“Stay with us. Med-evac is on the way.”
“I need you…to…” Spots were drifting in and out and I fought the blackness. I needed someone to know. “Evie,” I said, my throat barely making any noise.
“I know,” Hunter said, leaning in closer so it wasn’t so fucking hard to speak. “I know, man. Just hang on.”
“Promise me.”
He gripped my hand and stared me straight in the eyes. “I swear to you, no matter what happens, Evie will be taken care of. We will all love her, I swear to you.”
I felt a tear slip from my eye. It was too fucking soon. I was going to miss everything. I would never see her go to her first day of school or grow into a beautiful teenager. I wouldn’t take her to college or watch her fall in love. I wouldn’t even threaten the fucker if it meant that I could be there for her. That was all I wanted, to be by my daughter and get to see her grow up. Would she even remember me? She was so young. I would just be a fleeting memory to her.
“Brooke,” I said, more tears slipping down my face.
“She knows, man.”
I nodded slightly past the croak in my throat. It was just one more thing that I had waited on, that I would never get to see through. I had never once in my life felt anything close to what I felt for Brooke, and now it was too late.
“Don’t let that bitch get her hands on Evie,” I said, pushing through the pain. This was the most important thing. I could never let Evie be raised by anyone other than someone at Reed Security. They were the only ones I trusted to take care of her and love her the way she was supposed to be.
“We won’t,” Hunter said fiercely. I swore I saw his eyes fill with tears, but that couldn’t be right. Before I had a chance to call him out for being a pansy, the darkness took over and I passed out.
CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO
Brooke
I groaned as I rolled over in bed and glared at the time on the nightstand clock. Who would bang on my door at this hour? It was fucking eleven-thirty at night and I was fucking exhausted. I understood now why parents went to bed at such an early hour. They were so exhausted from their kids that they had absolutely no desire to continue staying awake when a bed was calling their names. But even I had to admit that as tired as I was, once I got the hang of taking care of Evie and figuring out what she was up to, it really was kind of fun to have her around.
I shuffled out of bed and headed for the front door, trying my best not to fall asleep on the way. When I opened the door and saw Sebastian standing there with Reese, I was even more confused than I was a minute ago.
“I swear, Evie is still alive. You could have just checked on her from the monitors. That’s what Knight’s been doing.”
Sebastian gave me a funny look and cleared his throat. “Um…I can have a talk with Knight about that.”
I shrugged. “It’s not like it really matters. He’s just doing his job.”
Sebastian nodded slightly and cleared his throat again. “Um…we need to talk to you. Can we come in?”
“Sure,” I grumbled, walking toward the living room and leaving Sebastian and Reese to close the door. I flopped down on the couch, waiting for them to tell me what was going on so I could get some sleep. But then it occurred to me that they were here because something had happened with my case. “Am I in trouble?”
“No,” Sebastian said quickly. “Um, you know Rocco is out of town on a job.”
“Right, and I’m watching his daughter. Is this about that? Because I did have duct tape on her, but it was only to keep her clothes on her. She kept ripping them off.”
“No, it’s not-”
“And I got her out of that baby cocoon thing before she got too freaked out. I mean, if anyone’s to blame, it’s Knight. He’s gone way overboard with all this security crap.”
“Brooke, it doesn’t have to do-”
“And I know I forgot to brush her teeth, but it’s my first few days on the job. I’m bound to make a few mistakes. It’s not like-”
“Brooke!” Sebastian said loudly enough for me to shut up. “I’m sure you’re doing your best with Evie. We’re not here about that.”
“Oh.”
“We’re here because something happened to Rocco when he was on his job.”
“Oh,” I repeated.
Sebastian sighed. “It’s not good. He was impaled with some farm equipment, and it took a long time to get him to the hospital. He’s in critical condition right now.”
I stared at him for a moment and then looked to Reese. She sat so stoically with only a hint of worry on her face. I snorted out a laugh and covered my mouth quickly.
“I’m sorry, but you guys do this really well.”
“Do what?” Sebastian asked.
“This is like a test, right?”
“What do you mean?” Reese asked.
“You know, to see how I handle things after this. How I take care of Evie and if I lose it or not.”
Neither of them said anything, but their faces said everything. This was no joke, and they really were here because something had happened.
“Oh God,” I said quietly, covering my mouth to keep the nausea bubbling up inside me from spewing out. I was pretty sure I was in shock because there were really no emotions running through me at that moment. I was still trying to process that Rocco was hurt.
“We don’t know much else right now, but someone will need to take care of Evie,” Sebastian said. “If you’re not up to it-”
“No, I can do it. I mean, I survived the past two days. What’s a little longer, right?” I said, laughing slightly, but neither of them laughed with me. And the longer that they sat there and stared at me, the more I started to feel a deep ache in my chest, telling me that things would never be the same after this.
“I have to get to the hospital. I’ll be flying out there, so you might not be able to reach me right away,” Sebastian said as he stood.
I glanced down at my ankle monitor with a grimace. As much as I wanted to go visit Rocco, that just wasn’t happening right now. Besides, Evie needed me. I nodded and stood.
“Alright. Please let me know as soon as you hear something.”
“Of course.”
I watched him walk out the door and stared at the ground for a moment, only realizing when I looked back up that Reese hadn’t left.
“What are you doing here still?”
“I’m not leaving you,” she said firmly.
“Well, you don’t have to stay. Like Sebastian said, he doesn’t know anything, and he won’t be in contact with me while he’s flying out to the hospital. You should just go home and go to sleep.”
“Is that what you’re going to do?”
“I’m already home,” I quipped.
“Goddamnit!” she yelled, slamming her hand down on the arm of the chair. “Can’t you take anything seriously? Rocco’s in the hospital and he might not be okay. Can’t you just act normal for once in your life?”
“Act normal? How should I be acting? Should I be on the ground crying?” She stared at me with a pitying look on her face. “Should I be pacing around the house and worrying about things that I can’t have the answers to? Or maybe I should be calling everyone up and asking for them to come sit with me. Would that make me normal?”
“Why can’t you just sit here with me and tell me what you’re thinking?”
“What would be the point? To make you feel better? Because it sure as hell wouldn’t make me feel better.”
“Brooke, this is someone you love and you don’t know if he’s going to live or die! Stop being a cold-hearted bitch and just think about-”
“You think that I’m not thinking about anyone but myself right now? I’m thinking about Evie! I’m thinking about the fact that if her father doesn’t come home, she’s going to be all alone.”
“What about you?”
“What about me?”
“She has you.”
I scoffed and stood, needing to get away from her. �
�I’m a sad replacement for Rocco. I mean, you’ve seen what I’m like with her. I suck at this.”
“Yet you’re thinking about Evie over yourself.”
“Because she’s a kid! She has no one but me to think about her right now.”
“She has everyone at Reed Security. There’s not a single one of us that wouldn’t do anything for her.”
“Yet I’m the one that’s actually with her right now.” I walked into the kitchen and started slamming around, with no purpose other than to get out my anger. I didn’t need tea or coffee, and alcohol certainly wouldn’t help with anything right now. But slamming a few cabinets made me feel really good.
“Brooke, why can’t you just admit it?” I didn’t listen. I didn’t want to listen. “I know you’re falling for him, so why can’t you just admit that to yourself?”
I spun around so fast that I almost knocked a dish off the counter. “I have admitted it to myself. I know that I love him, but I never fucking told him!”
Reese reared back in shock and my composure started to slip. She took a step closer, but I shook my head.
“He told me he loved me,” I said, trying my best not to cry. “He told me and I said nothing because I was scared. And now he might not come back from that job, and I never fucking told him!”
“He knows,” she said quietly.
“Do you think that’s the same thing? He’s not out there dying and thinking Well, the woman I love was a coward, but I’m consoled by the fact that deep down she really does love me.”
“He might be,” she said hopefully.
“And what am I supposed to do about Evie? I mean, Rocco and I weren’t engaged or anything. What if he…doesn’t come home? What happens to Evie then? Do I have a place in her life?”
“Do you want one?”
A tear slipped down my cheek and I quickly brushed it away. “I wanted the chance,” I whispered. “I know that I’m not mother material, but with Rocco, it seemed possible. But without him, I’m not going to be enough. He’s so good with her. He’s so patient and he tells these really inappropriate bedtime stories that she loves. I don’t know any inappropriate bedtime stories!”
Reese rushed over to me and wrapped her arms around me. I wanted to push her away, but I didn’t. Deep down, I needed someone to hold me together when I felt like I was unraveling. “I know this sucks,” she whispered.
I nodded, because it did suck, and hearing her say that was better than any of the consoling words that people said. I didn’t need to hear that it would be okay, or how I’d get through this. I just wanted someone to say this sucks.
“And there’s no fucking rule book for this! Why didn’t Rocco write a rulebook for this situation?”
She chuckled against me and we sat in silence. I was just on the verge of tears when I heard his voice.
“I told the fucker he’d domesticated you.”
I laughed as Reese pulled back in shock. Leave it to Knight to pull me back before I slipped too far over the cliff.
CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE
Cap
I ran into the hospital and up to the surgical waiting area where Derek had directed me. Rocco got out of surgery a few hours ago, but he was in pretty rough shape. I knew that it was bad when Derek called me, but I hoped that it would end up being nothing when I got here. Like maybe it wasn’t as bad as they thought. Though, I wasn’t sure how being impaled with a metal spike could be not that bad.
“How’s he doing?” I asked as I ran up to Derek.
“He’s out of surgery, but we’re not allowed in to see him.”
“Why?”
“Because the farm equipment was so dirty, he’s developed an infection. They’re keeping everyone out to avoid more germs spreading to him. They’re pushing the antibiotics right now, but they all look really fucking worried.”
“Shit.”
I didn’t know what to say right now. I felt it hard every time one of the guys got injured, but this was like Ice, Gabe, and Hunter all over again. If he didn’t pull through this, it would fucking shred me. We all knew that there were risks on every job, and I was used to the fact that I was responsible for all these guys, but that didn’t make something like this any easier.
“Look, the doctors are doing everything they can for him. We just have to trust that he’s going to be okay.”
“Right,” I nodded. “Yeah, we’ll just trust that he’s going to be okay.”
“Hey,” he snapped at me. “You’re the fucking owner of the company. You can’t let this shit get you down. We’re all relying on you to be the one to tell us when to pull our heads out of our asses.”
“I should have sent more guys along.”
“We didn’t have any more guys,” he reminded me.
“Then I should have sent Knight and Lola,” I snapped.
“Yeah, because that would have been a great idea. If you had seen the conditions there, you would be thanking your lucky stars that you didn’t ask Knight to go along. Or Lola for that matter. I’d hate to see what she would have done to those fuckers.”
I sighed and scrubbed the tiredness from my face. I couldn’t let those depressing thoughts get me down. I had to pull my shit together and think like the boss. “Alright, what’s Rebecca’s status?”
“Chris, Ice, and Jules just dropped her and the kid off with her father. They’re on their way back here now.”
“They should just head home. There’s nothing they can do here.”
He snorted. “Yeah, you know that’s not gonna happen.”
“Excuse me.” I stood when I saw the doctor in front of me and held out my hand.
“Sebastian Reed.”
“Doctor Brant. I came to give an update on Rocco Turner.”
“Sebastian’s our boss,” Derek nodded, letting him know that he could speak with me.
“Does Mr. Turner have any family I could contact?”
I glanced at Derek, sure that he had already covered this. “I’ve contacted his family, but they can’t make it out here until tomorrow.”
The doctor nodded. “Mr. Turner came through surgery amazingly well considering his injury, but we’ve been doing multiple blood tests since he arrived given the nature of his injury. He has a severe infection that we’re treating with antibiotics.”
“But,” I said, knowing it was coming.
“We’re monitoring his condition for now, but if the antibiotics don’t work, Mr. Turner faces septicemia.”
I nodded. “Okay, so what do we do then?”
“There are different treatments we can try, but it all depends on the infection and how his body responds. The problem is, when he was pierced with that spike, it forced dirt and rusty metal into his body. And with how long it took to get him to a hospital, those elements had time to work their way into various areas of his body through his blood stream, essentially weakening him even further before we were able to get him into surgery.”
“So, now it’s a waiting game.”
He nodded. “Unfortunately. We’ll keep a very close eye on him in the meantime.”
“Thank you, Doctor.”
He walked away and I turned to Derek. “I need to see if I can get a judge to let Brooke out here.”
✯✯✯✯✯
“Any luck?” Hunter asked.
I shook my head. “I’ve talked to the judge and pretty much offered anything I could to get Brooke out here. No-one’s giving in. It’s out of state and it makes her a flight risk.”
“Even though she’s coming to see her boyfriend in the hospital?”
“He wasn’t her boyfriend when we suggested house arrest. It looks suspicious.”
I glanced over to Rocco’s room where his parents were sitting outside. They still weren’t allowing us inside. His parents had been in there briefly, but the doctors had ordered that we stay out. Over the last few days, Rocco’s condition had worsened, and it was what the doctor thought. He slipped into septicemia and was very close to septic shock. His bo
dy was having a rough time fighting off the infection. Just looking at him, he was nothing like the man we all knew. He was pale and his body jerked from the shivers that wracked his body. And the infection had left him weak, making it more difficult for his body to heal after surgery. There were so many complications right now that we weren’t sure if he was going to make it or not.
“What do you want to do?”
“I don’t know,” I said, feeling at a total loss right now. “I wish we were closer to home.”
“We can’t move him,” Hunter said.
“I know.”
I stood there feeling completely useless. If he didn’t pull through this, how would his team regroup? It was different with Lola. She still worked for the company.
“Maybe we should fly Evie out here,” Hunter suggested.
“To see her father like this? I’m not sure that would be helpful. Besides, they might not even let her in. That might be more traumatic for her than anything.”
“Yeah, but if we don’t and he doesn’t make it, we’re taking that away from both of them.”
“He’s not awake,” I pointed out. “He probably doesn’t even know who’s around him. And would you want your kid to see you like that?”
He sighed and scrubbed at his face. I could tell he was tired. Neither he nor Derek had really taken a break since getting here. I caught both of them snoozing from time to time, but they both insisted that they were fine.
“I think we should call in a specialist.”
I glanced over at him, sure that he was joking, but he was dead serious. “Do you know of one?”
“No, but I feel like I’m doing nothing here. I could reach out to some friends of mine. Maybe I could…”
I gripped his shoulder and turned him to look at me. “Are the doctors doing everything they’re supposed to?” He nodded. “Calling in a specialist isn’t going to do anything then. If you thought for even one second that they weren’t doing everything they could, I would say get me a number and I’ll call it. Until then, he has to fight this.”
“I know.”
“You did everything you could for him. Don’t you dare blame yourself for what’s happening. We all know the risks. We all choose to take them.”
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