Chapter 22
Chapter Twenty-Two
Icaught Merci before she could hit the concrete, and panic as I’d never known ripped through me.
“Merci!” I shouted. “Merci!” Her head lolled against my shoulder, and blood trickled from her nose. Her body was damp with sweat, but her skin felt clammy.
“What’s wrong?” Merrick barked, sheathing his blade. His eyes darted between me and the unconscious woman in my arms.
I swore and scooped up her limp body, looping my arm under her legs. “I don’t know. Damn it. We should’ve taken her to the hospital. I never should’ve listened to her. Fuck. Merci! Wake up.”
Merrick was already moving toward the door. “I’ll drive. Reaper, finish him.”
The sedan fishtailed as we left the junkyard.
I murmured to Merci in the backseat, her head cradled in my lap as Merrick drove at breakneck speed to the hospital.
I pressed two fingers beneath her jaw, feeling a thready pulse beneath her skin.
Her breath came short, so shallow I feared it’d stop entirely.
“That last kick,” I said, my voice breaking. “It was hard. She could be bleeding out. She could be—”
I couldn’t say it.
Merrick’s hard eyes met mine in the rearview mirror. “Not a fucking chance,” he snarled.
He called ahead to the hospital, explaining that we’d found Merci battered at the clubhouse gates and we suspected internal bleeding. I was grateful he had the foresight to come up with a story, because the only thought in my mind was how I’d never survive if I lost her.
The tires squealed as we pulled under the ER awning, my eyes blurring in the bright light.
After lifting Merci onto the stretcher, I watched the trauma team roll her inside.
I stood frozen, lost, and beyond fucking terrified.
A voice shouted at me, distant. I tried to focus through the fog of fear that surrounded me.
Merrick shook my shoulder. The tendons on his neck stood out, and I could see the beat of his pulse. “Get out of the road, dumbass.” He stormed into the hospital.
I blinked and then followed him numbly inside. I expected a chaotic scene, but the doctors and nurses had already wheeled Merci back. Merrick stood in the corner, talking on the phone. He murmured an update, presumably to Kenna, and walked outside.
I sat in one of the hard plastic chairs and buried my face in my hands.
Every time a voice shouted “clear” or an alarm beeped behind the double doors, my stomach clenched.
I tried to listen for any clue of how she was doing, but I knew I wouldn’t be able to tell which patient they’d call a code on.
It could be anyone. I just prayed it wasn’t her.
Merrick returned and settled in one of the chairs across from me. I raised my eyes to meet his glare. I didn’t know what to say when the only thoughts in my mind were about the possibility of losing the woman we both loved.
Dr. Patel walked into the waiting room, and we stood. She glanced between Merrick and me.
“I’m her brother,” Merrick clarified, stepping forward. “He’s”—he hesitated—“her boyfriend.”
The doctor didn’t acknowledge the tension between us.
“How is she?” I asked, my jaw tense.
“She’s in surgery. The CT shows that her injuries are consistent with blunt trauma to the abdomen.
She lacerated her liver and spleen, and she’s lost a significant amount of blood.
She’s lucky you got her here when you did.
If you’d waited for an ambulance …” She trailed off, her expression saying more than words ever could.
“But she’s going to be OK?” I asked. “We got her here in time?”
Dr. Patel’s expression grew grim. “We’re doing an emergency laparotomy. She’s stabilized, but she’s already coded on us once. There’s a lot of damage, and we won’t know the extent until we get in there and stop the bleeding.”
A chill ran through me, and I dropped back into the chair.
“Merci’s strong. She’ll pull through,” Merrick said with unwavering confidence. “Do you need blood for a transfusion? We’re both B-negative.”
The doctor nodded. “We have a blood bank. I’ll check the supply, but it’s always good to have more, just in case. I’ll take you back.”
The moment Merrick vanished through the double doors, the silence swallowed me whole. I didn’t realize Eva was there until she wrapped her arms around my shoulders.
“Reaper called,” she said, her voice soft. “He said it’s bad.”
I nodded. “She’s still in surgery.”
When Merrick returned, I was grateful to have Eva as a buffer while we navigated our uneasy truce.
A few hours later, Dr. Patel returned with an update. “She’s out of surgery.”
We all breathed a sigh of relief and waited for her to continue.
“She’s in critical condition, and we’re taking her to the ICU. She’s still intubated, but we’re optimistic. You can come back later, when visiting hours start.”
“I want to see her now,” I insisted.
Eva rubbed my back. “You should go home and get a few hours of sleep. The doctors will take care of her.”
My eyes fixed on the double doors. “I’m not leaving until I see her.”
Eva looked to Merrick for help.
“Pull yourself together,” Merrick rumbled, his jaw ticking. “You think I’m not scared for her, too? It doesn’t do us a damn bit of good to pace holes in the floor. Go home, shower, take a nap, and I’ll see you back here at eleven.”
“Stubborn fucking woman,” I muttered. “I never should have listened to her. We should have taken care of Luca from the start. When he started cornering her at work. When he slit her fucking tires.”
“Hold up. When did that happen?”
“Three weeks ago. We didn’t have proof, but I know it was him.”
Merrick’s nostrils flared. “Why am I just now hearing about this?”
I stiffened. “She didn’t want anyone to know. She said she had it under control.”
Merrick’s jaw flexed. “Fuck. How many other secrets have you been keeping from me?”
I stiffened as Eva pushed between us.
“Enough. Arguing isn’t going to help. When Merci wakes up, she’s going to need both of you. Hatchet, I’m taking you home. Reaper said the prospect just dropped off your bike. You can come back in a few hours.”
I huffed as this five-foot-nothing woman pushed me out the door. Eva was deceptively strong, and I didn’t have the energy to fight her.
By the time I stepped through my front door, the weight of the night’s events hit like a sledgehammer. Jessa appeared from the kitchen before I could even take my boots off, throwing her arms around me.
“She’s going to be OK,” she said with tears running down her face. “She has to be.”
Kenna stood by the oven, fresh-baked muffins sitting atop it. She wrapped her arms around both of us before pulling away. “I’m heading home to check on Merrick. Call me if you need anything.” She glanced at Jessa. “Make sure he eats.”
Chaos whined at my feet, almost like she could read my anguish. I wrapped my arms around Jessa, my throat tightening. I hated that my kid sister was the one trying to hold me together.
“Merci’s a fighter,” I said, my voice rough. “She’s going to make it.” But the words sounded hollow, and I couldn’t tell if I believed them.
I moved through the motions—showering, eating, and then restlessly lying in my bed. I couldn’t sleep. My body might’ve been running on fumes, but my mind kept circling back to the moment Merci crumpled in my arms.
When the clock on my nightstand clicked over to ten-thirty, I stood and left my room, feeling like a mindless zombie. Jessa was filling out paperwork at the counter.
“What are you working on?”
“Just some stuff for school,” she said, not looking up.
I scrubbed my beard with my hand. “Fuck. I forgot. You start school on Monday.”
Jessa stood and handed me a small duffel bag.
“What’s this?”
“Just a few things. A change of clothes. A travel pillow. I charged your tablet and threw in some snacks. I know you won’t want to come home while she’s there.”
I hugged her. “Thanks, kid,” I whispered into her blonde hair. “But I can’t just abandon you.”
She smacked my shoulder. “You’re not. Chaos and I are going to crash at Kenna and Merrick’s house, so you don’t have to worry about us. She said she’d pick me up around lunch.”
“All right,” I said finally. “Text me if you need anything.”
“Of course,” she said with a faint smile. “Now go. She’s going to be OK. I know it.”
With her confidence, I almost believed it.