Page 19 of Leave Me (Touch of Death 2)
“Ready?” she asks, her brows pulled tightly together in concentration.
I toss the pistols to the floor and reach behind me, pulling the rifle from my back. I load a clip in it before our eyes meet. I notice the slightest trace of fear in my sister’s eyes, and I can’t recall ever seeing it where Dante wasn’t concerned.
“Go.” She moves left and I go right, spraying a wall of bullets, meeting each and every target.
Bodies fall just as quickly as the shells that tinkle over the rough concrete at my feet. I take another bullet in the leg, but the pain barely registers. I’m numb to anything but the gratifying violence of destroying my enemies. The last bullet leaves the chamber, and a resounding click follows it as I pull the trigger. And then there’s nothing but silence. I hear only the panting rasp of my own breaths and the hammering of my pulse.
Una moves in front of me, a frown marring her face. “You’re hit.”
“I’m fine.” But as the adrenaline ebbs away, I start to register that I’m not.
Una removes her jacket and takes off her hoody. “What are you doing? We need to leave.”
“I need to slow that bleeding.” The pain creeps in inch by inch, but it’s not my leg. I follow her line of sight to my stomach and the wet patch that’s creeping over my jacket.
She grabs the zipper and tears it down, allowing the icy cold air to seep through my clothing. Warm moisture turns ice cold against my skin, and I shiver. She lifts my shirt, and her expression tightens further. Taking her wadded-up hoody, she shoves it against my skin.
“Hold that.” She tugs my compression clothing back down over the balled-up hoody and zips my jacket. “Go. I’ll be there in a minute.” She shoves me toward the door we came in.
With each step, I’m reminded of the lesser wound to my leg. When I get into the hallway, I brace against the wall and glance down at the neat hole in my pants, only a few inches away from the one Adelina gave me. At the thought of her, I squeeze my eyes shut and try to force my mind in another direction. Any other direction. Every time I think of her, this feral kind of madness comes over me. I can’t control it, and I hate her for it. Gritting my teeth, I smack my palm against the wall and zero my mind on the pain that reverberates through my entire body. I focus on it and embrace it with open arms. Anything to pull my mind from going in that direction.
A few moments later and the door screeches open on rusted hinges. Luckily, it’s Una that steps through and not a stray Elite because my reaction time is at snail’s pace right now. My head spins, and in the deathly silence of the warehouse, all I can hear is my labored breaths mingling with the steady drip, drip, drip of blood splattering over the rough concrete beneath my feet. A look of concern passes over Una’s face as she inspects the gunshot.
“You’re losing blood.”
“I’m fine.”
Wordlessly, she yanks my arm around her neck and supports my weight as we walk back out into the blizzard. Everything swirls around me, and it feels as though I could simply be swept away in the storm. We’re only a few steps away when I hear the loud bang from behind, followed by the smashing of the glass windows high above us and a subsequent rush of heat that engulfs my back. That small burst of warmth is a welcome blessing to my freezing body. By the time we reach the hired SUV, Una is practically carrying me. She shoves me into the passenger seat, and I’m relieved to be able to sit and rest. My entire body feels weak, and I know it’s the blood loss. Reaching down, I unzip my coat and pull up my compression shirt. The hoody that Una wadded against my stomach is soaked through, and blood now pools, soaking into the waistband of my combat pants. I press the blood-drenched material back to the wound and allow my head to fall against the seat. My teeth grind over each other as wave after wave of pain washes over me.
The drivers door slams. “Sasha.” Una grabs my face before I feel a sharp sting reverberate over my cheek; I blink my eyes open and find her glaring at me. “Stay awake!”
The engine starts, and Una instantly tunes the radio to a rock channel, blaring it loudly. The sweet relief of the heaters is short-lived before she cuts them off and winds down the window. The icy blast of the wind brings flurries of snow with it, and I shiver violently in my damp clothing. She’s trying to keep me awake, but it doesn’t matter. Tiredness falls over me like an iron curtain, and my body feels limp. Darkness beckons me, so inviting, so easy, and part of me wants to fall into it. My eyelids become so heavy that I can’t physically open them.
