Page 173 of The Forbidden Note

“Zane!”

Pain strikes my chest. That’s the voice that breaks me. That makes me start shaking all over.

I don’t want her near this.

She can’t see this.

“Zane, no, no.” Grey kneels beside me and cradles my face between her hands. “Zane.”

“I’m… fine,” I manage to choke out.

It’s the last thing I say before the world goes black.

CHAPTERFORTY-TWO

GREY

“The surgery was successful.” The doctor holds up an X-ray to the light. “Thankfully, there’s no severe head trauma and only minor lacerations. The bad news is his wrist is badly damaged. He’ll need to wear a splint for at least six weeks and then go through physical therapy—”

“But he’ll heal,” Dutch says, his voice husky and raw. “Right?”

The doctor’s face is grim. “Yes. But…”

“But what?” Finn demands.

The doctor goes quiet. “Bones heal, but tendons don’t. I haven’t seen a fracture this bad in a long time…”

My heart thunders.

I feel sick to my stomach.

“Will he be able to play drums again?” Sol growls.

“It will be hard to know for sure until we get him into physical therapy—”

“Will he. Play. Again?” Sol shrieks.

The room goes quiet.

I glance at Sol. His face is bloody and his eyes are swollen, the left one purple and almost completely shut. There’s blood on his shirt and bruises down his arms and neck. He refused to let any of the nurses see him. The moment he got to the hospital, all he did was pace up and down outside Zane’s surgical ward.

“I don’t know,” the doctor admits.

His words slam against us.

I feel my heart shatter.

If Zane hadn’t rescued me from Hall, the crazy junior wouldn’t have come back for revenge.

Even the fact that we can’t call the police is on me. If the authorities start asking questions about Hall, they’re going to want to know what we were doing tonight.

I’m responsible for this mess.

I’m responsible for all of it.

The doctor clears his throat. “Mr. Cross is young and healthy. He’ll recover well. And in regards to his wrist… I’m sure he can find a new hobby.”

Sol grabs the doctor by the collar. “You don’t understand. Heneedsto play. It’s who he is. It’s why he breathes.”

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