Page 93 of All Your Lies
“I never thought it would feel like this.”
His dark eyes twinkle with my words as he bends and kisses the side of my head. “I knew it would, and this is only the beginning, Lex.”
We make it five steps out when we come to an abrupt halt.
Brad stands ten feet away with a gun aimed in our direction. His hair is in complete disarray, extensive bruising mars his face, and his clothes are in tattered shambles.
“What the fuck are you doing here?” Gage yells.
“It was supposed to be me. You were supposed to end up with me. I watched you for months. Even tried to protect you that night from my brother.”
“What are you talking about?” I ask.
“Your father killed my brother the night he chased you. I told him I would keep you. And he wouldn’t let me. I always knew I would get you back.” He smiles and then fires the gun.
I drop to my knees as Gage grunts out in pain and falls back while holding his stomach.
“My... gun...” Gage rasps.
I pull it from the holster on his side and turn, but Brad is already gone.
“Help!” I scream as I hold pressure against his wound. “Help!”
Gage looks up at me with a grimace before his hand reaches my cheek. “I will always love you, Lex.”
And then his hand falls to the side.
Two days later
A whirlwind of emotion chokes me while I lie on the small, uncomfortable hospital bed next to Gage. My eyes close as the sound of him flatlining twice in the back of the ambulance rings through my mind. Unbelievable, gut-wrenching despair echoes in that sound, which will forever haunt me. When he flatlined for the second time, a wave of distress washed over me, and dark, unsettling thoughts crept into my mind. He isn’t allowed to leave me when we barely got our second chance. I made a solemn promise to myself that if he didn’t survive, I would willingly follow him into the afterlife. Wherever he goes, I go.
I open my eyes and wipe a lone tear as I gaze up at Gage. Even in his medically induced coma, he still looks just as handsome and lethal as always, even though the bullet bounced around in his body, causing substantial damage, and the doctors say it will take months to heal. He has a long road ahead of him, and I will be there the entire way.
From the door, a distinct click reaches my ears, causing my gaze to fixate on Vic and Trey walking into the room.
“Is Rosie safe?” I ask Vic.
“Yeah, we have people with her right now.”
“Good,” I say as I nod. “I want him found and brought to a secure location. I don’t want him roughed up too bad before I see him. He worked with me at Brilliant Hearts Charity, so there should be some kind of information on his whereabouts.”
“We’ll let you know when we have something.”
“Thank you,” I say, directing my attention back to Gage.
It’s odd giving someone orders, but it seems appropriate, especially if it leads to the apprehension of the person responsible for harming Gage.
As the guys leave, I glance at Marco, slumped over in the rigid, uncomfortable chair. Since they let us into his room after his eight-hour surgery, he has been reluctant to leave Gage’s side.
I know Gage wouldn’t want anybody to see him like this, but I couldn’t say no to him or his mom.
With as much grace as I can muster, I slide off the bed so as not to wake Gage and make my way over to Marco. I gently nudge him, causing him to wake abruptly. I quickly place my finger over my mouth, signaling for silence, and then turn my gaze back to Gage, who is still peacefully sleeping.
“There’s somewhere I need to be. You need to stay with him and don’t let anyone in.”
“It’s not safe for you to be out by yourself,” Marco says.
“Don’t worry about me right now. Worry about protecting your brother. He’s the top priority. Call me right away if he wakes up.”
