Page 98 of The Second Kiss
“So are you."
“I am?” He wipes his hand across his brow, and it comes back wet with his blood.
Brad moans again, louder, “My leg.”
Jacob turns back and bends over Brad again. “We’d better call an ambulance. And the police.” He stands up and pulls his phone out of his pocket. He nudges Brad with the toe of his boot. Brad howls.
Jacob looks at him with disgust. “You’re lucky Jess was the one with the gun. I would have blown your head off.”
Gray spots appear in front of my eyes. I fight them, but sink to my knees. Jacob is beside me.
“Jess, are you okay?” He grabs my shoulder. “Jess!” He wraps his arms around me as I slide to the floor. “Jess, stay with me!” I know he’s shouting, but his voice is far away. I’m falling down a long, dark tunnel. His face swims in front of me. “Jess.”
Everything goes black.
forty-nine
History
“Are you trying to say that would have been better? If he had gotten to her, left some evidence?” Jacob sounds mad. At me?
Another man’s voice, “I’m just saying how it looks. What he said when they brought him in.”
“He’s lying.”
My head hurts. I try to open my eyes, but the room is too bright. I can’t focus. We were playing paintball. I fell out of a tree. I must have hit my head.
No.
His name comes to my lips. “Brad!” I sit up fast. A wave of nausea clutches at my stomach, I double over.
The curtains part, and Jacob comes in. I try to focus on his face. He has a bandage over his right eye. He sits on the edge of my bed, grips my hand, “Jess, are you okay?”
I want to say yes, but I double over again. A quick nurse holds a basin in front of me. I vomit. Right in front of Jacob.
“No blood,” she says. “That’s good.” She hands me a cup, and I wash out my mouth.
Jacob is still gripping my hand. I’m humiliated, but he doesn’t look disgusted, just worried.
A police officer pushes his way through to my bed. “Are you up to making a statement?”
I look up at Jacob, my hand trembling.
“Leave her alone,” Jacob’s voice wavers. “She needs to rest. She just went through hell.”
The officer looks at Jacob. Then at me. Then at the nurse. She nods. His voice softens. “We need to get your statement as soon as we can.”
“I’m not sure.” Memories come flooding back, prom, Gage and Jasmine, Brad, Jacob, the barn, a gun. Jacob looks like he's in pain too. I need to be okay. “I think I can do it.”
“You’ll need to leave,” the officer says to Jacob.
I grip his hand tighter. “No.”
“He has to go,” the officer’s voice is gentler now.
“No.” I won’t let go of Jacob’s hand. “He was there. He can tell you what happened.”
“That’s the problem, Miss,” the officer says. “We need to get the stories straight. And we can’t do that with him here.”
