Chapter 4 #2
Scout rolled her eyes, crisscrossing onto three more branching paths, just in case, before jumping on the main line, heading for the bunker.
Coulter grunted in Neve’s lap, his eyelids slivering open. He blinked, stared up at her as if he’d seen a ghost, before licking his lips. “Neve?”
She leaned over him, cupping his jaw as she brushed his hair back from his forehead. “We’re almost home. Rest. I’ll explain everything once you’re back on your feet.”
He shook his head, tried to sit up, only to grunt and fall back as Wynn did her best to hold him still. “Can’t. Not safe… he…”
Neve bit at her bottom lip, Coulter’s obvious pain hitting her square in the chest. “Easy, baby. Don’t move. Not yet. You’re safe. For now.”
Another small shake, as if he knew anything more would knock him out. “No… He… Bastard has… has to pay.”
“Who has to pay?”
Coulter frowned. “Ramsey… He… You…”
He faded, eyes rolling back, his head slipping off to one side.
She looked up at Wynn, wondering if she’d chosen wrong. If the added time and shitty conditions had cost him his life.
Wynn checked his vitals, adding more dressings to his wounds. “He just passed out. But his heart rate’s more erratic than I’d like. I need him in a stable environment. Now.”
Neve glanced at Scout’s reflection, mouthing her thanks when Scout picked up the speed as much as possible. Zadie sent an encrypted message to Darwin, with just enough intel to know they were inbound with a casualty.
The rain eased, lessening to a light drizzle as they narrowed in on the cabin.
Scout bypassed the driveway, continuing around the side and down two levels to the other entrance into the underground bunker.
She parked the SUV inside a thermal-guarded shed, replacing the camo netting once Neve had Coulter slung between her and Wynn.
They carried him over to the hidden entrance — a slab of metal that looked like a continuation of the surrounding rock — rushing inside as Darwin opened the door, the interior lighting cutting a swath through the darkness.
Shepherd helped them place Coulter on a gurney. She jogged beside him, hand still locked in his as Wynn pushed him into their med bay, then transferred him onto the main exam table.
The fluorescent lights emphasized the gray tone of Coulter’s skin, the way it didn’t bounce back when Darwin pinched the back of Coulter’s other hand. He glanced at her, brow arched, gaze lingering on their joined hands before she drew a breath, forced her fingers to lift from Coulter’s.
It felt wrong the moment their hands parted, as if she’d given him permission to fade, stepping back as Darwin and Wynn ran through some kind of checklist, the words lost to the shallow rasp of Coulter’s breath.
For the first time since she’d met him, he looked too still for the man who’d always been larger than life.
She swallowed, gagging as the scent of cold rain and old copper bit through the air when Darwin cut through Coulter’s ruined tactical vest, exposing the massive bruises already blossoming across his chest.
Darwin didn’t blink, moving with a clinical speed that seemed almost jarring, his shadow stretching long against the sterile white tile as he took Coulter’s vitals, ran his fingers across the multiple injuries laced down Coulter’s torso.
He grabbed a portable ultrasound, ran it along Coulter’s chest. “Multiple kinetic impacts to his vest. Bruising is going to be deep, likely limiting his lung capacity, but nothing looks broken.” He moved over to his left side.
“I’m more concerned about the shrapnel tracking under his arm.
It doesn’t look too deep, but it needs to be removed and flushed.
I’ll administer a round of antibiotics. God knows what the hell might have been inside that facility. ”
He traded out a pair of bloody shears for a sterile probe, examining the graze on his leg while the monitors pumped out more vitals. “Core temperature is hovering around ninety. I need warming fluids and blankets before he slips any further. And grab a couple units of O neg.”
Neve inched closer, gaze locked on Coulter the remembered weight of his hand in hers nearly taking her to her knees. “But you can save him, right?”
Darwin paused for a moment, his focus flicking to her for one heart-stopping second. “Have a little faith, Neve. He’s in serious condition, but with the right treatment, he’ll pull through.”
The words washed over her like the rain had, cooling her skin until no amount of shivering helped.
A hand landed on her shoulder, and she turned as Shepherd held out a dry hoodie, sweats, and a blanket.
He crossed his arms, waiting until she slipped out of the worst of her clothes and donned the new, gathering the soaked gear in a basket.
She pulled the blanket tight, still standing at the edge of the light when a throat cleared behind her. She turned and eyed Gus as he stood in the doorway, hands fisted at his side, his gaze jumping between Coulter and her.
He blew out a harsh breath as he took a few steps into the medical bay. “Darwin, SIT REP.”
Darwin chuckled. “One day, you’ll have to give up all that military speak when it’s just us. As for our patient—”
“Barrett.” Gus glared at Neve for a moment. “Captain Coulter Barrett, JTF2 and a damn liability that’s guaranteed to bite our entire operation in the ass.”
Darwin glanced at Neve, eyes wide before he focused on Coulter. “He’s stable enough — he’ll live if you stop hovering over me and let me do my job.”
Gus arched a brow. “And if we moved him?”
Darwin stopped, looking up. “You’ll kill him. So, he stays. My call, Gus.”
The general nodded, twisting to look at Neve.
“What the hell were you thinking? You were sent on a recon mission. See what had set off those damn alarms at Blackridge. Decide if the CEO, Peter Ramsey, might be connected to Finch. But then all hell breaks loose, and you’re coming in hot, bringing trouble to our door.
You do realize that if Ramsey got a good look at Barrett, he won’t stop searching for him.
And all these precautions might not be enough to keep us safe. ”
Neve straightened. “Correct me if I’m wrong, sir, but the last time I checked, we didn’t leave people behind.
And Ramsey can knock down the damn door for all I care.
I promise, he won’t like the reception he gets.
” She glanced back at Coulter, remembering the haunted look in his eyes as she’d stepped out of the fog.
“Regardless, I’m not abandoning Coulter, again.
Never should have let you talk me into keeping him in the dark in the first place. ”
Raking her fingers through her hair to expend some energy, she pushed down the rage, the guilt.
“I don’t know why Coulter was at Blackridge, but based on how badly they wanted him dead, I’d say he either saw something damning, or grabbed some proof.
Which reminds me, we need his clothes. In case he hid something in the pockets. ”
Gus tapped his foot on the floor, looking less than impressed. “I’m not heartless, Neve. I’m simply trying to keep you all alive long enough to bring down Finch. But now that Coulter’s here, he’ll have to stay.”
“I don’t see that as a problem.”
“Good, then you explain it to him once he wakes up because like it or not, he’s a ghost now, too.”
Neve studied Coulter’s profile for a moment. “He was a ghost the moment he stepped into that facility. He just didn’t know it. And at least this way, we can keep him safe. Use his expertise.”
“Just don’t get any romantic ideas that he’s going to embrace this. We just burned his career to the ground. He might not be so thrilled once he realizes he’s stuck here until this is over.”
Neve stared at Coulter, heart still pounding, the ache in her chest cinching tight. “I’ll take angry over dead any day.”
Gus sighed. “Darwin, keep me posted. And let me know if Coulter grabbed anything useful. We’ll all sit down and have a chat once he’s strong enough. Until then, make sure he doesn’t drag his ass out of here.”
He turned and left the room, his expectations lingering like the chill still seeping into her bones.
Darwin looked over at her. “He means well. He just doesn’t like putting all of you at risk.”
She smiled. “Pretty sure we agreed to stay.”
“I doubt that’s how he sees it.” Darwin gathered more supplies. “Why don’t you grab some coffee. I promise I’ll come get you once he’s cleaned up, and you can sit by his side until you either fall on your face, or he wakes up.”
Neve rolled her eyes, though, she had to admit, she liked Darwin. He had a way of easing the tension without saying a word. Or maybe, just saying the right words when she needed them the most.
She detoured to her room and showered, watching Coulter’s blood circle down the drain before getting some coffee and planting her ass in a chair beside his bed once Darwin had given her the all-clear.
Wynn had found a thumb drive in Coulter’s pocket, along with a photo from Neve’s time with his unit, and a few pieces of some broken tech.
Zadie had already started running encryption algorithms to see if she could open the files.
Get a head start in case Coulter didn’t rouse for a while.
His hand felt cool, heavy, the air around them a mix of lemon cleaner and antiseptic wash. A steady beep sounded from the monitor, his whispered breath soothing the ache in her chest. The one she’d had since she’d agreed to stay.
Since she’d burned their one chance into ashes.
Time faded as she drifted in and out, Darwin checking in a couple times before leaving her with the man she’d planned on growing old with. The other half of her soul.
Voices sounded in the hallway, everyone rousing for breakfast, when Coulter’s fingers twitched in hers. She stilled, leaning over him as his eyelids fluttered, catching fleeting glimpses of blue before he managed to keep them open, look up at her.
Tears burned her eyes, a few falling onto their joined hands as she smiled down at him. “Hey.”
He squinted, looking at her just like he had outside the facility, eyes narrowed, mouth slightly open. He wet his lips, swallowed. “Neve?”
“Glad you haven’t forgotten. And yeah, Coulter. It’s me.”
He pursed his lips, groaning when he tried to move. “But, it can’t… you’re dead.”
“Easy. Don’t try to move. You had a busy day. And I promise I’ll explain everything once you’re stronger.”
He shook his head, pushing onto his elbows only to fall back, his breath hissing out on a curse. “Not safe… I…”
“Trust me. You’re safe. At least, for now.”
“No, he…”
“Who’s he?”
Coulter faded, shaking himself back a moment later. “Ramsey. He killed Troy. Killed you…”
“Troy? Troy worked for Blackridge?” She’d heard about Troy getting mugged, dying, but she hadn’t connected him to Ramsey. “Is that why you were there?” She sighed when he drifted, eyes sliding shut.
Neve traced the line of his jaw, wishing she could crawl into the bed with him, but aware Gus had a point. She’d lied. Left him to wallow in his own pain. A sin he might not easily forgive.
He squeezed her hand, looking up at her again. “I went because he hurt you… I…” He paused, lifting one arm until she placed his palm on her cheek. “You’re real.”
“As a heart attack. Rest. We’ll talk later.”
He nodded, slipped, then roused one more time. “He saw me. Ramsey saw me.”
Neve closed her eyes as he drifted off.
Ramsey saw me…
A complication they hadn’t planned for, and while it meant they finally had their first lead, it also meant the real war had just begun.