Page 12 of Declan's Hope

“Oh, god… Oh, god…”

Why is Solace praying?

“S…s…s’okay,” Declan groaned, reaching out to her. But his arm dropped as everything swayed and pain radiated through his head and face. “Just need Goody’s.” Then he winced at Garrett’s ginger touch alongside the lower left side of his face.

“Don’t you…” Garrett’s words choked before he cleared his throat as Declan tried to squint at his friend’s concerned, pooling eyes. He frantically blinked to clear his blurring gaze, then frowned when not everything that should be in his field of vision came into view. A tense Solace holding a sobbing Ana barely came into focus to his left when he turned his head toward them while the colonel’s loud, “The Tucson Trauma Center is on standby." Their leader leaned over Garrett’s shoulder, his pale blue eyes burning as he ordered, “You will hang on until we get there.”

“Declan,” Garrett grabbed him by his t-shirt collar, twisting it tight as he dipped his face close. Declan tried to focus on his friend, but his lids grew heavy while his vision wavered. “Don’t you do it you asshole,” Garrett growled. His next low and guttural words broke on a sobbing groan. “Don’t you fuckin’ die on me.”

“Die?”

Son of a bitch. I’ve been…

His world darkened and the chaos of noise around him changed to a strange buzzing. In that moment, his dimming mind’s eye held on as long as it could to a goddess with shining green eyes and long strawberry blond hair.

“Hope.”

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