Chapter 64

"Luke!" I cried over the rain.

He was on his side, surrounded by tall blood-spattered grass. The bullet ripped through his khaki shorts and penetrated the side of his leg, near his thigh. Blood gushed. It absorbed into the tan material along his right leg. The pelting rain helped it flow down to his bare leg. Teeth bared, he gripped the wound.

No, no, no, no! How? Who? Where?! Where was this scum who shot him?! This couldn't be happening! I dropped to my knees beside him. Grabbing his free and shaky hand, I held tight. Seeing my man shot... it punched my gut, cut my heart. But I couldn't help him until we find safety! There was no way I was going to let my emotions stop me.

"Fuck," I hissed over the rain and his edgy breathing. Staying low, I peered over the tall grass and weeds. Scanning in paranoia, I didn't see anyone. "It came from across the stream." Shot in his right leg, logically the shooter was across the stream. We needed to move back into the trees. Our cover was just yards away.

Luke's hand in mine yanked me to the ground. His pained eyes searched mine with power. "You stay down. Stay down, crawl to the trees, then run," he hissed, voice shaking and face caressing with lines of pain.

I didn't bother listening. Staying low, I reached over the man. Backpack still secure on his back, I wrapped my fists around the two damp straps hugging his shoulders. I roughly jerked, turning Luke onto his back. "I'm going to drag you on your back. Be ready."

"You're going to get shot!" he hissed, shoving my hands away.

Smacking his resisting hands, I grabbed the damp straps under his shoulders again. Slowly getting to my feet, staying crouched, I peeked over the grass. Hopefully the rainy shield would conceal us. "Use your left leg; wedge into the ground to help me," I said. Standing up, my hands remained near the ground with my grip on the pack.

Pulling him and backing up towards the trees was difficult. Difficult and terrifying. The image of a bullet striking me at any second was very real. Very real. The pouring water didn't help; my grip slipped off the straps a few times. However, I managed, throwing my strength and weight into dragging the heavy man. Thankfully, Luke kept wedging his boot into the muddy ground and pushing.

Bang! Another gunshot! Fuck, fuck, fuck me, oh god! It tore into the air, but was far to the left. Please, please, we needed to reach cover. My bones wanted to collapse, but I was fine. If I'm physically able, there would be no stopping. Almost there and then I can help Luke. Help him then get us out of here!

Grunting and wincing with every pull, we entered the cover of trees. The grassy field was gone. Replaced by mud and rock made it easier and faster to pull Luke deeper into the woods. He kept the wound covered by his hand while continuously digging his foot in the ground and pushing.

Once fully surrounded by trees, my arms gave out. I took a hard breath. We were safer. Safe enough? No idea. It would take a couple minutes to patch up Luke. We were probably being hunted. We could be shot if we stay in plain sight. Looking around frantically, I was thankful I stopped pulling him along when I did. A few more feet back, the ground dropped a good four feet. It was one of the many small rock cliffs we've been climbing up all day.

"We need to get down there," I said, gripping the straps again. "Then, I can patch it."

I could climb down then pull him down with me. However, Luke was done getting dragged. Careful of the wound, Luke turned onto his stomach. His bearded chin rested in the mud, which splashed up into his face from the rain. "Go, hurry," he said, maneuvering himself around so his legs dangled over the small cliff.

He clearly didn't need my help. My eyes shot back to where we exited the grassy field. Nobody yet. I reached down to Luke and removed the bag from his back. Tossing it down the few feet, I soon joined it. And by the time I did and was four feet down, Luke was already easing himself over the edge by his arms.

Kneeling in the mud, I scrambled to open the pack. I removed the gun and first aid kit. Who knows how helpful that will be. The most we expected was maybe tripping, not getting fucking shot! Luke gripped the lip of the rock edge and eased down until the foot of his good leg reached the ground. It was nice seeing him somewhat standing at least. But now, I needed him on the ground.

"Here." I rushed over and gripped his arms, lowering him to the wet ground. "Lay down," I whispered, snagging leaves and brush from the surrounding foliage. The nature blocked the mud from splashing up into his wound when I laid him over it. "Tell me what I need to do." Young stupid me didn't know medical shit like a police officer did.

"You need to get out of here for your own good, I'm going to slow you down. Depending on where it hit, I won't make it," he groaned.

Pushing up the bloody fabric of his shorts, the wound was exposed. He craned his neck to the side as he inspected it. After wiping away the blood and mud with help of the rain, he put pressure around the gaping hole. Blood trickled, but not a lot. Withholding a grunt, he winced hard in pain. "It missed the femoral," he mumbled.

What was the femoral? Did that mean he would be okay? Sounded like it. And if it hit whatever he said, what would that have meant? That I would have to leave him behind? If that were the case, I wouldn't allow it. "What do I need to do? Your leg should be elevated, right?"

He nodded. Snatching the pack, I shoved carefully under his thigh. "I need you to first apply pressure around the wound. Hold gauze over the wound while you do," I said, grabbing the gun in one hand just to be ready. "Then, wrap it up. There should be gauze in the kit."

Oh god, time was passing slow yet fast. What if we were already found? With the gunman standing above us on the cliff? Stop, stop, nope... I couldn't panic when doing this. No matter how much of a hurry we were in, how scared, I wouldn't hurry even though Luke urged me.

"Just put pressure on it, it's okay, just hurry," he said softly.

There was going to be no 'save yourself, my love' bullshit. We were getting out of here. "Don't rush me, don't try just because you want to see me safe." I scowled, rubbing my hands together with the rain. Then, I dug the gauze from the kit. "This is going to fucking hurt. Will you be able to stay quiet?" I rested my fingers near the wound. It stared me down like a bleeding eye.

"Yeah," he said with confidence. Yet, he reached over and gripped the bottom of my soaked shirt. Tearing a strip of fabric along the hem, he stuffed it into his mouth. His teeth wore down onto the damp and dirty fabric, ready.

The rain cleared more of the blood away, but not all. To avoid infection and bleeding out, I needed to do this. Holding the gauze over the wound to prevent blood from escaping, my other hand pushed the skin around it. Immediately, Luke jerked, letting out a low grunt muffled by the strip of cloth. Eyelids clamping shut, droplets cascading down them, he managed to hold in any other audible reactions.

Spreading my fingers to the other side of his wound, I jutted them down onto the skin. The pain caused Luke to bury a fist in the mud. For the incredible strength Luke had, this showed how terribly it hurt. "It's alright, I'm sorry. It's alright," I whispered.

Blood escaped from under the gauze, trailing down towards the ground. I pressed it tighter against the wound. The wet clothe absorbed more blood. Mouth closing tight around the bunched fabric, he let out a deep sigh. When his eyes opened, they found distraction by glancing up and around us. Looking for any sign of someone.

After I finished and removed the material from his mouth, I patched his wound. I hastily wrapped the entire roll of gauze around his leg. I tied it off tight. Then, I sat him up against the rocky wall. We needed to go. "Will you be okay?"

"I'm fine."

"Will you be okay?" I pushed.

He nodded. "It didn't hit anything crucial. If it did, I would have bled out by now."

That was all I needed to hear. "Let's keep moving," I said anxiously, leaning forward and pecking his lips swiftly. We needed to move right fucking now. I felt like sitting ducks. We were here for long enough. Whoever shot us - most likely a member from the organization - could be right on us.

Standing first and glancing over the edge of the land above us, I didn't see anything. Just mud, trees, and rain hitting everything. But I can't imagine whoever tried killing us just calling it a day after we hid in the trees.

Grabbing and wrapping his arm around me, I helped him to his feet - well, his foot. His other knee was bent, the gauze wrapped around his upper leg. "We need to get you to a hospital."

Pursing his lips, holding in a grunt, he leaned against me. He wasn't happy about it either. "Albany," he whispered. "You don't realize how slow we'll be going."

We would go slow, but what other option was there? He was shot. I didn't let it truly hit me yet because I couldn't. Those words in my head... he was shot... made my heart spike in a way I couldn't afford right now. So, I let it motivate me.

With his arm over my shoulder, I hitched mine around his back. "We'll be going slow, but we'll go as fast as we possibly can. Nothing wrong with that," I said, walking and assisting him along. Taking his weight, I bent slightly to my right to keep balance. "We don't have far to go and you have the gun so we'll be fine."

"We have maybe two miles," he said, hopping along evenly.

Two miles. If he didn't have me guiding him and helping, he would be in big trouble. Hell, we already were in trouble. This uneven land, roots shooting up and with mud... my muscles were already sore. We didn't even reach a steep drop again yet.

When we reached one though, we established a system. We would sit on the edge, I would jump, then he would wrap his arm back around me and jump down on his good leg. It allowed us to keep an even pace. A slow as fuck one. But a consistent one where we pushed ourselves as fast as we could. My numb body held up. We progressed with the agonizing pain and terror wracking my brain. All I could think was we are alive, we keep moving.

Though we were making progress, we weren't out of the woods yet. Take that in as many ways as you want. Because by the time we were maybe a half mile in, a disturbing noise caught my attention.

Nature's music became easier to take in once we reached a moss-covered area. The rain slowed to a stop and a pinch of sunlight seeped in. It scared me. I wish the rain continued. The water haze was gone and I felt we could be easily spotted. Our breath was labored. We were filled with fear and anxiety. We needed to make it, Luke needed to get to a hospital! We needed to live and not be shot in the fucking head!

The bases of trees, fallen logs, roots, rocks were overtaken in bright green. Our hasty bootsteps slushed over the spongy moss. A rushing river sang to our left through the trees. Though we didn't see a river on our way in, it was leading us in the right direction. It offered fake peace. Over the water and our footsteps... came a voice.

The voice was faint; I just barely heard it. Stumbling to a stop, our automatic movements were caught off guard. Holding him to me, grounding my feet, I listened. The voice was faded, far away, but it was behind us.

My eyes were wide. Glancing behind us, I couldn't see anything - yet. There was a lot covering us, but not for long if this person gets closer! Fuck. Where? How? Should we just start this party now and have a shootout?

Luke heard the voice too. Leaning in, gripping my shoulder for support, he whispered. "The next steep drop is yards away. We can hide there. Or you can get to the river, get away, and I'll hide, shoot him."

My mind was racing, eyes darting back to our options ahead. We were making our way down a gradual decline, which occasionally had steep drops. The next little cliff could offer cover. But enough? Anything was better than standing there.

Tightening my dead arm around Luke, we quickly moved down and over the next cliff. There was no way we could outrun the person. The voice was getting closer. Who were they talking to? Hopefully it wasn't a fucking person. Because I had a feeling another gunshot was about to reach the air. I planned on it being ours.

I helped Luke crouch down, pressing our back to the overhanging moss and dangling roots over the edge. Trees shot out around us and offered a shield. I didn't see how it would help us get out of here though. We would need to kill.

Turning to him, I unzipped the bag on his back. I retrieved my gun, glad we each had one. His strained and alert eyes found mine. "What are you doing?"

"This is happening," I whispered, removing the safety.

Keeping balance against the earthy wall, he leaned closer. Voice quiet as possible, his lips brushed my ear. "I got this, you stay down. Hide."

"You'll be seen. He will be right on top of you before you can fire." If Luke attempted to shoot, it would mean exposing himself in plain sight, peeking up from the ground. The other option would be to wait until this asshole is inches away. Not how this was going to happen. "Trust me. Stay here."

His eyes warned me not to. It quenched my insides, but there was no time. I turned and dropped to the green lush ground and crawled towards the river. It was blocked by trees and would offer better cover. All I needed to do was get farther away so I could see our hunter coming.

Glancing back to see if I could scan the ground above our safe cliff, I caught Luke's eyes. He stared hard, waiting and internally sending me his worry. The skillful officer side was coming out and he patiently leaned back against the rock. Hopefully, I will be able to shoot this bitch before they reach Luke.

The rushing river was only a few yards beside me and it blocked out the voice. What I lacked hearing, I gained in sight. Straining back towards where I came from, I could make out the land above him. Not only could I see; being further along offered more dense cover. Enough where I stood up and shuffled between the thick tree line along the river. I peered around a big pine trunk. Luke caught my eyes, tilting his ear towards the higher ground. He heard the man getting closer. And from where I was, I could see him.

The man casually moved through the trees. Being far away, it was hard to discern much. However, it was clear he was talking into a walkie-talkie. Each step he took, he moved closer to the drop and where Luke was crouched with his gun at the bottom. Too bad I wasn't budging from my plan.

Hidden well and at a slight angle, I pressed my stomach to the bark. Raising the gun from behind the tree, careful aiming it, I lined my sight. Closer, closer... and close enough. He was now only yards away from the edge. I fired.

For how quiet we forced ourselves to be, it was one very loud gunshot. It wasn't alone though. Luke was ready to have my back. The moment my bullet penetrated the man's chest, another hit his stomach with a second bang reaching the air. He sank to the ground dead.

Focusing back to Luke, his back was to me. One hand gripped the ledge, his other outstretched above him on the ground with the gun. Though he did it instinctively to be safe, he couldn't take away the fact that I killed the man with my bullet. And while there was something sickening about it, for once, I made myself proud - and fucking useful.

By the time I ran back to him, knowing we couldn't waste any more time, I wrapped an arm back under him. "You just had to make sure he was dead, didn't you?" I mumbled through my ragged breath.

He took my gun and reached behind him, putting it in the backpack. "You know it," he said, groaning as we continued down the gradual incline. My feet moved faster, demanding more from him. It made him wince, grunt, but we needed to hurry. Because though we killed a man... I doubt he was talking gibberish over the walkie.

"More are coming. If not already searching the woods," he groaned.

"I know, but we'll be okay. You'll be okay," I said in a rush. "We will get out, get you help, you'll be okay. You'll be okay." He needed to be okay. We needed to make it out alive.

Knowing there were more people coming, it hiked my distress. My emotions wanted to pry back into the picture, but I wouldn't let them. My doubts, my love, my insane desperate need to get him help was trying to get in. I didn't let it. I stayed focused on getting us out. And through the haze of it all... I did.

When we broke through the trees and reached the road, I wanted to cry. We made it as the sun sunk below the mountainous terrain we escaped. My arm was numb and the side I was supporting him with was killing me. The rain was gone, but our sweat kept us soaked. Worst of all were the grunts Luke couldn't hold back.

We made it out, but I felt exposed and naked. We were wide open if any workers were scouting the area, ready to shoot us. Thankfully, that didn't happen. Though it felt like forever, we made it back to the truck.

Starting the truck, I laid on the gas and got the fuck away. My foot was heavy and before even reaching the highway, I was going way over the speed limit. Gaze pinned on the road, I scrambled to grab the half empty water bottle in the cup holder. "Here," I said, untwisting the cap. I handed it to a tense Luke. "Pour it on there." That was a major worry. You try getting shot and in the woods, when it's raining and muddy, and make it back without your wound dirty!

He poured it out over his leg, sighing deeply. "You need to slow down."

"No."

"You need to think about what is going on. Right now, you're going too fast," he put calmly.

His words triggered a spring of anxiety to shoot through my barriers. "Think about what's going on?! All I've been doing is thinking and staying focused because I'm scared and I'm scared for you and I don't need this happening because of me," I rambled, sucking in air. "I'm focused and thinking about what's going on. I'm getting you to the hospital. It's over an hour away so excuse me for going fast. You're lucky I'm not flooring it because I love you more than anything, more than any fucking thing, and you need to be okay."

Over the humming engine, he grunted as he shifted to face me. "I need you to calm down. Slow down a little."

I shook my head, throat turning thick. "That took forever getting out of there."

"Honey, I'm a police officer," he said, reaching over and resting a shaky bloody hand on my thigh. Giving my gaze for a small second, his face was sweaty and pale. His painful green eyes were bloodshot.

"What, you going to pull me over for going fast? You aren't on fucking duty," I said, watching the darkening road. The headlights carved a clear path along the lonely road.

"No," he pushed. "I mean I've been trained. I know about gunshot wounds. I'll be okay."

"Oh yeah? It's perfectly fine to not get treatment to a dirty wound until hours later? You have been shot, you...." I trailed off, biting my lip and forcing myself to not exceed 70 miles per hour. Throat turning thicker, I just shook my head. Yes, he could have been shot somewhere worse than the upper leg. But from how much physical pain I witnessed, and what he said earlier, it sounded like this could be serious. "We need to know if there is a closer hospital."

"We've checked before any of this," he said in a lighter tone. "Besides it's good that we have to drive a while. The further away from that land, the less likely they will track us down."

Yeah... that was a whole other worry. The thought alone made me gain five pounds in stress. Pushing it aside, I said, "You are the priority. So, until we get there, is there anything else I could do to make it better?"

"Baby, you can slow down," he said in a more persistent voice.

"Nope."

"Albany-"

"I am going reasonably fast. There are no cars around yet, no sharp turns, the speed is fine. If it would distract you, I think there's a boring ass crossword puzzle in the glove box," I snapped, sinking my teeth into my bottom lip to will away my emotion. It was beating up the back of my throat, but I wouldn't break. Instead, all I could do was free a hand from the steering wheel. Dropping it to my lap, I grasped his dried bloody hand. He was here, he was still alive, we were away from that place.... That's what I would need to remember for this long agonizing ride ahead of us.

After a long moment of silence, from my side vision, he opened the glove box. Out of this whole thing, that nearly made me laugh. However, he wasn't looking for a crossword like I rudely suggested. He found some napkins. Adding water, he pressed them to the wound.

"I hated what you did," he said in a calmer voice after a second.

No mystery there. He hated that I didn't leave him to save myself. "I'm not surprised."

"What you did was stupid, stubborn, selfless.... I don't see any other choice now." His bloody hand in mine tightened. "I'm going to have to make you my wife someday."

It was the last thing I expected. Was he not just scolding me? My heart tumbled and skipped a few beats, eyes growing. Did he really say those words?

Quickly glancing to him, he was resting his cheek against the passenger headrest. A small warm smile rested on his lips. It gave me power. It was power filled with happiness and warmth on a level I couldn't describe. Being this man's wife... I mean Jesus, could you get any better?

Attention back to the road, I let out an unexpected chuckle. A few tears finally reached the surface and fell to my lap. "I guess I should be stupid and stubborn more often." My light laugh settled into a smile.

He chuckled, rubbing his thumb along my palm. "You're unbelievable."

***

Despite how much he lifted my spirits with just those few words, my ass didn't slow down for nothing. By the time we reached the hospital, we called Francis and told him our cover story. Which was how it appeared: a normal couple, innocently hiking through the wilderness. Out of the blue, Kyle was shot before we both managed escaping.

After Luke was rushed away, the police came and asked me for the full story. If you didn't know though guys, I know how to handle cops. They bought everything. Even when they asked where this happened, I mentioned the southern area we already searched. Though it would be nice to have a little help finding Reid's headquarters, the police wouldn't be prepared. Not to mention the last thing Luke needed on his conscious was another dead police officer.

Surprisingly the hardest part regarding our story was something I messed up on very recently. The dumbest and simplest thing: our fake names. Beyond scared and shook up for Luke's sake, I nearly slipped his name a couple times - and Francis's, who was just a visiting friend. Thankfully, I caught myself each time.

Once Luke went into surgery though... it was hard catching myself from freaking out. It lasted far too many hours for me to stand. Thankfully, it wasn't too bad. Temporary distraction was offered. Since I wasn't exactly hot shit (and I'm sure being nearly shot had something to do with it), the staff suggested I get checked in too. Yeah, talk about hell no. Number one: I hate hospitals. Also, just because I was muddy with ripped clothes didn't mean anything. But they at least persuaded me to get patched up. My knees and arms had a couple cuts. I know, big whoop. Francis running across the street and picking up some cheap clothes helped too.

After that was done and I changed into dry clothes... I was back to basically freaking out and waiting to hear how Luke was doing. Waiting was the only option. Francis sat with me through it, just as on edge. I told him everything that happened. His mind clearly wasn't as clouded as mine though.

We were sitting in a line of chairs against the wall in the wide-open waiting room. The other seats that bordered the room along with the rows in the middle were all empty. Being past one in the morning probably had something to do with it.

"How could that have happened?" he asked from beside me.

"What?"

Resting back, he crossed his arms over his baggy tee-shirt. "How did you not know someone was going to shoot him? Then track you down and try to kill you," he mumbled under his breath, eyeing a few staff that walked past the waiting area. "You said that thing gives you a heads up on anything within a mile."

Consumed with Luke's gunshot wound, the device never crossed my mind. Fuck me, why didn't it work? Why didn't it go off?! That was the damn point! Unless the dude was magic and shot Luke from over a mile away, we should have been alerted.

"Holy shit, it didn't." Ass now on the end of the grey plastic chair, I turned, staring at Francis. They were awake and alert like mine. Besides he's loose sweats and messy hair, you wouldn't guess our phone call woke him only a few hours ago. "It didn't go off...."

Yes, that was the first thing I allowed to distract my mind. Because while I put off thinking about all the downfalls him getting shot caused, this was just weird. Francis and I couldn't stop pondering over it. Why? Could the thing have died? No, it was fully charged. Was there a way it didn't pick up the signal? Was it broken? Did Carter buy a piece of shit like everything else so he could save up for his hooker? Who knows.

After Luke's surgery, the bitch nurse said we couldn't see him right away. The doctor at least made us feel better. He reassured us the bullet was successfully removed. It just missed his upper and inner thigh, which could have been deadly. I guess there was some important shit in that area.

They estimated Luke should stay in the hospital for about a week. Then, once he gets out, he will be on crutches for one to two weeks depending on how he does.

Obviously, this was wonderful news. My beautiful man would be okay. Though we were pretty much fucked every which way now, I could only tell myself he was fine. He was okay and that's all that mattered. It kept me functioning enough to continue. Because I had felt ready to crumble all night and just sob over my sweet man.

Unfortunately, I soon subconsciously allowed my mind to worry about other things too. Like big massive issues. He was going to be okay and that's what mattered... but finding the headquarters in time kind of mattered too. Eating slop for the rest of my life was becoming a much more vivid picture.

Not only did our device screw us, but we were now down one person. So yes, ladies and gents. We were pretty much going to prison - or would be dead. Without that device, our safety was nonexistent. How would we be able to find this place without getting caught? It would be dangerous. Though Luke and I obviously got close to finding the place, we couldn't trust our equipment anymore and would be searching blind.

Then again, we might not even need to worry about searching the land. For all we know, they would track us down to our house or this hospital room. Thanks to the dude with the walkie, they were aware people had been there. They would most likely safely assume it was us if they didn't already know.

All this was beyond overwhelming. Francis was a trooper though, talking it all over with me and attempting to make me feel better. It was nearly hopeless though. How would we fix this? Get out of this bullshit? He suggested talking to the FBI, seeing if there was something we could do. Based on meeting our 'middle man' I highly doubted they would be interested in helping. We just needed to make it work. Somehow, we needed to locate the headquarters. It scared the shit out of me just thinking about it, but we would have to go through with everything. With Luke out of commission, with no device to alert us, with the organization probably aware of us, and with time ticking... we would have to make it work or try.

"Francis, I don't know if I can do this," I said at one point, letting my face fall into my hands.

His warm soothing hand found my back, rubbing up and down. "Trust me, you can."

Under the cover of my hands, I took a long deep breath. Could things get worse? My man was alive and yes, that's what mattered. But... we were fucked! I mean those bastards could come waltzing in any second and take me! They would probably be checking everywhere, everything, they would try to find us. We were right under their noses too! If we managed to sneak by undetected, hmmm, sure leaves some good options, doesn't it?! Find the place and be free; unlikely. Or the other options. Get caught while blindly searching in the woods and be taken or killed. Or completely fail and go to prison.

I voiced the best sounding option. "I want a drink."

"I'm sure Jackson's bringing some. He sounded just as on edge as you when I called him and told him to get his ass here," he said.

Well... yep, things could get worse. The devil was literally on his way and not even the cover of my hands could stop it. "Never mind, I want a gun," I mumbled, dragging my fingers over my exhausted face. "Put his ass in ICU to suffer."

So yes, the reality of what was ahead was crushing. Made me panic. It fried my brain. For the rest of the night, I didn't sleep. Francis forced himself to stay up with me and be my support, which I more than appreciated. When Jackson showed up, I didn't say much of anything to him. For once, he could see and respect I was too overwhelmed to handle talking with him other than a brief exchange.

And when I didn't think reality could change or help... the one beautiful light left turned on. Real relief finally came though. I had been begging for this in my head the whole night. Dawn approaching, nurse bitch finally allowed us to see Luke. He was apparently awake and persistent to see me. Let me tell you... it was all I wanted and needed.

Walking into his room triggered a wonderful sensation to blossom in my chest. The two windows against the back wall illuminated the early sign of daylight. The lamp next to it helped. But for Luke's tired green globes, they needed no help to shine.

The dreadful future faded the moment his alive eyes reached mine. He was lying flat against the bed, but his head resting on the pillow was tilted towards the door. The simple hospital gown covered him, the covers taking over at his stomach. Under the white sheet and thin blanket, something bulged out below his hip and on the side of his leg. And no, pervs. His dick was big, but not as big as whatever they had around his wounded leg.

Not like it kept my attention. His sweet and active gaze grew as well as the life in his face. Brows caressing with worry and care, a sad smile crossed his lips. "Hey."

"Hey yourself," I said, walking quickly into the room and to his bed. Careful of his IV and the monitors, I dipped down towards him and gave him a big hug. He was warm, felt like home. Holding him made everything better. Yes, including what I spend hours dreading over. It all faded and nothing else mattered. Evening my instantly shaky breaths, I let out a deep relieving sigh. "You have no idea how worried I was."

"Your inexcusable speeding gave me enough of an idea," he whispered amusingly in my ear, wrapping his arms tight around me. "I'm ticketing you."

"Oh my god, shut up about the speeding," I scoffed, grinning like an idiot. Moving back, I cupped his warm face and gave him a big and long kiss. Immediately, my breath hitched and brows furrowed.

I didn't realize how terribly I needed to hold him and kiss his lips until that moment. He was okay, he was going to be okay. I knew it, could feel it in his lively lips and warm arms. What the doctor said didn't hold up to the relief this moment offered. Moving my lips slowly deeper, running my thumbs through his thick facial hair, all I could think was thank you for being here and alive and safe.

"I love you," he whispered against my lips when we slowly broke away. The depths in his gaze dove far into mine. He cupped my cheeks, keeping us locked onto each other. "I love you... so much."

My lungs sucked in ridged air, eyes watering. Whether I truly meant it not, my words were spoken easily on instinct. "Everything's going to be alright," I nodded. Planting another kiss, I took a deep breath. "Everything's okay."

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Hmmm... why wouldn't their equipment work? How will things change now with Luke stuck in the hospital? How did you think Albany handled everything? Guess we shall see.

I apologize if it seems a little messy. I didn't spend as much time editing. I also tried keeping the first half fairly fast paced to match the panic she was feeling. I hope you enjoyed this chapter! It was a lot of fun writing this one!

Thank you for all your support and the time you put into reading my work! Francis gives you all high fives and beer :P