“You’re not… You’re not okay. I’m so sorry.”
His eyes flicked to my face, and I saw the guilt there, carved deep.
“I have to get you out of here, but first… please don’t look.”
He settled me down slowly and stood, walking over to where Rook still wallowed on the ground. He hadn’t even tried to get up, to run. I realized now that Halo hadn’t killed him on purpose. He wanted it to be more personal.
“You aren’t going to have any rest,” Halo choked, crouching over him. “I’m sending you to hell, and I’m going to be right there behind you. I’m going to torture you for eternity for what you did to her.”
Rook sneered at him, gulping and bubbling at the mouth as he tried to speak. “Matteo already knows about her and about you. It’s too late. You’ll never get the drop on him.”
Halo stood slowly and looked back at me, repeating, “Don’t look.”
My eyelids fluttered, chest aching. “I want to.”
He hesitated, but let me. He raised his booted foot and smashed it down on Rook’s head. It folded in like wet cardboard. I’d never seen anyone’s head stomped before, obviously, but how easily it crushed caught me off guard. Despite having said I wanted to watch, I turned away as Rook’s body convulsed and fought, and Halo continued kicking him until he was still. The sound of bone splintering echoed in the otherwise quiet room.
Halo came back to me, running his hands along my arms, my ribs, checking for breaks. His touch was gentle, but still trembling. Then he adjusted the pack on his shoulders before he lifted me in his arms, one under my knees and the other under my arms.
“I can walk.”
He didn’t respond as he hurried me out the back door. As we passed Rook’s body – just a pulpy mess from the shoulders up – I realized the body was still making noises. Moaning, trying to scream.
The air outside hit me like a wave of unbearable heat on my raw skin. Halo carried me like I weighed nothing, like I wasn’tshaking, wasn’t bleeding all over him. His breathing was fast and harsh in my ear, but he never broke stride.
We were halfway across the fenced in property when I heard it. Another crack, this one louder and more harsh. A gunshot that was sharp and close. Halo jerked, his body flinched against mine, arms tightening like a vice. A rough grunt tore from his throat and he stumbled forward, knees dipping under our combined weight, but he didn’t fall.
“Shit,” he hissed through clenched teeth. “Hold on to me.”
He spun and ducked behind one of the rusted-out cars in the dirt lot. His hands shook as he lowered me to the ground behind it, checking me once. Eyes scanning me head to toe, looking for new damage. I saw it, though: blood. Dark and spreading down his lower back. He’d been shot.
“No. No, no, no…” I choked out, reaching out for him.
“Areyouokay?” he asked, voice already distant like he was somewhere inside himself, holding the rest of the world at arm’s length.
“You’re bleeding,” I whispered. “You—”
Another shot rang out and I heard it make a metallic clink as it hit the hood of the old car. Halo grabbed the pistol from his waist and sprung into a standing position. I watched as yet another shot caught him in the shoulder, and he reeled back with a curse, his body slamming against the side of the car.
But now he knew where the shooter was. He took two steps to the side and fired twice without hesitation.
Silence again.
Halo turned to me. His face was pale, teeth clenched, and sweat dripped down his temple. He looked like he could barely see, and still he reached for me.
“No… don’t. Just stop, please,” I begged. “You can’t carry me, you’ll—”
“I said I’ve got you. I have to keep myself between you and this place… just in case…”
In case someone shot at us again.My heart sank. He pulled me into his arms again. I could feel his pulse racing. Every breath was a grunt of effort. His knees buckled once near the edge of the lot, and I swore I felt him start to go down, but then he surged forward again like pure willpower was holding him together.
The car was just ahead: damaged worse than it had been when I last saw it. The windshield was cracked and… I’m sure that was blood. He got the door open and dropped me gently onto my feet. Then he collapsed against the side of the car, one hand braced on the roof, the other gripping the frame like it was the only thing tethering him to the ground.
“Halo.”
He looked at me, eyelids heavy, lips tinged with blue. He exhaled like he’d been holding his breath since the moment he walked into that warehouse.
“I just… need a second,” he said, blinking slowly.
