I stepped over Toby’s body and crouched in front of her, pressing my hands to her wound. Blood gushed over my fingers. “It’s going to be okay, sweetness,” I said quietly. “I promise.”
Maddox kneeled next to Toby, checking his pulse. “Dead,” he muttered. I held out the gun I’d fired. He’d need it for evidence. He took it from me and I brushed Caroline’s cheek, wiping away a tear.
“Ambulance is on the way,” Roman said, kneeling behind Caroline and slashing the binds with his knife. I held her wound, keeping pressure on the area, and stared into Caroline’s eyes.
I kissed her. “I love you, Caroline,” I said.
She nodded. “I love you too.” She tried to laugh, but it came out sounding choked and strained. “This wasn’t exactly how I imagined telling you.”
“Me either. I was going to take you to the beach, strip you down to your bikini, and tell you while we made love in the ocean.”
She smiled. “That would’ve been nice.”
“Yeah,” I said and swung my gaze to Roman. “How far out?” I asked him.
“Five minutes.”
Footsteps pounded above us before cops started spilling down the stairs, their guns raised, and clearing the area. Roman and Maddox approached the officers. I didn’t move from Caroline’s side and continued to keep pressure. My hands were covered in blood, and she was growing paler.
“You’re going to be okay,” I promised her again.
“I kept thinking about how much I wanted to tell you that I love you,” she said. “It’s all I wanted. It doesn’t matter that it’s not the beach. I love you, Kiernan.”
“I love you too, sweetness. Stay awake,” I said as her eyes started to drift closed. She opened her eyes slowly and started to slump to the side. Roman ran over and kept her upright in the chair.
“Hi, Roman,” Caroline said quietly.
“Hey, Caro. We’re getting you out of here any minute now, and they’ll fix you up. Good job screaming. You did good.”
Her lips tipped up, and her nose scrunched as she frowned. I could barely breathe watching the woman I love in front of me suffering. I’d have done anything to take it away from her and switch positions. When she grimaced, my heart cracked in half.
“You’re going to have to call my parents, aren’t you?”
I chuckled lightly. “Definitely think it’s one of those times where they have to be called.”
“Ick,” she said.
The EMTs came running down the stairs with a backboard. One of them switched places with me, taking off the pressure as they bandaged her and prepared to transport. Once she was lying on the backboard, Caroline lifted her hand. “Kiernan?”
I grasped her outstretched hand. “Right here, sweetness. I’m riding with you. I swear you won’t be alone. I’m sorry I couldn’t get to you before he hurt you. I’m sorry he took you. Please forgive me.”
She shook her head. “It’s not your fault,” she said, her deep brown eyes connecting with mine. “You came for me. You found me.”
“I’ll always come for you, Caroline,” I promised. The EMTs carried her up the stairs as I followed. She may not blame me, but the sight of her like this and the terrified scream that had ripped through the air would haunt me for the rest of my life. I blamed me. I’d promised her that she wouldn’t get hurt and that he’d never touch her, but he had. He’d found a way. I swallowed, my throat clogging with emotion, and my eyes burned.
I hopped into the back of the ambulance after they loaded in Caroline. I kept her hand in mine and rubbed circles on the back of her hand the entire way to the hospital. I held her hand until it was ripped from me as they rushed her through the double doors and kept me back. My hands were still bloody, and I had blood on my clothes. Everybody in the emergency waiting room was staring at me, but I didn’t care. I stood there until Roman arrived and tugged me away, pushing me into a bathroom to wash the blood from my hands.
I sat next to him in the waiting room, fidgeting as we waited for answers. I called her parents, letting them know that Caroline had been hurt. I gave them the facts and hung up before they could respond. From what I knew of them, I didn’t like them and didn’t care to hear any of the potential bullshit.
Daphne ran into the emergency room, finding me. I stood and hugged her. “No information yet. We’re still fucking waiting,” I growled.
My group of friends trailed in a few minutes later, except for Maddox. He was stuck at the station dealing with the bullshit and what had happened. I knew he was keeping it away from Caroline and me as long as he could.
I wasn’t the one injured, but I still felt as if my entire life was hanging in the balance as I waited on news about Caroline. I wanted to knock down those damn doors and find her, stay by her side, and promise her that it would be okay.
For now, I had to stay here and wait.
39 Caroline
Caroline
“Austin wasn’t the first town he’d done this in,” Kiernan said, stroking my hand. I was lying in bed in an itchy hospital gown, just waking up. I’d been in and out, but too drowsy to ask what I’d been wondering—how long had Tony been hurting women? “He was in Little Rock before this and Mobile before Little Rock.”
I shook my head, my heart twinging at the women who had been lost. But the others who were on the screens, the ones I’d guessed correctly were future victims, were now safe. My heart broke for the families of those who’d died, but they now had at least a little bit of closure, and the monster who had taken their loved ones was gone forever.
I couldn’t even find a little bit of sympathy
