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She nods and squeezes my arm. “I’ve done all I can, but she’s in expert hands here.” I put my hand over hers and it trembles. She’s no doubt exhausted from fighting for Liv’s life.
“Remind me to double your pay,” I say.
She huffs out a laugh and steps back. “Stay safe,” she says, glancing at Dylan again before she strides away.
We’re not in the clear yet, so we settle back into our seats.
Time becomes fluid. At one point, Vera stands in front of me and hands me a clean shirt and sweats. I take them on autopilot and walk down the hall to the bathroom. It’s just one room, but Jordy follows me in. He takes the clothes from me, and I rest my hands on the sink and stare at my reflection. Blood covers my whole torso except for where the nurse cleaned me up and bandaged my wound.
I grip the sink. “I can’t lose her, Jordy. She can’t die for me.”
“You won’t. She doesn’t want to leave you either. She’s too stubborn.”
“It was all for nothing. I never should have left her.” My voice cracks.
He shakes his head. “Don’t dwell on that. Focus on what you can do to fix it. She’s going to need you now more than ever.”
I take a deep breath as I reach for the soap and scrub. Jordy wets paper towels, then wipes my neck. A sob climbs out of my throat when the sink turns red.
He grips my good shoulder and I lean into him for support. “You’ll get through this, no matter what happens. For her.”
I nod and suck in a few more breaths. I finish up, then change and dump my soiled clothes in the hazmat bin in the hall. If I could set them on fire, I would.
Mark goes in after me and does the same with his clothes, then Brando. If she pulls out of this, Mark’s quick thinking saved her life. Just like she saved mine. If Liv hadn’t intervened, I would have been dead for hours already.
I replay every second of what happened, trying to find a way I could have prevented it. Then I remember Amber’s glassy eyes. “Mark, what happened to Amber?” My voice is loud in the quiet. The clock on the wall shows it's just past two in the morning. Henry moves closer so he can hear the answer.
Mark glances at Brando and Jackson nearby. They’re both awake. Vera is asleep, her head in Brando’s lap as he strokes her hair. Garrett, Dylan, and Fox went to the new Maddox office to dig for information. John stands vigil at the window. Jordy took Skye home at my insistence a while ago. I told him to activate the emergency protocols on the security system I had installed in her apartment. I’m not taking any chances.
“A sniper got her in the back of the head. The shot came from the building across the street, but the room was clean. Not even a trace of gunpowder.”
“What the fuck are we dealing with?” Jackson asks.
Mark sighs. “Dylan says from what he can see from the security feed, the shot hit her just as she pulled the trigger.”
“Someone didn’t want her to shoot,” Brando says.
“Does that make them a friendly?” Jackson asks.
Mark shrugs. “We have no idea.”
I scrub a hand through my hair and sigh. We fall silent as we contemplate the information. Something isn’t adding up.
More time passes. The sun rises.A nurse tells us there’s no change. Dylan, Garrett, and Fox return. I can tell they haven’t slept either.
Dylan stares at me for a long moment, then motions to Liv’s dad and brother to join us. “We found documents that confirm Amber was working with Scotty and David. She’s behind the attack on the safe house.”
I stare at him in shock. “How is that fucking possible?” Mark asks, having the same struggle as me.
“We’re trying to figure that out, but we know she had help. I have the entire team working on it,” Dylan says.
I nod and Garrett squeezes my good shoulder. “We’re going to figure this out, Luke. Nobody hurts her and gets away with it.”
I meet his eyes and nod at the determination I find. I see it reflected in everyone else in the room. Whoever these people are, they don’t stand a chance. It gives me a shred of comfort, but it’s overwhelmed by the turmoil inside me.
Morning turns into afternoon, then the sun sets again. As the sun peaks over the horizon, a doctor walks in and we all sit up. “She’s awake. Her vitals are improving by the minute.”
My head sags into my hands. Mark gives me a hug from the side as everyone sighs in relief.
