Page 115 of Bound Bride
My heel catches on one of the raised floorboards.
Tripping backward, I catch the back of a dusty, moth-eaten couch to steady myself as Mathew lifts the gun and aims it straight toward me.
"Rose!" Beatie's screams fill the room as Mathew opens fire.
Gunshots right through the air like short, sharp explosions and Beatie's screams are deafening, but the pain doesn't hit me until I topple over the couch and land in a heap on the other side.
It's like he punched me hard from across the room and all the breath trapped in my chest escapes in one long, pained rush.
Heat rapidly spreads across my torso and my thumping heart suddenly fills my ears, blocking out the chaos of more screams and further gunshots.
He shot me.
The bastard actually shot me.
I use the last of my strength to roll over onto my back while that tight heat spreads through my body like wildfire.
I can't breathe.
I try, but something catches beneath my ribs like my bones have locked together.
Everything grows hot and cold at the same time, and when I blink, a tear rolls down the side of my head to my ear.
I tried.
I tried so hard to keep everyone safe and I failed.
I blink slowly and suddenly the crumbling ceiling is blocked from view by the shadow of a face.
I know that face.
A face holding gray eyes that warm the darkness around me like slivers of moonlight.
Dark strands of hair curve across his forehead and those eyes crinkle with deep worry and concern, while an achingly warm hand cups the side of my face.
More pressure is added to my body and my lips part with a touch of blood coating my lower lip.
"Rose!" Kon's voice is distant, and his lips move slowly as if they're lagging behind what reaches me.
"I—" Words catch in my throat as far too many things wrestle with one another in the limited time I have left to say anything. "I-I'm sorry…"
"Rose! You are okay! You are going to be okay, you hear me? Look at me, Rose. I am here. It is going to be okay!"
I blink slowly and the drumming in my ears grows infinitely louder.
"Rose, look at me!"
Darkness is peaceful in the end.
37
ROSE
Pain lances through my chest like air is trapped beneath my ribs and fighting to claw its way out with shards of glass.
I gasp raggedly and my eyes snap open, only to be blinded by bright light that forces them closed instantly.
Sharp beeps go off beside me, and a sudden restriction around my chest draws another gasp.
