Page 17 of Under Fire in Big Sky

That didn’t stop his uncle from finding a reason to take a strap to him.

A beating Eli could take. Getting yelled at, punished, ignored. Then one day everything changed, yet again, and not for the better. He got home from school with his cousins and there were squad cars and an ambulance in front of the house.

Everyone told them it was an accident. A tragic accident. No one’s fault.

His uncle had been cleaning his hunting rifle in the kitchen and as his aunt walked into the room it went off.

Nobody cared to listen to Eli’s accounts of his uncle and aunt’s fights or the whispers of his uncle’s infidelity. No charges were filed. No arrest made. No justice served.

After the life insurance was paid, his uncle remarried the rumored mistress.

Once Eli turned seventeen, he dropped out of school, got his GED, and convinced his uncle to sign the consent form allowing him to enlist. He left and never went back.

At his first duty station, he met Jennifer. They were both so young, practically kids, and thought it was love. They got hitched. A quickie ceremony at the justice of the peace. Then he deployed, and she died while he was gone. A head-on collision with a drunken driver.

Whenever Eli got too close to someone, he lost them. It was like he was cursed.

If he truly cared about Liv, he would’ve stayed away from her.

Keeping her at arm’s length had worked for a while. For five years, he had rolled the dice, hoping it’d be fine, only seeing her every few weeks.

But their time was up.

A knock on the doorframe interrupted his train of thought.

Dr. Kelly looked him over from head to toe. “I heard you didn’t cooperate with putting on a hospital gown.”

“It wasn’t necessary to be examined.” A kind nurse gave him scrubs and a towel so he could change out of dirty clothes and freshen up. “How’s Olivia? Is she awake?”

“She’s awake and talking.”

Relief poured through him. “I want to see her.”

Holding up a hand, Dr. Kelly strode closer. She looked at the pulse oximeter on his finger. “Ninety-five percent.” With a nod, she removed the device. “If you’re feeling okay, you can take—”

Eli already had the oxygen mask off, pulled the IV needle from his arm, and started for the door.

“She’s not in the ER anymore,” Dr. Kelly said, bringing him to a halt. “She was moved upstairs.”

He spun around and looked at the doctor. “What’s wrong with her? I thought you said she’s awake.”

“She is, but she needs further treatment and we’re going to monitor her for overnight. You took in a lot of smoke yourself. We’d like to keep you as well.”

“If she stays, I stay.”

“That’s not generally how it works.” Dr. Kelly smiled. “Ms. Adani mentioned she needs to call someone important and didn’t want us to do it for her. She needs to speak with you first.”

Call someone important.

Like a boyfriend?

They never had the talk. If she was dating a guy, a real significant other, she would want him to be here. “What room is she in?”

“It can be a little tricky to get there. It’d easier if I take you to her.”

Eli grabbed his dirty clothes that were in a plastic bag and followed Dr. Kelly out of the room. He’d left his gun in a locked box in his truck, but he felt like he was missing an appendage without it.

The doctor led the way to the second floor and took him down a long corridor in a section of the hospital where tests were conducted. She pushed through a set of double doors and turned down another hall.