the side, her foot still anxiously tapping away. Normally the sound would’ve annoyed me; instead, it reassured me we all knew what was at stake right now.
Giana was right about one thing: Spade and I both needed to be here to support Merrick as his strength slipped away bit by bit. But she was out of her mind if she thought I wouldn’t be right there the moment we got him to safety. I knew Spade had the same thought, but with the eerie quiet that settled over him and the vacant stare that kept slipping in, there wasn’t a chance I was going to let him be the one to go back up our little devil.
Some of the tension eased from my chest as the elevator dinged, signaling we’d finally made it. My muscles were taut and ready to launch into motion.
The doors opened to Sebastian’s smiling face. He tipped his doorman hat at Sophia with a wink, but as he surveyed our group, the playful expression vanished.
At least everything had gone to plan down here.
