“Hey, look at me,” I say sternly, lightly shaking her.
Her eyes flicker. She blinks several times.
Suddenly, she gasps, and every muscle in her body tenses. A strange, strangled sound erupts from her throat as her body snaps out of the shock.
“I’ve got you, you’re ok. I’m right here,” I say over and over again. She reaches up and wraps her hands around my neck, clinging to me as she buries her face against my chest.
My heart melts as I pull her tighter against me. “I’ve got you, kitten. You’re safe now,” I whisper as relief washes over me.
“What...” she says, her voice small and muffled against my jacket.
I pull her away enough so that I can look at her. “What...” she stammers again.
“The warehouse was attacked,” I say with a sigh. “We’ve stopped them. It’s ok now.”
Suddenly, she pulls away from me, as though she has only just realized she was curled against me.
She pushes away and scoots across the floor before hurriedly standing up. For a moment, my vision blurs.
“Uh...” I mutter.
“You’re bleeding!” she yelps, moving closer again.
She grabs my jacket and tugs it aside, and I glance down at my own body to see a thick circle of red spreading across my shirt. “Well...shit,” I mutter.
Another wave of dizziness hits me again.
“Help!” Athena shouts.
“No, it’s ok. I can deal with it,” I mumble, trying to stand up.
She quickly slips her arm around my side and helps me. She’s so short, though, that it hardly does anything, and I chuckle at the idea of her supporting my weight.
“What’s so funny!” she asks, angry that I should laugh now.
“Sorry,” I mutter. “It’s not funny. I think I just need to sit down.”
“Where?” she snaps.
“Take me to the car, we need to get out of here. I’m useless if a second attack wave hits.”
“A second wave?” she says, horrified.
I tug my phone from my pocket and dial Antonio. He’s here somewhere.
He answers immediately.
“Boss!”
“You, ok?”
“Yeah, you?”
“Nothing major, but I do need to leave and get the bullet out of me. Have you got this?” I ask tensely.
“Go, I’ve got it. I’ll call you later. Must I send someone to drive you?”
I glance at Athena. “No, I’m fine here. I have help.”
