Violet said. “H-he blamed her. Wh-what will happen to her? With her dad…the Kyōdaina…”
Worry littered her face, but at least the sobbing had stopped.
“I don’t know,” I told her the truth. Fear for Jada and me and the people I loved settled in my soul. Violet. Goddamn, I should have stayed away. This was why you never went undercover as yourself. It had been stupid but necessary. I’d already been knee-deep in the boating community and the rich circle of friends that surrounded it. I’d already been Jada’s friend. It hadn’t made any sense to bring someone else in. An outsider. It would have taken so much longer.
The operation was totally screwed anyway, years of work down the fucking drain with only a handful of guns and some lower-level members in custody. They would take the fall for those above them. Their lives were over. It was likely the Kyōdaina would try to have them killed before they even got to jail or trial.
“Don’t,” she said quietly.
I looked down into her face, puffy and red but free of the makeup she’d worn earlier. She’d cleaned up. I was grateful to whoever had allowed her to do that. I still had Jada’s blood on my sleeves much like I’d had Violet’s blood all over me when we’d crashed. I’d sat for hours with it coating me that night. It had been a painful, harsh reminder of what I’d almost lost.
“Don’t,” she repeated.
“What?” I asked.
She ran a hand on my jaw. It was so tight that my teeth were all but plastered together.
“Don’t pull away from me because of this.”
I closed my eyes. “Goddamn, Vi… I put you in danger. If Jersey was pissed at me for calling you to come get me five years ago, just think what both she and my brother will say about me being the reason you had a gun pointed in your direction—may still be pointed at you.”
“Then, you better stick around to make sure you’re the one to ward it off if it comes back,” she said quietly.
“You’re not a part of this. Jada and I cutting ties with you would be the best thing we could do to ensure your safety,” I told her honestly, but my entire being rejected the notion. Rejected the thought of walking away from her and never again holding her hand, kissing her sweet lips, or burying myself inside her.
We’d had one night together. A handful of hours. It wasn’t enough.
A woman walked into the room in operating scrubs. She removed the cap and mask she had over her black hair and dark skin. “Are you here for Jada Mori?”
We nodded, standing. Vi’s hand found its way back into mine, squeezing tightly.
“I’m Dr. Kamba. She’s very lucky. The bullet went in and out. Nicked her liver but didn’t do any permanent damage. She lost a lot of blood. She’ll be sore and weak, but she’s going to be okay.”
Violet collapsed into my side, and I wrapped my arms around her, holding her up even as I wasn’t sure how I kept on my feet myself. Relief filled me. Jada would be okay.
“Thank you,” I croaked out. “When can we see her?”
“She’s in recovery and will be there for a while, but once we get her situated in a room, I’ll have one of the nurses tell you.” She turned to leave, and I stopped her.
“We’ll need the police and security to move with her,” I said.
She glanced back at me with a look that spoke volumes of what she perceived to be lifestyle choices. She wasn’t wrong, but she also wasn’t right. She left without another word.
Violet turned in my arms, hugging me tightly. I let myself have it, this moment with her in my arms. I let myself have the memories of our night together, of her being mine in every way that I’d always wanted, but I knew that when the morning came, we might very well have to go our separate ways for good.
♫ ♫ ♫
My neck screamed as I jerked awake from my twisted position in the chair. Violet was no longer tucked up against me. Voices hit me, a deep one mixed in with Violet’s lyrical one. I was on my feet, heading for the hallway with my hand on the butt of my gun, before my brain fully registered where I was and what was happening.
Tsuyoshi Mori was at the door of the room they’d moved Jada to in the early hours of