Page 100 of Meet Me in the Vines
That was sixteen hours ago. Sixteengruelinghours. The bullet entered his back, piercing straight through his heart and exiting out his chest, missing me by mere inches.
The doctors said it was a true miracle he survived. They were right. He was a miracle. My miracle.
Donovan had to go through a meticulous open-heart surgery. Thankfully—god, what a weird thing to say—the bullet that pierced him was a full metal jacket, leaving no fragments in his heart or body. Every hour of surgery went by painfully slow, the hands on the clock moving at a glacial pace. But my miracle boy pulled through after seven hours under the knife.
Since then, he’s been asleep and recovering. I sat by his bed and held his hand, sobbing into the sterile hospital sheets. Donovan’s family and I took turns throughout the night watching over him, waiting for him to wake up.
Pop, Logan, and Tia came as well, bringing coffee and fresh clothes for me. I stood in the hospital shower while Donovan was in surgery, choking back sobs as I scrubbed the dried blood off of my body. Scrubbing off the memory of Kellan’s face before he shot Donovan. Everything after that was a blur.
The only thing I saw was Donovan’s gaze, and the light was fading. Caleb told me later that Kellan died instantly of a shot to the chest, following a hand-to-hand wrestle for the gun. Donovan had saved my life twice now, but Caleb King was catching up.
He and I held each other in the waiting room after Donovan’s surgery, crying into each other’s arms. We had to give police reports when Chief Harper showed up at the hospital, eyes tired and shoulders drooped. Turns out my dad skipped town and was under investigation for accessory to murder. It was all too much. Everything collided and crashed in my brain like an eighteen-carpileup. All I wanted was for Donovan to wake up so I could hear his voice. So I could tell him how sorry I was. Tell him how much I loved him.
Regret ached in my bones, thinking back to the stupid reason I’d left the cabin. Why didn’t I forgive him right away? Why couldn’t I see he was always trying to protect me? Up until the very end, all he did was try to protect me—and look what it cost.
When Kellan stood in my cottage having a mental breakdown, Donovan begged me to leave. And I didn’t. I stayed so that I could face the demon who had sucked the life out of me for nine fucking years. But I should’ve listened. Maybe he could’ve disarmed Kellan in time. I should’ve taken that bullet. Not Donovan.
“Hey, you need anything? You hungry?” Wyatt asks, nudging me out of my dark thoughts with a gentle elbow. We’re sitting on a wooden bench in the hospital courtyard. Kerry sits against the trunk of a sturdy oak tree across from us, his forearms propped on his knees, picking at the aglet on his shoelace. It’s warm out, the afternoon sun draping our skin like a summer blanket.
“No, that’s alright. I’m not hungry,” I reply, staring at the rustling leaves that dance in the breeze from the big oak tree.
Wyatt furrows his brow, crossing his arms as he leans back on the bench. He lets out a sigh. “Audrey, it’s not your fault,” he says, keeping his voice low. I avert my gaze, watching Kerry pick at his laces some more. My jaw ticks as I feel Wyatt’s eyes burning into my profile. It is my fault. I brought Kellan here. If it weren’t for me, Donovan wouldn’t be lying in the hospital bed with a gunshot wound to the heart.
“You can’t blame yourself,” he sighs, sitting straighter on the bench. I scoff and turn to face him.
“What are you in my head or something?” I retort. He chuckles, scrubbing a hand over his tired face. We’re all tired. No one has slept in the past sixteen hours. At least not fully. Kerrystands to his feet and brushes the dirt off the bottom of his jeans as he walks toward us.
“But Idoblame myself, Wyatt. The pain I’ve caused your family—” I choke, the words thick in my throat. Kerry places his hand on my shoulder as I look into his blue eyes. Not quite the ocean blue I love, but a comforting blue.
“Hey, don’t talk like that. He’s alive, Audrey. That’s all that matters. We didn’t lose him,” Kerry says with a softness in his expression. He’s right. They’re both right. Donovan’s alive, but the guilt still gnaws at me. I nod and put my face in my hands while Wyatt gently rubs my back.
“You know, we’ve never seen our brother happier since he’s been with you,” Wyatt beams. I look up from my hands to meet his gaze. Also, a comforting blue. Kerry nods in agreement, shoving himself beside me on the small bench. I chuckle as I’m sandwiched between them.
“You’re part of the family now. One of us. Noah too. We love you guys,” Wyatt says softly. A hint of a smirk tugs on my lips. “I thought you were the grumpy one, and he’s the happy sunshine one?” I tease, earning a chuckle from Kerry. A small one from Wyatt, too. “Thanks. I mean it. I love you guys,” I reply, my heart squeezing at the thought that I have a family now, more than just Gran and Pop. I have a family that feelscomplete.
“I’ve always wanted brothers,” I murmur, smiling down at my feet. Kerry drapes his arm around my shoulder. “Well, you’ve got ‘em now.”
The sweet moment between us breaks as Logan explodes through the doors, stumbling into the courtyard. I jolt in response as his eyes expand in shock, fisting his hair with a subtle upturn curl on his lips.
He’s breathless, panting like he had just ran a marathon. The subtle curl of his lips morphs into a full-blown, ear-to-ear smile.
“He’s awake,” he breathes, his eyes lock on mine.
“And he’s asking forMouse.”
Grace and Caleb quietly slip out of Donovan’s door as I stand ten feet away, shaking like a leaf. Grace gives me a soft smile with her arms wide open. I meet her halfway, letting her hold me in a deep embrace. Caleb joins in after a beat as Grace and I untangle our arms to pull him in. No words exchanged, just relieving breaths that Donovan is awake…and alive.
“Where’s Wyatt and Kerry?” Grace asks, touching the ends of my hair.
“They’re in the waiting room with everyone else.” I swallow a lump in my throat. “Um, I can wait for them to see him first. I don’t want to intrude?—”
“Audrey,” Caleb sighs, softening his gaze. My chin quivers as I look past Caleb’s shoulder at Donovan’s door.
I don’t want to barge in there without his brothers seeing him first. They’ve already suffered so much, and I don’t want to take that moment away from them. But there’s nothing I want to do more than burst through that door and see him. My heart aches for it. Caleb and Grace look at each other, then back to me.
“He’s asking for you.Only you. Go on. We’ll be with the others,” Caleb says with a soft smile. Grace leans in and kisses my hair, clasping her hand around Caleb’s, leading him down the hall. I approach Donovan’s door, my steps quiet as I grab the handle with a pause.
Take a deep breath, count backward from five.
