Page 20 of All of Me

“Of course, I fucking know,” Shae yelled back. “I know my body’s fucked up. It’s been fucked up half myfuckinglife.” Ireached a hand out but he just vanished,again. I practically roared my frustration and slammed my fist into the wall.

There was a stone-cold silence, then Rawlings sighed. “Let’s go see what Danny can get from the cameras. I imagine the cops will be here soon. There’s no way someone won’t have reported the shots.”

“I have to find Shae,” I mumbled, my fury evaporating.

“The only one that can find him is Danny,” Gray said shortly, and knowing he was right, and calling myself every name under the sun, I followed them back. The thought of a bullet hitting Shae had scared the crap out of me, and then I’d lost it because he’d used his ability when it could damage his heart even more.

It should be me protecting him, dammit, not the other way around, and this was the second time in less than a week.

The trouble was I doubted if there would be a third, and not because there might not be another incident, but because I knew I’d just blown any chance I had with him. I needed to grovel. Assuming I would get the chance if my toddler sulk hadn’t already convinced him to keep far away.

“See if you can find Shae first,” Rawlings said, “before we see about the truck.”

I debated going to the farm but knew that was likely the last place he would go. We all watched Danny going through CCTV. He also had facial recognition software that I knew Gael had helped him with and was probably on the wrong side of some law. Not that I gave a shit.

“The problem is when he’s running, there’s no CCTV cameras in the world that can pick him up,” Danny said. Then a light started flashing at the bottom of the screen and Danny clicked on it. It was a picture of Shae. He turned to me. “He’s just walked into Piedmont Health.”

I huffed out a breath. “He’s got an appointment with his cardiologist at three.”

Rawlings glanced at his watch. “He’s early so if you go now, you should get there in time.”

I picked up my keys and left to follow him. Even though I doubted Shae would even talk to me after I’d screwed up, I still had to try.

Chapter Nine

Shae

I regretted running as soon as I stopped, still a good two miles from the hospital, but I had to stop out of sight and this back alley worked. But what the fuck? Why did Drake always have to step in? Why the hell couldn’t he get off my back for once? It was okay for him to look out for me, but not the other way around? That was messed up.

No, my stupid brain said.You are.

And I, for sure, wasn’t going back to Drake’s. But what about the dogs? I’d made a promise to Miss Moira, and I hated letting them down. I’d have to live in the apartment—which I knew Diesel would let me do—and run to the farm and back every day. I knew that wouldn’t work, though. Screwing with my heart was okay in an emergency, but deliberately risking it? Maybe I could bed down in the barn some nights.

Wouldn’t be the first time I’d slept rough and probably wouldn’t be the last.

I walked slowly toward the hospital, taking my time since the appointment wasn’t for over an hour.

“Can I have your name and date of birth, please?” the woman on the desk said without looking up.

I gave her the details and ignored her jerk of shock then huge eyes as she saw my scar when I handed her my ID. She glanced back down at her computer. “I know I’m real early,” I said. “I got a ride from a friend.”

She sent me an understanding look. “Well, the coffee bar…” Her words trailed off at the same time that I saw a security guard notice me. It was the first time I’d been to any hospital on my own, and I was regretting it. I assumed she’d realized sending me into a public coffee bar might not be a good idea. “That is,” she stammered, “Dr. Brown isn’t back from surgery yet, but I’ll let him know you’re here. I would say he’ll be here in around another thirty minutes.” She winced.

“I can wait outside,” I said, wanting this day to be over.

“Problem?” The security guard approached the desk. He looked me over and his lips pulled into a sneer.

“No,” she hastened to add. “Mr. Turner is just a little early for his appointment.”

“He can wait outside,” the cop mandated, and because he’d said it, there was no way I was going to be put outside like an animal.

No insult to animals.

I had forty-five dollars to my name, and I didn’t want to waste any of it on hospital coffee, but this was way more important. All my life, I’d never stood up for myself. I’d wanted to make Mom’s life easier when I was a kid, and Gran spoiled me rotten. Georgia had taken care of the school bullies, and it was only when I met Dad after he got out that I painfully found out that any attempt at defiance would never work. Then, after I had gotten my scar, there had been the constant threat to anyone I cared about.

But I was done.

I ignored the cop and turned back to the receptionist. “You mentioned a coffee bar?”

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