seventh hijacker.
Vilchez was Luis’s last name, and she was obviously related to him. Sister, wife…it didn’t matter.
Blood was seeping through the bandage on her hand, and Trigger spared only a brief thought as to what might’ve happened to her. He was more concerned about making sure she never got a chance to hurt Gillian again. She’d done enough. More than enough.
He hauled her upright and quickly secured her hands behind her back with a zip-tie. He had a feeling Gillian might make fun of him later for having the damn things on his person, but he’d learned the hard way on a mission to always have a way of securing the enemy.
It was only then that he looked back at Gillian. Lefty was on top of her, looking back at him. Lucky and Doc come up next to Trigger, and he immediately let them take control of the spitting-mad woman he’d tackled.
“The police are on their way. And Brain’s calling Branch and Tucker,” Lucky told him.
Trigger heard his friend’s words, but he couldn’t look away from Gillian as Lefty slowly moved off her.
Blood. It was staining the ground under her, but he couldn’t tell where it was coming from. Feeling as if he was moving in slow motion, he went toward her. Gillian blinked. Then blinked again. But this time it took a moment for her eyes to re-open.
Everything in Trigger’s world stopped. “No,” he said in a choked whisper as he went to his knees next to Gillian.
“I’m sorry,” she said in a rasp he could barely hear. “I shouldn’t have left the lobby with her.”
“Don’t talk,” he ordered, terrified out of his mind, any and all medical knowledge he had going straight out the window. This was his woman lying there bleeding—and he couldn’t think of one damn thing to do about it!
“It’s Andrea.”
“I know,” he said. “Please, don’t talk.”
Her eyes closed again. “Salazar beat her up because she lied and told him I knew who she was, and was telling the authorities.”
“Don’t leave me!” Trigger begged. “I can’t live without you.”
Her eyes opened again, and she looked up at him in confusion.
“Save your strength. The ambulance will be here any second. Just hang on.”
“Walker—” she began, her brow drawing into a frown.
“Shhh,” he ordered.
“I’m not dying, Walker,” she told him firmly.
He looked at the blood under her and pressed his lips together.
“I’m not,” she insisted. “My arm hurts like hell, and I think Lefty squished all the air out of my body when he jumped on me to protect me from stray bullets, but I’m not dying. At least…I don’t think I am.”
Trigger blinked, took a breath—and everything suddenly came into focus. The blood under her was only on one side. Her pupils were reacting to light, and her breathing was a little fast but even.
“Fuck,” he said, sitting back on his heels. “Fuck, fuck, fuck!”
He heard Lefty and Grover chuckling from next to him.
“Shit, man, you seriously thought she was dying?” Lefty asked.
“Shut up,” Trigger grumbled.
“You did!” Grover crowed. “Hey guys, Trigger saw a little blood and freaked out!”
He tuned-out the ribbing his team was giving him when he felt Gillian touch his arm. He immediately leaned closer and grabbed hold of her hand.
“I’m okay,” she told him quietly.
Trigger nodded. “Now that I can think straight, it looks like it’s just a graze. But you’re still going to the hospital,” he said sternly.
“Okay, but only long enough for them to sew me up. I’m exhausted. I’ve worked my ass off today, and you promised to do dirty things to me when we got home.”
He barked out a laugh and closed his eyes as he shook his head. When he opened them again, he saw tears in Gillian’s eyes. “I’m sorry about Andrea.”
“Me too,” she agreed.
Trigger knew Gillian would have some hard days ahead of her. They’d both known the seventh hijacker was one of the passengers, but to have been betrayed by someone she’d thought was her friend had to hurt. He’d do whatever it took to erase the pain and betrayal from her eyes. He also knew spending time with her true friends—Ann, Wendy, and Clarissa—would help as well.
But he had no doubt his Wonder Woman would straighten her shoulders and be back to her usual brave self sooner rather than later. As sirens sounded in the distance, Trigger vowed to be by her side every step of the way.
Epilogue
Gillian held on to the couch with fingers that had turned white with strain as Walker