The Beast (Black Dagger Brotherhood #14) - J. R. Ward Page 0,22

a sound like two SUVs slamming into each other grille-to-grille. The roar that came next was one of protest.

“It’s okay,” she murmured as she stood at its feet. “I love you.”

The beast lowered its muzzle and chuffed out moist air.

And then justlikethat, its body collapsed, a sand castle hit with a wave, a wax figurine heated into a dissolved puddle. In its place, Rhage appeared facedown on the ground, his tremendous tattooed back curving around, his naked legs tucked in as if his stomach bothered him already.

“Rhage,” she said as she crouched beside him. “You’re back, my love.”

When there was no response, not even an I’m-about-to-barf groan, she frowned. “Rhage…?”

As she put her hand on his shoulder, the tattooed image of the dragon in his skin came alive, shifting around so that its head was under her touch.

“Rhage?” she repeated

Why wasn’t he moving? Usually he would be disoriented and in pain, but he always turned to her, just as the beast’s tattoo did, blindly seeking her voice, her touch, their connection.

“Rhage.”

Reaching for his upper arm, she put all her strength into pulling him over flat against the ground.

“Oh … God…!”

There was red blood on his chest. In the midst of all the black stains from what the beast had consumed, there was a very real, very terrifying, and very expanding fount of red blood in the center of his torso.

“Help!” she screamed at the landscape. “Help!”

The Brothers were already coming from every direction, abandoning their covers, sprinting across the battlefield that was strewn with mutilated slayers. And right on their heels, like a beacon from a benevolent god, was Manny’s mobile surgical unit—and the RV was heading for them like the good doctor’s foot was heavy on the accelerator.

Mary sought Vishous out of the crowd because of his EMT experience. “You need to help him!”

That red stain … was right at Rhage’s sternum.

And her hellren had a strong heart—but it was not impenetrable.

What had happened?

SEVEN

Vishous was the first to get to Rhage as the brother reemerged from the flesh of the dragon—and shit had gone from pre-beast bad to post-curse worse. The guy wasn’t moving, wasn’t responding even to his shellan. His coloring was gray as a granite grave marker, and there was a lot of red blood.

Which was merely the tip of the iceberg. The real issue was how much had to be in that chest cavity.

“Help me!” Mary said as she put her hands over the wound and pushed down like she was trying to stem the leaking. “Help him, oh, God, V—”

The good news was that the surgical unit was hitting its brakes and Jane had come with Manny, having transferred over from her own vehicle. As soon as the surgeons popped the front doors of the RV, both docs hit the ground running with black duffel bags full of medical equipment.

“They’re here,” V said. Not that the pair could do much of anything.

“Has he been shot? I think he’s been shot— Oh, God—”

“I know, come here. Let them look at hi—”

Mary shook her head and fought against being pulled back. “He’s dying—”

“Give them some room to work. Come on.”

Goddamn it, this was his fault. If he hadn’t confronted … but what the fuck. The vision had been what it had, and it was this right here and now: Rhage flat on his back naked, his blood everywhere, V holding Mary as she strained and wept.

“Single gunshot wound,” V announced. “Probable cardiac bleed with tamponade and pleural effusion.”

God, he wished he could cover Mary’s ears as he spoke, but like she didn’t already know what was up?

The doctors didn’t waste a moment, checking vitals as Ehlena jumped out of the back of the RV and brought the stretcher with her.

Vishous caught his mate’s eye as Jane listened to Rhage’s heart sounds, and when she shook her head, he knew without any further words that everything he was guessing was true.

Shit.

“What are they doing?” Mary babbled against him. “What are they going to do?”

V held the female tighter as she continued to mumble into his shoulder, her head wrenched around toward her mate. “They’re going to help him, right? They’re going to fix him … right?”

Jane and Manny began to talk in medical shorthand, and as Vishous caught the gist of the words, he closed his eyes briefly. When he popped his lids again, Manny was on one side of Rhage getting a chest tube in to drain fluids from around the lungs, and Jane was performing pericardiocentesis