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I had to fight through it.
“Wait!” Yelling loudly was out of the question, but I tried to make my voice carry across the quad.
The harpies were all walking away, their arms linked together. They hadn’t heard me, or if they had, they didn’t care. Pushing off of the building, I stumbled after them. With their huge head start on me, I knew that catching up to them would be hard, but I had to pray that it wasn’t impossible.
Each step was harder than the last. I counted six steps then stopped to breathe and call after them, but they didn’t turn around.
“Amelia!” My voice didn’t sound like my own and I wondered, for just a moment, if I’d damaged it in the accident, but I couldn’t worry about that right now. Who cared if I couldn’t sing if I didn’t have Brett?
Six more steps.
I called her name.
Nothing.
Six more.
This time I sank to my knees as I called after them, watching them slowly get farther away.
It was beginning to look completely helpless.
“Please.” My plea was almost silent, but at that moment I felt strong arms lift me up from behind. They hooked under my arms, lifting me effortlessly and then turning me so that I was tucked against someone.
Someone big.
Strong.
“Brett?”
No answer, but the person carrying me started walking. We were headed away from the quad, away from the harpies. Normally, I would have been happy about that, but I needed to know if Brett was safe.
If he was alive.
“Please,” I begged. The tears streaming down my face were salty when they reached my lips, but my arms were too tired to lift and wipe them away, so I let them pool against my mouth. They ran in when I breathed and when I tried to speak, the salty taste ripping me out of my thoughts.
“Please, I need to know. I need Brett.”
The person holding me let out a sob, and that was the last thing that I heard.
Chapter 18
“Rose? You here with us?” The voice was kind and gentle and I fought to open my eyes. I knew that voice and I wanted to see the face that went along with it. Seeing the face meant seeing Kaleb, and that sounded pretty damn nice to me just then.
“I’m here.” My voice sounded clearer and stronger than it had before, and I forced my eyes open. Kaleb was leaning over me, sitting so close to me on the edge of my bed that I could feel the heat from his body. He leaned over me and grinned, gently running his thumb along my cheek to my chin.
“Holy shit, Rose. You had us running scared.” Keeping his hand on my chin, he looked up across the room. “Jacks,” he called, “come see our girl.”
Footsteps got closer to me and then Jackie was at my side, gently taking my hand and squeezing my fingers. “Rosita, my Rosita, it is so good to see you awake. How are you? Do you hurt? We can get you some medication if you need it.”
Shaking my head, I cut him off. “I’m fine, but where’s Brett? I need to see him. I need to make sure that he’s okay.
Jackie and Kaleb glanced at each other and I caught the unease in their looks. There was something that flashed between them—a look that I couldn’t quite read—and I didn’t like that.
“Guys.” Ignoring their protests, I pushed myself up to a sit. My left wrist still ached incredibly so terribly that I sucked in a breath to keep from passing out, but I wasn’t attached to an IV any longer, and that was nice. “Is he okay? The accident…it was bad, you guys. Really bad. I need to know that he’s okay. Please.”
Jackie blew out a breath and ran his hands through his hair—a gesture that was so unique to Brett that my breath caught in my throat. “Rosita,” he began, but his voice got thick and he couldn’t finish.
Kaleb took my free hand and squeezed it to get my attention. “Rose, he wasn’t brought here after the accident. He’s…dead. He didn’t make it, Rose. The truck that hit you? It slammed right into the driver’s side of the car and he was killed instantly.”
