Page 108 of Hidden Chance

The doors across the yard creaked as they opened.

“That was quick.” He lifted Jemi again. “Let’s get out of here.”

Robby gave them cover fire as more men came from the building, then he sprinted for the van, and they drove away from the spray of bullets. One shattered the back window.

“Won’t they follow us?” Hannah said, keeping her head ducked low while she applied pressure to Jemi’s wound.

“I shot out a bunch of tires. We should be fine. Anyone know how far it is to the hospital from here?”

“I’ll call Su Su and get directions,” Peter said. “And I’ll get her to meet us there.”

Jemi reached for Hannah’s hand. “You did great in there,” she said.

“I was so scared. I can’t believe it’s over.” She started to cry but stifled it. “I tried not to think about what might happen.”

“Try not to think about it now. There’ll be time later.”

“You were braver than you think in there,” Peter said. “Just make sure you talk to someone about it eventually. It’s no good to bottle it up forever.”

“I know the drill, but can we talk about our feelings later? We have more pressing matters at hand.”

“What?” Jemi said. “You mean my bullet wound? That’s nothing. I’ll be fine.” Her laugh was weak and her words slurred. Then, her eyes blinked a couple of times and closed.

“Jemi?” Hannah said, shaking her lightly. “Jemi. Wake up. We need you to stay awake.”

“Su, it’s Peter. I’m putting Robby on. You need to give him directions to the nearest hospital, fast.”

“Did you find them?” Su Su said. “What’s happening?”

“We’ve got them, but Jemi’s been shot. I’m putting Robby on.” He tossed the phone into Robby’s lap and turned his full attention to his wife. “Jemi, you hang in there. You have to hang in there for me. You can’t leave me now.” He held her hand. “Don’t leave me, Jemi. Don’t you dare. Open your eyes. Look at me.”

Hannah ran her fingers along Jemi’s neck, searching for a pulse.

“Can you find it?” Peter was frantic.

“I don’t know.” She kept looking. “I don’t know. I can’t find anything.”

Chapter 27

Robby tookHannah’s hand and pulled her from the darkened hospital room. “We should give him some space.”

Peter’s head was resting on the side of the bed, weeping.

“You think it’s okay to leave him like that?”

“He’s got a lot of pent-up pain to let out. He almost lost his wife twice in less than a week. At least we can be sure it’s mostly tears of relief and joy. He’ll be fine. God’s obviously not done with her yet.”

She slipped her arm through his and pulled him against her, not caring what it might mean. She needed to be close to him right now and would work out the implications later.

“I thought I was scared when we were stuck in that compound, but when I thought Jemi had died…maybe it was the shock, but that felt worse.”

“How are you feeling now?”

“I don’t know. The relief of it all is overwhelming. Ithink there’s a ton of stuff that hasn’t sunk in yet. I’ve got a lot to sift through.”

“A good rest will help. If you want, I can find a place nearby where you can get some sleep.”

“No. I don’t want to leave the hospital. I want to stay close. If it wasn’t for Jemi, I’d be dead.”

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