AllFreeNovel
Share Us
The shooter! “Ashton’s behind you!”
The guy froze momentarily just as Joe spun toward him. Ashton had a good two inches on Joe, but that didn’t seem to matter. Joe’s fist shot out, catching the shooter beneath his chin. Ashton’s head snapped back, but he didn’t go down.
Elly watched in horror as Ashton pulled his hand from his scrub pocket, revealing a small gun. “Look out!”
Before the warning left her mouth, Joe threw himself at Ashton, knocking him off his feet. The two men tumbled down, and she thought she heard the clatter of a gun hitting the floor. Elly swung herself upright, ignoring the pain as she stood and moved toward the door.
Colin jumped into the fray, helping Joe get control of the guy. Elly saw the gun on the floor and used her bare foot to kick it out of reach. Then she stood helplessly watching as Ashton and Joe exchanged fierce blows as Colin did his best to grab Ashton’s arms.
Suddenly Brady, Rhy, and Tarin were there too. She sagged against the doorframe in relief as her brothers grabbed Ashton and hauled him upward. Rhy wrenched Ashton’s arms behind his back as Tarin pulled the face mask and cap off, revealing his features. Blood ran from his nose, and his lip was bleeding too.
Ashton muttered a curse, then clamped his mouth shut. Hatred burned from his eyes. She glared right back, satisfied that he’d never hurt anyone, ever again.
She forced herself to turn away. Noticing Joe’s battered face, she moved toward him. “Oh, Joe, that looks painful.”
“I’m okay.” Joe swiped his hand over his face to get rid of the blood. Then he looked at her. “How did you recognize him?”
“His eyes.” She managed a wan smile as Tarin and Brady hauled Ashton away. “I told you before that I’d know him when I saw him. Even with the mask and hat covering his features, I recognized his eyes.”
“You’re good, sis,” Rhy said with admiration.
“Thanks.” She reached out to grasp Joe’s arm. “Your poor face needs medical attention.”
“Nah, I’ve had worse.” Joe slipped his arm around her waist. “You, on the other hand, need to get back into bed.”
She reluctantly allowed him to help her onto the gurney. Mostly because she still didn’t know the results of the CT scan. It didn’t feel as if she was bleeding internally, but since she’d never been struck by a bullet while wearing a vest, she had no way of knowing for sure.
“Kingsley,” Rhy said, coming into the room.
Joe turned and faced her brother. “I know what you’re going to say. It’s my fault. I take full responsibility for Elly getting hurt.”
Rhy arched a brow and clapped him on the back. “That wasn’t what I was going to say. You did good work here. I heard from Brady, Quinn, and Tarin how determined you were to keep Elly safe. I appreciate everything you’ve done for her.”
Joe scowled. “It’s still my fault she was hurt.”
“We have security searching the area to figure out how the shooter got his weapon past the metal detector. We believe he assaulted a staff member and stole his ID.” Rhy looked grim. “Sounds like they haven’t implemented scanning employees the way I’d hoped.”
She remembered when Alanna had almost been shot by an employee with a gun. Maybe this latest incident would change the policy.
“Excuse me.” Dr. Willis tapped on the door. “I need to speak with Ms. Finnegan about the results of her CT scan.” He frowned, and added, “Privately.”
“Go ahead.” Elly waved a hand. “Joe and Rhy can hear this.”
Willis eyed the two men warily, then shrugged. “Okay. The good news is that you don’t have any internal bleeding. However, you do have two cracked ribs and severe bruising. You’re going to be sore for the next six to eight weeks, I’m afraid. You’ll need to avoid heavy lifting during that time frame.”
“What about my job?” Elly asked. “I’m an EMT.”
“Sorry.” Dr. Willis shook his head. “You’ll have to take a medical leave of absence. I’ll give you a note with your lifting restriction to take to your employer.”
“Does she need to stay overnight?” Joe asked.
“No, she can go home. Ribs heal on their own over time. I’ll put through the discharge order now.” Willis ducked out of the room.
“How exactly did Elly get shot?” Rhy asked.
Joe rubbed the back of his neck. “She caught a glimpse of the shooter and threw herself on top of Grayson to protect him.”
“Really?” Rhy turned to face her. “Sounds like you would have made a good cop after all.”
