“Direct pressure, elevation, and pressure bandage,” I tell myself out loud.
I apply pressure to her shoulder and push a pillow beneath it to elevate the wound above the heart, and then I tie it off with the scarf. I pull the pillowcase from one of the pillows and run to the kitchen, hoping to find sugar or flour. I find a large container with sugar on the counter, and I empty the entire contents inside of the pillowcase. I run back to Layla and place the pillowcase on top of her belly, hoping to emulate holding pressure. I need to get out of here and find some help. I look down at my hands, and they are covered with blood. The same goes for my clothes, but I don’t even care. I rise and head for the door, and to my enormous relief, it isn’t locked. I don’t waste a second and start to run to the trees ahead. Sunrise is well on its way, making it easier for me to see where I’m going. Even though I know I need to keep running, I turn to look back at the cabin. Mrs. Sims appears in the doorway, and I increase my speed. The sound of another gunshot stops me in my tracks, the sound of my heartbeat thrashing in my ears. I run into the woods, praying I can outrun her and her bullets. I am focused on speed and forget to take into account that there are a lot of obstacles in these woods. I trip over a large branch, and I fall onto the unforgiving ground. I’m almost certain my ankle breaks, but adrenaline is clearly driving me right now because I scramble back onto my feet and continue to run. All I can think about is getting help for Layla. Why did I come here alone? How stupid am I?
I hear him before I see him.
“Fucking find her now!” he bellows.
He’s here, I think to myself, relieved.
I run toward the sound of his voice.
“Mika!” I scream from the top of my lungs.
I finally see him, and I burst into tears of equal parts joy and pure, utter terror. When he sees me, I see him pale—I can literally see the color drain from his handsome face—and he runs toward me, reaching me in mere seconds. I drop to the ground just as he reaches me. I realize that I am covered in blood; I must look a sight. He pulls me into his arms and inspects me thoroughly.
“Raeva.”
“Mika, she has a gun, we have to run. She’s coming,” I tell him.
“Who the fuck is she? And why are you covered in blood? Did she shoot you? Are you hurt?”
I shake my head.
“She didn’t shoot me. She shot Layla. She’s still alive, but we need to help her. She’s still in the cabin. It’s not my blood, it’s hers. I tried to help her, Mika. She’s your sister. I did CPR, but I don’t know if she is going to make it; she might bleed out. I ran to get help.”
The words flow out of me fast, and Mika looks at me, confused.
“It’s Margaret Sims, she’s behind everything. She’s crazy.”
Mika looks at Sean, who’s standing a few feet away with more security team members and nudges his head toward the direction of the cabin. I hadn’t even noticed them. He nods and starts instructing the rest of the security team. Three of them head toward the cabin, and I sag in relief. Maybe she’ll make it. I watch them until they disappear behind some trees. Mika helps me rise to my feet, but the second I put any weight on my foot, I know for sure that it’s broken. The pain is excruciating.
“I’m not sure if I can walk on this foot,” I say sheepishly.
“If you wanted me to carry you, all you had to do was tell me. You didn’t have to go through extremes and break your damn ankle.”
He chuckles as he dodges my hand that was on its way to slap him on the arm. Mika leans over to scoop me into his arms and lifts me up. I hear another crack of a bullet and fear seizes me around my throat. My eyes fly over to Mika. His eyes widen and terror is painted on his face.
Oh my God, did she shoot him?
I hear a deafening scream. Mika’s lips are moving, but I cannot hear anything besides the loud scream. My legs start to feel as heavy as lead, and I am having a hard time keeping my eyes open. Mika takes my face into his hands and peers into my eyes. I can clearly see the fear there. He lowers us to the ground, and I start to feel warmth around my abdomen. This is when I notice the vast amount of blood. Only, it’s not coming from Mika, it’s coming from me.
The look in her eyes when she slumps into my arms guts me. She screams my name loudly. She’s hysterical; she thinks it’s me who’s been shot. I can hear Sims laugh maniacally somewhere in the background.
“I’m taking everything from you, like your father did from me,” she sneers.
Psychotic bitch.
Raeva continues to freak out. I take her face between my hands as I try to calm her down and tell her it’s not me. Tears stream down her beautiful face, and I am not sure if she is comprehending anything I am telling her. All of a sudden, she looks down and pats her stomach. She looks at the blood pouring from her and smiles. Fucking smiles.
“It’s me,” she chokes out. “Thank God it’s not you.”
The woman I love is bleeding out in my arms, and her concern is for me. I pull her closer against me, kissing her head over and over.
“You need to hold direct pressure against the wound, sir,” Sean tells me.
I look at him but don’t react.
“Sir? I need you to let me hold pressure to her wound, okay?”
I nod.
I watch Sean take his shirt off and rip it in two. He balls the ripped pieces of material together and holds them in place on her abdomen and back. I snap out of it and place my hands where he’s holding pressure.
“I’ll hold pressure. Did someone call an ambulance?”
Sean lets me take over and nods.
“Yes sir, they are on their way. Steward is meeting them down the road to lead them here.”
I scan the area, and for the first time, I really see the chaos around me. There is blood everywhere, and security is pacing around. My gaze lands upon Margaret Sims, and my blood starts to boil. Apparently, she’s been watching us; she has a smile on her face, seemingly happy about what she is seeing. I am glad for a moment that I am not alone because I swear I would wring her neck if there was nobody to stop me. I can feel Raeva stir, and my attention diverts back to her where it belongs. I will deal with Margaret Sims later. I don’t take my eyes off Raeva until Steward appears with the paramedics. I talk to her and try to keep her awake. After they inspect her wound, they move her to a stretcher as I continue to hold pressure. The cops show up just as we start to head to the ambulance. I can’t help but feel a spark of satisfaction when I watch them cuff her.
We arrive at the hospital fast, which is good because I am close to losing it. I am still holding pressure when we pull up in front of the emergency room.
“Mika,” she croaks. “I’m so sorry.”
“Shhhh. It’s okay, baby. That’s not important now,” I tell her.
I lean in and kiss her temple. We are rushed inside, and I am still holding pressure. Two women dressed in scrubs take over for me. Another woman in scrubs tells me that a room has already been arranged. She tells me family only, so I tell her that Raeva’s my wife. She leads me to the room that’s assigned to Raeva, and I find Jill and Mikaela already in there waiting. I imagine that Sean called them. Mik rushes over to me and throws her arms around my neck, obviously not caring that I am covered in blood.
“I’m so sorry,” she sobs. “We didn’t know she went to confront Layla. She never told us. We would have stopped her.”
I envelop her into my arms.
“I know,” I reassure her.
She pulls out of my embrace.
“You need a change of clothes,” she says as she wrinkles her nose.
“I’m not going anywhere,” I tell her.
She looks like she is going to argue with me for a moment, but she doesn’t say a word. Jill steps forward, throws her arms around my neck as well, and starts sobbing. I honestly am not sure how to respond to this. I just stand here and comfort her best I can.
“You saved her again. I can’t thank you enough,” she says, still crying
.
“I will always come for her; that isn’t even a question.”
“I know that. I really do. She’s more my sister than my actual sister. I wouldn’t know how to survive without her, so thank you.”
I hold her a little tighter. Maybe this can be the silver lining to this. Maybe we can overcome the awkwardness between us. I know it would make Raeva happy.
I don’t think I have ever been this scared or this exhausted before. I have not slept in forty-eight hours, I have not eaten, and I have not taken a shower or left this room. The only time I have moved from my place by her side is to use the bathroom. They tell me how lucky she is; the bullet went straight through and by some miracle did not hit any major organs. From the moment I got the call that she ditched Jill and Mikaela and an entire team of security, I have been a total wreck. I have been through a plethora of emotions: anger, fear, frustration, desperation, and even hopefulness. I sit on a chair next to the bed, her hand clutched in both of mine. I need this contact. I need to feel her skin. Mikaela and Jill have just left to go get showered and changed. They’ll be back soon. Since it was revealed that she has been keeping our father at Hillcrest for quite some time now, things have been a little tense between my sister and me. She cannot remember doing so, and that makes it harder to be angry at her right now, but with Raeva being in the state she’s currently in, dealing with this is low on my list of priorities.
All my time and energy is focused on Raeva. She hasn’t woken up since she got out of surgery, and I cannot shake the feeling of déjà vu. Not to mention the complete and utter anguish at the thought that she might wake up and not remember me and that she loves me, despite everything I have done to her. Maybe she will wake up and realize that she really is too good for me and leave me. But at least she’ll be alive. I don’t think I want to live on a planet where she isn’t. I’m desperate, so desperate that I even try to bargain with God. I make promises to start going to church, if only he’ll let her come back to me. How cruel is it, to finally have found love after all these years, only to lose it so soon? I still have so many questions. The police could only tell us so much. So far, they only have Margaret Sims’ version of the events, and frankly, I don’t have a lot of confidence in the truthfulness of her account. Layla is on another floor; according to Sims, she is our half-sister. I am not sure how to feel about that, especially given the nature of our relationship early on. Mikaela insists that we pay for her medical care since even after everything, she is our sister. I only agree because I know that Raeva would want me to.
“If you look like that, I shudder to think of what I look like,” she says with a raspy voice.
My eyes fly up and meet hers.
Thank fuck.
The warmth that radiates through my chest at the sound of her words is unreal. I feel like the Grinch who stole Christmas—my heart swells up. Right now, the sound of her voice is quite literally the most beautiful sound I’ve ever heard. Just moments ago, I had myself wondering if I would ever hear it again.
“You grow more beautiful every single day,” I tell her.
She smiles sheepishly.
“You and your silver tongue,” she teases.
I lean in and kiss the hand that I’m holding. “I’m going to call the nurse. They’ll want to know that you have woken up.”
“Maybe wait just a few minutes?”
I raise my brow.
“I just want to be with you for a little bit longer before the crazy starts, ya know? Will you just lie here with me for a little while?”
She doesn’t have to ask me twice. I crawl in behind her, taking great care not to touch her wound as I wrap my arm around her.
“Are you mad at me?” she asks quietly.
“I was.”
“But not anymore.”
I kiss the top of her head.
“Nope, not anymore. Right now, I am just happy you came back to me.”
“I think I’ll always come back to you, Kingsley. You may not have noticed, but I think you’ve gotten under my skin a bit.”
I don’t see her face, but I can hear the smile in her voice. I hold her just a little tighter.
“When you collapsed in my arms in those woods, I wasn’t sure if you were going to make it. I don’t think I would have survived that.”
“Aw, you can’t live without me?” she says, tone mocking.
“Can I live without you? Sure, but I’d be dead inside. Please stay.”
“Please stay?”
“Yes, don’t go back to your own house. Stay at our place. It wouldn’t be the same if you left. It wouldn’t feel like home anymore. And I meant what I said; Jill can stay, too. We have proven that we don’t even have to run into each other if we don’t want to. The place has enough room.”
She turns around slowly and looks into my eyes.
“I have one condition.”
“What is it? Anything. Just name it.”
A smile blooms on her perfect face.
“I’m going to need you to go home right now and take a damn shower. I can’t be seen with you if you’re looking like this.”
I clutch my chest.
“Ms. Ray, are you just with me for my looks?”
“Well, isn’t that obvious?” she replies with a smirk.
I kiss the tip of her nose.
“So that is a yes?”
Her beautiful brown eyes are sparkling, and I could easily get lost in them.
“That’s a yes,” she concedes.
I am about to seal this deal with a kiss when we get interrupted by a nurse.
“Mr. Kingsley, you shouldn’t be in your wife’s bed. You might hurt her!”
Raeva’s eyes widen slightly. She mouths the word wife at me, and I can’t help but let out a chuckle.
“I’m sorry,” I tell the middle-aged nurse. “I was about to call you in here to tell you she’s awake. I was just saying hello.”
“I don’t want to see that again. She is hooked up to all sorts of expensive and sensitive equipment. Those are not toys, Mr. Kingsley.”
I stifle another chuckle and climb out of the small bed. I hold my hands up as a sign of surrender. I feel like a teenager being told off by the teacher as she folds her arms in front of her chest and gives me a stern look.
“That was mean, Ms. Carla.”
“But did you see his face? It was totally worth it.”
She approaches the bed, and the two of them exchange a look before bursting out in laughter. Seconds later, she doubles over in pain. Nurse Carla rushes to Raeva.
“You poor thing! I’m so sorry, I wasn’t thinking,” she says remorsefully.
Raeva grimaces.
“It’s okay,” she chokes out.
“I am calling the doctor. I’ll be right back,” nurse Carla announces. “Sorry again,” she says as she leaves the room.
Raeva smiles at me.
“Go home, baby. Take a shower, put on some clean clothes, and then come back.”
“You’re so bossy,” I tease. “I like it.”
She rolls her eyes. I give her a kiss on the head and promise I’ll be back soon. Sean is sitting outside the door of Raeva’s room, and he stands when I step out.
“Sir,” he says as he nods his head. “Steward sent word not too long ago that Dr. Hayes would like a moment of your time.”
That’s unexpected news. I know that Layla regained her consciousness yesterday. I have security watching her room as well, partly because she quite possibly is our half-sister, but mostly since I need her to be alive to testify against Margaret Sims. The last person who was going to do that got himself killed, and I want to see Sims pay for nearly killing Raeva and everything else she has done to hurt my family. I’m not 100% sure if I am ready to listen to her without wanting to choke her for her part in hurting Raeva, but I need to know more about what has happened and what her part in everything has been. I decide that it would not be a smart idea to go in there by myself, so I ask Sean to join me. Raeva’s roo
m is on the ninth floor, and Layla’s on the fourth floor, so we get on the elevator.
“Hold the door, please,” a female voice calls out.
I stick my arm out to keep the doors from closing, an action—when I see who steps on the elevator with us—I immediately regret. Lo and behold, nurse Barbie steps into the elevator. I smelled her overbearing perfume before I saw her; I should have reacted instinctively and let the doors close. Just goes to show that no good deed goes unpunished, I think bitterly to myself.
“Thank you, I—oh…” her voice trails off when her eyes land on me. “Mr. Kingsley, what a nice surprise. Is your sister back in the hospital?” she asks just a little too cheerily for my taste.
I already dislike small spaces, but it feels downright claustrophobic in here. Between the intense stare that she throws my way and the ridiculous amount of fragrance the woman is wearing, I’m extremely uncomfortable.
“No, my sister is doing fine, thank you.”
She steps a little closer, and I instantly feel my scalp prickling.
"My wife is in the hospital,” I blurt out.
Sean, who is in the opposite corner of the elevator, perks up.
“Oh. You’re married now? I had no idea,” she says, her disappointment obvious.
She takes another step toward me, all the while having her eyes fixed on my face.
“Happily?”
Is she kidding me with this crap?
“Extremely,” I reply curtly as I take a couple steps to the side.
I shoot a look at Sean, who apparently finds this exchange amusing. I, however, am not amused in the slightest. Thankfully, the elevator stops on the fourth floor, and I stride out of the confined space. Sean increases speed to catch up with me, and I look at him sideways when he does. He’s smirking.
“Something funny, Sean?” I grumble.
Sean bites his lip.
“Not a thing, sir,” he manages to answer without laughing.
After Tomorrow (Kingsley series Book 2) Page 16