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She ignored the bite in his tone, leaving her hand right where it was. “Like I said, when this is over, I need you to promise me something. I need you to get up and leave. Just walk out of here. Go home, go to work, it doesn’t matter. But you have to leave.”
“Yeah, when this is over, we’re both leaving,” Blake said, sure she was losing her mind if she thought he was going to leave her behind.
“One more thing, Blake. Please keep my secret.”
His hands were fisting the sheet now, his body tensing from the additional pain of the pressure from her hand. He was about to grit his teeth and ask her what secret she was talking about when a small jolt of energy surged through him. Hot tingles coursed through his body. White hot light surged from what felt like his very soul. “What the hell is going on?” He bit out, his knuckles going white from the agony in his wound.
“Hold still,” she ordered. “And don’t talk.”
He did as she said. To his surprise, the pain quickly abated, and he watched in wonder as she pressed her hand more firmly into his wound, her fingers splayed and covered in his bright red blood. He wanted to demand what the hell she was doing, but then the entry hole in his skin started to close. The stretching of the skin felt surreal but there was minimal pain. More like a bee sting really. It was like magic, only there were no sparkling lights or rabbits jumping out of hats. It was just Skyla.
Color once again seeped from her face, her eyes glazing over, as her mouth became pursed. She was concentrating on something crucial. “What are you doing?” He softly demanded, placing a hand on her arm. She brushed it away with her free hand, but kept her other hand directly on his wound.
With every second that passed, more of his energy was restored, almost like she was healing him from the inside out. What the fuck? Her eyes closed, and she lowered her head back down to the pillow. He thought she might lose consciousness again, but the tingly sensation where she’d placed her hand was stronger than ever now. Skyla pressed her hand harder into his wound as a tear rolled down her cheek, disappearing into her hairline. After what seemed like an eternity, her hand fell away, limp and cold, landing on the mattress between them. “Go,” she murmured. “Get out of here, please.”
He swallowed, unbelieving of what he’d just witnessed, but he’d seen it with his own two eyes. The bleeding stopped. The pain was gone. He felt completely fine. Normal. Better than normal. But there wasn’t a chance in hell he was leaving her here, not even if he had to carry her over his shoulder and shoot down anyone who got in his way. He sat up, feeling like he’d never been shot, and his hand instantly went to his gut. His shirt was still stained with his blood, but the wound was completely closed, and he felt absolutely fine. “I’m not leaving here without you.” He started to slide his arms under her limp figure, but she rolled away from him, nearly falling off the other side of the bed. He stood and went around to the other side, kneeling on the floor so he could be eye level with her. “Skyla, I have to get you out of here. You saved my life, let me at least return the favor.”
She shook her head. “It doesn’t matter anymore,” she whispered in a pained tone that tore at his heart. “You should go. Please. You promised. Tell Hallie and Orly that I’m sorry.”
Blake wasn’t about to let a semiconscious woman dictate his actions, and he sure as fuck wasn’t going to deliver that message. She could tell them herself. Though what she had to be sorry for, he had no idea. He pulled her off the bed and into his arms in one swift motion, and carried her like a bride. It was only then that he noticed a small bag left on the bedside table. He snatched it up, quickly spotting his things inside, including his phone. He was relieved he wouldn’t have to report his badge and gun stolen, but he wanted to get as far away from this place as he could before stopping to use his phone.
When he opened the door to the room, he was surprised to find no one there. In fact, as he walked through the small house, past the kitchen and the modest living room, there didn’t seem to be another soul in the place. Stranger still, there was no furniture either, save for the room they had been in, and a desk in another room he passed. Where was everyone? Were they really just going to let him walk out with Skyla? The eeriness of it all only put him more on edge. Was this some kind of set up?
He carried Skyla out the front door and down a short driveway. The house was a simple ranch home, no more than a thousand square feet on a street surrounded by similar homes. Blake swore under his breath. He had no idea where they were, but he needed to get Skyla somewhere safe. Then he’d call Caden.
He still couldn’t believe what Skyla had done. She’d literally healed him with her touch. To say his mind was blown was an understatement, but that didn’t explain what she was doing there in the first place. Surely, whoever had shot him hadn’t brought her over just so she could heal him after.
He’d memorized the address of the house before leaving, but suspected any searches into the place would lead down a murky path with a dead end. Whoever orchestrated all this likely covered their tracks and then some.
And if Blake’s suspicions were right, Skyla was in a world of trouble, and she’d probably used her only advantage to save his sorry ass.
***
“Are you sure?” Caden asked for the tenth time since picking them up over an hour ago and bringing them both to Blake’s apartment. “I mean, I saw the blood on your shirt, but you don’t look like a man who's been shot tonight.”
Caden stared at him from where he sat at the small kitchen table, along with Hallie, who looked more concerned than disbelieving. Blake wasn’t thrilled he’d brought Hallie along, but he understood not wanting to leave her home alone late at night with Vivian still in their lives.
“I’m sure.” There was only one way to convince his friends of what had transpired tonight. Right before getting in the shower to wash the blood off, he noticed something in the reflection of his vanity mirror that still had him reeling.
Blake pulled off his clean t-shirt and stood bearing his naked chest. He didn’t have to wait long before he heard the tell-tale gasp, only it had come from Hallie. Caden just looked at him somewhat unphased and slightly perplexed, until he turned his attention to his fiancée. “What’s wrong, Hales? Are you okay?”
“It’s gone,” she said, standing to get a better look. “Your scar from the surgery, the bullet wound in your shoulder. It’s all gone.” Her surprise mirrored his own when he first saw all evidence of his previous shooting erased.
Caden stood so fast, he knocked the chair out from under him. “Holy shit,” he swore under his breath. “How the hell is that even possible?”
Blake turned to look down the hall where he’d placed an unconscious Skyla in his guest bedroom when they first arrived. Caden and Hallie wanted to take her to the hospital, but Skyla woke for a few seconds in the car, insisting she was fine and just needed time to rest. Not wanting to argue with her, they brought her here to recuperate. But if she didn’t wake up again soon, Blake was strongly considering taking her to urgent care to get checked out.
“I don’t know,” Blake said, putting his t-shirt back on. “How is any of what Hallie or Orly do possible?” He pulled up a chair at the table and sank into it, his mind still blown by everything that had happened in the last few hours. It was still pitch dark outside, but it felt like weeks had gone by since he’d left his mom’s house to go to The Mystic Cow, instead of just hours.
“She really healed you,” Hallie said. “How could she not tell us about her gift? After everything we’ve been through together. Orly and I shared so much with her. And, oh my gosh, Vivian,” Hallie brought a hand over her mouth, stifling a gasp. “She’s been hanging around Skyla so much the last few days, and none of us thought twice about it. What if -”
Caden cut Hallie off by pulling her into his arms. “Vivian has no idea about any of you, and that’s how we plan to keep it.” He turned to Blake. “Who else do you think knows about Skyla’s ability to heal like that?”
Blake shrugged. “She lives with her dad, so probably him. And obviously whoever shot and took me, and her.” Not only had he not been able to protect Skyla from whatever had happened tonight, he’d gone and gotten himself shot.
“Are we liking Arlo J for this?” Caden asked, obviously not caring that Hallie was still in the room. She didn’t seem to know what they were talking about anyway.
The floor creaked behind them. “No,” Skyla said, her hand placed on the wall like she needed that little bit of extra support to remain upright. Blake moved to her side. She looked so small and fragile, her color still too pale for his liking. “You need to stay away from AJ. He doesn’t give second chances. He let me heal you this time, but if you get in his way again, there won’t be another. Please.” Her gaze locked with his and the plea in her tone felt like a kick to his gut. “You promised me, remember?”
