He’d had to let her go. Waking up as his hands wrapped around her arm so crushing it had left bruises… Christ. He’d wanted to turn himself in for assault, but Mae was so quick to dismiss what had happened.
Headlights flooded the building from behind him. Stone turned, looking at the vehicle that had slowed to barely a crawl as it moved towards him. Somewhere in the back of his mind, alarm bells started going off. There was no reason someone should have their high beams on like that.
He shielded his eyes as the car pulled over, the window slowly rolling down. A shadow sat in the passenger seat, but after a few blinks to adjust his eyes to the darkness, recognition blazed through him.
“What are you… it’s been you this whole time?”
“Payback, old friend.”
Stone froze as an arm reached out through the rolled down window. The gun pointed directly at his chest went off without a second thought.
His body jerked, launching into the air as he tripped over his own feet in surprise at the impact. The car sped off, leaving him suspended in his confusion. Stone looked down, his hand pressing against the pain his body was starting to process. When he pulled it away, blood came away with it.
Shit.
Two shots.
Two bullet wounds.
From the way it was hard to breath, there was likely one shot that did some damage to his chest. The low burning in his abdomen from the other said the second shot was in his belly. The weight of his body finally caused his legs to buckle. As his body crashed down to the road, Stone was faintly aware of his proximity to the curb. But there was nothing he coulddo. His body was moving infinitely slower than his mind, until the moment his head smashed into the concrete, and everything went black.
“Doc!”
“Doc!! Damn it!”
Someone was calling for him. Stone wanted to answer. Desperately. He wanted to open his eyes. To crawl out of the darkness. But there was something, some reason, why he couldn’t.
“Mae…”
Hands gripped his arms, rolling him onto his back. Blinding pain ignited again in his chest. Why was this asshole hurting him?
At least he didn’t have to deal with breathing dirt anymore. Although, from the rapidly deteriorating state of his body, he’d bet that soon, he wouldn’t be breathing at all. Stone’s eyes rolled off the dark, unforgiving night sky, to the man next to him. The one trying to save his life.
The one who should be trying to end it. Hawk.
“Shit. You’re fucking bleeding out. Fuck…. I need…”
“Stop,”he moaned.“Mae…”
“No. Fuck no. You’re not dying with things still left to say to my sister. Like how you’re fucking sorry you broke her heart and it was the biggest fucking mistake of your life. HOW MANY RINGS DOES IT TAKE FOR FUCKING 9-1-1 TO ANSWER! Don’t you dare think you are leaving this life without me getting to beat the shit out of you for making my sister love you and then breaking her heart. And don’t get me started about how pissed I am you didn’t tell me about you guys.”
“Mae…”
“I need an ambulance. Silver Springs. Ford Avenue, in front of Dolly’s diner. My friend has two bullet wounds he’s bleeding out from. One in his chest and one in his abdomen.He’s not…it’s going to be okay, Stone. Just stay with me.There's a lot of blood, and he’s out of it…right. Yes.”
Acceptance washed over Stone. This was it. The moment he’d witnessed too many people go through in his life. Those souls had been taken in war. And his was being taken for the war he started within himself.
“Keep your fucking eyes open. Help is coming. Don’t you even think of making me responsible for telling Mae you’re gone from this world. Don’t do that to me. That’s a fucking order, Frogman!”
“Not… my… command.”
“Fuck you…” The world around Stone began to dissolve away in a swirl of darkness. “No, hey, Doc, no no no. Keep your eyes focused on me. Okay? You just keep looking at my pretty face. It’ll keep you going. Focus on me.”
His vision was gone, nothing but darkness now. There was no feeling in his arms or his legs. In fact, every part of his body felt distant. Muted. Warm. Like he was floating through an early morning fog. Stone’s chest no longer hurt. Neither did his head or his belly. And the truth in that moment crushed him.
He was dying.
Fast.
