Total pages in book: 78
Estimated words: 75288 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 376(@200wpm)___ 301(@250wpm)___ 251(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 75288 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 376(@200wpm)___ 301(@250wpm)___ 251(@300wpm)
She surveys my sleeve first, but notices Grizz holding one arm tight against his ribs, his sleeve coated with drying blood. She quickly scans Viper, but he tells her he’s fine. He’d tell her that even if he’d taken a hard hit.
When I assure her that I was only grazed and am also fine, she turns all her attention to Grizz, gingerly touching him as she tries to get a better look. “You need to see a doctor, Boyd,” she says when he winces.
“I figure my favorite nurse can patch me up, like you did with my shoulder,” he tells her.
She isn’t having any of his attempts at humor, and considering how pale his skin is, I don’t blame her. “We didn’t have bullet wounds at summer camp, Boyd, thank god. You need to see a doctor,” she says firmly.
“There’ll be medics coming, if they’re not here already,” I tell her. “There are others who’ll need attention, too.”
Kira looks at Boyd, challenging him to object, and he agrees to get checked out. “But right now, there’s something more important I need to do,” he says. With his good arm, he cups her cheek, then bends to kiss her.
When he pulls back, she turns to Viper, who draws her into a second kiss without hesitation.
Then it’s my turn, and I savor every second of it.
We’ll have to go back outside very soon and deal with the aftermath of the mess Vaughn brought to our mountain, but for now, it’s just the four of us.
And that’s how it’s going to be from here on out, until we four become five.
CHAPTER 48
KIRA
The snowglobe of life keeps shaking for the rest of the day and several of the days that follow. There are a few quiet moments when things seem to settle, but then a flurry of activity stirs everything up again.
There are no massive upheavals, though. It’s more as if someone is studying the globe’s contents, gently tilting it side to side, before setting it back down. I try to get used to the rocking motion as best I can.
When I finally go outside the day of the invasion, the air tastes like smoke and metal. Clean snow has been trampled into ugly gray slush. One of the camera poles has been knocked down, and a section of the inner fence has been damaged. There are scorch marks on the earth, and a dark gouge in the ground that looks like someone’s taken a bite of the mountain.
There are still strangers everywhere, men dressed in tactical gear, tagging evidence, acting like this is another day at the office.
I stay inside the circle my three men make around me. Atlas’s hand never seems to leave my back. Grizz stays close, stubbornly rigid, clearly in pain but denying it. Viper continues to track every movement, everywhere, seemingly all at once.
His vigilance should scare me, but it makes me feel safe.
I’ll never stop being relieved that they’re alive.
Seeing what the compound looks like … I can’t even imagine what they went through … risking their lives for me.
Atlas dips his head to speak quietly next to my ear. “You’re doing good.”
My throat tightens, thick with emotion. When I shake it off, I say, “I’m not doing anything. My legs are still shaking.”
Grizz squeezes my shoulder. “You’re staying upright. On a day like today, that’s a win.”
I laugh in a way that’s awfully close to crying.
Eventually, a medic corners us in the mudroom. “Any of you need attention?” he asks.
Atlas and Viper both point at Grizz, who shoots them a dirty look, “Traitors,” he grumbles.
After a few objections, Grizz finally lowers himself onto a bench, wincing as he moves.
When I go to his side, he holds out a palm to stop me.
With my nerves frayed and my emotions overloaded, I snap. “You want me to stop?” The fierceness in my voice surprises me. “Stop looking? Stop caring? Should I ignore the fact that you got injured while you were saving my life?”
His expression softens, and I nearly cry again.
Atlas rubs my shoulder. “Let the medic work, sweetheart.”
The doctor is already cutting Grizz’s jacket away, exposing more blood-soaked fabric beneath it. Grizz’s breath hitches once, then steadies. He fixes his eyes on my face and keeps them there the entire time he’s tended to.
The medic efficiently cleans and bandages Grizz’s wounds, takes his vitals, and gives him antibiotics, and Grizz sits through it all like a man being tortured. He’s advised to get a thorough evaluation at the hospital, and I intend to make sure he does.
Hours later, after several detailed statements are taken from all of us, the federal team finally leaves.
Three days later, agents return. Not the same crew. These are men in suits who speak in careful tones. They look like they need coffee.
They set up at the long dining table and spend the greater part of a day questioning me.