Page 2 of Protecting Gina

Gina picked up her pace, trying to get into the hospital before another one of their goons could stop her. She was close to the hospital, and if she ran the last bit, she might be able to get inside before the jerk caught up.

Never do favors was the lesson she’d learned in all of this. Why had one small offer of kindness turned into this fiasco?

A hand came down heavy on her shoulder, and she turned to brush them off, or maybe fight them. Not that she would win in a fight, but she sure as hell wasn’t going to go down easy.

“Hold up.”

She spun, seeing that it was the guy from earlier. He was her patient’s son, and not one of the goons sent to destroy her. Relief slid through her, but it didn’t last long. She needed to get into the hospital and fix her face. She was sure her hair had come undone, too. It was bad enough that this guy had seen her get hit. She didn’t want him to see how messed up she was after the attack.

“What is going on with you?”

She took a step away from him. “Nothing.”

“That wasn’t nothing.”

She took another step back, coming close to the ramp that led down to the basement. “It wasn’t something.”

“Really? Because the cut on your cheek tells another story.”

She lifted her hand to cover the cut on her cheek, but saw dirt on her fingers and stopped. Great, the cut might already be infected. How had this become her life?

“I’m fine.”

“You shouldn’t be fine after getting punched like that. Let me help you clean up that cut.”

A man entered the alley and started heading her way. It was another one of Pete’s men. Why were they still after her? She’d explained more than once that she didn’t have what they wanted.

The man trying to help her glanced over his shoulder and took another step closer to her. “How about we get into the hospital before he gets any closer?”

Pete’s guy was headed her way. At least they had stayed out of the hospital so far. She couldn’t take much more of this.

“Sure.”

She used her badge to open the back door and stepped inside. This end of the building wasn’t used for much on this floor. It was mostly supplies, which served her well because she needed to clean her cut and make herself look presentable, or as presentable as she could.

Wave glanced back, seeing the guy turn around as they headed deeper into the hospital. Then the woman came to a stop and opened a door, leading him into a small room.

“My name is Wave—at least that’s what my friends call me. Real name is Aaron.”

The woman’s eyebrows went up. “Why Wave?”

“Because the first time I piloted a CRRC, a rogue wave hit and flipped us. We had to be rescued.”

“A what?”

“Sorry, Navy speak. A combat rubber raiding craft. I wasn’t the best pilot and opted to go down a different path.”

“Ah, you’re the Navy kid. Your mom spoke about you before she got bad.”

“Oh.” He didn’t know what to think about that. He forgave, but he never forgot. Cassandra was the reason he stayed in touch. His mom had told him many times about how disappointed she was in him.

“Your sister is really nice. Is she going to live with you?”

“She is. Sorry, but I don’t know your name.”

The woman’s lips turned down in a frown. “It’s Gina Musgrave. Well, my mom wanted me to go by Eugenia. But I never liked the name.”

“Gina fits.”