Page 89 of Silent Girl

“Stop! Everyone needs to stop and shut up!” I scream. Walking over to Liam’s bedside, I sit down and bury my head next to his pillow. “Please wake up. I need you to wake up now. You can’t leave me here to deal with this shitshow, Liam King. Wake up.”

I feel a hand brush my hair back. I don’t bother to pick up my head. I don’t have the energy. Not until I hear his voice. “Aliyah? You good?” he asks me. He sounds a little hoarse but cocky as ever.

My head snaps up, my eyes meeting his. “Am I good? You were freaking shot, Liam. Am I good? No. I’m not good,” I croak, letting the tears fall freely down my face.

Liam reaches up a hand and wipes my cheeks. “Marry me,” he says.

“What?” I ask, certain I’m hearing things. Or maybe I’m dreaming…

“Marry me,” he repeats.

“I think you’re high on pain meds or something, Liam,” I whisper.

“I’m not. Just say yes. Please.”

I nod my head. “Yes, but only if you ask again when we’re not in a hospital and you’re not doped up on drugs,” I tell him.

“Deal.”

“King, you fucking asshole. You should have told me.” Grayson stalks forward, cursing under his breath while waving an accusatory finger in Liam’s direction.

“I told him not to,” my father says, walking into the room. “Liam, the doc says you’re going to be fine. Just a couple of through-and-throughs. Lucky for you, the bastard missed anything vital.”

“What about hockey?” I ask my dad.

“Well, he’s got a few months of recovery ahead of him before he gets back out on the ice again,” Dad says. “But—”

Liam stops him short. “What’s happening? Did you find him?”

“Vinny did.” Dad nods. Nothing else needs to be said, and no more questions are asked about whohewas or what my family did tohimorthem.

Everyone knows—well, almost everyone. Liam’s mother and brother remain in the dark, and my father will make sure it stays that way. He explained to the rest of us what happened, why Liam was so frantic after Gray scored that winning goal, why he was trying to throw the game in the first place, and everything he was willing to give up to save me.

“Thank you,” my dad says to Liam.

“You don’t need to thank me,” Liam tells him. “There is nothing I wouldn’t do for her.”

Dad nods, and Liam’s mother scoffs. “Liam, we need to talk about this,” she says from where she’s still standing on the other side of his bed.

Liam’s brows furrow. “Mom? Why are you here?” he asks her.

“Because you’re my son and you were shot—thanks to this woman,” she says, gesturing a manicured nail in my direction.

I try to let go of Liam’s hand, but he only holds on tighter. “This woman is about to be my wife. You will not disrespect her. Thank you for coming, but you really shouldn’t have,” he says.

“Liam, I’ll be back. You need anything, bro?” Matty chimes in.

“No, I’m good.”

“Come on, Mom, let’s go,” Matty says, throwing an arm around his mother and steering her towards the door. “He needs time—that’s all,” he tells her.

I don’t know what to do. I don’t want to be the type of person who comes between a mother and her son, but I know this feud began long before I was around. Though, now that I think about it, if she hadn’t done what she did, I never would have met her son in the first place. In a way, I guess I should thank her for being such a shitty parent.

As soon as Liam’s mother and brother are out of earshot, my dad clears his throat. “Grayson, let’s go.”

“What? Why do I have to go?” Gray argues.

“Because I said so. Come on,” Dad says more firmly this time. Then he looks to me. “Aliyah, sweetheart, call me if you need anything.”

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