Page 71 of Ramshackle
Vera drops her hand and runs, disappearing around the corner.
I don’t breathe until she’s gone, and then I’m hauling deep breaths as the world spins. My heart is jackhammering in my chest, but I hadn’t even realized it until now. My fight instinct kept me focused on Vera, on doing whatever it took to keep her from killing me without actually fighting back.
I glance at my hands and find the fading glow of my gift.
Shit.
When had I turned that on? Or did my body do it on instinct?
If Vera had tried to kill me, then would I have killed her first?
“Raegan!” Aiden shouts. He takes one look at me from the end of the aisle and then, in his imposing tone, shouts, “Jackson!” He runs down the aisle to me, and Jack appears on my other side at the same time. “What happened? Is Gordon here?”
Jackson pulls a strip of fabric from somewhere and wraps it gently around my neck.
“What? Oh, no. It was Vera.” They both freeze. Jackson turns first like he’s about to take off after her, but I grab the fabric of his hoodie. “Let her go. Have you seen any goons? Are Dane and Kellan safe?”
“We’ll get them and head out now. They said you were looking for us, so we came to find you, and I’m glad we did,” Aiden replies while inspecting the other wounds on my face and body. “I’ll have Cassandra meet us in your room, and you can tell us what happened on the way.”
Chapter twenty
Raegan
Aiden opens the doorafter a few short knocks, and Cassandra bursts inside with her hands thrown up. “Where is she?” Her red curls bounce as she swivels her head to seek me out. It doesn’t take her long to find me seated in one of the sofa chairs next to the bed, and her nose sprinkled with freckles twitches as she takes me in.
Her eyes switch between the guys, who are all positioned throughout the room, and she frowns. “Why is she the only one injured? Why is shealwaysthe one who gets hurt?”
Is she…angryforme? Or complaining about needing to heal me again instead of getting to touch one of the guys?
“It’s not a big deal. I told Aiden he didn’t need to call you,” I respond defensively.
She strides over to me and perches herself on the arm of the chair—which is a bit closer than I would have liked—before she presses a palm against my chest. Cassandra shakes her head.“You’ve been awake aweekand this is now the second time I’m healing you. Is trouble drawn to you, or do you seek it out?”
Before I can answer, she pins Aiden beneath a stare. “There are four strong and fully capable men around you who shouldn’t let you get hurt anymore. We all know you’ve been through enough.”
Oh.
Since when does she care about how hurt I am? But I don’t care for her attacking the guys, either. The attack at Old Red and the fight with Vera are both my fault, not theirs. If I hadn’t pushed Aiden to go back for Portia’s hair clip or gone off on my own in the library, neither would have happened.
“Don’t blame them for my actions. I’m responsible for them.”
Warmth fills my chest from her hand. Her eyes glow, appearing sightless as she searches for every wound to heal. Cassandra makes a clucking sound.
“We ordered a doctor, not a lecture,” Dane snipes from the loveseat sofa in the middle of the room.
Kellan chuckles and adds, “If you think it’s so easy to keep my girl from getting into trouble, you’re welcome to join us tomorrow to see for yourself.”
“Don’t jinx us!” Dane snaps at him. “And stop calling her that. It’s like you’re pissing on her to make a point.”
Kell’s grin widens. “And what if I am? She doesn’t mind me calling her that. Do you, beautiful?”
Nope. “Don’t drag me into that.”
Cassandra smiles, even as her eyes stay simultaneously focused and far away. The warmth has spread throughout my body, easing the ache and pain from the various shallow cuts. Before long, she retracts her hand, and her eyes return to their green-gold color. “I know it doesn’t seem like a lot, but your body will need rest from the healing. If you’re planning on joining themission tomorrow, then I recommend staying in this room to rest for the remainder of today.”
“Thank you, Cassandra,” Aiden speaks up.
“Of course,” she says with a nod. “I’ll be around today and tomorrow if you need anything else. But try not to need anything else,” she adds with a soft laugh while standing.
