The Fighter

by Elin Peer

  “Stay back,” the police-bot told us, but both Laura and I were already on the run.

  The ambulance and police drone made it to the crash site in seconds and when we got there, two human police officers were helping a team of two medics tear at the door to the drone.

  “Is someone inside?” I yelled while Laura ran straight in to help as well.

  “We don’t know yet. You’d better stay back.”

  From the sight of the drone it was clear to see that if someone was inside, there was no chance they would have survived. Protective airbags had exploded in every part of the cabin of the drone, but the front of the machine had curled up and was so bent out of shape that it was hard to see how it had originally looked.

  “I see a man,” one of the police officers yelled out, loud. “Help me remove the door.”

  Jake and Mr. Bushy Eyebrows caught up to the rest of us and all hurried over to help.

  Laura was pulling with tears running down her cheeks, and with the combined strength of six men and two women, the broken door came off. The heart-wrenching scream that followed from Laura echoed inside me.

  “Magni, I’m here. Magni talk to me!!!”

  I ran forward to hold Laura back. “Let the medics help him.” Even as I said it, I knew I was asking for too much. Laura was strong, and only when the police-bot helped me did we manage to move her out of the way and give room for the medics to work.

  “I’ve got her,” I told the bot and with a nod it returned to assist the medics.

  Laura and I clung to each other as we watched them pull out a donor unit to pump blood into Magni. We heard them count, one, two, three, before the two medics and the strong police-bot pulled Magni’s body from the drone.

  His head was dangling and his large body was limp, and then the shock hit me. He was missing both legs and half of his left arm. I couldn’t hold Laura up as she fell to her knees and screamed her pain out. “Noooo…”

  The medics got him on a stretcher on the ground and we watched them work on him. One was applying blood blocker gel while the other did CPR.

  “Let’s get him into the drone,” one of them shouted and in less than a minute they were airborne and flying away from us.

  “He’s not dead, Laura. They wouldn’t be working on him if he was dead.”

  Laura turned her wet and grief-stricken face to me. “Medics don’t do CPR on people who are breathing. I’ve lost him, Raven. I’ve lost him.”

  “The other pilot is landing,” Jake announced and the three of them ran to help the survivor, who had to be Leo. I wanted to go with them and make sure Leo was alive, but Laura was in a full-blown panic attack, hyperventilating, crying, and clinging to my hand as I whispered for her to breathe through her nose. I was holding her, hugging her tight, while my eyes searched for Leo.

  When he came over, he fell to his knees next to us, planting his hand on my shoulder. “Magni?” It was a question and I gasped for air through my own tears to shake my head.

  Leo shrunk back on his haunches and covered his face with his hands.

  “The medics took Magni with them but he wasn’t breathing and he…” I couldn’t say it and heaved in air. “He lost…”

  Leo’s eyes were large as he stared at me.

  I couldn’t say it in front of Laura, so I leaned against Leo and whispered it in his ears. “Both his legs and one of his arms were detached from his body.”

  Leo turned his head and frowned at me like he didn’t understand what I was saying.

  “Inspector da Vinci, a second ambulance just arrived. You need to go to the hospital?”

  Leo and I looked up and saw the police robot talking to him.

  “No, I’m fine.”

  “You’re not fine. You’re injured and need medical assistance.”

  Only then did I look at Leo and noticed that he had the facial color of a vampire and that he was all bruised, with blood on his pants and shirt.

  “We’re all going.” I pulled Laura up on her feet. “We need to follow Magni, and Leo needs to get checked over.”

  “I’m fine,” Leo repeated and refused when the medics offered to put him on a stretcher. Instead he limped badly toward the ambulance when suddenly he stopped and groaned with pain.

  “Are you okay?”

  “Yeah, it’s just…” Leo’s face turned into a grimace of pain.

  I had just called out to the medic, who was only one step ahead when Leo’s eyes rolled back in his head and he collapsed on the ground.

  “What’s wrong with him?” I cried as the two men took over.

  “We don’t know. Could be internal bleeding,” one of them answered as they got him strapped on a stretcher.

  This time, Laura and I followed inside the ambulance and sat holding each other’s hands.

  “It’s going to be all right,” I whispered and squeezed her fingers.

  Laura sniffled and looked down. “No, Raven. Without Magni nothing will ever be right again. At least not to me.”

  CHAPTER 21

  In the Hospital

  Raven

  The hospital quickly filled with Magni’s loved ones. Khan and my dad, Boulder, were pacing the waiting area with Solo. My mom, Christina, was trying to comfort Erika, who was sobbing. Mila and her younger siblings sat with their mother, Laura, who refused to eat or drink.

  It had been three hours since the accident and Magni’s life was hanging on a thin thread. While we knew that Leo was sleeping after undergoing surgery for internal bleeding, it had been more than two hours since any information left the operating room where doctors were working on saving Magni’s life. Once again, we were left powerless, just waiting to hear if he would make it.

  Willow had her arm around me and our heads leaned against each other.

  “It’s my fault.”

  “Why would you say that?” Willow stroked my arm.

  “Because it was my idea to go and investigate. Magni and Leo weren’t supposed to be in that place at that time. They came to rescue Laura and me. If only we had stayed home the men wouldn’t have had to come. If Magni dies, I’ll be the one who killed him.”

  Willow took my hand and wove our fingers together. “That’s just survivor’s guilt. You can’t blame yourself. You didn’t even ask them to come, did you?”

  “No. But that doesn’t matter.”

  Willow spoke in a low tone. “It’s natural to feel that way, Raven. I’ll bet your dad is blaming himself that his drone broke down and Laura blames herself for going. But those thoughts will drive you insane. None of you are to blame. Do you hear me?”

  My dad looked over. “Finn and Athena will be here any minute.”

  A doctor’s assistant came into the waiting room and everyone looked up as he spoke. “Leo da Vinci is awake now. You can go and see him but only one or two at a time.”

  I got up from my chair, but Zasquash, who had been waiting in a corner, jumped up to follow the doctor’s assistant with Solo. It made sense since the two of them were close friends of Leo, but I was disappointed because I needed to see him and apologize for causing all of this misery.

  Twenty minutes later, Zasquash and Solo returned.

  “Any news?” Solo asked.

  “No.” Khan sighed. “How is Leo?”

  “He’ll survive. He worries about Magni like the rest of us.” Solo walked toward Willow and when he reached for her, I gave him my seat.

  “I’ll go say hi to Leo.”

  “All right.” Solo gave me a nod. “He’ll like that.”

  Leo was in a hospital room by himself. His dark hair wasn’t in a bun for once but lay against the white pillow.

  “Hey.” His eyes followed me as I walked from the door to sit at the side of his bed.

  “Hey. How are you feeling?”

  “Like shit.” Leo moved and groaned from the pain.

  “What happened to you? Did you have internal bleeding?”

  “No, I don’t know.” He raised a hand to his head in a slow mo
vement. “The doctor was here, but I’m a bit groggy.”

  “You passed out.”

  “When?”

  “After you landed.”

  “Could be. My leg is wrapped up and I think the doctor mentioned something about broken vessels, internal bleeding, and blood loss.” Leo lifted a finger and pointed to a screen next to his bed.

  I leaned forward and read aloud, “‘Patient was ejected from military drone without helmet or safety suit on. He suffered a concussion and fractured his thigh bone, which resulted in internal bleeding. Symptoms were ecchymosis, swelling, tightness, and pain in leg. Operation was successful and estimated recovery with bone accelerator is two to four weeks.’

  “Wow, so you broke the bone when you were ejected from the drone?”

  “Yes. But the doctor did say that I’ll walk again. I remember that much.”

  “Did they give you something to ease the pain?”

  “Yeah.” Leo’s hand fell down to lie on top of the mattress and he gave me a tired smile.

  “I’m sorry for not waiting for you. If Laura and I hadn’t gone by ourselves none of this would have happened, and it’s not like we found any new clues anyway. We went to see Mr. Zobel’s daughter because she said she had a few boxes with his old stuff, but there was nothing of interest. It was all a waste of time and now this happened.” I teared up.

  Leo reached for my hand as I continued my rant: “I’m sorry that we ignored your calls. Laura was sure Magni would yell at her, but of course now…” I trailed off and lowered my head in shame. “Now his yelling would be the sweetest sound in the world.”

  “Solo and Zasquash told me the doctors gave him less than thirty percent chance of survival.”

  “That’s what they said.” I fiddled with my fingers. “His body was as destroyed as the drone. Three limbs were cut off in the crash, one of his lungs collapsed, he has four broken ribs and his neck, shoulder, and the left side of his face were cut open. They’re still operating on him, but the doctor said that it’s likely that he has brain swelling so even if they can stabilize him, he’ll have to be in a coma until the brain swelling is over.”

  Leo drew a heavy sigh and closed his eyes.

  “I know,” I said, “but we have to stay positive. As long as there’s a chance of him surviving, there’s hope.”

  Opening his eyes, Leo drew another deep sigh. “To be honest, I’m not sure Magni would choose to survive if it means being crippled for life.”

  “Don’t say that!”

  “Magni is a proud man. We all are.”

  I teared up because in my heart, I knew Leo was right. “Sometimes you Nmen are too proud for your own good. Don’t for a minute think that life isn’t worth living unless you’re the strongest version of yourself.”

  “Raven, you don’t understand.”

  I fell back on my sense of humor to deflect the gravity of the conversation. Like a strict schoolteacher, I wiggled my index finger. “Shhh, I’ll pretend you didn’t say it.”

  “But…”

  “No, if I hear you say it again, I might have to crawl up on your bed and beat you up for it.”

  He raised his eyebrows. “That wouldn’t be too hard.”

  “That’s right, so don’t tempt me. I’ve always wanted to win over you. You don’t want me to take advantage of your being weak, do you?” In an attempt to change the subject, I took the bowl of water bubbles on his side table and offered him one.

  “No thanks.” He watched me as I popped a few in my mouth. “Raven.”

  “Yes.”

  “Not that I want you to beat me up, but I wouldn’t mind if you came closer.” He patted the mattress.

  Tilting my head, I gave him a questioning look. “Are you sure? I don’t want to hurt you or anything.” I looked down at his legs.

  Scrunching up his face in pain, Leo moved over to create room for me. “I know you told me not to expect anything, but I was looking forward to being close to you tonight. Not that I’ll be able to do any of the stuff I planned to do with you, but it’s just that I’m realizing that if I’d died in that crash…” His eyes dropped to his hands. “I’ll bet there’s a whole room of people out there waiting to hear news about Magni. His sons and daughters, wife, mother, brother, you know.” Leo’s Adam’s apple bobbed in his throat. “Magni has a family who cares about him while I…”

  My heart was crying for him and knowing what he was going to say, I took his hand and squeezed it.

  “Raven, I hear you when you say you don’t want to hurt me, but it’s too late for that. We made love last night and this morning. I already care about you too much to be untouched if you decide to end what we have. I don’t think someone like you will ever truly understand how it feels to have no one.” He looked into my eyes with deep sadness.

  “That’s not what I meant, Leo. I was talking about hurting you physically. You’ve just been operated on.”

  “Oh.”

  “And don’t say that you’re alone. You’re not. Even without me you have friends. Zasquash came rushing to the hospital when he heard what happened to you.”

  Leo used his free hand to scratch his shoulder. “I’m grateful for that, but…” The longing from him was so strong that I got up and sat next to him in his bed.

  “I’m here!”

  It hurt him to turn onto his right side, but he managed and we lay nose to nose with me caressing his face and neck.

  “Magni saved my life.”

  “How?”

  “His ejection handle was stuck and I was going to try and help him, but he pulled my handle to make sure I survived.”

  I gave a sad smile. “I’ll make sure to thank Magni for that when I see him again.” If the doctors were right, there was a seventy percent chance that I’d never see Magni again, and the thought made me look down.

  We were quiet for a while as I let my fingers caress and play with Leo’s dark beard.

  “Raven, you know what?”

  “What?”

  “I’ve never had a female friend before.”

  With my eyebrows raised up, I reminded him, “I offered to be your friend. It was you who kept insisting that you couldn’t be anything but my boss.”

  Leo groaned. “I know that, but I was in a tough situation with everyone expecting me to keep you safe and with you messing with my mind. This thing about men and women being friends…”

  “What about it?”

  “I wouldn’t know how to do it. I’m not gonna lie. I want so much more than friendship from you.”

  “Leo…”

  “Yes, I know. You’re not ready for marriage and I’m your boss…” He played with my hand before looking into my eyes. “I wish I wasn’t, though. I wish I…”

  I waited for him to continue but he just sighed.

  “You wish I was your boss?”

  My attempt to cheer him up worked and Leo gave a small laugh followed by a grimace of pain. “Ehhm, no, absolutely not.”

  “Well, I’m just trying to guess here since you’re giving me half sentences. Now you have me wondering what it is that you wish for.”

  Without words, Leo buried his head against the crook of my neck and entwined our fingers. It was something I had done as a child when I longed for safety, and because I’d lived in the Northlands since I was eleven years old, I knew how rare it was to see such vulnerability from an Nman. With my free hand, I nuzzled his earlobe and neck, appreciating how hard it must be for him to show weakness. Leo was a strong alpha with men looking up to him as a leader and a role model. I was smaller and much younger than him, but in that moment, I felt respected as his equal, a partner, and a friend. It made my heart overflow with gratitude and respect for him.

  “You know what it is that I wish for.” He spoke the words against my neck, which made them sound muffled.

  “You wish we could be more than friends.”

  “Uh-huh.” His lips placed gentle kisses on my collarbone.

  “We are more than friend
s, Leo.”

  “I know that, but being your lover will never be enough for me, Raven.” Leo let his finger twirl around a strand of my hair before inhaling deeply and speaking on his exhalation, “I want all of you!”

  “Say it again.” I had been a neglected child once, with an absent mom who couldn’t cope with me. Not until I was adopted by Christina and Boulder had I felt wanted. Fear of abandonment should have no room inside me anymore, but like a ghost from the past, I felt it reach out for the deeply healing and satisfying words that Leo wanted all of me.

  “I mean it. I want all of you. Not just the hot sex but the whole package.” His finger trailed from my hair down my shoulder and arm.

  “I’m not giving up my dream of being the first policewoman.”

  “I wouldn’t ask you to.” Leo lifted our entwined fingers and kissed the back of my hand. “I’m not stupid. Being your man will be challenging and scary. If you become a police officer, I’ll worry about you night and day.”

  “You already do that.”

  “True, but that’s because I…”

  Again, he trailed off and it made me poke at his shoulder. “Can you please finish your sentences?”

  “Okay but don’t freak out.”

  “I won’t.”

  His Adam’s apple bobbed. “The reason I’ll worry about you is because I like you so much.”

  “I like you too, Leo.”

  “Yeah, but I more than like you.”

  A triangle formed between my eyebrows. “What are you saying?”

  We were lying close together and he was looking deep into my eyes. “Promise that you’ll stay right here and talk to me instead of storming out of the room.”

  My heart was racing. “Why would I storm out?”

  “I love you, Raven.”

  Leo looked so serious at that moment; all my words about wanting a man with a sense of humor came back to me. I didn’t mind that he was serious, not when it came to how much he cared about me. My feelings for Leo had been strong before I even realized it myself. My irrational aggression toward Gennie for coming on to him should have been a clue, and today’s drone crash had wiped away all remaining doubt in my mind. I had met hundreds if not thousands of men and none of them had ever made me feel like Leo did. Watching that drone crash and not knowing if Leo was inside or not had been the worst moments of my life.