Page 46 of The One for Forever

“Quinn,” I say. “Can you hear me?” There’s a lump forming on her head. She’s not responsive.

My hands are fuckingshakinglike my first mission as a nineteen-year-old PFC. My memory flashes to the day that I found Lydia collapsed on the floor of our bedroom. She’d had a stroke. There hadn’t even been time to call an ambulance for her.

My wife was gone within minutes.

I shouldn’t be thinking about that. But I look at Quinn unconscious on the floor, and panic spreads like poison through my veins. This woman who cared for me and Cliff after Lydia died. Who’s been my son’s best friend.Myfriend. And…someone I wish could be more.

I can’t sort out my feelings for her. Not right now.

I just know I can’t lose her too.

The first EMTs toarrive are from West Oaks Fire. Danny Bradley rushes down the hallway with his medical bag and kneels over Quinn, nudging me out of the way. “We’ll take it from here, Rex.”

I don’t want to leave her side. But I have to. A large hand rests on my shoulder as I watch Danny and another EMT working on Quinn. It’s Matteo De Luca, another firefighter and someone I consider a good friend. I protected his now-wife, Detective Angela De Luca, when she was being targeted a year or two back.

“Heard on the radio West Oaks PD are on their way,” Matteo says. “What happened?”

He knows what this is like. Watching helplessly when someone you care about is hurt. The look of concern on his face reflects everything that I’m feeling, but it doesn’t make me feel one iota better.

“I can’t talk now. I need to check in with my guys. We’re supposed to be guarding Quinn, but some asshole got into this secure building and hurt her.” I don’t want to leave Quinn, but I have to do my job. Before I step away, though, I grab Matteo’s arm. “Let me know if…if anything…”

He nods. “Go. We’ll take care of her.”

The next hour is a blur. Several patrol officers arrive. I find my teammates and am relieved to see they caught the piece of trash who attacked Quinn. He’s kicking and screaming when I come upon them. The patrol officers take him into custody.

Meanwhile, an ambulance arrives, and the paramedics load Quinn inside. By the time I find that out, the ambulance is already on its way to the hospital. Just as well, because I’d probably insist on riding inside. And I shouldn’t. Quinn doesn’t need me agonizing over what happened and holding her hand right now. She needs me to be a professional. To find out how that guy got into her building right under our noses and make sure nothing like this happens again.

When I get to the hospital, Cliff and Quinn’s friend Lark are already in the waiting room. I’m surprised they got here so soon. Cliff is in uniform, so I assume he heard from his colleagues at West Oaks PD. He might even have been on patrol himself. As for Lark, she’s Danny Bradley’s girlfriend. Yet I can’t imagine that he took a break from EMT duties to call her.

Doesn’t matter. What’s important is that I’ve spoken to Devon and Tanner, the co-captains of the bodyguard team. They’re calling in reinforcements to respond to the emergency. And to assess what the hell went wrong.

Cliff comes straight over to me. “Dad, I heard about Quinn getting hurt, but nobody knows anything more than that.”

A fresh wave of guilt sickens my stomach as I look at my son. “I saw it happen. Some guy attacked her. Knocked her into a wall. She was unconscious last I saw her.”

Lark is listening, and her eyes go wide, her hand flying to her mouth.

“But how?” Cliff asks. “How did this guy get close to her? I thought you were in charge of her security. Where were you?”

My throat feels like a fist is tightening around it, but I force the words out. “I left to pick us up some dinner.”Liar. That’s not why you first left.“My guys were supposed to have eyes on the building entrance. We are trying to figure it out.”

“But this is about that trial, right?” Lark asks. “Amber Printz and all that ridiculousness.”

“That’s something else I’m trying to confirm.”

Cliff takes out his phone, staring at the screen. Then he looks from Lark to me. “No, it’s confirmed. No doubt. Look at what one of our friends just sent me. This was live streamed on Instagram about an hour ago.”

He holds up his phone so we can see the video. It shows words being spray-painted in red on a door.Lying slut. Exactly what I saw outside Quinn’s office. Fury makes me clench my fists, insides boiling with indignation.

And then, to my horror, the door opens and Quinn appears in the video. She yells at the guy. But her eyes are already red when she opens the door, and I know why.

Because of me.

The video cuts off almost immediately after. “It looks like this account is all about Amber Printz,” Cliff says, studying his phone again and scrolling. “A fan. Anonymous, but not for long. We caught the guy, right? That’s what I was hearing. I just got off duty right before it happened.”

I nod. But at this point, I can barely keep myself standing upright. Knowing that this is likely my fault, that I could’ve protected Quinn if I’d been there beside her, is almost too much for me to take.

And Lark is peering at me like she can somehow sense it. Like she knows.

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