Break My Heart (The Heart Series Book 2) (20 page)

God, I’m going to kill this guy if he had anything to do with Lil’s disappearance. I can’t think of any other reason Lil would be afraid of the man. She’s not afraid of anyone or anything.

“Lil. Come on baby, wake up,” I beg, cradling her against me and brushing her curls away from her face.

I don’t notice the people gathering until a crowd forms and blocks the fucking light so I can’t see shit.

“Back the fuck off!” I roar. My look says it all: fuck with me right now and die.

The crowd disperses once I flash my badge, some leaving altogether. I’m still on the ground pleading with Lil to wake up, open her eyes, yell at me. Something. Christ.

I’ll never forget her face. Who in the hell is this Will? This guy is bad news and I’m getting to the bottom of it. But not now. Right now, my main concern is Lil.

Chris, Nelson, and Adams push through the remaining gawkers, making their way to us as Nelson yells at them to move way.

“Baby, wake up, please.” Moving her hair away from her face, I notice blood trickling from her nose. I look up at Chris imploringly. “Tell me what to do, Chris, please. I can’t lose her again.”

Distant sirens fill the air, not close enough for my taste. I’m losing it. Horror is creeping in, the helplessness overwhelming me, just like that October morning. My composure is quickly fading away.

“Tommy, you need to let her go, honey.” Chris kneels next to me, trying to check for injuries. She quickly exchanges a look with Nelson and now his mouth is moving, but I can’t hear him
.

I’m not leaving her.
No.
I’m not leaving her.

“I can’t leave her again, I won’t,” I mumble, clutching Lil tightly against me.

Arms come around me from behind, holding me in place, and then I catch Nelson’s voice. “We just need to see where she’s hurt, okay?”

They’re all waiting on me. I loosen my grip on Lil but don’t dare take my hands off her. Just enough for Chris to examine her. Her skin is cold to the touch and she’s so pale.

So
pale.

Lights flash. Red, white, blue. More people surround us, more talking. She won’t wake up. Why won’t she wake up?

Murderous thoughts channel through my system, and I zero in on the bastard sprawled a few feet from us, Adams kneeling next to him checking for a pulse.

“Sir, we need to examine her.” EMTs need to get to her. Chris’s soft touch on my face gets my attention.

“She’s going to be fine, Tommy, but they need to take her. You can ride with her.”

I move back far enough so they can check her, but I don’t let go of her hand.

“Lil. Come on. Lil.
Lil
.”

Why doesn’t she answer me?

“Come on, baby.” My panic increases. I’m losing it.

Get a grip, Colton.

They place Lil on a stretcher and load her into the ambulance. I don’t let go. I won’t let go. If she’s going, I’m going right with her.  

They close up the doors and I lose sight of the other ambulance. He better be coming to the same hospital. I heard Chris say they will follow behind us but as soon as I get a chance, I need to talk to Nelson. If I’m right, that son of a bitch is going straight to jail from the hospital.

قلب

We get to the ER and Lil is still out. She won’t wake up. I begged, pleaded, yelled. I did everything I could in the ambulance to get her to come back to me, while the paramedics put an IV in and took her vitals. Not even a nod or a squeeze of my hand. I’d take anything at this point. The longer she’s unresponsive, the more pissed I get at this guy.

By the time we reached the hospital, I was ready to jump off the rig, go straight to over to him, and beat the shit out of him. Unconscious or not.

They take Lil right in and start working on her; in no time, they’re trying to kick me out.

Just then, Chris rushes in with Nelson and Adams.

Chris comes up to me, but before she can get a word out, I stop her.

“Chris, they won’t let me in. Can you please find out what’s going on?”

“Sure. Stay right here.” Her eyes dart to her husband, probably warning him to keep me in line, and then she’s gone.

“Nelson, a word. Now.” Adams gets the hint, and backs away from us.

The second I move aside to talk to Nelson, they bring in Will.

He’s in the same shape as Lil. Pale as a sheet of paper, non-responsive, nose bleeding. Both are out like a light.
What the fuck is going on?

“She’s going to be fine, Colton,” Nelson assures me but I get to the point.

“I think this guy”—I signal to the ER room next to Lil’s—“had something to do with Lil’s disappearance.”

“Are you sure?” Nelson whispers, afraid we might be overheard.

“You should have seen Lil’s face, man. She’s not afraid of anyone. Ever. She was freaked out by this guy. The second she laid eyes on him….” I can’t even talk anymore, and my knees give out.

“Whoa, Colton, are you okay?” Nelson grabs my arm, guides me to a chair in the ER waiting room.

Leaning my elbows against my knees, I cradle my head in my hands. I’m positively drained. The shock of it all is starting to seep in.

I’m at the hospital. Lil is hurt.

The smell of antiseptic and doom is making this all too real. I can’t handle this.  

Nelson slowly takes a seat right next to mine. “Colton, what makes you think this guy is involved?”  

I can’t stop seeing Lil’s face. “The way she looked at him. It was like she was looking at a dead man. She was spooked, Nelson. Scared shitless. That isn’t like her.”

“Definitely not like Harper,” Nelson mutters. He knows Lil well after having worked with her for years.

“Listen. You need to get a blood sample and run it against the John Doe that did the serial killings,” I tell him, and that gets his attention.

“We got no probable cause, Colton. Think about this—”

“Get it. This guy is involved. Lil and I suspected the murders might be the work of relatives. I’m telling you, Nelson, this guy is connected to the case. I can feel it.”

Nelson is reluctant, debating internally. He’s like Lil that way, always by the book.

“What if it was Chris,
huh
?” I hit him where it counts. “What if someone took her from you for months? What if they hurt her? Kept her from you, did God knows what to her? Tried to kill her? What if you got a chance to lay your hands on the son of a bitch?”

Nelson glances toward the ER room where Lil and Chris are, and by the look on his face, I know I’ve done it. That cinched it.

“All right,” he hisses, pissed off at the idea of his wife going through something remotely like what Lil went through. “But you better be right about this.”

Lil is an amazing woman. I can’t believe she’s down for the count once again. The thought infuriates me. Almost a year ago, she was out on a manhunt, vanished into thin air, and showed up in the exact same spot months later with a knife sticking out of her gut. It’s a miracle that she survived. After being in a coma fighting for her life for a week, she woke up without any memories of her ordeal.

Until tonight. No way that’s not what happened out there in that alley.

You’re not real. He’s not real!

There’s only one reason she would react that way. That reason is responsible for what happened to my Lily.

I’m going to kill that son of a bitch the first chance I get.

CHAPTER 18

Ileana

A prick in my arm jolts me awake.

Blinking my eyes rapidly, I take in my surroundings. Medical staff. Equipment. I’m lying in a bed.

Not again
.

“Miss, can you hear me?” a young doctor addresses me, shining a small light into my pupils. “Do you know where you are?” She’s around my age.

“Hospital,” I answer flatly. Out of the corner of my eye, I see Chris talking to another nurse.
Thank fuck.

“Chris, did I pass out again?” I manage, struggling to get up. She looks surprised that I’m awake. Rushing to my side, she checks my IV.

“You collapsed, but so far it looks like it was due to shock, no serious injuries as far as we can tell. They took you upstairs for a CT scan and that came out clean. No head injuries.” She holds my shoulder, trying to get me to lie back down on the hospital bed, and presses a button to raise me to a sitting position.

“When can I go home?” I need to get out of here. I need Tommy. He was there, wasn’t he? I just had a meltdown right in front of him. Even hallucinated he could see Will.

“They were waiting for you to wake up, so they’ll keep you in observation for another hour or so.”

Good. “Where’s Tommy?”

Chris’s face is stoic, giving nothing away.

“He’s outside with Jack and Brad.” She hesitates, like there’s more she wants to say but doesn’t know how.

“Could we have a minute, Connie?” she asks the young doctor. The nurse gets the hint, immediately exiting the small room.

The doctor nods. “No problem, Christina. I’ll be back to sign the release.”

She leaves, closing the curtain behind her, the grating of the inlaid metal track isolating us from the rest of the ER.

The beeping from the monitor next to my bed picks up speed. Suction monitors stuck to my upper body register my dread of whatever she has to say, because this isn’t like Chris. It’s as if she’s prepping me for bad news.

“What’s going on, Chris?” I prompt, fearful and apprehensive.

“That was what I was going to ask you, Ileana.” She comes closer, pulls a chair next to my bedside.

I fiddle with the cables sticking out of my gown, trying to straighten them, because in all honesty, I don’t know how to answer. I freaked once before in front of Chris. During my birthday to be exact. I could have sworn I saw Will then, and what I got in return was bugged-out stares.

So, I’m playing it safe. I saw nothing. Act like all is well, and they’ll buy it.

“I don’t know, I guess I’m still worn out so I got dizzy.” I keep my eyes downcast, fingers busy with my cables and blanket. I finally chance a glance at her.

Her brow’s furrowed, head tilted skeptically. “You were out cold, next to a guy we’ve never seen.” She crosses her arms, admonishing me. “If that’s not weird, Ileana, I don’t know what is.”

Her words register in my brain, and panic rears its head. “What guy?”

“Tall, dark hair, unconscious?” she says, eyebrows shooting up in question.

“He’s real?” The hushed words rush out.

I’m terrified of saying his name aloud, like he’s some urban legend that might appear when summoned. My heart monitor races once again.

“Yes, he’s real,” she answers, cautiously. “Tommy says that he chased you to an alley a few blocks up from my house, and then this guy came out of nowhere as you guys were leaving.”

Will is real.
My mind is reeling as I try to process this. Tommy saw him.

“I need to see him.”

“I’ll get him for you. He’s been waiting outside with Brad. They wouldn’t let him come in.” Chris stands to leave but my brain is running on a ten-second delay, still trying to reboot and reset.

“Not Tommy. The man.” Chris stops and turns, surprise clouding her dark gaze. “Has he said anything?”

“He’s still unconscious.” She comes back to my bedside. “Do you know him?”

If I say yes, I’ll have to explain. And if it really turns out to be Will, he could be in serious trouble, all alone here.

“I’m not sure. I’ll have to see him again to be sure.”

Chris’s mouth opens slightly as if to say something, but then closes. Lips pressed together, she bobs her head quickly. “I’ll get Tommy, he’s been waiting to see you.”

“Do you know what his condition is?” I’m worried for him.

“No, but I can check. Last I heard, he was upstairs for a CT scan.”

“While you get Tommy, can you check on him real quick for me, please?” I plead.

“Sure. In the meantime, try to relax. I’ll send Tommy in to see you. The guy is going bonkers out there.”

Chris pulls on the fabric and closes it behind her, leaving me isolated in the small, sterile room. I blink away the bright fluorescent lights, trying to sort what Chris just told me.

Will is
here
. I didn’t imagine him. He’s real, and if so, all my memories of 1944 might also be real. And if that is the case, it means time travel is real.

Jesus H. Christ.

I need to speak with him as soon as possible. I know it’s crazy but a big part of me hopes time travel is real. Because if it is, it means I am
not
crazy.

I need to get to Will.

The rustling of fabric brings me out of my thoughts as Tommy enters the tiny space, closing the curtain behind him.

His clothing is crumpled, and his usually polished appearance is mangled.

His strong arms are at his sides, hands opening and closing, as he swallows thickly. He’s rooted in place, drinking me in with his sad, tired eyes. I just want to hold him, assure him everything will be all right.

“Hey.” I give him a small smile.

That is all it takes.

Tommy lunges at me, his large solid body landing on mine, his face buried in the crook of my neck, as if to stifle sobs. His large hands grip my waist forcefully, trapping me like a vise as his grief, worry, and anguish spill out of him and into me. I wrap my arms around him, cradling him against me, run my fingers soothingly through his short, silky hair.

“
Shh
...It’s okay, I’m okay…,” I whisper into his ear, but it doesn’t bring him any relief. He only clutches me tighter, lifting me against him, wires, tubes, IV, and all.

“I thought I lost you again,” he mumbles against my neck, his raspy voice caressing my skin.

I just hold him; let him hold me in return. We stay there like that, wrapped up in each other’s arms, for what seems like an eternity.

He sniffles and clears his throat, straightening up and wiping the moisture from his eyes.

Sitting at the edge of the bed, he cradles my face, his thumbs brushing over my cheeks. Bending down, he kisses me ever so gently. My lips part for him, showing him that I’m here, that I am his. Slowly, reassuringly, until his kiss subsides. When he pulls away, his gaze is full of longing.