61. CHAPTER 56
AXL
Saylor hasn’t opened her eyes since she told me she was bleeding.
I’ve been holding her hand since I lifted her off that floor and away from her brother’s body. She was covered in so much blood, I couldn’t tell how much of it was hers until the medics cut the gown open and found the gash in her side. It’s deep, and she’s lost a lot of blood.
They put her on fluids and have been working to stop the bleeding on the drive here.
The hospital is the same one where Dane is being kept. Some of the doctors here are Ravens trusted by the Sinclairs. I have no choice but to trust them to work on my girl.
Saylor, Thorne, and Priest have the worst injuries.
Thorne didn’t want to be on a gurney, but his brothers held him down so the men could look at his wounds.
His gurney is wheeled in first, and I hear Sloane before I see her.
She’s on her feet and at his side, and no one can stop her.
Thorne reaches for her with his free hand, and he pulls her down and presses his forehead against hers.
“I’m fine, baby.” He cups her cheek in his hand as she stares back at him through watery lashes. “You think anyone could take me from my brat?”
Tate is on the other side with his hand on Thorne’s shoulder. He doesn’t speak. He just stays there. His wife, Reese, appears at his side and walks with them as they wheel Thorne to where he can be examined.
Priest comes through next. He’s conscious and pissed off about the gurney, which means he’s going to be fine.
“Get me off this fucking thing. I can walk.” He tries to sit up, and Kase pushes him back down with one hand on his chest.
“You were shot, you stubborn fuck. Lie down.”
“It’s my arm, not my goddamn legs.” But he stays down, which tells me the pain is worse than he’s letting on.
His left arm is wrapped from shoulder to wrist, and the blood has already soaked through two layers of dressings.
He looks over at me as they wheel him past, and his eyes drop to Saylor on the gurney behind him.
“She’s going to be alright, brother.”
There’s no other option. She has to be alright. We didn’t come this far and survive all this bullshit to lose her now.
They wheel Saylor past the waiting room, and I’m right beside her, her hand in mine. Fox’s wife, Ivy, stands near the hallway. She covers her mouth with her hand when she sees Saylor.
Dane’s wife, Whitney, appears in the doorway of what I guess is Dane’s room. She’s sobbing and falls into Fox’s arms. “He’s still not awake.” Whitney sobs through each word.
Ivy and Fox both try to calm her down, and my chest tightens when I think about what it’s going to mean for all of us if we lose Dane.
“Sir, we need to take her back now.” A doctor is in front of me, blocking the hallway to the treatment rooms. “You can’t go past this point.”
“The fuck I can’t.”
“You’ve injured yourself.” The doctor looks at the blood on my shirt, my face, my hands. “Let me get you—”
“That’s not my blood. Just take care of her.” I push past him and keep walking beside the gurney. My hand doesn’t leave hers.
“Axl.” Fox is behind me. I don’t know when he followed us. “Let them do their job. You need to get checked out.”
“I’m not leaving her.”
“Adrenaline is the only thing keeping you standing. Your ribs are broken. You’re no good to her dead.” He puts his hand on my arm, and I almost hit him. I almost turn around and put my fist in his face because I’m not letting her out of my fucking sight.
“Can you tend to his injuries in the same room as his girl?” Fox asks the doctor, but his tone makes it clear that it is more than a suggestion.
The doctor looks between us. He glances at Fox. The doctor is a Raven, and he knows who Fox Sinclair is.
“Fine.” The doctor motions me to follow him as he grabs her gurney to continue through the double doors. “But you’re getting checked out, and if you interfere with my staff, I’ll have you removed.”
I hold up my hands in a show of agreement, but if he does something I don’t like to my girl, I’ll snap his neck and get another fucking opinion.
I follow the gurney through the doors and into a room where they transfer Saylor to a bed.
The team moves around her—cutting away the rest of the bloody gown, cleaning the wound on her side, and hooking up monitors.
The beeping starts. It’s steady. That sound is the only thing keeping me from ripping them apart.
I hate that any of them are seeing my girl naked, but with all the blood on her body, they have to clean her and check for more wounds.
A nurse urges me to sit on the bed beside Saylor’s. She lifts my shirt and starts pressing along my ribs. I grab her wrist on instinct from the pain and because I don’t want anyone fucking touching me who isn’t my girl.
“I need to assess the damage.” She’s probably in her forties and is trying to keep me calm. She holds her other hand up in some show that’s supposed to make me trust her. “You shouldn’t have left earlier. I saw your X-rays.”
“I don’t give a shit about my X-rays.” But I let go of her wrist and let her work. She keeps pressing along my ribs and every touch makes me clench my jaw. But I keep my focus on Saylor across the narrow space between the beds.
“You’ve got at least four breaks now.” The nurse shakes her head. “Your recovery time is going to be longer.”
“And I’ll still tear this place apart by my-fucking-self if something happens to her.” I motion toward Saylor.
She gives me a look that says she wants to argue, but she’s smart enough not to. She wraps my torso in something tight. It’s supposed to help, but it just makes it harder to breathe. I let her do it because I’m not leaving this room. If cooperating keeps me here, then fine.
The doctor finishes stitching Saylor’s side.
The wound is closed, but there’s going to be a scar to remind her of all the bullshit she’s been through.
I should have protected her better. I’ll never fucking let anyone touch her again.
If she thought I was a possessive asshole before, she hasn’t seen anything yet.
“She’s stable.” The doctor steps back and strips his gloves. “The laceration was deep, but we’ve been able to get it cleaned and stitched. She’ll need fluids and rest. We’re going to monitor her overnight.”
“I’m staying with her.”
He chuckles. “I figured as much.” He glances at the nurse who just finished wrapping my ribs, and he nods his approval before motioning to the bed beside hers. “You should try to get some rest too.”
The room goes quiet after they leave. It’s just me and Saylor and the beeping monitors. I reach across and take her hand. She doesn’t squeeze back, but she’s warm and her pulse is steady under my fingers. I stand by her bed and press my lips to her forehead.
Fuck, I love this woman so goddamn much. I need to see those pretty green eyes so I can make sure she never forgets it.