I hesitated. Nico said he didn’t trust him, and my gut was telling me to do the same.
“Open the door, Gigi.”
I retreated further back. But then came the sound of keys jingling.
The door creaked open, and Stone cautiously stepped into the room. Our eyes locked, tension crackling in the air between us.
“Gigi. Put the gun down,” he said.
“How did you get in here?” I demanded.
“I went to the nurse’s station and found the keys,” he replied, the calmness in his voice unsettling.
“But how did you know to look in this room?”
“It was the only door I hadn’t checked yet,” he explained. I begrudgingly conceded that made sense.
But then my mind raced with further questions. “Where’s Nico and Miguel?”
Stone hesitated for a beat, and that hesitation was telling.
“We split up, but Nico asked me to find you,” he said.
Laughter bubbled up from my throat. “Nico would never send anyone he didn’t trust to find me. You’re one of them, aren’t you? A dirty cop?”
He scoffed, his expression flickering between offended and frustrated. “Of course not! But…I hate to break this to you, Gigi. Nico was shot. So was Miguel. I don't think they made it.”
My heart stopped beating. “No.”
That couldn’t be true. Nico was invincible.
“You’re lying,” I said through my clenched teeth.
He lunged at me with incredible speed, and I fired the gun, aiming for his shoulder. He let out a sharp grunt, and we both stumbled backward. My back hit the wall, and we tumbled to the ground with him on top.
“You bitch! If I can’t kill your boyfriend, then I’ll just take out what’s most important to him.”
I dodged his punch, kneeing him between his legs. He cursed and rolled off me, clutching himself. I seized the moment and bolted, but my heart sank as the door swung open. It was the same brute who'd been after Nico.
“Oh, no. Nico!”
Was it true? Had he been killed?
Pain like I’d never felt before shot through my chest like an arrow.
“Looks like it’s two against one,” Stone grunted.
“This is going to be fun,” the blurry man said seductively.
I quickly scanned the room for a weapon and spotted a metal bedpan. As soon as he charged toward me, I grabbed the pan and whacked him in the face. Not once, but three times.
I screamed, unleashing my fury.
He knocked the bed pan out of my hands and tried to grab my wrists, but I slapped and scratched his face. He picked me up and pushed me back until he pinned me against the wall.
“Not so tough now, huh, bitch?” he snarled.
My thumbs found their way to his eye sockets, and I pushed in as hard as I could until blood oozed out. He howled, and I slipped free, running for my life. My legs burned and my chest heaved, but fear drove me down the hall. A bullet whizzed past, and I darted right, dashing into the breakroom.
