Page 115 of Everlasting Promises

Tracey and Graeme come to a stop in the doorway to the living room. Another car pulls up outside, and a car door slams. Clara barrels inside, bypassing her parents and coming straight for me and Evan. She wraps both of us in her embrace. “I saw the news and came straight here. Have you heard anything?”

I shake my head. “No, and I dou-doubt we will. If so-some-something ha-happens, no-nobody would know to call m-me,”I sob as my body quakes in Evan and Clara’s arms. Her hand comes up to my cheek, and the sympathy in her eyes undoes me. She knows. She knows if something happens to Ben, it would break me beyond repair.

There’d be no coming back this time.

Another engine sounds, and more doors open and slam shut. Footsteps thud on the porch, and Mom and Dad charge inside, worry etched into their faces when their eyes land on Evan and me. Mom’s eyes are red and wet with tears, while Dad holds himself stiffly. Tracey walks straight to her, offering comfort while I’m unable, and Graeme shakes Dad’s hand.

Clara guides Evan and me into the living room and onto the sofa. The men stand behind us, murmuring, while Mom and Tracey move about in the kitchen. My eyes land back on the TV, and I search for information.

They show the woman at the news desk again. “We have an update on the situation in Almond Creek. Paul, what do you have for us?”

The screen cuts back to the reporter standing in front of the house that looks more like a war zone. The camera zooms in on paramedics wheeling a woman on a gurney from the house. “Yes, Alison. The police have apprehended the perpetrator and currently have him in custody. Crime scene investigators have also arrived to collect evidence from the scene, as well as the medical examiner to collect the deceased paramedics who were shot in the line of duty when they arrived on scene.” God, those poor families. My heart breaks for them.

The screen splits, showing Alison nodding seriously—as if she’s truly concerned. “And, any news on the officer who’s been shot, Paul?”

He shakes his head. “I’m afraid we’ve been told we have to wait for an update on that, Alison.”

My stomach drops, and my body shakes violently.

“That sounds serious, Paul.”

I lose all sense of what’s happening around me as I fall apart. Sickness rises up my throat, and I sprint into the bathroom, collapsing to my knees as I slam into the cold tile and vomit. They have to wait for an update. If the police aren’t forthcoming with the information, that must mean … that must mean someone … someone died.

Rex’s yelp replays in my ears, and I press my hands over them to quiet the awful sound. It’s a sound I’ll never forget for as long as I live. Wherever Rex went, Ben went. They were inseparable. A package deal.

A sob falls from my lips, and my body shudders.

Strong hands on my shoulders pull me back, and I look up through bleary eyes to find Shane looking at me with sympathy … compassion. “Hey. C’mon, let’s get you up off the floor,” he says softly as he lifts me into his arms and carries me like a child back into the living room, placing me like I’m a piece of delicate porcelain on the sofa. Wrapping his arm around me, he tugs me in close. “Nix is on the phone with his contact in the police department to find out what’s going on.”

I nod hopelessly, aware of noises and that my living room seems full of people, but it’s like I’m falling through golden syrup. Everything feels slow. Colors and sounds, muted. Yet, inside me, everything feels like it’s moving too fast, and my blood rushing through my veins fills my ears. My limbs are heavy and sluggish, and I just want to sleep. Sleep through this nightmare and wake up to find it didn’t really happen.Is that too much to ask?

A weight lands on my thighs, and when I look up, Nix’s worried gaze traps mine. “Hope.”

I trace my eyes over his face, cataloging his stern features. They look softer today, not as harsh and intimidating. Hereaches up and slides my hair behind my ear, tracing the back of his hand down my cheek and over my tears.

“Hope. I’ve spoken to a friend on the force. Ben’s okay. He’s shaken up, but he’s okay.” He squeezes my thigh, and my eyes drop to watch his rough hands. “Hope. Did you hear me?” He pauses and I lift my eyes back to his. He raises a single brow. “Ben’s okay.” He nods. “He’s okay, Hope.”

Hope sparks deep in my stomach, and Evan sits beside me, shaking my shoulders. “Ben’s okay, Mom. Did you hear Uncle Nix?” As if in slow motion, I turn toward him. He grins at me with pure happiness. “Ben wasn’t hurt!”

My breath gushes out on a whoosh, and a fresh stream of tears falls from my eyes. This time, they’re full of relief, releasing my premature devastation.

I snap my head up and look at everyone around me as we collectively sigh with relief. Shoulders drop and stress lines disappear from everyone’s faces. Ben hasn’t been part of our lives all that long, but as I look around my living room, all I see are people who have accepted him into our family with love. Something he desperately needed after being raised by two people who never showed him the love and support he deserves.

Nix squeezes my thighs again, and I focus on him. Even though he’s just delivered fantastic news, he still looks grim. His eyes skate between me and Evan, and I watch him swallow, suddenly looking uncomfortable. “Ben’s okay, but Rex is the officer that was shot by the perpetrator.”

Evan shoots to his feet. “No!” he shouts. “He, he, can’t …”

Nix stands and Shane grabs Evan before I can, pulling him close and tucking him in tight to his body. He looks so small, wrapped in Shane’s thick arms, with his big hand cradling his head.

“Wh-What?” I stutter. Not Rex. No. No. No. His yelp replays in my mind on repeat. My relief that Ben’s okay is short-lived asrenewed pain surges through my body. Poor Ben. “Is he going to be okay?”

Nix swallows. Shaking his head, he holds up his hands. “I don’t know Rex’s condition. My friend didn’t know any more than that.”

54

BEN

I slidedown the icy wall until my ass hits the hard concrete floor. Covered head to toe in my partner’s blood, I drop my head into my hands. Everything replays like a slow-motion movie reel in my mind, forcing me to relive one of the top three worst moments of my life.

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