Page 114 of Broken Promises

Time moves slowly as I watch the life drain from my husband, taking mine with it. The medics sprint down the long hallway. One tries to take over for me, but I’m too afraid to move my hands.

“I need you to let me take over. I can’t save him if you’re in the way.” The medic is speaking to me as softly as she can, but the sense of urgency in her tone has my hands lifting.

“My helicopter is on the roof. I’ve already alerted the hospital you’ll be landing with him,” Sinclair tells the medics.

I look up at him, but I can’t see his expression through my tears.

Ben grabs my elbow and hauls me to my feet as the medics get Declan on a stretcher. The one that took over for me straddles his chest, keeping her hands on his neck.

“I need to go with him,” I say, trying to get Ben’s grip off of me. “Ben!” I plead.

“It’s a personal helicopter. They’re going to barely fit in there as it is,” Sinclair says.

“Come on, Willa. I’ll drive you,” Ben says, pulling me along with him. I slide and almost fall, the strong grip on my elbow the only thing keeping me upright. Looking down, I see it’s Declan’s blood that I slipped in. I rip my arm free of Ben and run to the garbage bin in the hallway, losing my dinner instantly.

“I need to stay to speak to the police, but you two should get to the hospital,” Sinclair says, seeming unaffected by everything. He walks into my line of sight and gives me a kind smile that I’m almost certain I’m hallucinating. “Declan needs you.”

I nod, letting Ben lead me away on my shaky legs. “Declan is going to punch me for this,” Ben mutters. I frown up at him, but then my legs come out from under me, and I shriek. Ben has me cradled in his arms, and he’s sprinting for the stairs.

It’s on the tip of my tongue to tell him to put me down, but I hold it. He’s sprinting down the stairs two at a time, trying everything he can to get me to my husband.

“What if. . .” I start, not able to finish the thought. What if he’s already gone by the time we get there?

“No,” Ben says, his voice stern even with how out of breath he seems. “He won’t leave you.” I wrap my arms tighter around his neck, letting the tears soak his shirt.

FIFTY-FOUR

willa

The hospital cafeteria is quiet.I guess it should be at two in the morning. Belle and Kai dragged me down here with them to grab a coffee. The black sludge that passes as coffee here is at least warm in my hands.

The doctors took Declan straight back to surgery. The good news was the blade was so sharp, and Patrick was so quick, the damage was minimal. She said it would barely even scar. He lost a lot of blood, though, and they’re guessing he’ll be out for at least the rest of the night. Declan had three infusions before they moved him to a room they would let me see him in. If the medics hadn’t already been in the building from working the game, and Sinclair hadn’t offered his helicopter, I would have lost him. The thought keeps creeping up on me like an unwanted bug, keeping me on the edge of a panic attack.

I only agreed to coffee when Ben came in and asked to sit with Dec for a while. I’m still checking my phone every few seconds in case something happens, or he wakes up looking for me.

I look at two of my best friends, their concern and love for Declan evident in the way they burst into the hospital in a panicafter I called them. I knew in that moment that there was no more room for secrets between us.

“You’re my best friend, Belle. Declan is too.”

“Uh, that’s not news,” Kai says. Belle and I both turn and glare at him. “Right. I’m going to make sure the kitchen is still there.” Normally, that would make me smile, but I can’t. I watch Kai wander off to the other side of the cafeteria.

“I realized something recently,” I start. “I realized that I’m so terrified of people leaving me that I’ve only ever given them parts of myself. So that when they leave, I won’t be left hollow and broken.”

Belle’s eyes quickly tear up. “Are you mad at me for leaving too?” Kai blamed her for leaving him when she chose college over Shattered Halo. I’m not surprised that’s the conclusion she jumped to.

“Not at all,” I assure her. “My friendship with Declan was always long distance, so you going to college didn’t bother me.” Belle nods, brows furrowed, but she stays quiet, letting me get to my point. “I meant leaving in the permanent sense.”

“Your parents?”

“Yeah. I didn’t have any intention of keeping Declan a secret. Honestly, I probably mentioned him when we were little. I wouldn’t expect you to remember if I didn’t. But when my mom died, it felt like my heart split in two.” Belle raises her eyebrow, having figured out where this conversation is going. She reaches across the table and holds my hand. “I gave him one half and you the other.”

“You protected yourself.”

“Yeah,” is all I manage to say around the lump in my throat.

“But he knew all about me.”

“That’s the other thing I realized. I told him all about you because you’re my sister, and I adore you.” I lift my head so I can look her in the eyes. “But I hid him away because he wasthe most precious thing in my life, and I selfishly didn’t want to share.”

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