Beautifully Broken Pieces (Sutter Lake, #1)(84)

Tuck grasped my shoulder. “We need to get her outside so we can call in a chopper.”

I nodded. I slipped a hand under Taylor’s knees and the other behind her shoulders. Tears stung my eyes. She was so light. My little short-stack. She had to make it. I said the words to myself over and over, willing each sentence into her as though I could make the statement true just by the ferocity of my belief. Tuck led the way out, shining the light to guide my path.

Fading light shone from the mouth of the cave. I gently laid Taylor on the ground while Tuck immediately pulled out his sat phone and began barking orders into it. I quickly stripped off my bulletproof vest, then peeled off my t-shirt. Tuck threw me a water bottle that had been clipped to his pack.

Again, I lifted Taylor’s blood-soaked shirt. I poured water over her wounds, hoping I would be able to better see what needed tending. What emerged had me fighting back rising bile. A crude X marred her beautiful skin. Blood seeped from the gashes, and I pressed my shirt to the wounds.

Taylor’s eyes fluttered again as she let out another low moan.

“Taylor, baby, open your eyes. Come on, Short-stack.”

Her eyes cracked open, just slightly. Her beautiful blue-gray depths were dulled by pain. “Walker?”

“I’m here. I’m right here, and I’m not going anywhere.” Taylor’s eyes started to close again. “No you don’t, stay with me.”

Her lids opened once more, just barely, and just long enough for her to say, “Love you.”

Then there was nothing.





44





Taylor





It was the sound that brought me around. That faint beep, beep, beep, that drew me back to the land of the living. The closer I got, the more aware I became of the pain. My head throbbed as if a heavy-metal drummer were practicing on my skull. And there was a hot, burning sensation emanating from my belly.

My eyelids felt as though they carried five-pound weights on their lashes, but I so desperately wanted to open my eyes. After several fruitless attempts, I was finally able to crack them open. The movement felt like something was scratching against my tender irises.

The light in the room was blinding. I blinked several times, trying to get my eyes to adjust. Slowly, my vision returned, the room going from blurry to focused. The sounds became clearer. The hum of an overhead fluorescent light. The beeping of a heart monitor—a heart monitor. Hospital. I was in the hospital. Why?

Suddenly, memories slammed into me, stealing my breath. I gasped against the shocking intrusion, fisting my hands in the blankets on the bed. The back of my hand stung at the action, the IV line that was connected there pulling. I was okay. I was safe. But what about everyone else? Liam? Walker?

My memories of Walker in the cave seemed hazy at best. Was it even him? Or had my mind concocted the whole thing? The hopeful delusion of a girl who thought she might be dying.

My gaze searched the room. Empty. I was alone. The thing I had fought so hard to be, was now the thing I hated more than anything. Tears stung my eyes. It was too late. Too late to make amends with my friends. And too late for Walker.

I didn’t blame him. He thought I’d slept with another man. I’d pushed him too far, one too many times.

My chest heaved. I tried to control the motion since it only caused my pain to flare, but I couldn’t seem to catch my breath or control my sobs.

The door to my room swung open. Walker strode in looking like a fierce avenging angel from some post-apocalyptic novel. His clothes were rumpled, his face smeared with dirt, and he was pissed. “Jesus, get a nurse, would you?” he called over his shoulder.

My heart rate sped up, my sobs only worsening.

Walker’s face morphed from angry to concerned in a split second. “Short-stack, you’re safe. It’s okay. Everything’s fine now.” He grasped my cheeks in his hands. “Breathe with me, just breathe.”

But I couldn’t. What was happening? He was here. Why? “You’re here.” The words came out as a croaky rasp.

Walker’s brow creased. “Of course, I’m here. Come on, baby, breathe with me.”

“Liam?” I asked with a wheeze.

“He’s fine, he’s just down the hall. Everyone’s okay. Just breathe.”

My eyes drank him in as my breathing finally began to slow. He bent and placed his lips firmly against my forehead, staying there for several moments. I soaked up the warmth of his lips against my skin. I wanted to stay in this moment forever. I didn’t care about the pounding in my head or the burning in my stomach as long as I had Walker’s lips on my skin. If I could hold onto that, I could handle anything.

It was that thought that had fresh tears spilling over. “I’m so sorry. So, so sorry.”

Before Walker could respond, a nurse bustled in. “Well, hello there, Miss Lawson. Glad to see you awake.” She eyed me and Walker. “Sorry to interrupt the lovers’ reunion, but I need to take a quick look at your vitals.”

She made notes of the readings on different machines and checked the various tubes I was connected to. “Everything looks good. Can you rate your pain for me on a scale of one to ten?”

I bit the inside of my cheek. “Maybe a four?”

The nurse gave me a gentle smile. “I’m pretty sure you’re lying, but we can wait for another dose of pain meds if you’d like. Just press the call button when you’re ready, or I’ll be back to check on you soon.” I nodded in agreement, and she turned to leave.