AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Jeez, Jake. Are you sure you wanna be here? I mean… You know?” The other man looks away, to where the ambulance doors are open.
“I asked you a question. What happened?” I clench my fists at my sides, forcing myself not to move to where my feet want me to go. My body is thrumming with the need to move to Margot, to take away whatever pain she’s in. Somehow, I know that I need to stay put, to handle it like the professional I am.
“She was just in the wrong place at the wrong time. Guy came barreling into the bar parking lot, trying to get to his wife, and Margot got in the way. She wouldn’t let him get to the other woman. So he hit her… Repeatedly… With a bat.”
“Who?”
“Jimmy Evers.”
“Make sure you get him booked and get a statement from the wife. I don’t care what you have to do. He’s not gonna get away with this.” Travis isn’t paying attention to me anymore. There is a commotion at the back of the ambulance, and I feel my world freeze.
“I don’t care what you want. You’re getting in the back of this ambulance, and you’re getting checked out. Now.” Laura’s voice carries over the parking lot and settles in my brain like a dense fog.
“I don’t know if you want to go over there, man. It might not be a good idea.” The younger man looks at me with pity in his eyes.
“No. I can handle this.”
“Good luck, then.” With that, Travis walks away and climbs into his car, and I notice that Jimmy is sitting in the back seat with his head bowed.
“I don’t care who you are. You can’t force me to go to the hospital.” Margot’s voice is rough, and I can tell that she is in pain.
I don’t say anything as I approach the ambulance, hoping that Laura will be able to get her into the ambulance, and silently praying that Margot isn’t injured badly.
“Look, lady. You need to get checked out. I’d bet you’ve got some cracked ribs with the way you’re holding them. Not to mention all the contusions. Just make my life easier. I have already had a craptastic day. And I’m sure it’s not going to get any easier. Do me this solid.”
“Fine. Whatever.” Margot huffs, and it’s a good thing she’s listening, because I’m coming around the back of the ambulance now.
“Hey, Doll… I mean, Jake. What are you doing here?” Laura turns to me, curiosity and pain clear in her eyes as she sees me before Margot does.
It’s not her that I pay attention to.
In this moment, I give absolutely zero fucks about Laura or anyone else.
I care about the small woman currently sitting on the tailgate of the ambulance, holding a bloodied towel to her face, looking way too much like she did that night in the hospital.
I don’t spare a glance for the redheaded firefighter standing too close to Margot, either.
“Doll,” Margot bites out. “Huh. I didn’t know you had a girlfriend, Findlay. Way to go. Now can we get going?” She rolls her finger in the air. Margot does a good job of hiding it, but I don’t miss the flash of pain in her eyes.
“Hey, Lilly-girl,” I cringe at my unintentional use of her nickname. “You’re a glutton for punishment, aren’t you? Trav said you were protecting Jimmy’s wife and took the bad end of a bat?”
“Yeah.” She pulls the towel away from her face hesitantly, and I see just how bad it is. Her face is swollen, and the blood seems to be coming from a split not only on her bottom lip but also from a laceration on her eyebrow. Her normally blond hair is tinted red from all the blood, and her left eye is swollen almost shut. “I couldn’t get to my taser fast enough. But he didn’t get to her.” She smiles, and then winces when it causes her even more pain. “So I call that a win.”
“Well.” I swallow down the bile in my throat. “You did good.” I’m frozen, unable to move.
She looks up at me, and it’s just like when she was a kid and I was supposed to protect her. Tears well up in her eyes, and I can’t help it. I go to her, stepping around the firefighter and Laura and anyone else in the way.
“Hey. No crying. You’ll be fine.” I brush the tears from her cheeks as gently as possible.
“I don’t like ambulances. Not since then. Please.” Her voice breaks, and I know she is talking about the accident that had derailed our future.
“It’s fine. I’ll take you. I got you.” I sweep her into my arms, and she immediately curls into my chest like she used to do. I ignore the looks coming not only from Laura, but from the other people on the scene as well. “Shh,” I whisper into her hair. “I got you. I’ll always get you.” Then I walk away without saying anything to anyone else. My sole focus is the woman in my arms. I don’t listen to the redhead talking to Laura, but I can tell there is hostility in the other man’s voice.
When I get to my cruiser, I shift her weight to one arm so that I can open the door. “I’m going to buckle you in. And then I’ll take you to the hospital. It’ll be alright, Lilly-girl.” I don’t know what I’m thinking, but Margot needs me. No matter what happened, I’ll always do anything for her.
She’s crying, obviously in pain and trying to hide it. “Jake. It hurts.”
“I know, baby.” I’m full of slips, and I don’t care. “Don’t worry. I got you.” I pull away into the night. I don’t use my lights or sirens, only using the radio to tell dispatch that I’m transporting the female patient to the hospital. I can hear the relief in Abby’s voice as she confirms with me over the radio.
