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It didn’t go straight through.
Stop the bleeding.
I pull my thin cardigan off one-handed, peeling back Nina’s tank and forcing it into the wound.
There’s so much blood.
I close my eyes.
Shock.
She could go into shock from the blood loss.
I need to keep her awake.
“Keep her warm.”
“Remove any tight clothing.”
“Scarlet,” she begs.
Her chest is heaving.
She can’t breathe.
Cover her body.
Keep her warm.
“Mum,” Nina mutters.
You’re going to be strong, Scarlet. Likely stronger than the people around you if what I know is true.
A stray tear falls from my eye, landing on Nina’s bloodied hand that covers mine.
“You always did mess everything up.” I hear the gun hit the wall, the bullets scattering across the ground. The door rebounds off the wall, and then with only Joey’s panic filling the apartment, Nina’s entire body relaxes.
No. Please. Please.
She can’t.
I can feel her eyes on me, begging me to look at her, but I can’t. I can barely stop this bleeding and… I can’t look at her.
You’re going to save the people around you, and then you’ll save yourself too.
I just know it.
And in the moments you feel like you can’t save them, or you feel like you’ve failed, know that you’ve done it once already, and you can do it again.
Nina’s hand falls limp atop mine, her lungs taking a half breath before they settle completely.
I don’t hesitate as I rise on my knees and start chest compressions.
THIRTY-SIX
Lance
“What did the message say?” Mason repeats.
