Page 65 of Kiwi

Piper

Tai's body jerks, the force of his weight knocks us both backward. "Tai!" My ears are ringing as I scramble from beneath him. "No. No. No." My hands are all over his body. "Tai!" a gut-wrenching scream leaves my body, and panic washes over me as I realize he has been shot. There's so much blood. "Tai!" I yell again, my voice sounding muffled and far away. Tai moans and struggles to move his hand over the ground, searching for his weapon again.

"Get out of here," Tai grunts, then collapses.

"You killed my brother, you son of a bitch!" the guy roars. He pulls the rifle from his dead brother's hand and rushes toward me.

Not thinking twice, I lurch over Tai's bleeding torso and grab the gun that's lying on the ground beside him. I swing around and raise my arm. My hand shakes, unable to control the fear coursing through my veins. I've shot a gun several times. My father taught me at a young age how to handle a weapon, but I never thought the day would come when I would have to use one. Right now, I don't have time to think about how scared I am. I know what I have to do. It's either him or me. Determination and the will to live takes over. My hand steadies, and I aim. My actions are quicker than his.

A breath later, I pull the trigger. The guy stumbles back a couple of steps, his free hand gripping his chest where my shot hit him. Blood begins to soak through his dirty shirt. Cold eyes lock on me, and he struggles to raise the rifle again. I fire another shot. The bullet pierces his eye socket, and he crumples to the ground.

I let the gun slip through my fingers.

I just killed a man.

I quickly focus, turning my attention back to Tai. He's struggling, and it's gut-wrenchingly clear by the amount of blood seeping from his body, the dire state he is in. Okay. Think Piper. My palm rests on his chest. "Fight, Tai," I cry, then notice that his breaths are becoming shallow. I press my palm over the wound in his stomach, trying desperately to slow the bleeding. His warm blood seeps between my fingers. "Oh, god! Oh, god! Tai!" I touch his face. "Open your eyes, baby. Please."

With tears running down my face, I stand. I need to get us out of here. Tai needs help and fast. Leaning down, I hook my arms under his armpits and attempt to pull him up the embankment. Grunting, I manage to pull his body about two feet, but it's a struggle. I yell with frustration. "Shit!"

My chest heaves. You got this. Not giving up, I tug again, but my results are the same. I quickly realize I'm not strong enough to pull Tai's weight up the embankment to the road. Out of sheer desperation, I scream. "Please! Somebody help me!" It's useless. Nobody is around to hear my pleas. I realize I have only one option. I have to leave Tai here and go for help on my own. The weight of my choice is suffocating. Pushing through the agony of my only option, I press my lips against his, my tears falling on his face.

"I love you, Tai. Do you hear me? I love you." I sniffle. "I have to go get help. I'll be back. I swear it." I tear myself away from his bloody, unconscious body and make my way up the steep embankment as fast as my shaky legs will carry me. When I reach the road, I look around, trying to sort out what to do from here. Thinking fast, I ignore the pain in my ankle and run toward the old truck's open door that the two men were driving. There's a sign of hope when I see the keys hanging in the ignition. Climbing in, I turn the key. Nothing happens. Dammit. I try again and still nothing. I hit the steering wheel with the palm of my hand. "Come on, you sorry piece of scrap metal!"

On the third attempt, the piece of shit truck starts. Shifting into gear, I make a U-Turn and haul ass back toward Hell's Punishers clubhouse. Every second that passes feels like hours, and my gut clenches the further I drive away from Tai.

It's not long before I turn off the main road and onto the gravel path that leads to the compound. Less than a mile in, the iron fence surrounding their clubhouse comes into view. I press my foot harder into the gas pedal. As soon as the truck begins to accelerate, it backfires. Suddenly, the truck sputters, then the engine dies—the hunk of junk rolls to a stop. "Shit!" Flinging the door open, I jump down and take off in a sprint down the dirt road, ignoring the pain in my ankle. In the distance, a shadowy figure appears to move near the gate. I start screaming. "Help! I need help!" My lungs burn, and my throat feels like it is on fire, as I wave my hands in the air. "Get my mom!" I call out. A look of recognition crosses his face, and I yell again. "Get somebody, anybody! Please! I need help!" I throw my body at the gate, and the red-headed prospect moves into action. He pulls the gate open, and I take off again, running toward the clubhouse. Seconds later, Crow bursts through the clubhouse door, my mom and several of his men come spilling out behind him. His eyes widen, taking in my bloody appearance, and his whole demeanor changes, his body becomes rigid, and he's suddenly on high alert. I don't stop running until I crash straight into Crow's arm. He catches me. "The fuck, Piper?"

I struggle to catch my breath as I find my words. "He shot Tai." My breathing is erratic.

"Who?" Crow demands.

"These guys, they ran us off the road, and one of them shot him. Please," I clutch his cut and choke on a sob. "We have to go."

My mother gasps and pushes her way past her old man. She takes me in her arms as Crow begins to bark out orders. "Doc, you ride with me in the cage. L.A., you, and Goose ride out behind us."

Crow turns to my mom and me. "Madison, I want you to go inside." I can tell my mom wants to protest, but the look on Crow's face stops her, and she does as she is told.

There is a flurry of activity as Crow leads me to a black SUV. I climb in the front seat, and Crow closes the door. Doc climbs into the backseat, as Crow sits behind the steering wheel. Shifting the SUV into gear, tires spin against the gravel as he drives away.

"How far out is he?" Crow asks.

"I don't know, maybe five miles. Please hurry," I cry. "He is losing so much blood."

"I need you to calm down, Piper, and tell me what happened. Can you tell me about these men, and where they are now?"

"It all happened so fast. We stopped for gas, and not long after, a truck came up behind us. They tried running us off the road and then started shooting. Tai tried to lose them, but they clipped his bike, and we went down an embankment. I didn't get a good look at them until they pulled over, got out of their truck, and approached us again. They were the same men I had a run-in with weeks ago on my drive home from Texas." I say everything in one breath.

"Slow down," Crow tries to calm me. "Breathe."

I try to focus on my thoughts. "Tai managed to shoot one of them, but the guy fired off a shot too." I take my eyes off the road and look at Crow. "There was so much blood. I tried to get him up the embankment, but I wasn't strong enough." I'm unable to control my tears. "I wasn't strong enough, Crow. I tried. I promise I tried. I didn't know where else to go or what else to do."

"I know ya did, sweetheart. You did real good coming to get me."

Swiping the tears from my face, I nod and bring my attention back to the road. It's not long before we come upon the spot where I left Tai. Pieces of his bike are scattered along the pavement. Crow brings the SUV to an abrupt stop. Not waiting, I open the passenger door and take off running toward the place I left Tai. Doc and Crow follow me down the embankment. Doc reaches him before I do and immediately checks for a pulse. He looks over at Crow and nods. He then rips Tai's shirt open, exposing the bullet wound. The grim look on Doc's face says it all.

"He needs a hospital right away," Doc barks. Crow and Doc fly into action, not wasting any time lifting Tai's lifeless body off the ground. I look on helplessly as they carry him to the SUV. They place him behind the back seats, and Doc climbs in with him. I stand frozen on the side of the road, my body feeling numb.

"Piper, we have to go, sweetheart." The urgency in his tone causes my head to snap in his direction, pulling me out of my daze. Climbing into the back of the SUV, I crouch beside Tai and palm his cheek. He feels cold. Even though he is unconscious, I talk to him. "I need you to be strong. You can't leave me." I do my best to focus on his face and not the hole in his stomach that Doc is currently tending to. Out of the corner of my eye, I watch Doc rummage through a duffle bag and pull out a box. Ripping it open, he takes white gauze, presses it firmly against the bullet wound, and then rechecks Tai's pulse.