Rock Me Faster (Licks of Leather #4) - Jenna Jacob Page 0,74
as I wondered if this was how I died, the world went black.
The sounds of sirens and men yelling dragged me from the inky darkness. Forcing my eyelids open, I saw the bathroom sink…on its side? Confusion raked my brain as a warm, thick liquid oozed into my eyes and blurred my vision.
“What the fuck is happening?” I moaned, snapping them shut again.
My mind was as fuzzy as the time I drank a bottle of tequila in Puerto Vallarta and woke up on the beach, covered in sand flea bites. Based on the sirens and the scent of diesel fuel pummeling my senses, I knew I wasn’t on any beach. And whatever was happening to me was no fucking vacation.
Fragments of memories fluttered through my head.
A crash.
Screams.
Splintered wood and glass.
The bus tipping over.
Harmony ripped from my arms and sailing through the air.
Panic slammed me, stealing my breath.
Blinking rapidly, I tried to clear the sticky goo from my eyes and leaned forward. Like a blowtorch, pain seared every inch of my body. Clenching my jaw, I reached up and gripped what was left of the shower frame, sending the shards of glass in my hand sinking deeper. With a hiss, I dragged myself to my knees. Glass fragments rained off my body as waves of dizziness crested through me. Fueled by the panic to find Harmony, I gripped my bloody fingers around the base of the sink and dragged myself toward the fractured wood of the portal.
“Harmony,” I bellowed.
“He’s back here,” a man yelled. “I found him.”
Why wasn’t she answering me?
Panic wrapped my heart and squeezed
“Harmony!” I screamed as tears of fear stung my eyes.
“Easy, buddy. Everybody’s out but you. My name’s Nate. You hang tight. We’re going to get you out of here,” he calmly assured, wiping something over my eyes and forehead. The crap blurring my vision was now gone, but the cloth in Nate’s hand was covered in blood.
“Does my face look like hamburger?”
He shook his head. “No, man. You got some cuts, but you’ll still turn all the ladies’ heads.” He smiled as he eyed me critically. “Going through that shower door had to sting.”
“Like a bitch…I think. Everything’s kind of fuzzy right now.”
I’d barely gotten the words out when two more firefighters appeared. Together, they lifted me up and started carrying me down the hall…well, the now sideways hall. It felt like I was in a carnival fun house, sans the fun.
“What happened?”
“A trash truck blew a red light.”
“I hope NYPD gave him a ticket.”
“They can’t. The guy didn’t make it.”
Harmony. My heart sputtered and my gut clenched. Please, God, no. No. Don’t take her, too.
Struggling to tamp down my panic, I stared Nate in the eye. “What about the others…the ones who were here on the bus. Is anybody—” I couldn’t push the word off my lips.
“Dead? No.”
Thank you, God… Thank you.
“Then get your ass on that bus and find him.” Quinn’s voice floated over me and a low chuckle rumbled from my throat.
Guess he missed his flight. Good, I wanted five minutes alone with the son of a bitch. Okay, well, not right now. I couldn’t even kick my own ass if I had to, but I’d deal with the prick soon.
“We got him,” the guy supporting my left leg yelled, making my brain slam against my skull.
A second later, strobes of blue and red assaulted my eyes. I slid my lids shut as the darkness called to me again, but I fought against it.
I knew the minute I was out of the bus. Instead of diesel fuel, the familiar, unique scent of New York filled my senses.
“Oh, Jesus.” I heard Quinn whisper woefully as the firemen eased me onto a gurney.
Squinting against the colorful strobes, I turned toward the sound of his voice. Quinn’s face was ghostly white and etched with worry.
“Where’s Harmony? I need to see her.”
“They transported her to Presbyterian a few minutes ago.”
“Is she all right?” Unable to harness the panic exploding inside me, I sat up and sent him a pleading stare.
“I-I don’t know. They took everybody there. I stayed behind. I wasn’t leaving until they found you and brought you out.”
“Take me there,” I barked, grabbing the arm of the EMT beside me. “Now.”
“Easy, Mr. Walker,” the man replied. “We need to check you out and remove some of the glass embedded in your skin before transporting you.”
Glass? I looked down and saw dozens of shards sticking out of my arms. Blood was oozing everywhere.