Chapter 21 1227 a.m.
Chapter twenty-one
Cal
The gunshot still echoes in my ears when I slam into Niko, the sound ricocheting through the parking garage like thunder trapped in concrete.
Whoever this weirdo was aiming for, it sure as hell wasn’t me or Rose. He’s a trigger-happy psycho who is obviously obsessed with my girl and whom I suspect has been stalking her. Not a good combo. And something else to add to my growing list of concerns today.
Our bodies collide, and we crash to the ground.
Hard.
We land on our sides as his skull bounces off the pavement and his gun skitters across the wet cement, spinning out of reach.
Thank God!
Niko’s stronger than I expected. He’s lean, wired, fast, and coiled up tight. Before I can register anything, he clocks me in the jaw with a wild punch that sends pain bursting behind my eyes. A searing jolt shoots through my neck as my head whips back from the impact.
This whole thing is frustrating the hell out of me because I am unable to get a hold of this guy.
In a flash, I realize I don’t know where Rose is.
Panic rises, but I have to refocus. I manage to land a punch in his kidney.
He grunts, which gives me the leverage I use to flip us both, landing him on his back.
Providing me with the tiny window to find her.
Her frame comes into focus, standing near the elevator, hand clasped over her mouth, fear stretching across the features of her face.
“Rose, go! Get out of here!” I bark, but I don’t know if she listens. My ears are ringing too loudly from the punch and the storm outside to hear anything.
Being distracted is all the opening Niko needs.
He drives his shoulder into me, throwing me off balance once again.
Okay, it’s obvious this dude has had some sort of fight training because my back hits the floor hard, knocking the wind out of my lungs.
On all fours, he scrambles for the weapon, his boots sliding in a puddle.
We both stumble to stand at the same exact time.
Him racing for his weapon.
Me, determined to stop him.
Because I can’t let him get that gun. His shot might be really bad, but all it takes is one good one to maim. Or kill.
And who would wind up dead? Rose? Not happening.
That thought alone lurches me forward. We are both standing now, making a beeline for his gun.
I propel myself straight for him and manage to grab his arm and twist as he shouts.
This time it’s my boot that kicks the gun away as it clatters into the dark.
With his foot, he lands a blow to my knee, and I cry out, releasing him from my grasp.
He twists around and for a minute, we’re both still.
Breathing hard.
Circling each other.
Waiting.
Then he bolts.
“Damn it!”
Within seconds, I’m in pursuit, chasing after him. He sprints up the incline to the next level of the garage. From behind me, feet pound the pavement, and I’m almost certain it’s Rose.
Of course, she didn’t listen!
The storm outside flashes through the narrow openings—lightning tearing through the dark, thunder chasing right after it.
My boots slap the wet floor, echoing off the concrete pillars as I pursue him.
Empty spaces and parked cars whiz past me as I run after this guy.
Who, apparently, is an Olympic sprinter with his speed.
“Niko!” I shout, but he doesn’t slow as he veers to the left, disappearing around a corner.
“Cal!” Rose’s wail—distant, frightened—cuts through the chaos. I spin around, heart pounding.
She’s gone.
“Rose!” I’m sweating and disoriented. Where did she go?
The garage splits into two. One ramp to go up and one leading to the entrance of the garage from the street behind the hotel. I curse under my labored breath, frantically searching left and then right. Wondering where Niko went. And Rose. I’ve lost track of them both.
Through the exit door, next to the entrance, I glimpse a sudden movement. It’s only a shape, half-swallowed by dark and a curtain of rain.
It’s her. Why is she going outside? What is she doing?
Another, more desperate thought consumes me. Is he following her now?
My experience tells me I have to stay in pursuit of the lunatic who just shot at and assaulted a cop. But my heart is telling me to chase after the one woman who has affected me the way Rose has.
Hell, I might lose my job for this. Because it will be on camera. There’s no hiding my feelings now.
Rain slams down in sheets the second I exit the garage. The wind howls, cold and relentless, slicing through my shirt. Lightning turns the sky white for a second at a time, before going black again.
“Rose!” I yell, fighting the noise.
Within seconds, I’m soaked to the bone. Water pours off my face, obstructing my view of the sidewalk. Swiping my hand down my features, I scan the area, and a figure comes into view a few yards away.
She’s on the ground trying to get up and failing. As she clutches her ankle, her hair, heavy and wet, sticks to her face. Her clothes … drenched through.
Something primal erupts in me. She’s stranded, hurt, and wet.
And she needs me.
Adrenaline bursts out of me as I rush towards her. Every fiber of my being is propelling me forward.
To protect her.
Help her.
Save her.
I’ve never reached a victim so fast before. I grab her by the shoulders, hauling her up to a seated position.
“You okay?” I yell through the storm.
She nods weakly as her eyes flutter. She tries to blink away the rain pelting her eyes. Her whole body trembles. “I … I fell.” She grasps her foot. “I twisted my ankle.”
“I got you.” Sliding an arm under her knees, I lift her, cradling her against my chest. Her arms clasp around my neck as she clings to me, shivering while the rain pounds from above.
Her eyes snap to mine, huge and unsteady. “What about Niko?”
My lips move on their own and press a soft kiss to her temple. Despite the coldness of the rain, her skin radiates warmth. “You’re the only thing that matters right now. I’m getting you out of here.”
We move toward the back hotel entrance, away from the garage as the storm and rain howl, blurring everything.
Rose grips my neck tightly, anchoring herself to me.
As I walk, I squeeze her waist and pull her tighter against me.
The lights of the hotel flash again, and for one fleeting second, I think we’ve made it.
The world explodes.
A gunshot.
The impact hits me before the sound registers. Then the pain. A burning punch to my shoulder, sharp and deep. My knees buckle, and I drop to the ground.
I’ve been shot, and the only thing going through my mind is: Don’t drop Rose. Warm blood mixes with the icy rain streaming down my back.
“Cal!” Rose’s scream cuts through the storm.
My knees smack the pavement hard, the shock of it ripping up my spine. The world tilts, blurring at the edges, and pain detonates through my shoulder and my side. I fight the darkness pressing in, threatening to pull me under as I clamp my teeth together from the pain.
Rose slips out of my arms, but before I can steady myself, the world tilts. I’m going down. But she’s already there, catching me, pulling me into her lap before I hit the ground.
“Cal! No—Cal!” Her sharp scream slices through the fog. “Oh, my God!”
Her presence drags me back, but only halfway. My vision wavers, images swimming in and out of focus. I blink hard, trying to anchor myself to her, her hands, the emotion of her holding me together when my body can’t.
A thought surfaces. Is this the last time I will see her? Because I have no clue how badly I’m injured.
So, before the world fades to black, I reach for her face and cup her cheek.
Desperate to memorize every piece of her.
My thumb grazes the arch of her brow, then trails lower, catching the rain gathered on her lashes.
Her wide and brown eyes, locked on mine, are the last thing holding me here.
I trace the bridge of her nose, committing the familiar shape to memory, then let my fingers drift down to her soft and warm lips.
The same lips I finally got to taste. The memory of that elevator kiss flashes through my mind, bright against the darkness surrounding us.
I smile.
I absorb the details of her, storing them in my memory.
“Cal, please, don’t leave me,” she pleads as she leans down and presses the softest kiss on my lips.
I wince as I swing my arm around and grasp the nape of her neck, pulling her mouth to me.
She must sense my resolve, because she breaks free of the kiss and screams into the void. “HELP! Someone help!”
But, it all comes apart.
I see him.
Niko.
Emerging from the shadows. Rain streaming down his face. Focused and furious.
Niko shot me. Boy, his aim improved at the perfect time, didn't it?
Rose doesn’t notice him at first, lost in her own world of panic.
“No one can hear you!” Niko grabs Rose by the arm, the shock of his arrival coursing through her as he drags her backward.
“NO!” she screams, kicking and fighting. But he’s stronger. She reaches for me, clawing at the air, as she gets pulled further and further away.
I’m able to grab her ankle, but I lose my grip from the rain and loss of strength.
“Let her go!” I cry out, trying to push myself up, but pain rips through me like fire.
Niko glances back once; his face twists with something that doesn’t register. A mix of jealousy, hate, and victory.
Probably all three. He smirks.
“CAL!” Her screams are like an arrow straight through my heart. “LET ME GO!” She’s fighting, gripping the side door entrance to the hotel. Then, he shoves her through and disappears into the dark, pulling her with him.
The storm swallows her scream.
I crawl forward, hand pressed to my shoulder, blood slick against my fingers. “Rose!”
Only thunder answers.
Real genuine fear engulfs me. Because I’ve lost her.
I make a feeble attempt to stand as the pain in my shoulder radiates to my brain. Once I’m on my feet, I stagger once … twice …
… a few more times.
My vision blurs.
Then darkness.