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“I love you so much,” she says.
And I almost say it back. I could probably get it out. There’s not nearly as much anxiety that comes when I think about it. Nothing like it used to be. But it’s not something I want to say through the phone, and definitely not when I’m on broadcast. I need to stare into her eyes and see the way she comes alive when she finally hears it again.
“Ditto,” I decide on instead. “I’ll see you when you get here.”
“Sounds g—“
Her words are cut off by a gasp and a scream of Mali’s name, followed by the sound of metal on metal and a lot of thumping, like the phone is being tossed around the car, before it all goes silent.
There’s a part of me that dies inside. Fear rushes through me as I silently beg for her to say something.
“Laiken!” I scream. “Laiken, answer me!”
But there’s nothing. Just the sound of the radio on low in the background. And my phone falls out of my hand and crashes onto the floor.
I can’t breathe.
My lungs are physically incapable of taking in air.
All the knuckles on my hands turn white as I grip the bar so tightly it threatens to crack under my grasp. Cam stands in front of me, demanding to know what happened, but his voice is background noise. It feels like I’m floating into the abyss, and there’s nothing but pain there.
The burn of the lack of oxygen.
The stabbing of my heart trying to beat.
If I passed out now, it would be much more humane.
“Hayes!” Cam screams, taking my shoulders and shoving me up against the wall. “What the fuck is going on?”
Not knowing what else to do, he gives me a look that tells me he’s sorry for this, and then he slams the heel of his hand into the center of my chest. It forces my body to take a massive inhale, finally allowing me to take in air, and the oxygen stops my brain from going foggy.
I cough, sputtering on the sudden intake, until I manage to get control of my breathing again. Dropping to my knees, I scramble for my phone and see the call is still connected, but I don’t hear anything but a commotion somewhere in the distance.
“H,” Cam presses once more. “What happened?”
Staring up at him, I feel like my entire world is crashing down around me for the final time. “T-they were in an a-accident.”
His eyes double in size as I choke out the words, and he immediately starts clearing everyone out of the bar. It’s good that he’s doing it because he’s been far more professional than I would be. I’d just scream at them to get the fuck out of my bar before I throw them out.
The moment the last person leaves, we’re right behind them, and we shut and lock the door behind us. We run as fast as we can to Cam’s Jeep, and he peels out of the parking lot while I track Laiken’s phone.
This twenty-minute ETA better end up being cut down to ten.
PULLING UP TO THEscene, I feel like I’m going to throw up. Mali’s car is totaled. It’s sitting upside down on the total opposite side of the street. Cops have the entire intersection shut down, but Cam pulls over onto the grass and we jump out.
I glance at the car and notice that both doors are open, which I’m hoping means that they’re both okay and they got out safely. But as I see Mali standing there talking to a police officer, my fear escalates. I don’t see Laiken beside her.
“Mali!” I call.
She spins around, and there’s a nasty gash on her collarbone, possibly from the seatbelt. She looks like she’s aged a million years in only a matter of minutes. Cam runs to her and wraps his arms around her tightly, but I’m still looking for my wife.
“Where’s Laiken?” I ask her.
Her bottom lip starts to tremble. “I don’t know.”
What?“What the fuck do you mean youdon’t know?”
She’s physically shaking as she starts to cry harder. “I mean I don’t fucking know! Someone slammed into us full force, and I was knocked out. And when I woke up, she was gone!”
