Page 36 of Silver Secrets

“Oh fuck.” Gage heard his friend curse under his breath as he moved to release the seat belt that strangled him. “Wait, Tracker…”

But Gage was already opening the door. He jumped from the truck, not caring about the burning shock that moved through his body as he landed rough on the pavement. All he could think about was getting to her.

Time seemed to be standing still. It felt like he was fighting upstream through rapids. Just one look. He just needed to catch one glimpse of her, to know she was alright. But every which way his eyes moved, he saw nothing.

Dark tire marks ran the length of the road, swirling around in a nauseating never ending spiral. Gage followed those markings until his eyes landed on a vehicle smashed against a tree.

A minivan.

Dark blue and heart-breakingly familiar.

The bumper sticker announcing a baby on board scraped half off.

The side Mikey’s car seat sat on, crushed beyond recognition.

Mel’s driver side window smashed from where her head hit.

Glass crunched under his shoes as his legs started to give out.

“Gage?” Sloane’s voice pulled him back. Blinking to clear the fog from his mind, he saw Sloane’s silver car, the front end crushed against a tree.

His head swiveled, finding the open door of the ambulance and her piercing eyes staring straight at him.

“Sloane!” His boots hit heavily against the pavement as he jogged towards her. The paramedic inside the rig with her finished taping a bandage to her head. As Gage climbed into the back of the ambulance, he didn’t miss the way she was gingerly holding onto her left wrist again, or the blood that soaked her shirt and the sticky trail down from her forehead. “Christ, Red. Are you okay?”

“I’m going to be fine. I’m so sorry.” Her eyes sparkled and Gage’s stomach pitched.

“No, I’m so glad you called me and I could get here. That was smart. Did you already give a description of the vehicle to one of the deputies out there?”

“She needed to get her laceration taken care of. I’ve already told the deputies to meet us at the hospital.” The paramedic in front of him looked young, but guessing from her no-nonsense attitude, she was well seasoned in her position. And she seemed to put Sloane at ease. None of the tension was there in her face like it had been in the woods when Stone needed to take care of her leg.

“I already said I’m okay to not go.”

“Sorry, Ms. Donovan. You were a bit out of it when we arrived at the scene, and you told us you lost consciousness after the accident. I’m done cleaning up this head wound, but it is protocol to take you into the hospital for evaluation, and we still need to see about that wrist.”

“It’s Doctor Donovan,” he corrected the paramedic. “And you’re going,” Gage growled before Sloane could argue again. But from the way her shoulders fell, he could tell she didn’t have any fight left in her.

“You don’t have to come. I’m sorry you drove all the way out here. I should have called 9-1-1 instead. All I did was cause you to worry.”

“I’m glad I was the person you thought to call, so you can stop worrying about that right now. And I’m not leaving, Red.” He stepped closer, holding out his open hand to her. It only took a second for her to slip her hand into his. And fuck, his heart immediately calmed in his chest as soon as she did.

* * *

“This really isn’t necessary, Gage. You could have just dropped me off at home.”

Gage opened the door to his apartment and Sloane walked in. His hand hovered right above the small of her back, not knowing whether she would welcome the touch.

“You heard what the doctor said. You need someone to stay with you, at least for tonight. And it’s smarter to be at my place, where Stone is next door if something happens.”

“I really doubt I’m going to need a SEAL team medic’s help in the middle of the night.”

“Just humor me, Red. Christ, I think I lost a decade off my life tonight.”

“Sorry,” she mumbled, her arms wrapping around her stomach.

Sloane’s left hand was now in a brace, a result of multiple suspected sprains in such a short span of time. And even with her face washed and the laceration on her forehead cleaned and bandaged, Gage could still see the toll the night had taken on her.

“Do you want to sleep?” he asked, looking down the hall towards his bedroom. He’d let her sleep in there. The second bedroom was set up with all his computer gear, and the only other place to sleep was on the sofa. But with all the nights he’d spent sleeping on the ground in some remote off grid, undisclosed location, the sofa was just fine for him.

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