Page 4 of Dangerous Desires
He called it.
But a few days after that, a crazed mad man came into the building, guns blazing. He had been talking with Crew in Crew’s office when they heard the first gun shot. He was next to Crew as the man railed at Steele that they had killed his brother. As they talked, Jet moved to the side slowly, wanting to cage the man in, but he was not in the right state of mind and started shooting.
The other men were able to jump behind desks or chairs, but he only had a small column that didn’t hide his bulky form. The man turned on him, his gun going off three separate times and Jet cried out as the slugs hit him in the arm and the stomach. He felt the heat of his blood flowing free from his body and he fell to the ground, and waited for the next shot, but it didn’t come. Blackness threatened to overtake him when he heard more shots ring out and the man dropped to the ground. He started breathing hard, trying to blink the darkness away when he heard Crew drop to his knees beside him. Norma put his head in her lap, and he tasted metal in his mouth. He finally shut his eyes, letting the darkness claim him.
He didn’t feel the EMTs load him into the ambulance or them cutting his clothes from him. The next memory he had was of waking in the dark hospital room. He felt like he was floating and yet, was still in pain. He tried to move his head, his arms. Anything, but they seemed to be held down by cement. Letting out a groan, he turned his head to the side with all the strength he had left. His mom was sitting in a chair at his bedside. She was asleep, her head dropped forward. She had dark circles under them, and they were red.
He wanted to reach out to her, but he couldn’t move his arm. It pulled and made him groan with pain. His mom stirred and blinked, running a hand over her eyes as she looked around and saw him awake.
“Jet? Oh, thank god.” She pushed a button on his bed and leaned forward and kissed his forehead.
“W-what happened?” He croaked out and she shook her head, “A man came into your building and shot you. He had a vendetta against the men who killed his brother. That was a few days ago.”
He felt his eyebrows lift, “It was?”
She nodded, “You were hit in the stomach, and while the bullets missed your major organs, it did nick your appendix, so that’s gone. The doctors said you are the luckiest man alive. Most men would die from shots like you took. Your shoulder was the worst. It hit your right lung at the top.”
Jet nodded slowly and she went on, “They had to repair it. It wasn’t easy and you had a collapsed lung. But they said you should make a full recovery.”
Jet shut his eyes in relief, and then opened them.
“Is Crew okay?”
His mom nodded, “He is fine. He is going to get released soon. But you have to stay for a little while longer to observe you.”
Jet nodded and shut his eyes again. Unable to keep them open for much longer. He let the blackness take him again and when he woke the next time, Scout was by his bed with his mom. He had dark circles under his eyes like his mom and his jaw was set in a tense line.
Scout noticed he was awake and stood, “Hey there. How are you feeling?”
Jet sighed, “Like I was run over by a truck.”
Scout smiled a tiny bit, “You got shot three times. I would imagine it doesn’t feel good.”
Jet coughed out a laugh and then nodded, “You are right. It doesn’t feel good.”
Scout smiled, “You get to get out of here soon. I hope.”
Gwen stood up, “He should be good to go next week. They want to still observe him, but he is good. They said his lung hasn’t had any lasting damage. So that’s good.”
Jet loved that his mom took such good care of him and Scout gave her a side hug.
“Good. I’m glad he is going to make a full recovery. That was a little scary.”
Jet nodded, “It was. How did he get in again?”
Scout told him the whole story and Jet lay back against his bed as he listened. He and Scout talked for a little longer and when a nurse came in, she checked on his bandages and the stitches in his stomach and shoulder. It pulled a little, but he had some pain meds, so he didn’t mind it.
When the nurse looked down at him, she smiled, “The doctor will be in in a little while.”
Jet nodded and his mom said, “Thanks.”
The nurse touched his mom’s arm softly and then walked out of the room. Scout’s phone dinged and he smiled, “Joslyn is almost done with her paintings. She wants to make sure you are there.”
Jet pushed the button on his bed to sit up higher. “I will be there.”
His mom stood, “Are you sure?”
Jet nodded, “I am absolutely sure. She is Crew’s girl. And our sister now.”
