“No.”
“Then the hospital is the last place he should be going. Too many questions. He won’t go, and even if he did, it’d cause more problems than it solves,” the man stresses.
“He’s going to die if we don’t do something,” I snap, the fear finally breaking through my composure. “I’m watching him fade in front of me.”
“You’re not taking him to a hospital,” he repeats, softer this time but no less certain. “Trust me.”
Trust?The word feels obscene right now, but something in his tone keeps me from arguing further.
“What do I do then?”
“Listen carefully. I’m pinning you a location. It’s a small airfield Ryder had set up for extraction. I’ll have a plane there as fast as humanly possible with a surgeon on board.”
The phone buzzes a second later, the map lighting up with coordinates.
“Can you get him there?” he asks.
I glance down at Ryder, his skin pale beneath the blood and bruises, his chest rising shallowly under my hands. The thought of moving him makes my stomach churn.
“I’ll manage. I have to.”
“Good. Keep pressure on the wound, and don’t let him fall asleep.”
“I’m already doing that.”
There’s a brief exhale on the other end of the line. “You’re doing great, Kate.”
The unexpected kindness nearly undoes me.
“Who am I talking to?” I ask.
“Beck, his brother,” he introduces.
Of course he is.
“I’ll stay on standby,” Beck continues. “If anything changes, and I mean anything, you call me back. You’re not alone in this.”
The call ends, leaving the house silent again.
I lower the phone slowly, my hands trembling now that the immediate task has a shape. I press my fingers back into Ryder’s abdomen, watching his face for any sign of awareness.
“Hey,” I murmur, brushing my thumb over his jaw. “Hear that? I’m going to get you out of here. You’re not getting rid of me that easily.”
His lashes flutter, but he doesn’t wake up.
Downstairs, Julian cries, and the sound slices straight through me. I press a kiss to Ryder’s forehead before pushing myself to my feet, planning how I’m going to do this. Because no matter what stands in my way, I will get him to that airfield.
22
RYDER
Deep, heavy, and quick-spreading pain pulls me back from unconsciousness. My whole body feels like it’s cold and burning at the same time, with nerves misfiring and sending messages that arrive late and wrong. I try to breathe through it, but my ribs argue with the idea. The next thing I register is sound.
“Ryder— hey Ryder, stay with me. Please.”
Kate.
My eyes crack open to a gray sky and blurred pine branches sliding past above me. I’m moving—more like being dragged, hauled, and half-carried. My leg screams when it bumps againstsomething solid, and I make a sound that barely qualifies as human.
