fived my sister, who was very pleased with herself. We hopped to our feet and bolted back to our own yard. We didn’t miss a beat as we climbed the ladder to the safety of the barn’s loft.
Ellie dropped down on the hay in a fit of laughter, and I joined her. We laughed until our stomachs hurt and we were out of tears.
“We showed them!” She giggled as she pulled pieces of hay out of her muddy hair.
“We did.” I high fived her and turned on the Christmas lights Dad had let us hang up once he discovered we used it as a clubhouse.
“John.” She rolled onto her knees, her expression serious.
“Yeah?” I moved a chicken out of my way and sat on the ledge to let my legs dangle over the open double doors.
“Will you promise me something?”
“’Kay.”
“Promise me that no matter what happens in our lives, we’ll always be a team.”
I glanced over and saw her arms were hugged around her knees and her chin rested on their bony tops.
“Of course. We made that pact years ago. Why are you bringing it up now?”
She shrugged, and her mouth drooped into a frown. “I know Bethany and a few other girls are starting to look at you differently, and that’s fine, ’cause boys are doing the same to me. But you’re my brother, and I want to make sure that we come first. You know?”
“I know.” I understood her fear. It had always been the two of us, and the idea of anyone breaking that up was scary. “We’re one person,” I laughed lightly, “until you decide to be independent.”
“Sounds like me.” She grinned.
“You can’t break up a twin bond, Ell. It’s scientifically proven,” I reassured her.
“Twins before anyone else.” She beamed.
“Twins before anyone else,” I repeated, knowing I’d take that promise to the grave.
Pain jolted me awake, and it took me a moment to clear the fog that hung heavily in the corners of my mind. I couldn’t seem to move my left arm, so I forced my eyes open and blinked away the blur. Her sweet scent found its way into my nose before it registered that she was at my side.
“Hey,” I whispered and ran my hand through the silk of her long hair. Everything hurt, but Sloane being here made up for it big time.
She moved to sit up then winced and rolled her head around for a second. The fatigue on her face vanished as she looked up at me, and concern took its place.
“Hi.” Her tone sounded strange. “Can I get you anything?”
I shook my head and tried to take her hand, only to have her stand up as though she was unsure.
“What’s wrong?” I croaked and begged my head to keep up.
“I just…” She trailed off.
“Just what?” I shifted uncomfortably. Fuck me, everything hurts.
“I am a strong woman, John.”
“I know.” The room tilted a little as a sharp pain jolted through my center.
“Who has been up against some of the roughest men in Washington.”
“Yes, you have.”
“Not to mention being attacked in my own home,” she went on, “but there’s something about seeing the man you love fight for his life with no warning. There was no warning.”
I paused mid-wince at her words. The word “love” bounced around the room, but she didn’t seem to notice, so I didn’t point it out…yet.
“You were standing there in the hallway talking to us,” her arms moved about as she told her story, “then you were gone, whisked off for x-rays, but you didn’t come back. You didn’t come back.”
“I know it must have been scary, but—”
“Scary?” She laughed as tears trickled paths down her cheeks. My stomach twisted at how much she was hurting. “Scary is finding out your Blackhawk went down after two RPGs blew into it.” She sniffed and dried her soaked cheeks with the back of her hand. “This,” she waved her arms toward me, “is frigging terrifying.” I nodded to show I was listening. “You had some possible broken ribs.”
“Yeah.”
“You had a bad cut on your leg, and they said you went into some filthy water. You should have known better.”
“Yeah.” She was right. I knew better, but it didn’t matter at the time.
“I know Daniel was in rough shape, but what about you?”
“He has a family—”
“What are Kelly, Oliver, Ellie, and…” She stopped herself.
“And?” I questioned with a smile, which further pissed her off.
“Tripper,” she fibbed terribly. “They are your family, people you should care enough about to come