Sin of Silence (Sinner's Empire #1) - Nikita Slater Page 0,3
she chose to work, but she was sad about the child. Wished she could shield him, from both the danger of a gunman in the hospital and the trauma of seeing her killed.
Pain burst through her cheek and her eyes flew open, her hand automatically coming up to touch her face where he hit her with the gun. She winced. It hurt, but nothing was broken and there was no blood. Tears filled her eyes and she stared at the man who was threatening her. The gun was still trained on her, the sunglasses staring blankly down at her. He was tall. So was Shaun, at almost six feet, she could stand toe to toe with most men. Not this this guy; he was three or four inches taller.
“What do you want?” she asked, her voice shaky.
He jerked his head to the door. Her eyes followed, and he nodded, waving the gun, indicating she should walk out ahead of him. Comprehension hit and she shook her head. “No,” she said, stepping back. She wouldn’t leave with him. She wasn’t that stupid.
He stiffened, then shifted his arm, his shoulder flexing beneath the supple leather of his coat. He trained the gun on the bed, on the boy. Shaun moved to stand between the child and the gun. He’d have to shoot her to get to the boy. He lowered the gun a few inches and waved it at the door again.
What was he trying to say, and why didn’t he just tell her what he wanted?
He took a threatening step toward her and impatiently reached up to drag the sunglasses off his face. She stared, her heart pounding in terror. Without them, he should look more human, but he didn’t. His eyes were a startling deep blue, so dark they looked almost black, like the bottom of a frozen lake. He shoved his sunglasses in his jacket pocket and took hold of her arm in a painful grip. He gave her a shake and waved the gun, first at the boy, then back toward the door.
“You want me to go with you?” she asked breathlessly.
His eyes seemed to darken and he nodded, jerking his head again. She really didn’t want to leave the room with him, but she couldn’t allow him to shoot the child either. Maybe if she went with him, she could reason with him once they were away from other people.
“Okay,” she whispered. “Let’s go.”
“I couldn’t find the prednisone, but we have…” Danilo walked into the room holding a bottle in his hand. When he caught sight of the man and the gun he stopped, his back against the door as it swung shut behind him. “Doctor Patterson?”
Her name was the last thing he said as a bullet went through his right eye, killing him on the spot. His body was still falling when the gunman dragged Shaun forward, forcing her to step over her dead colleague and out into the hallway. She twisted around to look behind her, catching the wide, terrified eyes of the boy, now sitting up in his bed and staring after them.
“You killed him!” Shaun yelled, yanking on the arm he was holding tightly.
He swung her into a wall, which shook ominously when her weight hit it. The whole structure was nearly as thin as carboard, meant to come down and go up quickly and easily. She would be a lot more than winded if he’d just thrown her into a real wall. He was much bigger than her and he was using his strength to force her compliance.
“Shaun – ”
Shaun looked over, her head moving against the wall. Janet was rushing down the hall toward them, heedless of the gun coming up toward her. Shaun threw herself against his arm, knocking his aim to the side. A bullet slammed through the opposite wall; the bullet meant for Janet. He shoved Shaun away from him and brought his arm back up, but Janet had flung herself into one of the exam rooms. Instead of going after her, he took Shaun’s arm again and hauled her against his side, running with her down the hall.
He was after her specifically it would seem. He could have grabbed someone from the reception area if he wanted any medical professional. Instead he’d gone to the trouble of searching her out in the hospital, putting himself and everyone else at risk. They rounded a corner where a patient was standing in the hallway.