Page 124 of Relentless

Matt tore Liam’s shirt open and shoved the remnants away from his body. Piper poured the contents of another packet on this wound.

They repeated the process until all four knife wounds were treated and covered.

Matt checked Liam’s pulse and growled. “Thready. He needs blood and an operating room.” He activated his mic again. “Trent, how long?” He listened a moment, then said, “We’ll need help getting him to the door, preferably someone with an O positive blood type.”

“How long?” Jesse asked.

“Too long. They’re still taking care of business out there. Barone sent reinforcements to protect his precious weapons stash.”

“I have the right type of blood,” Piper said. “Both of you might be needed to protect Liam. Let me donate blood.”

“Lie down,” Matt said. He reached into his bag for the equipment he needed. “If you’re squeamish about needles, don’t look.”

No problem. She hated needles. When Matt reached for her arm, Piper averted her gaze. A swipe and a needle prick later, the deed was done.

“Breathe, Piper,” Jesse murmured. He patted her shoulder. “You’re doing great. You can brag to Liam about how you saved a big, bad Marine’s life.”

Matt gripped her other hand. “Tell me what happened while we wait for the signal to move Liam.”

Piper summarized what happened from the time they walked into the garden until Matt had walked into the room.

He whistled. “Good grief, woman. You’re one tough lady. You were going to attack me with Liam’s boot knife, weren’t you?”

“I didn’t have anything else and he couldn’t defend himself. The knife was my only option.”

Another shoulder pat from Jesse. “He’s a lucky man to have you by his side.”

“Tell me the truth. Will he live?”

“Oh, yeah. A few scratches and bruises aren’t going to take this guy down. He’ll be fine once he has surgery.”

Matt straightened and tapped his mic again. “Copy.” He looked down at Piper. “Transport is parked at the side entrance. We’ll have to carry you to the SUV.”

Seconds later, Trent and Simon walked into the room. Both men scowled when they saw Liam’s condition. “How do we do this, Matt?” Trent asked.

“We need to carry Liam and Piper to the SUV. His blood pressure was dropping so we couldn’t wait for the hospital to give him a transfusion.”

In less than a minute, Trent and Simon were carrying Liam toward the SUV while Matt walked beside them, carrying Piper in his arms. Jesse hurried ahead of the entourage to run interference in case of trouble.

Once they were situated in the SUV, Trent climbed behind the wheel while Simon rode in back with Jesse. Matt, Liam, and Piper were in the middle.

Matt glanced at Bravo’s team leader. “Hurry, Trent.”

Piper reached over and linked her hand to Liam’s. “Hang on,” she whispered in his ear. “Hold on me for, Liam. Your teammates and your family need you.” She drew in a ragged breath. “I need you. Don’t leave me.”

He didn’t respond.

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