Page 104 of Precious Legacy
I can hear a voice, but I don’t know who it belongs to.
I can feel the weight on my chest disappear as if it was never there at all, but I don’t think I can move.
I’m numb, lost in confusion and shock. I’ve felt this way before. Once, when I woke up in a hospital with Haven by my side. She held my hand and told me what’d happened and I swear, I felt like I wasn’t in my body at all.
That’s just how I feel now as my body is lifted off the ground, like I’m floating through the air. There’s a distinct scent that fills my senses, replacing the rancid smell of blood and calming me. It’s nice. It feels safe. Like home.
But I can’t open my eyes to take everything in. At least I’m warm.
Breathe.
Hot.
Breathe.
I’m sweating.
Breathe.
My lungs expand and it feels like I’m taking a breath for the first time as I blink back droplets of water.
A hand rubs my back, my face, pushing away wet strands. I shake as I peer up at whoever those hands belong to and find the most perfect eyes staring back at me. Blue eyes the color of a tropical ocean, a sea of tranquility that seems to sooth my soul gaze down with so much fear that I’m scared they’re not real.
Are you real?
Roman lips curve into a soft smile, the crinkles on either side of his eyes making me exhale.
“I’m real, baby.”
FORTY
Iclimb the steps two at a time. Coming home to my girl is all I’ve thought about, and when she answered my call with that sultry—albeit drunk—voice, my cock was instantly hard. That’s the effect she has on me. So when Haldon, Varo and I called it a night after planning our next steps with the Russians, I raced over here.
There’s a crack of light coming from underneath the door, and I smirk to myself. Twisting the key into the lock, I push the door open. Only I don’t get very far before I see a body on top of Alanis, hands wrapped around her throat as she reaches for the gun to her side.
It’s pure instinct that has me drawing mine, and I don’t hesitate to aim, pulling the trigger a split second later.
Bang.
The gunshot shatters the silence before the body drops on top of Alanis. Fear curdles in my stomach as I rush towards her, checking that there’s nobody else in here. I don’t know what the fuck I just walked into, but I’m glad I got here when I did. I shove the guy off, letting his body drop to the floor with a thud.Blood pools out of his head, and that’s when I recognize who I’m looking at.
Lani’s covered in blood, and she’s staring blankly at the ceiling.
“Lani?” I shout, but it’s like talking to a dead body. Panic and fear collide as I call out to her again, stroking her face, but I get no response.
She’s breathing, though—thank fuck—which is more than I can say for Prescott.
What the fuck is he even doing here?
My instincts kick in as I give Alanis a critical once-over. Her lip is split, and beneath the blood smattered all over her face, I can see the bruises forming along her cheek and eye. Her neck adorns a large red mark that I’m pretty sure is going to turn purple, but it’s the fact she’s not moving at all that worries me.
“Come on, baby,” I soothe. Avoiding the blood pouring from the bullet wound in Prescott’s head, I scoop Lani up, holding her to my chest as I carry her to the bathroom. She’s shaking against me now, but at least she’s moving. That’s what shock does to a person; it takes a hold of you, like an anchor dragging you below the surface. She’s no longer in fight-or-flight mode; her subconscious is preserving her as best it can while she fights to come to.
“Breathe,” I tell her softly as I place her in the tub.
I need to make sure she’s okay. I need to get her to take a deep breath, because the eerie calmness is too much. This isn’t Alanis at all. She’s a match in the darkness, not a withered thread. She’s the spark that ignites and never dies, but right now, I’m looking at a lost soul.
Her usual bright green eyes are dull and empty, void of all emotion as she sits motionless under the cascade of water. All I want is for her to look at me, to say something, but it’s like she’s not even here.
