Amy
I watched the ambulance pulling away. In the distance I could see Colt’s truck approaching. Once he noticed me standing there with a blanket around me, he jumped out of his truck and came running my way. His hands reached out for my shoulders and he pulled me into his arms. “Damn, woman, you had us so worried. Where’s everyone else?”
I pulled away from Colt and started shaking my head.
“Conner? John?” His eyes were huge. I’d never realized how they were the exact color of Conner’s. I was consumed with angst and just collapsed to the ground. Colt kneeled down and touched my arm. “Amy?” He must have waived down an officer. “I need some help over here.”
They picked me up and carried me to the backseat of one of the squad cars. I was too upset to look at either of them. All I wanted was to know what was happening with Conner. Thankfully, Colt wanted the same answers.
“My cousin and John. Do you have any idea what happened?”
I looked up just as the officer began explaining. “Your cousin suffered a gunshot to his abdomen. The ambulance took him out of here a couple minutes ago. John went with him. He wasn’t harmed.”
I jumped up out of the car. “You have to get me to the hospital!” I wasn’t asking. I was ordering Colt to take me. “Colt, please!”
“Ma’am, we will need you to make your official statement. I suppose we can meet you at the hospital. Since you are all so close to the sheriff, I can count on him to keep track of you until I get there.”
I nodded. “Yes, meet us there.” I grabbed Colt’s arm and pulled him toward his truck.
“Get in and get buckled!”
We took off and headed for the hospital. My whole body was shaking. The last time I saw Conner, he was laying lifeless on the floor. I had to see him. I had to know he was okay.
What if he wasn’t? What would I do without his love? How could I go on without him being there with me? I buried my face into my hands and bawled my eyes out. Conner was everything to me. He was my best friend, my partner and the father to our unborn child. As much as I had always wanted to be a mother, I didn’t want to do any of this without him.
My world revolved around that man. His love for me is what had kept me sane. How was I going to raise a beautiful child alone? How could I live with the guilt that would come from him dying? All of this was my fault. I brought Rick into all of our lives. I did this.
If I never would have let myself fall for Conner, he would still be out there living his life. Instead he was fighting for it.
“Amy, did they catch Rick? Tell me they got his ass.”
I sniffled and wiped the tears from my eyes. “You don’t have to worry about Rick ever again.”
“They killed him? You know, I try to live my life as a good Christian, but that man was evil. His fate was set a long time ago. I don’t think anyone will miss that man.”
I agreed. “The police didn’t kill Rick.” I looked right at Colt. “I did. I shot him.”
He reached out and grabbed my hand. I knew it was a kind gesture. It was a shock for me to be able to say that I took the man’s life. “Are you alright?”
I shook my head. “It doesn’t matter right now. I just need to get to Conner. I have to know…I have to know he’s going to be okay. I can’t live with myself if I lose him. This is all my fault.”
“Conner is a grown man, Amy. He made his own decisions. There’s no tellin’ what people are capable of. Conner did what he wanted. He wanted to protect you and his unborn child. There ain’t no good man that would turn their back on that situation. He wouldn’t want you thinkin’ that and you know it.”
He was right, but it didn’t make me change my mind. “Please just drive faster.”
“I’m nearin’ a hundred, darlin’. I’d like us to arrive in one piece if that’s alright with you.” I knew he was doing the best he could. “How are you feelin’? I think when we arrive and find out about Conner, you should get checked out yourself. You’ve been through a hell of an ordeal.”
I nodded. “Yeah, maybe I will. I’m not doing anything until I see him though.”
“I know.” We finally pulled into the hospital parking lot. Colt hadn’t even turned off the truck before I was jumping out and running toward the entrance. The information desk was straight ahead and I ran up and cut in front of these two women. “I’m so sorry. This is an emergency. Where can we find Conner Healy? He was brought in by ambulance.”
“Go to emergency and check in with them.”
I didn’t wait for the woman to say anything else. I grabbed Colt by the arm and rushed toward the emergency department. The triage nurse was reading a book as I approached. She looked up with beady eyes and smiled. “Can I help you?”
“Conner Healy. He was shot.” I realized I could have worded it better, but all that I cared about was finding him.
She stood up and walked over to a computer. I saw the concerned look on her face. My stomach started to feel queasy. I didn’t know what I was going to do if we didn’t make it in time. “I will have someone come out to talk to you shortly. Have a seat over there.” She pointed to the waiting room.
This wasn’t good. Why couldn’t she tell us?
Colt grabbed my hand once we were sitting. Neither of us knew what to say. I knew he was probably fearing the same outcome as I was. We would all be devastated. Tears fell down my cheeks and I didn’t care about the people that were staring. My boyfriend was back there somewhere and we didn’t even know if he was alive.
Conner’s mother and Van arrived about thirty minutes after us. I could tell from the look on Karen’s face that she was as worried as I was. I stood up and accepted her hug. “I’m so sorry for all of this.”
She rubbed my back. “Amy, you didn’t do this. All we can do now is pray.”
I saw Van and Colt having a serious discussion in the corner. She looked more mad than upset and I couldn’t understand why.
“Where is John? We haven’t seen him since we got here. Wasn’t he with Conner?”
“He won’t answer his phone, I’ve been calling him non-stop. I asked if I could go back, but the nurse told me I had to wait too. How are you? Is the baby okay? Do you need to get checked out?”
“I’m fine. I just want to know something.”
So we prayed. I begged the Lord to spare the love of my life. I begged him to give us a chance to be a family. I also begged him to forgive me for taking another man’s life.
The thing was, I had this terrible feeling that because I shot Rick, I would lose Conner as punishment. Life was all about trial and error. My actions may have cost me everything.
At least an hour later, a doctor came out and announced Conner’s last name. We all stood up as he approached.
“Mr. Healy was brought in with a gunshot wound to the left side of his abdomen. Once we got the blood loss stopped we were able to go in and take a look at the damage. The wound was a through and through and it missed all of his organs. We are working on getting him a transfusion and some fluids to help with recovery. If you give us about twenty minutes to get him into his own room, you can all go back and see him. He’s a very lucky man.”
Karen turned around hugged me. We were both crying different tears. Conner was going to be okay. “Everything is going to be okay.” She kept hugging me and I knew she was just so happy that her son was going to pull through.
As much as the whole family was just busting to see him, I wanted to see him first. Maybe it was selfish, but for a while I had imagined my life without Conner. It was just unbearable.
Finally, a nurse came out to escort us all to Conner’s room. A few police officers were standing around and I recognized the one from the ranch. He smiled as I got closer. “Looks like he’s goin’ to pull through, ma’am. I’m just goin’ to hang around until after you’ve spent some time together. We can talk here so you don’t have to leave. I’ve already cleared everything with the sheriff, so just take your time.”
“Thank
you. Where is John?” I needed to thank him for everything that he’d done for me. Without his training, I wouldn’t have been able to handle that gun the way I had. Although, there wouldn’t have been a gun involved at all.
“Once he knew everything was alright, he had to go out and meet the coroner back at the scene.”
I forgot all about Rick’s body. Of course, someone had to come pick it up. It wasn’t like we could just burn it. “Oh, I see. So what will they do with it?”
He laughed and shook his head. “I ain’t never had someone ask me that before. Excuse me for bein’ all rude. I reckon that if nobody comes to claim it, they will burn it up and toss out the ashes.”
“He doesn’t even deserve that.” Maybe it was unkind to speak that way about the dead, but I didn’t give a rat’s ass. Rick was the scum of the earth.
“It seems like the man caused a lot of problems everywhere he went. Once I get everyone’s statements together, we will be able to close this out pretty quickly. John’s already explained what happened and I got both Heather and Lucy’s statements as well. We are aware this was self-defense. I hope you aren’t worried about that.”
The thought hadn’t crossed my mind. I had fought for my life. Clearly it wasn’t my fault. “It was me or him. I had no choice.”
He put up his hands. “It’s best that we don’t talk about that until we are on the record. I will get up with you later on. I think the nurse is ready for you to all go in now.” He pointed in the direction of Conner’s room.
I saw Karen waving me over. “Get your tail over here. He isn’t going to want to see any of us, if you aren’t there first.”
I grabbed her hand and we walked together into the room. Conner was hooked up to several machines that were monitoring his stats. He had his eyes closed, but as I touched his arm, I watched them open. Oxygen was being given to him through two tubes. He coughed when he first tried to speak.
I saw his fingers moving around and put my hand in his. He seemed relieved to see me, but it couldn’t be more than I was to see him. I started to cry immediately. “I thought I lost you.”
“I’m tough.”
Karen and I laughed. “We know.”
“Had to fight…” We could tell he was weak. “Had to save you…”
I leaned over and kissed him. “It’s over Conner. He can never hurt us again.”
He squeezed my hand. “My Blaze.”
I nodded. “Yes, I’m all yours.”
Chapter 32
Conner
I hated hospitals.
Amy ended up staying with me overnight. She refused to leave my side.
My mother finally forced her to go home and rest, knowing she needed it more than me. Amy had been through hell and back. She’d not only shot a man to survive, but it had taken a mental toll on her. I knew she was blaming herself for what happened to me. I heard her saying it when she thought I was sleeping.
Still, she stayed by my side until the day I was released to go home. Amy didn’t know it, but while my family had her help them plan a welcome home party for me, it was really a surprise shower for her. The best part of the surprise was that my sister and Ty were there, as well as her father. She cried more when she saw them.
Randa must have been a nervous wreck over what happened. She was too far away to do anything and Ty was shorthanded on the farm since I hadn’t been there. They had brought the kids with them and I couldn’t believe how big the boys had gotten.
After all of the hugs, everyone gathered around Amy to watch her open all of her gifts. Ty and Colt finally pulled me to the side. “I know the timing is bad, but I need to know what your future plans are. Do you still want to build the house in North Carolina?” Ty’s question was necessary. He needed the manpower, so if I wasn’t planning on going back, he needed to hire someone to fill my shoes.
Of course, Colt was wondering the same thing. With me being back in Kentucky, he was able to spend extra time at home with his wife and kids. I knew he was getting used to that.
I couldn’t base my decision on them. It had to be what was best for Amy and our child too. “I haven’t had a chance to talk to Amy about it. It’s not a decision that I can just make myself anymore. I have to do what’s best for my family now.”
Ty smacked me in the shoulder. “Look at you, being all responsible and shit.”
“Be gentle, unlike your pussy ass, I actually took a bullet.” Colt started laughing, while Ty just looked defeated. “Aww, what’s wrong? Did I hurt your feelin’s?”
“No, I was just thinking maybe I should go out and shoot myself twice. That way I don’t have to hear your shit for the rest of our lives.” I couldn’t think of a comeback for that.
Colt laughed again and put his arm around me. He handed me a beer. “I think you win the title for bein’ the toughest. Unlike dipshit over there, I am okay with it. There ain’t no way I would shoot myself for a label. Damn fool!”
Ty flipped him the bird and walked away.
“Colt, thanks for bein’ great to Amy during everything. I know I haven’t had a chance to say it.”
“No need to thank me, cuz. You would have done the same for me. I remember when my father passed. You drove everyone around and never complained.” I never said a word because I felt like I was losing my father all over again. Uncle Mitch had been my only father figure. When he took that fall and ended up losing his life, we were all devastated.
“Colt, I need to know somethin’. If we decided to move to North Carolina, is there goin’ to be any hard feelin’s? I’ve got to be honest when I say that it meant a lot to be so close to Randa. We’ve always been together and as much as I love bein’ home, I’m starting to feel like that’s where I want to raise my children.”
“Children?” He caught on to my comment.
“Well, yeah. I’d like to have a couple. You and Ty seem real happy with your children. Van is due any day with your third. I think two would a good round number.”
Colt shook his head at me. “It amazes me how you’ve changed in so many ways, but also somehow managed to stay the same. You’re right though, the kids are great. Noah has become such a big help. He loves his sister and he’ll love the next one too. Savanna is a good mother. I think that really helps. She’s so good with the children too. She’s got way more patience than I have. That woman can handle a bucket of paint falling down a set of stairs.”
“You still seem real happy.”
Colt looked over at Van, who was handing Amy another gift to open. “I don’t remember a time where I didn’t love that woman. She was worth the fight and if I had to do it all over again, I wouldn’t have changed a thing. Just look at all that she’s given me. She fits into our family like she’s always belonged.”
While he was talking, I didn’t take my eyes off of Amy. She looked up and I winked. “Seems like the ones you have to fight for are usually the ones you don’t want to live without. I happened to pick the one woman that I couldn’t have.”
“I didn’t see you goin’ about things any different. You’re famous for making things harder on yourself.”
I shook hands with my cousin, before he walked over to rag on Ty some more. When I realized I was too weak to follow him, I headed back into the room and sat down near Amy. I knew that men weren’t supposed to be around, but I was too damn tired and sore to stand around for hours. My discharge papers said that I was supposed to be resting.
Randa had brought a bunch of gifts from some of Amy’s favorite clients. Some of them even wrote her nice little notes asking her to move back soon. She seemed touched by their kind words.
With Rick out of the picture, everything had changed for us. We could go back to North Carolina and live a happy life without Amy’s ex trying to ruin our lives or put us in early graves. It was because of Rick that we’d spent over a year in fear. This was the first real time in our relationship when we were free.
I think we both needed to consider where would be the best place to live.
My mind was already made up, I just needed Amy to feel the same.
The family being here was great, but once the presents were opened, they played their little games and the food was almost gone, it was time for everyone to go home. I didn’t even wait to say goodbye to everyone. When my head hit the pillows on my bed, I was out like a light. I knew my mother and the girls would make sure Amy didn’t have to clean up.
When she finally came to bed, it was dark outside. I had no idea what time it was, or how long I had been asleep. I refused to take my pain medication due to my earlier addiction with it. Over the counter medicine could take the edge off, but it wasn’t the best.
I reached over and pulled Amy into my arms. “Did everyone leave?”
She kissed my nose. “They are all still on the ranch, but we’re alone here.”
“Were you surprised?”
“You knew about it didn’t you?” She sat up and looked shocked.
“I just found out the other day. It just worked out that I got discharged and they were able to have it here. You know my family. They were plannin’ this shit for months.”
“I was so surprised. I knew they would have a shower, I just didn’t know it would be today. Getting you home was the best day for me.”
I pulled her back down, even though it hurt my stomach. “Now that we don’t have anything standin’ in our way. Where would you like to spend forever? Do you want to stay here, or do you want to go back to North Carolina? Our permits have been approved. We could break ground in as early as two weeks.”
Amy rolled on her back and put both of her hands on her belly. I put one of my hands on top of hers. The baby was moving all around and it made me smile knowing that it would be born and never know the hell that we had gone through. I was completely fine with that.
“You know, when I didn’t know if you were going to make it, I asked myself the same question. Would I be able to move back to North Carolina and move on with my life? Would I want to be here so that your mother could be close to her grandchildren? I didn’t know what to do. Now that I know you’re okay, everything is different. I’d go anywhere as long as it’s with you.”
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