I sigh, realizing how Johnny must feel toward every single person who’s been wrapped up in this nightmare.
I love Rosie like a sister, and that only compounds the rage inside of me. If there was some way to resurrect Franklin and end his life again, over and over, that still wouldn’t be retribution for what he’s done.
My only consolation is hoping whatever he faces in the afterlife is far more tortuous than what I’d prefer to do to him.
“Claire.” Johnny plants his hands on my shoulders, steadying me and staring into my eyes.
Within a second, calm rushes over me. How does he have that kind of power over me?
“Josey probably doesn’t have his phone. And I can’t imagine he has my new number memorized. We’re going, now. Okay?”
I study the way the green in his eyes swirls together with a golden amber. A dark fleck here and there. An even darker rim around the outside of them, nearly onyx, and contrasting beautifully against the emerald. His black lashes highlight them even more, giving a wonderful depth to his gaze.
My attention falls to that freckle I tried to scrub away many, many moons ago. The first night I saw just how vulnerable this man before me could be. I had no idea, but I was falling for him then. My heart had a mind of its own, tethering me to that beautiful soul of his. From the moment we quite literally bumped into each other, there was no escaping the magnetic pull that brought us together.
Life may have thrown us both some incredibly difficult curveballs, but it brought us to one another. We’ve fought like hell to be here, and we will continue fighting, because that’s what you do when you find something this incredibly rare.
“Okay,” I finally breathe.
We both have lives hanging in the balance, but at least we have each other to anchor us in place.
Johnny’s phone buzzes, and he reaches for it without hesitation.
I look over his shoulder, the screen lighting up with details from Miller, the kid who isn’t exactly a kid.
“You ready?” Johnny shoves the thing into his pocket and grabs the handle of the backpack containing a few essentials: phone chargers, clean clothes for Rosie, toothbrushes, change for the vending machine.
There’s no telling how long we’ll be there, and I’m sure Rosie will be anxious to get into something fresh that doesn’t tie in the back. Although, if anyone can pull off a hospital gown, it’s definitely her.
If she made it through Franklin’s attack.
How will I even begin to explain to my best friend what happened to her? And how it was my fault? I’ve already been so fucking secretive about everything in an attempt to not get her involved, and here she is, near death because of it. Because of me.
It just goes to show that being open and honest with the people you care about is far better than keeping secrets. At least to those who could potentially be directly involved.
It’ll be difficult, telling her the truth, but she deserves to know anything and everything she wants to help her make sense of the situation.
* * *
The drive to the hospital is short but somehow feels like an eternity.
Johnny grips my thigh in an attempt to settle my nerves and his own . He glances over at me every now and then, like he’s checking to make sure I haven’t evaporated into thin air.
My jaw stays clenched, my mind wild at the possible outcomes we may find.
We’ve already lost so much, and it’s likely that the losses keep coming.
We pull up to the place where Miller told us to park, and a man dressed in black greets us. Johnny goes rigid, but recalls the text he received, telling him that a guy would be waiting to take our car.
The man holds out his hand, waiting for the keys.
Johnny plops them into his palm and rushes around to get my door, but I’m already halfway out before he gets there.
I cannot stand being this close and not knowing if Rosie is dead or alive.
We’ve been friends almost our entire lives. Surely I wouldknowif she was gone. There is an empty pit in my chest, but maybe it’s from the worry, not the result of this unfortunate winter night.
Johnny weaves his fingers through mine and guides me up the few concrete steps leading into the back of the hospital. It’s private, secure, and totally what I imagined given ourcriminalcircumstances.
The sterile air hits me the second we walk through the threshold. Bright, fluorescent light shines down on a single hallway. I grip Johnny tighter, the uncertainty of things becoming increasingly dire. Within a matter of moments, I will know if Rosie made it out of this alive. And in a few hours, the fate of Luciano will follow.
We walk the path, each step closer causing my heart to beat that much harder.
The entry swings open, my eyes taking a second to adjust to the empty waiting room area. My gaze settles on the man I slapped, the man who carried my dying best friend away from me only a little while ago.
He stands, meeting my gaze, a sad but hopeful smile written on his hardened face. Josey nods, telling me everything I need to know.
Rosie—she’s alive.