Songbird(38)

Taggert shoved Emily behind him. She nearly went down, but he held tight to her arm.

“What the f**k is this?” Taggert asked furiously. “You lied to us, you son of a bitch. You kept her in a goddamn cave for two days. You know she hates the dark. Why?”

His fingers flexed and curled. He’d never wanted to hurt another human being as bad as he wanted to tear Rand apart right now.

Rand eyed him warily but he kept the gun trained in his direction.

Emily closed her eyes and shifted her feet back and forth as she stood behind Taggert. Anything to try and regain sensation. She was useless in her current state.

“She should have never come back,” Rand bit out.

“You don’t get to decide that,” Taggert roared. “Did you kill my brother, Rand? Is Emily right? Did you kill Sean?”

Emily gripped Taggert’s arm tighter and tried to see around him, but he pushed her back again.

“It was supposed to be her,” Rand said in a bleak voice. “It was never supposed to be Sean. He stepped in front of her. It was too late for me to stop. I hated her for making me do that. Sean didn’t deserve to die. I wanted to save him from her.”

Every muscle in Taggert’s body stiffened. He bristled with rage. So much fury. She felt it like an inferno.

“Save him? Save us? Where do you get off interfering in our lives? Who gave you the right? You goddamn bastard, you killed my brother!”

“It wasn’t what I wanted. I never wanted to hurt him. Or you and Greer. But now you give me no choice. If you’d just stayed at the ranch, I would have disposed of Emily, and you could have gone on with your lives. It’s unnatural what you and Greer are doing with her.”

She heard the click of the safety, and she felt Taggert’s swift intake of breath.

No.

Not again. Never again.

It was supposed to be her last time. She wouldn’t allow another man she loved to die because of her.

“Forgive me, Taggert,” Rand whispered.

She pushed at Taggert and caught sight of Rand raising the pistol. God, he was really going to do it. He was going to shoot Taggert down in broad daylight.

Rand’s hand trembled, but his gaze never wavered. She saw his finger tighten on the trigger.

“No!”

She hooked her foot between Taggert’s legs and shoved with all her might. He stumbled away, and she turned to face Rand, placing herself between him and Taggert.

“Emmy, no!” Taggert cried.

Anger flared in Rand’s eyes, and then he simply pulled the trigger.

Pain exploded over Emily. She went flying backwards, her body hitting the ground with enough force to jar her teeth loose. She lay gasping for air but couldn’t draw any into her lungs.

Taggert’s roar echoed in her ears. Dimly she heard Rand cry out. Then she heard another shot. She couldn’t move. Couldn’t make her arms or legs obey her commands.

Pain. So much pain.

The metallic taste of blood seeped into her mouth. Where had it come from?

She coughed and felt the warm liquid slosh over her tongue. She spit, revolted by the taste and the sensation of it filling her mouth.

“Emmy! Emmy, oh God, baby.”

She blinked as a shadow fell over her body. Taggert. She tried to say his name, but like her arms and legs, her tongue just wouldn’t cooperate. Was she dying?

“No. No, baby you aren’t dying,” Taggert said fiercely.

Evidently her tongue worked after all.

“Rand,” she managed to get out between coughs.

“He can’t hurt you anymore. Oh Jesus, Emmy.”

His hands fluttered over her body, and she could see the panic in his eyes. It was bad. But then she knew that.

She smiled, ignoring the blood seeping from her mouth.

“So glad you came,” she whispered. “Love you.”

“Emmy, listen to me. I’ve got to pick you up. It’s going to hurt like hell, but I’ve got to get you to the hospital.”

She nodded, his face blurring above her.

“You stay with me, okay? Swear to me you’ll stay with me.”

“Swear,” she slurred.

Why couldn’t she breathe? She sucked in huge mouthfuls of air, but she could only manage the smallest bit into her lungs. And it hurt. God, it hurt so much. She didn’t want to breathe, but she panicked when she held her breath for too long.

Taggert slid his arms underneath her, murmuring apologies and prayers the entire time. His words faded in and out, or maybe it was her fading. How could she tell?

She was lifted into the air, and agony seared through her body like a bolt of lightning. She gasped then choked as blood filled her mouth. She gagged and coughed and that sent another surge of pain through her chest so fierce that her eyes rolled back into her head.

The next thing she knew she was lying on the seat of Taggert’s truck, and Taggert was shouting at her to stay with him.

Blackness crowded her vision, closing in on her like night. She struggled to stay awake, to stay with Taggert as he demanded over and over. It hurt too much, though. It was easier to slide toward the dark.

“Tagg…”

“Yes, baby, I’m here. I’m here, Emmy. Don’t leave me. Don’t leave me, honey.”

“L-love you. So…so much. Always…have. Tell Greer. Love…him…too.”