CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE
LUNA
Tears spilled down my face as I prayed for the ambulance to hurry up. This was all my fault. I’d been worried about Casper’s lifestyle endangering him. Instead, it had been my past that came back to kill him. If I lost him now, I would never be able to live with myself.
Finally, the ambulance arrived, along with police and the fire department. We were both taken to the hospital. I knew eventually the police would have questions. I would do my best to tell them the truth without sharing more than they needed to know.
Being separated from Casper hurt more than anything else that had happened so far that night. I heard the paramedics say something about surgery as they rushed him down the hall.
I was taken to a different part of the emergency room where I waited for a doctor to see me. It seemed to take forever. Since I wasn’t hurt as badly as Casper, I wasn’t as high on the priority list. I didn’t want to be here. I didn’t want to be anywhere but by his side.
When a nurse came in to talk to me, she looked me over, taking notes for the doctor. When she asked if I’d been sexually assaulted, I bit my lip. There had been no physical damage from what Jace had done. All of that had been mental. There was nothing she could do to help me.
“I understand that it’s a sensitive subject,” the nurse said. “We have someone you can speak with if you’d like. It’s better not to keep it bottled up.”
“Maybe later. I just want to get out of here and go see Casper.” Right now all I wanted to do was bury what Jace had done to me. Maybe the time would come when I would need to talk about it. That time was not now.
The nurse tried again to encourage me to talk to someone, promising it would be private and confidential. Again I thanked her but refused. Her sympathetic expression only made me feel worse about it.
After what felt like hours a doctor came in and checked me over. I had several cuts and bruises. Nothing serious. No signs of head trauma of any kind. I was given prescriptions for pain and anxiety and released.
I refused to leave the hospital until I knew Casper was all right. All they would tell me was that he’d been taken into surgery. When I’d managed to clear my head enough to think straight, I called Codie. She and the other Kings came right away.
As soon as I saw her, I fell apart all over again. Bursting into tears. Putting an arm around me, she led me away from the guys and outside for some air.
“Do you want to tell me what happened?” she asked gently. “You don’t have to if you’re not ready to talk about it. I’m here for you no matter what.”
We sat on a bench near the entryway. For a long time I sucked in the cold night air. Although I didn’t want to talk to anyone from the hospital, I felt comfortable telling Codie everything. She listened, letting me go at my own pace. I didn’t leave anything out.
“Jesus, Luna, I’m so sorry. That never should’ve happened to you.” She held my hand in hers, offering her support and strength.
“It’s not the first time. Jace had been forceful before. I only wish Casper hadn’t seen it.” I stared off across the parking lot, watching a woman chain-smoke in a gray SUV. “I can’t lose him now. What will I do if he doesn’t pull through?”
“You can’t think like that. I know you’re afraid, but Casper needs you to be strong right now. He has so much to fight for. He’s not going to leave you.” Codie did her best to reassure me. I appreciated her efforts.
My tears had dried up. I wasn’t sure I had any left. All I could do was stare forlornly into the dark, watching as that woman pulled another cigarette from her pack. I wondered what had her smoking like a chimney. Stressing the fuck out.
“Do you want me to take you home to change? Are you hungry or thirsty?” The concern in Codie’s hazel eyes made me grateful for her friendship.
“Actually, yeah, I could use some water and a change of clothes. It sounds like Casper will be in surgery for a while.” I accepted the hand she offered. Together we walked to Stray’s Mustang. Codie pulled out the keys, waiting for me to buckle my seatbelt before driving away.
At my dorm I went through the motions of a shower, staring at my bruised and battered face in the mirror before pulling on a cozy pair of sweatpants and a hoodie. I grabbed a bottle of water from the mini fridge, ready to head back to the hospital.
“Do you want to hit up a late night drive-through on the way? Grab a veggie burger or something?” Watching as I struggled to tie my hair back into a braid, Codie took the hair tie from my hand and took over.
“Thanks but I’m not hungry. I just want to get back there in case there’s any news on Casper.”
“I understand.”
We returned to the hospital to find that there had been no news yet.
Casper’s friends waited in the waiting area.
Rebel and Auryn spoke quietly amongst themselves.
Stray scrolled on his phone, shifting uneasily in his chair while Dom simply stared at the silent TV in the corner.
Codie never left my side. Not even when I anxiously paced the halls, unable to sit down.
I knew that I should probably call my mom.
This wasn’t something I could hide from her.
I probably wouldn’t tell her every detail.
However, she deserved to know what happened.
I wanted to tell her about Casper and how amazing he was.
Once I knew how he was doing, I would go outside and give her a call.
It was well into the following day when they came to tell us that Casper was in recovery.
The surgery had gone well. Apparently, the bullet had primarily penetrated soft tissue, only grazing his intestines.
The injury could have been so much worse.
He would need to stay for several days for observation and to make sure there was no sign of infection.
I collapsed to my knees in the hallway, bursting into tears. Codie knelt next to me, hugging me tight. She rubbed my back softly, murmuring words of encouragement. I’d never been so grateful.
Casper was going to be all right. Jace didn’t win.
When we were finally allowed to see him, I went first. My pulse pounded as I approached the door to his room. I needed to see for myself that he was okay. And yet, I worried that everything between us would have changed after what happened with Jace in the basement.
I entered the room to find Casper in the bed, hooked up to various machines and tubes.
He was pale, his skin ashen other than the cuts and bruises.
A bandage had been placed over the gash on one side of his head.
Seeing him in a hospital gown with all of those machines around him made my eyes sting with fresh tears.
He blinked sleepily at me, waving me over to the bed. “Flower,” he signed. “You have no idea how happy I am to see you.”
“How do you feel?” I asked. “I’ve been so worried about you, Casper.”
“I feel like I was shot in the gut. Guess I’m just glad it wasn’t a head shot. How are you? Did they take care of you?” He held a hand out to me. His eyes were lacking their usual light, yet he still studied me with a keen intensity.
Trying not to disturb him in any way, I sat gingerly on the edge of the bed. The way he clutched my hand made me overcome with emotion. “They did what they could. They think I should talk to someone. A therapist or something. I’m not sure I want to do that.”
He released my hand so he could sign. “Maybe you should think about it. That kind of thing can really haunt you.” Pausing, Casper glanced away, his shoulders shaking in a shuddery sigh before he continued. “I’m so sorry that I failed you. I promised to protect you, and I let you down.”
Seeing the self-loathing that filled him made me ill. None of this was his fault.
“Casper, no. You didn’t. You did everything you could. You took a bullet for me. I thought I was going to lose you. Don’t talk like that. You have never failed me.” Tears slipped down my face. Careful not to touch him too much, I leaned over to lightly press my lips to his.
He tenderly held my face, making a pained sound as he kissed me back. I remembered the way he’d screamed my name. The sound of his voice fueled by such distress and agony. I hated that something so devastating had been the first thing to make him break his silence in so long.
I wondered if I would ever hear him speak again. Without such horrific circumstances driving it. I would love him either way.
“Promise me that you’ll talk to someone,” he signed, pausing to caress my bruised face. “Don’t carry this burden alone. You’re free of him now. Don’t give him power over you in death.”
The concern in his eyes was enough to make me break down again. I nodded, choking back a sob. “I promise.”
We were interrupted then by a knock at the door. Two police officers entered.
“Casper Callahan and Luna Burke?” One officer asked, acting as the spokesman for the two. “We have a few questions for you.”