by Tee O'Fallon
Behind him more feet pounded, telling him Dom and the others weren’t far behind. He sped down the stairs, catching scant glimpses of Mohammad’s tan jacket. With each floor, Gray closed the distance between them. As he approached the third floor landing, he heard nothing. No footsteps. No doors opening or closing.
He slowed, holding up his hand, indicating Dom and the others should do the same. A figure emerged halfway down the stairs below him.
Aiming a gun.
The gunshot echoed in the confines of the hallway. Gray ducked for cover, firing three times as he moved. Dom fired twice.
Mohammad dropped the gun and slid down the wall, leaving behind a six-inch wide blood smear.
In no time, the narrow stairwell was crammed with Shanahan, Grimaldi, and the other officers. Gray and Dom approached Mohammad, weapons still out.
Mohammad’s eyes were open and dull. Five holes oozed blood on his torso. Blood from the hole at his neck seeped into his shirt before trickling onto the floor.
Gray felt for a pulse. There was none.
He holstered. “I’ll check on Nicky.” Without waiting for a reply, Gray headed back up the stairs, taking them two at a time. His breathing was labored, his pulse skyrocketing. At the fifth floor, he yanked open the heavy door and made for the intensive care unit. The sliding doors were open, and he went directly to the foot of the first bed.
Nicky lay on a white sheet, eyes closed, sweat beading on his forehead. Tubes ran from an IV pole into his arm. Gray noted a blue cooling blanket peeking out from beneath the sheet. He turned at the sound of footsteps to see Shanahan and Grimaldi.
Turning back to Nicky, his gut clenched with fear that they were too late. The slow yet steady beeping from the monitor next to Nicky’s bed sent a wave of relief coursing through him to the point where he felt physically weakened. He shook it off as the ER doctor entered the cubicle and checked the boy’s vitals.
“Doc, the boy has a rare form of leukemia.” Gray wiped the sweat from his forehead. “He needs some kind of experimental treatment or he could die.”
“I’m aware of that.” The doctor glanced at the shield hanging around Gray’s neck. “I’ve seen the alert Detective Shanahan faxed over. Unfortunately, this hospital isn’t authorized to administer experimental treatments. Even if Nicky’s doctor came to this hospital, we couldn’t allow the treatment because it’s not approved at this facility.”
“That’s bullshit.” The urge to shake some sense into the ER doc had Gray fisting his hands. He ignored the slight twinge of pain that shot down his left arm.
The doctor shook his head. “No, that’s lawyers. I’m sorry, but we’ll have to make arrangements to have Nicky transferred to the hospital that supports his experimental treatment. We’ve been trying to locate the boy’s physician, Dr. Maxwell, for the last thirty minutes. As soon as we speak with him, we’ll make arrangements for the transfer.”
“What’s Nicky’s temperature?” Gray touched his hand to Nicky’s forehead. “He feels hot as hell.”
The doc checked the monitor. “One-oh-five. No, one-oh-six.”
Again, Gray swiped at the sweat on his own forehead. “How long does it take to arrange for an ambulance and a transfer?”
“Anywhere from one to three hours.” The doctor made a notation on Nicky’s chart.
“Like I said, that’s bullshit. Nicky can’t wait.” Gray turned to Shanahan. “Did you call Alex?”
“I was about to when you came in.” Shanahan reached into his pocket.
“I’ll do it.” Gray whipped out his cell phone, relieved when Alex answered on the first ring. “We found Nicky.”
“Is he…?” Alex sobbed. “Is he dead?”
“He’s alive.” Gray swiped more sweat from his forehead. “He’s at Mount Sinai Hospital with a high fever. The doc says they won’t allow Nicky to receive experimental treatments here, so we need to take him to the hospital where Nicky’s doctor practices.”
“He’s at New York-Presbyterian.” Alex’s voice trembled as she rattled off the address.
“Meet us there and find Dr. Maxwell. They haven’t been able to reach him.” Gray tried to keep his voice calm for Alex’s sake, although he was worried as hell about Nicky’s condition. “Tell him Nicky’s spiking a hundred and six.”
“Okay, I’ll find him wherever he is.” She took a deep breath. “Please hurry.”
“Count on it.” Gray ended the call and took Nicky’s IV bag in his hand to read the label. Saline.
“I can’t let you take this boy out of here.” The ER doctor put a restraining hand on Gray’s shoulder. “You aren’t the boy’s guardian, and with that high a fever, he could die if he’s not transported properly.”
Gray glared down at the doctor until he removed his hand. “And he could die while we sit around on our asses waiting for the paperwork.” Ignoring the doctor’s objections, Gray began wrapping Nicky up in the sheet and cooling blanket. “John, grab the IV bag off the pole and keep it above Nicky’s heart. Unplug the blanket. Grimaldi, you drive.”
When he picked Nicky up, another twinge of pain radiated from his shoulder down his left arm, worse than before. Nicky moaned in his arms. His eyes flickered open briefly. “Detective Gray,” he whispered. “You’re here.” His eyes closed and Gray felt a distinct tug at his heart.
“I’m taking you to see your mommy and the doctor who will make you better.” With one last annoyed look at the ER doc, Gray carried Nicky out of the room.
Please, God. If you’re really up there, help me save this little boy.
Chapter Twenty-Three
Alex stood just inside the entrance to the ER, clinging to Daisy’s hand and craning her neck to watch for the vehicle Nicky would arrive in. She didn’t know how she could have gotten this far without her friend’s support.
A few feet away, Dr. Maxwell and two nurses waited with a gurney. Unable to stand still any longer, Alex pulled from Daisy’s grasp and walked to the doors. When they swished open, she peered around the bend in the road for an ambulance, straining to hear the telltale siren. The ER’s cul-de-sac was ominously quiet.
When Gray called to say he’d found Nicky, she’d literally sunk to her knees with relief, but the moment was fleeting. At hearing that his temperature had spiked to a hundred and six, fear overshadowed any relief she’d felt.
The horrible disease often gave Nicky a fever, but never so high. Dr. Maxwell warned her that he might not bounce back after such a setback. His internal organs could shut down, and in all likelihood that process had already begun.
In the distance, a siren wailed, getting louder with every second. Please, please be them. It seemed to take forever before Alex saw the flashing blue and red lights. A dark sedan turned the corner and sped into the cul-de-sac. As the vehicle screeched to a stop in front of the ER, the doors behind Alex swished open. Nurses rushed the gurney to the edge of the curb.
Detective Grimaldi jumped out of the driver’s seat and came around to open the rear passenger door. Gray stepped out of the car with Nicky bundled in his arms. Detective Shanahan followed, holding an IV bag attached to Nicky’s arm by a clear tube.
Alex took Nicky’s hand. Tears flowed freely down her cheeks. “I’m here, baby. Mommy’s here.” When he didn’t respond, her breath caught in her throat.
After Gray gently laid him onto the clean sheets, Detective Shanahan handed one of the nurses the IV bag he was holding, which she hooked onto the metal rod jutting out of the gurney.
“Inside,” Dr. Maxwell ordered. He and the nurses rushed the gurney through the ER doors.
Alex began to follow the gurney inside, stopping to face Gray. She reached for his hand and squeezed it. “Thank you.” When he nodded, she noted his pallor and wondered if he was getting ill. But realizing she no longer had any business worrying about his health, she turned and hustled to catch up to the gurney. Daisy followed not far behind.
Once inside the ER cubicle, Dr. Maxwell began barking orders. “Change
the IV bag and get him hooked up to the monitors. Someone plug in that blanket.” He checked Nicky’s temperature. “Still 106. Let’s intubate his airway and get some fluids in him.”
One nurse began the intubation then gasped. “Dr. Maxwell!”
Bright red blotches of blood soaked the otherwise white sheet Nicky had been swaddled in.
“Check him for injuries.” Dr. Maxwell whipped the sheet onto the floor. “Ms. Romano, you didn’t say Nicky was injured. Am I missing something?”
“No, not that I know of.” Alex’s heart beat faster, and she wrung her hands. “Is he all right, do you see anything?”
“Nothing.” Dr. Maxwell pressed a stethoscope to Nicky’s chest. “This must be someone else’s blood.”
Alex pressed her fingers to her lips. Gray.
He’d been holding Nicky tightly to his chest and he’d been so pale. Was he hurt protecting Nicky? As much as she wanted to check on Gray herself, there was no way she could leave Nicky’s side.
She grabbed Daisy’s hands. “I need you to do something for me. Find Gray. See if he’s okay.”
“Of course I will.” Daisy squeezed Alex’s hands then turned to leave.
Alex watched Daisy head down the corridor and turn the corner. She lifted her eyes to the ceiling. Please, please save my son. And let Gray be okay.
The next few minutes were a whirl of activity. Cold compresses were applied to Nicky’s forehead. One nurse hung a new IV bag on the gurney pole, while another set a series of syringes on a metal table. Alex took Nicky’s hand in hers. When she pressed her other hand to his forehead, he was hot to the touch and so very pale.
As Gray’s face had been.
Again she wondered what had happened. Did he get shot? Was it a knife wound? She pressed a hand to her forehead. Her chest was tight. Her stomach wouldn’t stop clenching. Worrying about both Nicky and Gray was tearing her heart in two. She peered around the curtain, trying to catch sight of Daisy.
“Okay, that’s all we can do for his fever.” Dr. Maxwell picked up one of the syringes and slowly injected it into Nicky’s IV. He turned to Alex. “He’s got a long night ahead of him. We’ll have to wait and hope that we got this into him in time. This,” Dr. Maxwell said as he pointed to the monitor indicating Nicky’s body temperature, “is critical. His temperature is so high we raised the warning level to 107. If the monitor starts beeping, that’s not good. The ICU is prepping a bed for him. I’ll head there now and get things ready. If there’s any change while I’m gone, step outside the curtain and flag down a nurse. They’ll call me if I’m needed.”
“Thank you, doctor.” Alex tried to smile, failing miserably. She pulled a chair closer to the bed and sat down to hold Nicky’s hand. He looked so tiny and helpless, and the worst part was there was nothing she or anyone else could do.
Alex lowered her head into her hand. She felt bone-weary, and the inability to do anything to help was killing her. She’d always been able to find a way out of trouble. Alone, without relying on anyone. Right now, she was grateful for Nicky’s doctor, the nurses, and Daisy’s steadfast support. And Gray. If he hadn’t gotten Nicky here, her son would probably already be dead. Gray was right, she should have asked for a loan. If not from him, she should have taken Daisy up on her offer to lend her money.
She worried that Gray was in pain, and that he would bleed out and die. Did he need a transfusion? Maybe her blood type would match his. She’d give every ounce of blood in her veins to save Nicky or Gray.
Daisy re-entered the cubicle and rested a hand on Alex’s shoulder. “I have news. Your husband is dead. Gray and Dom shot and killed him at the other hospital.” She turned to look directly at Alex. “Why didn’t you ever tell me you were married?”
“There are a lot of things I haven’t told you and need to. I was married a long time ago. In another life.” One I regret with every fiber of my being. “I didn’t want him to know where Nicky was because I was afraid this would happen.”
Daisy knelt beside the chair and squeezed Alex’s hand. “Whenever you’re ready, girlfriend, I’m here to listen.”
“Thank you.” Alex covered Daisy’s hand with her own.
“But there’s more,” Daisy said in a way that told Alex something bad was coming. “Gray was shot. He’s lost a lot of blood and is in another ER cubicle. They’re working on him now.”
Alex stared at Daisy. Her heart seemed to stop beating. “Will he be okay?” she whispered. “Does he need blood?”
“The doctors are taking good care of him.” Again, Daisy squeezed Alex’s hand. “That’s all I can tell you.”
“Is anyone with him? Is Dom there?” Alex stood and looked down the hallway at the many other curtained cubicles, wanting to go to Gray. Needing to go to him. But two things stopped her feet from moving. First and foremost, Nicky was a helpless child, and she couldn’t bear the thought of him being without her in the hospital for one minute. Secondly, Gray didn’t want her. He’d made that clear.
“One of the other detectives said Dom is on his way and some lieutenant is calling Gray’s family.” She rubbed Alex’s arm. “If you want to go see him, I’ll stay with Nicky.”
Again Alex was torn. If she left Nicky’s bedside and he woke, she wanted to be there. But she wanted to be with Gray, also.
“No. I can’t go to him.” More tears trickled down her cheeks, and she took a deep breath. “I can’t leave Nicky. Besides, nothing’s changed. It’s still over between Gray and me. I’ll be forever grateful for what he did for Nicky tonight, but that’s where it ends.” She grabbed a tissue from the counter and dabbed at her eyes, trying like hell not to lose it completely. “I can’t torture myself waiting and hoping that he can somehow forgive me. Gray would never risk his heart to someone who lied to him so many times.”
“Are you sure?” Daisy dragged two chairs over to Nicky’s bed. “After all, the big, courageous lug risked his life to save Nicky. I’m told he lost all that blood not tending to himself so that he could race Nicky over here.”
“That’s Gray. He’s the most courageous and honorable man I’ve ever known. Always putting others ahead of his own safety.” Alex let Daisy guide her to one of the chairs, and they both sat. Then she began to shake. The thought of Gray lying in a hospital room without her there to hold his hand, kiss his forehead, or be there when he woke up…was breaking her heart.
Daisy’s arm came around her, and Alex leaned into her friend’s embrace. She began to sob openly. “I’ll always love him, but I have to let him go.”
“I’m not so certain about that,” Daisy said. “In case it slipped your notice, he called you sweetheart back at the school. In my experience, guys don’t fling mushy words like that around for nothing.”
Alex met Daisy’s gaze. “I didn’t hear that.”
Daisy smiled. “You had other things on your mind, but I heard it clear as day. Just so you know.”
“It must have been a slip of the tongue. A heat-of-the-moment kind of thing meant to make me feel better.” That’s what it was. That’s what it had to be.
“Maybe,” Daisy murmured, leaning her head against Alex’s. “Maybe not.”
Nicky’s chest rose and fell steadily. The monitor’s temperature gauge still read 106. Alex leaned forward to smooth a lock of hair from Nicky’s forehead. He didn’t stir.
Exhaustion took hold and she closed her eyes. The frightful reality consumed her to the point of obliterating all thought save one.
Two people she loved desperately might not make it through the night.
…
Fire. Gray’s shoulder felt like it was on fire.
He opened his eyes slowly at first, adjusting to the light. Figures came into focus. Dom sat in a chair to his left, fiddling with his cell phone. Lt. Frye sat in another chair to his right, snoring like a freight train.
Where the hell am I?
Opening his eyes fully, events of the past twenty-four hours crashed down on him. Nicky kidnapped. Nicky rescu
ed but very sick. Alex’s husband dead.
And I got shot. Rookie mistake.
As he struggled to sit, a stabbing pain shot to his arm—a fiery poker branding him from the inside out.
“Hey, partner.” With gentle pressure, Dom eased him back onto the mattress. “I got this.” The head of the mattress rose gradually as Dom pressed a button on the bed’s remote control. “Better?”
“Yeah.” Gray grimaced as he readjusted his position. “How’s Nicky?”
Dom sat in a chair against the wall. “Doc gave him his treatment, but he’s still running a high fever.”
“Who’d you talk to?” Another sharp pain arrowed up Gray’s arm as he tried to find a comfortable position and failed.
Dom snorted, looking uncomfortable. “Daisy.”
Despite the pain in his shoulder, Gray managed to smile. “She still pissed at you?”
“And then some.” Dom pulled his chair closer to the bed. “The only reason she talked to me at all was to find out if you were okay. If it was me that got shot, she’d be dancing her ass off. The woman hates me.”
“What did you expect?” Gray shifted again, gritting his teeth through the pain.
“I don’t know.” When Dom shook his head, Gray caught the strain evident in his friend’s eyes. “I just—hell, I don’t know.”
“She got to you.”
Dom shrugged. “Doesn’t matter. It’s in the past, and I ain’t goin’ there again.”
“If you say so.” But Gray didn’t believe Dom’s cavalier attitude for one second.
Dom whipped out his cell phone. “Care for an update on our slimeball friends in the Pyramid?”
“Always.” Gray nodded, glancing at the still-snoring lieutenant.
Dom scrolled through his messages. “Turns out Fatima was no run-of-the-mill Pyramid assassin. She was upper echelon.”
Gray cocked a brow. “Odd for a woman to be at the top of the Pyramid food chain. Doesn’t exactly fit with their predominately Arab culture.”