“Oh my God,” Orly breathed.
“Monster,” Skyla seethed. “Good riddance to the bastard.”
Reese shook her head. “No, it’s not. Death was too kind for him. It won’t undo what he did to you,” she said to Orly. “And it won’t bring my mom or my friend back. They’re gone forever.”
“I’m getting better every day,” Orly said, giving her hand a gentle squeeze. “And while I can’t imagine having a loving mom, let alone the pain and loneliness of losing her,you’re not alone, Reese. You’ll always have us. Me. Skyla. Hallie. And it goes without saying that Garrett and the guys are here for you, too.”
Reese drew in a ragged breath. As incredible as her friends were, they didn’t make up for her mom being gone. But never in her wildest dreams did Reese think she’d find others who had gifts like hers. It wasn’t the same as having her mom, but somehow when she was with them, she really did feel less alone in the world. “Thanks, and I will always be here for you, too.”
Reese didn’t have a chance to say more because her cell phone rang. With shaking hands, Reese answered the phone and placed it on speakerphone. “Martin? What’s wrong? Is Garrettokay? What happened?”
“You guys need to get back to the hospital as soon as you can.”
“On our way,” Reese answered, already on her feet “But -“ The line went dead before she had a chance to say anything else. “Let’s go.”
Everyone followed Reese out as she practically ran to Orly’s SUV. They made the twenty-minute drive in less than fifteen minutes. As soon as they stepped off the elevator on Garrett’s floor, they saw Martin standing in the hallway.
“What happened?” Reese asked, rushing up to him. “Is Garrett okay?” She dreaded whatever Martin was about to say,already blaming herself for whatever was wrong. “I knew I shouldn’t have left him.”
“It’s okay,” Martin said, giving Skyla an unreadable look. He held something out to her, and she sheepishly took whatever it was. “Lose something, did you?”
“What’s that?” Orly asked.
“A pushpin,” Martin answered. “It seems someone lost it in Garrett’s bed. There’s some blood on it. Must’ve poked him pretty good.” His gaze was squarely planted on Skyla.
She worried her bottom lip and quickly slipped the pin into her pocket. “I’m fine.”
Martin scoffed. “Don’t tell me, tell him.”
Reese looked over her shoulder to see Blake walking up to them, Luke and Caden behind him. “What’s going on?” Reese asked again. “Martin, why did you call and tell us to come back so fast?”
“Did it work?” Skyla asked softly. “I didn’t do that much.”
Martin gave the men a chin lift, then turned his attention to Reese. “The doctor is with Garrett right now. He woke up.”
