Page 95 of Tapped

Screams come from behind me as I shoot blindly.

Ten shots in quick succession. I move to the side of the French doors that are busted to shit and peek through the war-torn, ragged curtains. The back yard is lit just enough for me to see a shadow race between the palm trees framing the farthest part of her yard to scale the privacy wall.

I’ve got six rounds left.

I use them all.

The shadow stutters before it disappears over the top.

“Fuck.”

I turn back to Evie. Her arms are wrapped around her head where she’s rolled into herself. I exhale when the sirens break through the night and drift through broken glass.

“Agent Emmett, are you there?” the dispatcher calls for me over the speaker.

“I’m here. The shooter jumped over her back wall. Send units to canvas the neighborhood and surrounding streets.”

“Ten-four. Officers are about to arrive on the scene.”

“I’ve got a victim with a gunshot wound to the hip. I think it’s a flesh wound but don’t know for sure. We’re in the back of the house in the office. It’ll be faster for EMS to get a gurney around the house rather than through it.”

Sirens ring through broken windows as I pull her arms away to look down at her. “It’s over, baby. Look at me.”

Evie opens her eyes, and all I see is pain. But not the kind created by a GSW.

“He’s still alive, isn’t he?” Her voice is thick as emotion bleeds through her words.

I clench my jaw and don’t answer, because he is. I didn’t get him, and I’m a good fucking shot. “He was halfway over the wall when I saw him and got a round off. I’m sorry.”

“I’ve never wished anyone dead before.” She shakes her head. “But if he were lying in my backyard immobile, that would’ve been okay.”

I get up to turn on the light. “You’re a better person than me. I’d be fucking thrilled if he were dead in your backyard right now. Let me check you out.”

She watches me pull her blood-soaked shorts down her hip. “Can you see an exit wound?”

I shake my head. “There’s no entrance or exit. It clipped you. You still need to go to the hospital, so don’t try and tell me you’re fine. This is the second time I’ve had to call EMS for you. You’re the worst patient I’ve ever seen. Don’t argue.”

She closes her eyes as if she’s bracing for something. “It’s not like I can stitch myself up from this angle, dammit.”

“Evie.” I put my hand on the side of her face and wait for her to open her eyes. “You were shot with a fucking bullet. Whether or not you can stitch yourself up is beyond the point. You’re going to the hospital, and I’m not leaving your side.”

She tries to sit up. “I might not need stitches—"

I shake my head. “Stop it. You’re not doing this again. Stay right where you are.”

She puts her hand on mine that rests possessively on her cheek as she nods. She’s about to say something else, but the police call for us from the backyard.

“In here,” I yell without taking my eyes off her. When someone reaches through the broken glass to unlock the door, I add, “My duty weapon is on the desk and credentials are upstairs. I’m not leaving her—you can search the house for it yourself.”

“Emmett, how did you get yourself tangled up in this?” I look up to see Rocco’s lieutenant. He glances around the house before focusing back on me. “We’ve got units canvassing the neighborhood. We’ll scour the backyard for clues. I’ve got more officers on the way.”

I don’t have a chance to say anything because two EMS come through the door.

I look back down at Evie. “Cooperate.”

When she sighs, I feel the fight drain from her body. She wraps her fingers around my hand, and I lean down to kiss her before I shift out of the way for them to work.

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