Chapter 42—Jade

Raine is unconscious on the ground bleeding out. I'm also on the ground but still tied to the chair. My heart is pounding so fast I’m surprised I haven’t had a heart attack already. Both Ezekiel and his gunman are knocked out for the time being, thanks to Raine. I just don’t want him to die. I was so scared when I saw him here in front of me. I didn’t want Ezekiel to kill him. Oh, please don’t let him bleed to death. We need to secure these guys before they wake up. But I don’t want Hope to stop applying pressure to Raine’s wound.

I hear a boat approaching outside. Is it another one of Ezekiel’s men? Or could it be the police? I don’t know how Hope and Raine got here or where my Dad is. “Hope, do you hear the boat?” She runs over to the window quickly. “I think I see Detective Bennett! Yes, its him. And your Dad is with him! They must have followed the tracker they put on me.” She rushes back over to Raine and pushes down on the bullet hole again. “Thank god they found us. I don’t know how long he’s going to make it Jade.” I hear the terror in her voice. “I need to go out there and tell them where we are.” She runs out of the building quickly. I hear her calling to them. Then voices and footsteps coming closer. I hope they have a medic.

They all rush into the building with my Dad and Hope. There are six cops with them. One goes straight to Raine. The others go to Ezekiel and the other guy to cuff them. Dad comes to me. He kneels down in front of me and puts his hand on my head, brushing away the hair from my face. “Jade, I was so afraid Baby.” He says and then kisses me on the cheek. He pulls a pocketknife from his jacket and starts to work on the ropes around my wrists first. Once he gets those off, he works on my ankles. My wrists hurt badly and are bleeding. Dad looks around the room bleakly. “Raine took care of you, didn’t he?” I look over at the man I love still unconscious and bleeding. They have placed him on a gurney and are giving him oxygen. “Yes, he did. He offered himself in exchange for Hope and me. He was so brave. But even when he had the chance to shoot Ezekiel, he didn’t. He jumped him instead and got himself shot in the chest for it. I'm so scared Dad. What if I lose him?” I'm crying now. My Dad has me out of my bindings and in his arms. “They called for a medivac. It should be here any minute. Raine will be fine. Don’t worry.” He says calmly in my ear as he holds me tight and smooths my hair over and over. I just crumble in his arms weeping.

An officer comes over to me and wants to inspect my wounds. He is checking my shoulder. “It’s not too bad ma’am. It’s a through and through. We will have you air lifted shortly, and the doctors will get you taken care of soon.” He reassures me. I hear the helicopter coming. I just hope Raine can get help before he bleeds out. They are wheeling him out the door. I rush to follow. I take his hand and it is cold. His face is pale. I put my hand on his cheek and then kiss it. He’s unresponsive. I get in the medivac helicopter with Raine. Dad and Hope are going back on the boat and meeting us at the hospital. The paramedics are working on Raine franticly. We land only a short time later and we are whisked into the hospital. Raine is being taken to surgery immediately. I'm taken to the emergency room. I fill out some papers and sit alone waiting.

About half an hour later, Dad and Hope burst through the emergency doors and run over to me. A nurse calls my name, and we all go in together. After they have stitched my head and my shoulder, they have us wait outside of the room where Raine is in surgery. We all wait with bated breath for someone to come tell us any news. We look back and forth from each other to the clock. This is agonizing. Dad went and got us some sandwiches from the cafeteria. I don’t feel like eating, but I know I should keep my energy up. Hope is sitting like a statue. Her face is pale, and I see the tear streaks on her face still. She has been crying on and off for hours. Her and I are holding hands. She hasn’t let go of me at all. Raine has been her whole world for eighteen years. My loss would be intensely painful. But I can’t imagine hers. It’s too much to think about.

So, we just wait. Each minute that ticks by gives me less hope that he will make it. My heart literally hurts. This is how I felt after Mom died. Numb to the whole world but in so much pain on the inside. I can’t even feel my shoulder. Its inconsequential right now compared to the possible loss of the most loving man I have ever known. Dad has been on the phone on and off this whole time. I assume he is keeping everyone informed who needs to be. “Zack and Dani are almost here.” He tells us. “Your Father is on a flight as we speak.” He says to Hope. She simply nods in acknowledgement.

If I only get to know Raine for the last four months, then I was blessed with that amount of time. He offered himself over so often in his life to help others. Never thinking twice about taking a beating for one of the kids or his Mom. And then his last selfless act today. He could have killed Ezekiel. But he didn’t. He values human life above revenge or even his own safety. Even if that life was in the form of a twisted, crazed lunatic like Ezekiel. Do I even deserve the love of such a man? What could I possibly offer him in return?

Zack and his wife burst through the doors suddenly. “Where is my son?” he asks a nurse. She calmly brings him over to the seats near us and explains that he’s in surgery and we will be informed of his progress as soon as possible. He immediately starts asking questions about the events of the last day. Dad and I try to fill him in on all the details. Hope is still not speaking. She’s listening to everything we say. Glancing at the clock and then at the door we know Raine is behind. Zack kneels in front of her and looks her in the eyes. “Hope, he’s a strong young man. He’s going to make it through.” She nods in acknowledgement. Tears starting to streak her beautiful, pained face once again.

Hopes father also shows up a short time later. He hugs his daughter and says a few words to her. Then he and Zack go out the door together to talk. They haven’t seen each other in years. I know they last parted on bad terms when he admitted to Zack that Hope left because she was pregnant. I'm sure they have a few things to say to one another. They come back in after about twenty minutes. Zack has his hand on Hopes Father’s shoulder. It looks like they are on good terms. Zack has some tears in his eyes. They sit down across from us, and we give them some more of the details. Dani is listening intently and seems to be emotionally distraught as well. She is very supportive of her husband. I like that about her. She holds his hand, trying to calm his nerves.

After what feels like hours, a doctor emerges from the doors. He comes over to us looking exhausted. He wipes his brow and pulls his surgical mask off. He looks at Hope. “Your son is going to make it.” We all let out a breath of relief. Hope stands and wraps her arms around the doctor. “Thank you, thank you so much for saving my baby.” She says crying. He then tells us about the surgery and that he will have quite a bit of recovery time. The bullet tore into muscle and was lodged near a major artery. Had it been three millimeters higher he would have died. Raine is still out and under anesthesia. He should be waking up in the next hour. He says we can all go in the room. It’s supposed to be two visitors at a time, but he is going to tell the nurses to make an exception.

We walk into his recovery room. He’s hooked up to lots of tubes and a machine is currently helping him breath. He looks surprisingly peaceful as he sleeps. I know he’s also on some serious pain meds. So, I don’t expect to have a very coherent conversation with him once he wakes. But I don’t care. To see him alive is all that matters. I take his hand. It’s warm again. He has color back in his face. I just have to wait for him to open those beautiful blue eyes and look at me.