The Harder You Fall (Rixon Raiders 3)

“Will you take me there?”

“Mya, listen…” she hesitated. “I’m not sure that’s a good idea. Mr. Bennet is—”

“I need to see him, Felicity, please.”

“Okay. Let me make a quick call. I’ll meet you outside.” She hurried away before I could argue. I knew she was calling Jason to see how things were at the hospital, and I also knew I didn’t care. I had to see Asher.

It had been the longest, haziest ninety minutes of my life. The officers had arrested Jermaine and wanted my statement. But I hadn’t anticipated how hard it would be to recall everything.

After I was debriefed and given the card for the presiding officer in the case, I went in search of Felicity. She was on the phone, pacing in front of her car. “She has a right to be there,” I heard her say. “No, Jason, I… okay, okay. I have to go.” She noticed me standing there. “Love you too, bye.”

“Any news?” I wrapped my arms around myself, a chill working its way up my spine.

“Not yet. Listen, why don’t I take you home? It’s been a traumatic night for everyone and I’m sure your aunt will—”

“I know you’re only looking out for me, but I have to see him, Felicity. Put yourself in my shoes.”

“Okay,” she said weakly. “I’ll give you a ride.”

“Thank you.”

“You should probably know the story already broke on local news channels,” she said, as we climbed into her sunshine yellow Beetle. The car had always made me smile, but not tonight.

“I can only imagine what they’re saying.” I pressed my head against the window as the town I’d come to call home rolled by.

“Pay no attention.”

“Easy for you to say. It wasn’t your gangbanger ex who shot the wife of one of the town’s most respected businessmen.” Bile clawed its way up my throat and I retched.

“Shit! Here.” Flick handed me a bottle of water from the center console.

“Thanks.” My head rolled back against the headrest as I took a big swallow, letting the cold liquid douse the flames in my throat.

“What will happen to him? Jermaine, I mean?”

“They’re going to push for aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. If she… d- dies…” The words lodged in my throat, silent tears rolling down my cheeks.

Felicity reached across and grabbed my hand. “Don’t think like that. She’ll be okay. She has to be okay.”

The cloying scent of disinfectant assaulted my senses the second I stepped foot inside the hospital. I hated these places. Sure, they were a place of help and healing, but most of my experiences were wrapped up in tragedy and trauma. Not to mention the last time I was in a hospital bed was because my boyfriend’s enemies had left me beaten and bloody on the ground. I could still remember lying there, trying to ignore the pain radiating through my body. I could still hear their taunts, see the bloodlust in their eyes as they made me watch as they beat Jermaine, before turning on me. I could still remember praying for a way out of a life I was sure would get him killed. If not both of us.

It seemed like some bad kind of karma that I was here now, awaiting news of whether my boyfriend’s mom was going to survive.

“Jason said they’re on the third floor, come on.” Felicity took my hand, and I was so grateful to have her beside me.

People watched as we approached the elevator, their curious stares brushing up against me. I knew news had already broken about the shooting, but the hospital was in the next town over. People couldn’t know I was the girl from the incident. But they only had to take one look at my brown skin and my disheveled appearance to draw their own conclusions.

It seemed so petty now, to worry about their narrow-minded views when Mrs. Bennet was lying on an operating table as the surgeons tried to save her life.

The elevator doors pinged open, pulling me from my inner turmoil and Flick ushered me inside. “How are you holding up?” she asked me.

“I feel like I’m in a bad dream,” I said quietly. “Like any moment I’ll wake up and realize none of this is real.”

But it was real, and it wasn’t going away.

“At least they got Jermaine. You don’t have to worry about him anymore.”

Strangely, that didn’t make me feel any better.