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“No, it's not. You're bleeding out.” There's dried blood on my hand though I touch her cheek anyway, marveling at how she's here. I have her back. I can touch her, hear her sweet voice, feel the warmth of her body against mine. That's a good thing, too, since I'm suddenly shivering.
Fuck. I'm going into shock.
“My phone's in my pocket.” I lean over, grimacing, breathing deeply to stave off the darkness threatening to overcome me. She pulls it out. “Call Romero. Put it on speaker.”
She does as she's told, and a moment later, his voice fills the car's interior. “Is it done?”
“We have her. She's here.”
A question quickly follows his sigh of relief. “You sound bad. What's the situation?”
“He was shot,” Bianca blurts out, her voice trembling. “He lost a lot of blood.”
“Shot… in my right side,” I explain through clenched teeth when the car hits another bump. “I think it went through clean, but I lost a lot. I need you to alert the staff. I'm going to need help when we arrive.”
“Five minutes,” I hear from the front of the car.
“What about you, Bianca?” Romero asks.
“I'm fine. They didn't hurt me.”
“She'll need a bed,” I insist, ignoring her shaking head. “And I want an ultrasound done ASAP. Whatever it takes. We need to make sure the baby's okay.”
“I'll have it arranged by the time you get here. I already got a call from Isaac–he went back in, but they were gone. He said there was a trail of blood leading out to the front lot that ended next to an empty parking space. They got away.”
I knew it, of course, but hearing it chills what blood I have left. “It was impossible. Jack was firing on us, I had to get her out of there–”
“Nobody's blaming you,” he insists, cutting me off. “You did what needed to be done. But rest assured, we'll find them. The more they run, the more I want them.”
Somewhere along the line, this became personal for him. “I know we will.” My head touches the back of the seat, and I sigh. Now that the emergency is over and Bianca's here, there's less adrenaline to keep me alert. My eyes drift closed, and my limbs become heavy.
“Callum?” I blink my eyes open to find Bianca leaning over me, her face filling my awareness.Her sweet, beautiful face. Like an angel hovering over me.“Stay with me, okay? We're almost there. Stay awake. Don't leave me.”
“I will… never… leave you…” Even if it feels that way. My eyelids have never been so heavy, and holding them open takes every ounce of strength I possess. They begin to close on their own in spite of my struggle to keep them open. “It's going to be okay. We'll all be okay.”
“We're almost there!” the driver shouts. “Stay with us, boss.”
“Callum, please.” The last thing I sense is the touch of her lips against mine.
Even if I die here and now, I couldn't think of a better way to go.
BIANCA
Ihate how hospitals smell, though it's heavenly compared to what I spent the past few days smelling. It's so… clean. We didn't even stop at the ER—I'm already in my own room, just as Callum is. A room I wish I was in right now.
“Where is Callum? Is he alright?” I pepper the nurse with questions as soon as she walks in.
“Miss Cole, I already told you that he'll be just fine.” I'm sure the nurse is tired of me asking that by now, even as she hides it pretty well while hooking a bag of saline up to the port in my arm. “He's being stitched up as we speak.”
“But he's okay? Are you sure?”
She offers a warm smile and pats my hand. “I'm fairly sure, and I'll check on him once we're finished here with you.”
“I'm fine.” Now that I had an ultrasound to ensure the baby was okay, I only care about Callum. I might as well be talking to a wall for all the good it's doing. Nobody understands how important it is for me to know he's safe. Either that, or they're placating me because the news is terrible, and nobody wants me to know yet. Maybe if I start screaming, somebody will drop the act and be honest with me.
“You're dehydrated and need to eat something. We have to be sure you're taken care of as well.” While she chides me, she takes my blood pressure. “The most important thing right now is making sure you stay calm. Your blood pressure is a little higher than I'd like.”
Easy for her to say. “I'm trying.”
