50
REECE
A whirlwind of activity surrounds me like bees swarming an agitated hive, only adding to my confusion.
There’s a method to the madness, I assure myself. Trust the process. You’ve been on countless raids.
Only this time, my life is at stake, and I don’t mean the likely hollow-point bullet that struck me.
Aurora.
I attempt to rise from my knees, lifting one foot at a time as I battle the dizziness.
A forceful hand clasps my shoulder. A jolt of sharp pain lances through my spine and the back of my skull, and I buckle.
“Lie your ass down. You must have lost a liter of blood already.”
Shit, I forgot a member of my team was next to me—an officer-trained medic.
“Mercer?” I croak, asking about Charlie, my throat raw and dry.
She places a knee on my collarbone to reduce blood loss, and black spots cloud my vision. “Units are approaching.” She tears open an IV bag with her teeth.
“Jax…” I fight the agony and turn my head side to side until I find him near the doorway. “Open the gate.”
“Tell them to let me fucking go then.” His blood-spattered face is twisted in a snarl.
At a murder scene, you can’t simply leave. An officer collects evidence from under his fingernails while another takes pictures of his hands. They’ll want to bag his clothes too.
There’s aprick in the back of my hand, and ice floods my veins.
I close my eyes and ride out a wave of nausea. “He’ll snap, and we’ll get nothing.”
“Hey,” my superior yells from behind me. She’s a tiny woman, but her voice is shrill and terrifying. “Collect evidence at the hospital. Let’s get that gate open and this night over with.”
For them, this night is far from over. “That’s Police Chief Hugo Isaac on the floor.” My speech is garbled, and I swallow thickly. “Execute the other raids.”
Blackness becomes solace, and the pain recedes. My body is lifted, but my eyelids remain heavy.
“Jax?” A gentle tone resonates in my sleep.
Aurora . My heart skips a beat then pounds hard.
“Unlock the door for Charlie, babe. He’s taking you to the hospital.”
Sirens wail in the distance. She’s going to the hospital.
“With the twins. You don’t leave without them,” adds a gruff voice.
We have twins. I can’t picture them. Am I deployed? Have I met them?
I crack my eyelids to a bright light and the blurred faces of two men peering down at me. My eyes water, and I blink away the tears. “Angel.” It rolls off my thick tongue, slow and slurred.
“Reece? What’s wrong?”
Her voice trembles with fear, and I reach for her, only to find my arms entangled and uncooperative. “Give me her.”
Fingers wrap around my wrist. “Calm down, Viking. You’ll see her soon.”
Viking . Is that my new code name?
“What’s happening?” she asks, frightened.
My mind goes dark, and I thrash against my bindings. “Give me her. Don’t touch them!”
“Shit, he’s delusional. Quiet her,” demands a woman.
I lunge for the bigger threat, a silhouette of broad shoulders. “Don’t touch her!”
He casts a looming shadow, obscuring the bright light. He overpowers me and pins me down. “Easy, Reece. She’s safe.”
My arms don’t work, but my legs do, and I shove the shadow away.
“Sedate him.” Another male, several feet away.
Aurora calls for me, and I kick out, striking the person nearest to her voice. “Don’t fucking touch her.”
“Fuck,” he grunts. “She’s my wife.”
A deep, rumbling laugh echoes in the cell.
“I’ll kill you.” It’s a weak threat. My head is woozy, and I collapse onto a firm mattress. “She’s mine.”
“Sharing is caring, Viking.”
This time, my kick only connects with metal bars.
“Babe, listen to me. It’s okay. We’re in the ambulance. He’s hopped up on pain meds and well enough to fight. I think he’ll live. Jesus, fuck.”
Why is that voice torturing me?