Page 127 of Bloom: Part 2

“Do you know much about hypnotherapy?”

“Not really. Why?”

I shook my head. “It’s probably nothing. We won’t be here long enough to confirm my suspicions anyway. I can only hope that we’ll be able to start over fresh and it’ll help Bloom to put all this behind him.”

“He’s going to miss them, Logan,” Jamie said softly. “He has a special bond with these men, and who can blame him? They saved his life and raised him.”

“You think I don’t know that?” I heaved a sigh. “But what do you expect me to do? He’s been hurt too many times because of me. If I stay here, it’ll only get worse. This is the only way tokeep him and everyone else safe. If we can’t be found, no one can come after us.”

“I know. I just wish there was some other way. I’m going to miss you. Things already aren’t the same without you at the hospital. I kept telling myself you would eventually return, but now, there’s no hope of that happening.”

“You hated my guts when you first started working at the hospital.”

“Not at all! I was happy to be training under you. You’ve taught me a lot—things textbooks could not—and I’ll always have that with me, even when you’re gone.”

My throat tightened. I’d never expected to care about these people, but the truth was I did. Way too much. Over time they’d become my family too. Bloom wasn’t the only one who would miss them.

Cass ran inside the casino, holding his stomach, tears streaming down his face. Mort was on his feet in an instant.

“Cass, what is it, baby?”

A crowd formed around them. Jamie and I rushed forward as well. Where was Bloom? Was he still on the outside?

“M-M-Max.” His breaths came out in shallow pants. “Oh my god, it’s Max. He’s dead.”

“What?” Crowe roared, forcing his way forward to Cass. “What did you just say?”

Cass pointed at the door, his finger trembling, unable to get the words out. His husband pulled him into his arms to comfort him.

Oh shit. Max and Bloom had been together outside.

Crowe took off running. I was right at his heels, praying that Bloom was all right. That Cass was mistaken and both boys were safe.

My heart pounded, and dread clawed at my throat as we burst outside. Max lay sprawled on the steps, blood pooling beneathhim. Crowe froze, his face going pale as he stared at the still form of his boyfriend. A quick sweep of the area showed Bloom was missing.

“Max…”

The raw pain in Crowe’s voice sent a shiver down my spine. Torn between the need to find Bloom and to check on the injured young man, my years of training kicked in. I dropped to my knees beside Max, Jamie doing the same on his other side.

“Give us room,” he yelled as people crowded us. They snapped into action, giving us the space to work.

“Someone call an ambulance!” I barked, my hands moving automatically to check for a pulse.

Jamie was already tearing open Max’s shirt to assess the wound. Sven appeared beside us, pale but focused, and handed us a medical supplies bag. He was breathing hard. “I got this from my car. Maybe it’ll help until the ambulance gets here.”

“Pulse is weak,” Jamie said, his voice tight. “Gunshot wounds to the chest. Possible damage to the heart and lungs.”

Crowe kneeled beside us, his hands trembling as he reached for Max’s bloodied hand. “You stay with me,” he whispered, his voice cracking. “You hear me, Max? You stay with me. You don’t get to leave me, not like this, not ever.”

“Crowe, let us work,” I said, my voice steady despite the turmoil churning inside me. I met his gaze briefly. “We’ll do everything we can.”

“He cannot die.”

I gave him a brief nod. It was useless reminding him I only had some control over what happened. The injury was bad. If we didn’t get him to the hospital soon, there was little Jamie and I could do for him with the limited supplies we had.

The sound of sirens in the distance spurred us into action, Jamie and I working in tandem with Sven to slow down the bleeding and stabilize Max. The minutes stretched endlessly,each second dragging like an eternity until the ambulance screeched to a halt on site.

Paramedics jumped out, their movements well rehearsed as they sprinted toward us. One kneeled beside Max, and I filled him in on the situation and what needed to be done.

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