Simon tore the fabric in his hands as he walked back to Nora. There was a pained expression on his face as he examined her leg.
Her leg kept bleeding, but Nora shook her head profusely. Nora tried to brush his hands aside but he held hers tight. “Tilly first. I can’t . . . she matters more than my leg. I don’t like her being out there alone.”
Simon's tone was gruff. “No, Nora. You will let me lead right now. You are losing too much blood. Trust me. You fixed me and I will take care of you.”
A cry escaped her. “But Simon. . .”
Simon took a hand and lifted her head with a firm touch. There was fire in his eyes as he ran his finger gently against her chin. “I’m sorry I wasn’t here. I’m sorry that my anger made you come here alone initially.”
“No, it’s . . .” Tears rolled down her cheeks. “I knew you would come.”
Simon’s hand was soft on her leg. “Always. As soon as I’m done with this we will go to Tilly. She is outside the town. We will all go out to meet her together. She is in a safe spot, I promise. I need to get you ready to be moved.”
Swiftly, he took her leg and straightened it out. The pain made Nora unable to focus on anything else as she grimaced and let out a groan.It hurts so much.
Simon spoke through gritted teeth. “I’m sorry. I need to get this tied to stop the blood.”
Nora saw stars in her vision as Simon took a measure of the makeshift bandage and wrapped her leg quickly. She tried not to jerk away during his movements and instead looked over at the quiet baking equipment around the room. Across to her, Anna watched on with hollow eyes.
With the bandage tied tight, Simon took off her shoe and pinched her toe. “Blood flow is fine. I’ll do this better once we are out of town.” He stood, walking toward the front room. “Tilly is safe. Wait here a moment. We will go to her.”
“Where are you going?”
He paused. “To look out front. We need to figure out the best way to get out.”
Nora watched him walk away and attempted, unsuccessfully, to gather her feet under her to stand. The pain made her give up a second later and she sank back to the ground.
“Where are you going then? Once you’re out of town?” Anna asked, holding a hand to her pregnant belly as she came and sat next to Nora. “Paul . . . I can’t . . .”
Nora’s head was so woozy, and her ears were still ringing. She focused on Anna’s scared face. “We’re getting the hell out of here. You’re coming too. Just wait for Simon, okay?”
Chapter forty-nine
Simon
Simon’s hands were shaking now in the aftermath. He forced them into fists.Focus.The bakery was so quiet compared to the threat and action before.
If he were human, he would have said his shaking was from the adrenaline wearing off, but as he didn’t possess that chemical reaction, he rationalized his shaking as the shock of taking life. That was still not easy, even for an android. With hands clenched at his side, he walked past the bodies in the front room, focused on the small windows ahead.We need to get out. I can process what happened myself later.
Taking care of Nora took priority. His tongue felt thick in his mouth as he calculated how much blood she lost. And then compared that amount to the pools on the bakery floor. Simon shook his head.Focus. Need more data.
He utilized his connection, updating the androids on his actions after entering the bakery and the fight that ensued. On the other end the androids listened in.
“Tilly?”he asked over the connection. There was a small opening in the blinds that he looked through, assessing the situation. He scanned up and down the street.Mostly deserted. A few people were outside, farther down. He saw glances toward the bakery too often to be coincidence.
“Tilly is fine and waiting,”came Stella’s reply.
Simon looked up at the sky outside. It was still just midday.“Okay. I’m going to bring Nora out now. Her leg is damaged.”He tracked the people’s movements down the street.“I might need a cover here. A distraction. I don’t know who is watching or when the man who ran off will return.”
Stella answered,“We can arrange something.”
He peered through the blinds again.“Nora’s hover is right there to the side. If we can get into it and out of the area then everything should be fine.”
“They’re gonna know and come. Probably just getting ready now,” Anna said, glumly, coming up beside him. Blood was in her light brown hair that curled around her face.
Simon focused on her. “Yes, there’s people on the street.”
Anna kept her eyes away from where the bodies were. In a shaky voice she tapped on the window. “Paul’s buddies were all shop owners here, the ones that aren’t . . . still in here . . . will see us come on out and know something went wrong. Gang members too.”
