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The pit of my stomach falls away, and I feel like my world is turning upside down. “I’m leaving now. I’ll be there soon. Shirley, she was there. She was with Kira.”
Dominic swears, and I hear him tell Frankie that Shirley was with Kira there.
“I’m sure she’s okay,” he says. “I’m sure of it.”
I hang up.
I’m not sure of anything.
Chapter 19 - Shirley
There’s dust in my nose. It’s so fucking irritating. I try to wiggle my nose, but that seems to wake me up more, and then I realize I’m incredibly sore. There’s pain and dust, and I cough some of it out as I blink open my eyes. Noises around me seem distant, almost as though something is blocking my ears as I try to remember where I am and what I’m doing.
Something sharp digs into my back, and I groan out loud, using my aching hands to push myself up. A single thought occurs to me.
My Baby.
I can hear people crying, and that barrier, that blocked ear feeling, is going away, and the sounds of cries intermingled with screaming becomes clearer. Where had I been?
I’d been at a table outside our family bistro with Kira. We were about to share a dessert when there was a huge noise, an explosion, from the store right next door. The force had flung us in the opposite direction, into the middle of the street. The thing stabbing me in the back must be rubble.
Kira.
“Kira?” I call weakly. My voice cracks, so I spit and clear my throat. “Kira?” I call, barely louder.
“Shirls.” It’s little more than a groan, but it’s her, thank God. I manage to sit up and look at myself. I’m bleeding, mostly from grazes and scrapes on my arms and legs. I put my hand on my belly and close my eyes, praying my baby is okay.
I hear the sirens getting closer, and everything is so disorientating. I need to close my eyes, just for a moment.
I’m jolted awake as the ambulance rumbles on the road beneath me. I’m on a stretcher, an oxygen mask over my face. There’s a young, traumatized medic next to me. He sees I’m awake and puts a reassuring hand on my shoulder. “It’s okay, ma’am. We’re on our way to the hospital.”
I open my mouth, but he shushes me, “Don’t speak. Conserve your energy.”
I shake my head because I have to tell him so they know, “I’m… I’m pregnant, but I don’t want anyone…don’t tell anyone about my baby.”
His eyes widen, and he nods. “We’ll check your baby is okay as soon as we’re at the hospital.”
I nod and close my eyes again.
A strange beeping sound stirs me from what feels like a very short nap. I can feel the cool sheets beneath me and covering me, and I’m sitting up at an angle. My back burns, probably from where the skin grazed, along with the other places I hurt. When I open my eyes, a handsome man in a white coat stands next to me.
He smiles. “Welcome back, Mrs. MacCannister.”
“My baby…” I try to finish the sentence, but he also puts a hand on my shoulder.
“Your baby is perfectly fine. You have nothing to worry about. You’re also doing great, aside from some disorientation. The old brain got a bit knocked around, but with a few days' rest, you’ll be right as rain.”
He pats my hand on the bed and turns to leave just as Evgenii rushes into the room. “Shirley!”
He approaches my bedside and gingerly takes my hand. “Oh my God, I’m so glad you’re okay. When the line went dead, I thought the worst.”
I can see the worry in his eyes. He isn’t pretending. His voice is shaking, and I almost think he’s going to cry. I feel a sharp stab in my heart that isn’t from the explosion, that’s guilt.
There’s a light knock at the door, and I see Alessandro standing there, looking both livid and concerned.
Evgenii steps aside respectfully and comes to the other side of my bed so they’re both by my side.
“I’m so glad you’re okay,” Alessandro says, stroking my hair back.
