Page 85 of Vicious Desire (Fallen Royals 4)

Riley’s voice is low as she tells the emergency department a rundown of his injuries. What she can see, anyway. She admits, “There’s a lot of blood.”

I drive faster. I cannot be responsible for her brother’s death.

“He passed out,” she says. “Eli.”

I pull into the hospital and stop in front of the ambulance doors. Nurses rush toward the vehicle with a stretcher, and there’s a flurry of activity as they get him out and onto a stretcher. Riley goes with them, holding his hand, and then the bay falls silent.

I take my phone out and immediately drop it. My hands are shaking, adrenaline and fear pumping through me. When I turn the light on to find my phone, I freeze.

My hands are covered in blood.

Bile rises swiftly up my throat, and I fall out of my truck, stumbling a few feet away. I throw up, and I’m ashamed of my reaction.

I should go in, but I can’t.

I never could.

There’s a water bottle in the door cup holder, and I use it to clean my hands. It doesn’t account for the blood on my shirt, my arms. There’s even some dark-red spots on my jeans.

Automatically, I dial Caleb’s number.

“Did you find him?” Caleb answers.

“Yeah. We brought him to the hospital.” I clear my throat. “He was stabbed.”

He’s silent for a moment, then, “We’re on our way.”

He knows.

I stay perfectly still at the front corner of my truck, semi-frozen, until he walks over from the parking lot. The last time I was here, with Caleb and Margo, I followed him blindly inside.

Why can’t I do the same for Riley?

“Hey,” Caleb calls.

It’s because my cousin died in a hospital. Brought in for a headache, diagnosed with brain cancer, and he only went home once. A brief flash of a life.

I couldn’t tell Riley that, not after her mom was okay. It would’ve been… traumatic. Unnecessary. But now the old, rust-tasting fear has made itself known again, and I can’t fucking move.

“I’ll go in with you.” He grips my shoulders and gives me a shake. “This is Riley, man. It’s her brother. Go in there and hold her hand.”

He retrieves my keys and hands them to Margo, who hovers behind us. And then he steers me into the hospital.

Easy.

I shudder and stand there, mute, while Caleb talks to the ER receptionist. She points to a doorway that goes to a private waiting room. We go in, and I zero in on Riley. She’s curled up in the corner, not even on a chair.

On the floor.

I didn’t even think about how it would affect her to be back in this hospital.

I go to her, holding out my hands to help her up, and she launches herself into my arms.

This feels normal.

We were each other’s support system.

“I don’t know what I would do if he dies,” she whispers.

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