Chapter 40 Ethan
Ethan
The helicopter is too loud.
The noise drills into my skull, blades chopping the air, metal vibrating under my boots—
too tight—
too small—
too slow—
Everything feels wrong.
“Pressure’s dropping!” one of the medics snaps.
“I know—I need a line—now!”
Their hands move fast over her—gauze, clamps, IV—blood everywhere, soaking through everything they touch.
I don’t move.
I’m right there.
Close enough to feel every shift of her body.
No one tells me to back up.
No one even tries.
Because they see it.
They see what she is to me.
“Ava—”
My voice is louder now, cutting through the noise.
“Stay with me.”
Nothing.
Her skin is pale.
Too pale.
Her lips—
No.
I grab her hand.
Cold.
Not cold enough.
Not yet.
“You don’t get to do this,” I say, tightening my grip. “You don’t get to come back into my life just to disappear again.”
No response.
The medic looks up at me, eyes tight.
“Sir, I need—”
“Save her.”
The words cut him off.
Sharp.
Final.
He nods immediately.
Moves faster.
Good.
They should.
Because if she—
No.
I shut that down hard.
Not happening.
Her chest lifts—
barely—
then falls.
Too slow.
Too weak.
“Come on…” I whisper, leaning closer, my forehead pressing against hers.
Just like before.
But now—
my hands aren’t steady.
“I didn’t spend eight years looking for you just to lose you now.”
My voice cracks.
I don’t care.
Not here.
Not now.
“You hear me? You fight. That’s what you do. You don’t quit.”
A beat.
Nothing.
Then—
A sharp tone cuts through the noise.
“Wait—hold on—”
Everything shifts.
“Pulse is stabilizing—just a little—”
My head snaps up.
“What?”
The medic checks again, hands moving fast but more controlled now.
“She’s fighting.”
Relief hits like a punch.
Hard.
Sharp.
Real.
Of course she is.
I squeeze her hand tighter.
“Yeah,” I whisper, leaning in close again. “That’s it… don’t you stop.”