Raiden (The Kent Brothers #2) - A.M. Hargrove Page 0,31
her fire, but the worst sound of all was the gunfire that resounded back at her. More gunshots sounded from outside the other room, and I heard, “Put your weapons down. This is the police.”
An all-out war broke loose before everything went silent. I had pulled Scottie back into the bathroom during the mayhem and placed my full attention on her. Blood seeped from her side, so I grabbed a towel and pressed down. Then I hit 911 and called for an ambulance.
“Jesus, are you okay?”
She nodded and said, “Think so.”
“Christ, woman, you’re going to give me a heart attack.” I kissed her and held her hand as I continued to put pressure on the wound.
Cops swarmed the room, and I called out for help. “They shot her.” Drex came in, followed by Gemini.
“How bad?” he asked.
“I’m not sure. I begged her to stay in the bathroom, but she wouldn’t listen.” The EMS team came in soon after and loaded her onto the gurney. By now, she wasn’t talking. The situation seemed bleak until they told me her blood pressure was still okay. Not great, but okay.
Not waiting for them to tell me it was fine, I walked out with them and hopped inside the ambulance. “Sir, we don’t usually—”
“You’re wasting time. Let’s go.”
At my command, they jumped in, closed the doors, and we were off.
Chapter Fifteen
Raiden
My first inclination was to berate Scottie for her actions, but if the shoe had been on the other foot, wouldn’t I have done the same? Besides, I was too worried about her. She’d lost consciousness and couldn’t hear me, anyway. Instead, I asked the EMTs, “Why is she still out?” I held her hand and squeezed it gently, but got no response.
“My guess is shock. Her BP is okay, but I’m putting a line in now.” He attached a bag of fluids to her and cut open her shirt. He removed the towels I’d covered her with to add a compress. Blood seeped out and my anger resurfaced.
“I told her to stay in the bathroom. They had automatic rifles and were spraying us with gunfire. She refused to listen to me, the hardheaded woman.”
“We’re three minutes out and they’re ready for us,” the driver relayed.
“What does that mean?” I asked, confusion clouding my usual sharp mental acuity.
“It means they’ve prepped an OR, and a surgeon is standing by.”
“That’s a relief.”
His grave expression didn’t match my statement. I didn’t want to know any more than I already did. That she was critical was obvious.
We pulled into the semicircle in front of the ER doors, and a team met us with a gurney. They worked like a well-oiled machine. They placed Scottie on the second gurney and rushed inside with me following.
One doctor asked me questions as we ran down the hallway. I told him everything. When we arrived at the OR, he pointed toward the waiting room.
“I’ll let you know something as soon as possible. I’ve got to run.”
The wait was endless. My phone rang, and it was Drex wanting to know the state of things.
“Not much to tell. She’s in surgery right now.”
“Where are you?”
“In the surgery waiting area.”
“I’ll be there shortly.”
The call ended before I could tell him to stay home. He had enough on his plate with the mess at the office. He didn’t need to come and babysit me.
I was pacing the hall when I heard my name. It was Cruze.
“Hey, man, I’m sorry.”
Two burly guys I’d never seen before escorted him. “New guards?”
“Yeah. We’ve increased our numbers again after what happened tonight.”
What a shit show. “This is really getting out of hand. How much more will we tolerate?”
“I hear Drex and the team have a plan.”
“Good, because something’s got to give. Bombs, shootouts. What’s next?”
“He was reluctant to talk about it. Said it was too dangerous.”
What was more dangerous than bombs and a shootout? I kept that comment to myself. “I hope it works because if it doesn’t, I’m moving.”
“Where?” It was Drex who posed the question. He’d gotten here fast.
I turned toward him. “I don’t have a clue yet, but I’ll figure it out.”
“Listen to me, Raiden. Aiden O’Brien will find you wherever you go. The only way to stop this is removing him permanently.”
“Then call in the big guys.” My eyes clashed with his.
“They’re already on it and we’re twenty steps ahead of them at every turn. I promise we’ll get him and end this.”
“Hopefully before any of us dies.” My snarky comment didn’t go unnoticed. But