She moved to a crouch to flip him over her, but he swept his leg at her knees hard enough that she lost her breath from the pain. KC threw herself at his side while he still had one leg up, toppling them both to the ground with her on top. The helicopters were loud now, their bright lights blasting into the small, high window of the room. She became aware of her own breathing and Dr. Brown’s, louder even than the chatter in her ear.
The engines were roaring. KC could hear shouting outside. Dr. Brown dragged himself to his feet, his mouth set in a sour grimace. “I should have let you get yourself arrested.”
She heard the shouts of soldiers at the front door, followed by the huge bang of a battering ram creating her way out.
She glanced behind her just in time to see Dr. Brown pull the USB cord on the bomb.
“Fall back!” she screamed, moving without conscious thought toward the sound of the battering ram as the detonator began to rapidly blink red.
Later, she would think a lot about what stopped her. About her complete lack of hesitation when she turned on a dime, ran back into the study, and—in a show of strength she could only thank her hours at the gym and pure adrenaline for—yanked Dr. Brown out of the room. They emerged onto the lawn to the sight of a line of National Guard behind blast shields. She pushed himpast the line and fell behind it while actively questioning many of the life choices that had led her to this point.
The house exploded, and the world went silent.
When KC opened her eyes, she briefly panicked, feeling like she couldn’t move her body, until she oriented to Yardley’s smiling face—her eyes wet, the lights way too bright—and realized she was under a heated and weighted blanket in a hospital room.
Lights. Thank god.
She pulled an arm out from under the blanket. A hand slipped into hers. She turned her head.
Yardley.
So, so beautiful.
“You’re so beautiful,” KC said. She couldn’t really hear. There was a far-away ringing that turned her voice into nothing but low vibration. Her heartbeat was loud. “Really beautiful. Like a goddess. Have I told you that before? That’s what you looked like when I first saw you. You had a white dress. Maybe a crown. Did you have a crown?”
Yardley laughed, but KC couldn’t hear it. “Can you read lips?” Yardley asked this with her mouth but not with her voice. KC wondered if Yardley would kiss her.
“I learned in training.” KC pulled her other arm out and put her hand against her throat to feel if she was talking. “For the CIA. From being a spy.” She dropped her arm to her chest and felt a painful pinch on her hand.
“Careful, you’ll pull out your IV.” It was nice to watch Yardley’s mouth, her cupid’s bow, and how her dimples sank in on words likeyou’ll. She tucked KC’s arm along her side with the IV and straightened the tubing. There was a nasal cannula in KC’snose. Oxygen. KC felt a little sleepy, and it made her remember she’d woken up before now, looked at Yardley, and then fallen asleep again. She worked to keep her eyes open.
Then her heart started pounding. She remembered.
“Is everyone okay? Are there any injuries? Is anyone—”
Yardley put her hand on KC’s chest. “My gorgeous love, you’re a hero. A real hero. You asked all this before. Zero casualties.We got Dr. Brown. We all got lucky. Flynn’s code worked.”
As soon as Yardley reminded her, KC remembered asking. That’s why she’d been able to fall back asleep. She looked around the room, saw her monitor and all her vitals, her IV pump. There was a whiteboard with her name and weight on it. It said she was a fall risk.
“Am I okay?”
“You’re at Walter Reed. You have a concussion, but they don’t expect complications. You have a bad ankle sprain. You may need some surgery on it. A lot of cuts, scrapes, and bruises. A burn that looks like a sunburn over your back from the heat of the blast, but that should heal well. Your hearing will come back slowly.”
Yardley’s fingers were in KC’s hair, sifting, playing, twirling. It felt amazing. She looked amazing. Did she know that KC loved her?
“I love you,” KC said. “Go on a date with me.”
Yardley grinned. “Very smooth.”
“I played it smooth the first time. This time, I’m just going to say it. Who cares if I’m smooth if I can love you? Let me love you. Let me love you until you move in with me again. Which you can’t do yet.”
“No,” Yardley said. “Not yet.”
“Yardley?” KC wished one of the monitors could show whatwas inside her heart. She wanted Yardley to see exactly how big her love was, with a number. A number that meant no woman had been loved more on this earth than Yardley Whitmer.
“Yes?”
“I can’t tell you, but it’s not going to be very long before you can move back in with me.”
