Page 65 of Secret

Chapter28

IZZY

Iwake up to an annoying beeping noise and groan, everything hurts as I become aware of my body, well, mainly my arm. The bloody thing is killing me. I can smell bleach and that lovely smell of the man I love, which must mean Blake is near. My body relaxes as I want to drift back off to sleep, knowing Blake is near me and I’m safe.Wait, where am I?

I blink my eyes open to a bright room and turn my head away from the light to see a head of blond hair resting on my leg. My heart beats faster as I want to cry. I move my hand through Blake’s soft hair. I can’t believe he is here with me, and alive.

Blake’s head snaps up, and he looks at me with those beautiful, blue eyes I was worried I'd never see again. Blake looks terrible with baggy eyes and his hair all over the place. I even notice he has a beard slowly growing in, but to me, he looks amazing and makes my breath catch.

“Beauty, you . . . are you okay?” he mutters, rubbing his sleepy eyes with one hand like he can’t believe I’m actually here. My eyes water without my permission as I look him over, and he moves closer to me, wiping my tears away the best he can with one hand.

“Don't cry, please, it’s killing me,” he says, and I don't realise how upset I am until his voice rolls over me, making me sob as I lean my head into his hand.

“I . . . I thought I lost you when I heard that gun shot. God, Blake, I love you.” I cry more, not having any control anymore, and he pulls me into a hug, gently resting me on his chest.

“I love you so damn much, beauty,” he says, and I can hear he is just holding in his own tears. We hold each other for a long time as the strong heartbeat next to my ear calms me down.

“I’m sorry I couldn’t get to you quick enough.” He pulls away slightly to look down at me as I wipe my face free of tears.

“You got to me in the end, and that’s all that matters. I’m yours, Blake, for however long you want me,” I say, sobbing a little and needing to be close to him.

“Forever, beauty; I’ll never stop wanting you.” He groans and kisses me gently before pulling away.

I pull back and look at my wrist, which is in a sling like Blake’s, but my wrist is in a bright-blue plaster.

“Huh, so we are matching?” I ask with a smile, and Blake laughs.

“Yes, I was shot in the arm, and you have ten stitches in your head. As well as a broken wrist that needs to stay in plaster for six weeks,” he says, his face shows that it’s clearly painful for him to even say those words.

“Not too bad, but who chose the blue cast? My favourite is–”

I’m stopped when Blake says, “Purple, but Elliot was asked what colour, and he thought they meant his favourite.” He smiles at me as we both start laughing.

“Can you help me up?” I ask, wincing at the pain in my arm as I try to move myself to the side of the bed.

“Let me call the nurse. You've slept two days, and I'm worried,” he says, stopping me and kissing my forehead. He leaves to look for a nurse.

I sit back and sigh as I badly need the toilet. I try to get up on my own, but not long after Blake leaves, Sebastian walks into the room with a big grin on his face.

“Finally, you’re awake, sis,” he says and hugs me gently before he sits next to me. Sebastian takes my other hand, giving it a light squeeze as he talks. I notice his clothes are all wrinkled, and it looks like he hasn’t slept or shaved in days.

“Don't ever scare me like that again. You okay? Do you need anything?”

“I'm good, and Blake’s gone to get the nurse. What happened to the guys who took me? I don’t remember much after they were shot,” I say, shuddering a little as I remember the snake man on the floor covered with blood and the other guy knocked out.

“I have no idea, sis. Arthur will sort it out, but I doubt they will live. I wish we could have killed him, but it wouldn’t make us any safer. We will fight the remaining fights we owe, and then we are done,” he says grimly, and whatever he sees on my face makes him frown at me.

“I don’t like the idea of them being dead. I’m worried about the police,” I say, answering his unasked question of why I’m worried.

“They deserve it for nearly killing you, so don’t you feel bad for them, and the police think all this happened in the car. It’s best you say you don’t remember anything, Izzy. I will explain the whole story we made up later, but Harley has paid off the staff enough that they won’t tell the police.” He stops, and I wait silently for him to continue.

“The car is sorted too, but yeah, if anyone asks, you don’t remember the night,” he finishes, and I nod in agreement. They may have been hired, but they could have killed me and Blake in the car accident, and one of those bastards shot Blake. I can't feel bad for how it turned out for them, but I’m glad Harley has sorted out a story, and the police won’t be involved in this.

“So I'm, I mean, we are safe?” I ask and look into his eyes as he squeezes my hand and nods.

“Yes. We are all safe,” he says sternly, making me believe him. Blake walks back in with a small smile, and behind him follows a nurse in a blue uniform. She is very pretty, and she seems nice as she shyly smiles at me. She must be around our age, or a little older, with black hair pulled into a high ponytail.Black glasses frame her face, hiding her eyes. Overall, I’m surprised Sebastian hasn’t hit on her already. He must be worried about me, not to notice her.

“Hello, Elizabeth, how are you feeling?” she asks with a slight, Irish accent while checking my monitors.

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