Page 224 of Cross & Crown

his wound was gone. Everything was gone except Kelly’s hand

on his.

“So will you, bud,” Kelly added, and his voice was far

away, echoing off the recesses of Nick’s memories. “You’ll be

okay. Don’t let go.”

224

Chapt

1

er 0

elly stood off to the side, his hands stuffed in his

Kpockets so he wouldn’t be tempted to jump in and

help. The bullet that had hit Nick had punched clean through

the muscle over his ribs, right above another bullet graze

he’d received recently, and along with the massive Y-shaped

incision from his recent surgery, Nick’s torso was going to be

more scar than skin after this. Knowing Nick, he’d turn those

scars into some sort of tattoo eventually.

The wound probably wasn’t too serious, but the loss of

blood meant they were loading him onto a stretcher and

preparing to put him into one of the ambulances standing by.

JD hadn’t fared quite as well. The kidnapper with the

Boston accent had shot him as they’d struggled, and while the

bullet had gone all the way through, it had clipped some vital

pieces on its way out. They’d loaded him into an ambulance

and taken him off with a police escort before Kelly and Nick

had even gotten out of the building.

Alex Kincade, who really was who she’d said she was this

time, was cooperating with all the questioning she’d been

submitted to so far. She’d been legally contracted to find the

whereabouts of the treasure. Kelly felt sort of sorry for the

---