Burn: Outlaw Romance (Hotter Than Hell Book 3) (26 page)

The woman smiles. “A fighter is good. I’ll see you at the hospital.” She moves in and takes my place. I stand back as they pick up the stretcher and run for the helicopter. They move as a single unit. I watch as they load Sofia on board, and I stay where I am until the helicopter takes off.

“Do you have a notepad?” I ask the deputy. He removes one and hands it to me along with his pen. I write down one man’s name and hand it back.

“Find him before I do because I’ll kill him.”

The deputy says nothing as I head to my bike. The brothers follow. “They’re taking her to Phoenix General. She’s been shot and beat. My guess is Oho. I gave his name to the deputy. Doesn’t matter. I hope I find him first.”

“We ride for Phoenix?” Skull asks.

“Half the men stay behind. We need to keep the other women safe. I’m taking off from here. Have someone pick up my helmet and bring it down in the truck along with some clothes. Bring Red too.”

Skull takes over, which is a good thing. “Vamp, Rufus—ride with the prez.” I rev my bike. Skull’s hand lands on my shoulder. “She’s tough. She’ll be okay, Dax.”

He didn’t see her. I’ve been through this before. I turn my bike around and we take off.

Dax

SOFIA IS IN SURGERY
when we arrive at the hospital two hours later. The woman who helped me at the scene is Helen. She’s waiting as promised.

“Sofia’s in good hands. They’re removing the bullet and have a plastic surgeon available for the damage to her face. Broken jaw and eye socket showed in the x-rays. This guy’s good and he’ll have her as pretty as she was before.”

I’m barely following what she says. “You think she’ll make it?”

She gives me a soft smile. “You said she’s a fighter. If she is, she’ll pull through.”

“Did she wake up?”

“No. They don’t think she has head trauma, but they won’t count it out until they’re sure. The doctor will come out and talk to you when surgery’s over. Does she have other family?”

“No, just the club. We’re her family.”

“Tell the medical staff you’re married and they’ll give you updates and let you in the room when she’s out of recovery. Don’t tell anyone I told you that. I’ll let the nurses know her husband is here.”

I want to hug this woman. I’m not accustomed to people being nice for the sake of being nice. “Thank you,” I say because there really is nothing else I can say. I won’t forget what she’s done.

Helen walks over to the nurses’ station, talks to them for a moment, and points at me before leaving with a small wave in my direction. Vamp, Rufus, and I take over some chairs in the waiting room and kick back. An hour later, Vamp heads off to get us something to eat from a vending machine. There’s a watercooler against the wall and we’ve stayed hydrated with the little cone cups. I walk over and check in with the nurses’ station.

“I’ll go check, Mr. Acosta. It will only take a minute. Wait right here.”

I watch her leave and for the first time since Sofia went missing, a smile tips my lips.
Mr. Acosta
. Karma at its finest. The nurse returns a few minutes later.

“They removed the bullet first. They’re working on facial reconstruction now. It’s taking longer than expected because of bone grafts. She’s in serious but stable condition. Surgery should wrap up in the next hour or so. She’ll be in recovery for a few hours after that. As soon as she has a room, we’ll get you into see her.”

I breathe a sigh of relief and walk away. Vamp comes back into the waiting room with chips and candy bars. “Take these and I’ll go back for liquid gold.”

I relay what the nurse told me.

“We’ll find him, Dagger. Don’t waste time thinking about that scum. He’s a dead man.”

I nod and he leaves to buy coffee. Everything points to Oho. Until we know for sure, though, I won’t endanger the club by sending them after him. I also want the pleasure myself. Sofia holds the answers. She holds my heart too and I need her to come back to me. The thoughts of Savannah drag me under and I’m having trouble separating the two. If Sofia dies, I’ll spend the rest of my life in prison for what I do to the man who did this to her. My life will no longer matter.

Sofia pulls through surgery. The doctor looks exhausted.

“She’s in serious condition. She’s stabilized, but the biggest worry we have right now is the baby.”

Baby?

The doctor gives me a level look. “I’m not surprised you didn’t know. She’s most likely only a few weeks along. It’s standard to do a pregnancy test on women before we go into surgery. Her body is fighting to keep the baby. We discussed whether it was more dangerous to continue the pregnancy or let her body decide. I’m sorry. The possibility is very real that she’ll miscarry. These next forty-eight hours are critical if there’s any hope that she keeps the child.”

I cover my eyes. Fuck, a baby. I look back at the doctor. “Her life comes first.”

“Yes, it does, and if she shows signs that the baby is endangering her life, we’ll do what must be done.”

I nod. I can’t say anything more, I’m emotionally wrung out. I keep thinking about my promise to keep her safe and never allow anyone to lay a hand on her. My fucking promise meant nothing. I told Savannah I’d take care of her too.

They give Sofia a room a few hours later. It’s monitored by a central glass nurses’ station built in the form of an octagon with doors leading to four separate patient rooms. Sofia will be in here until she and the baby are out of the woods. There’s a single uncomfortable chair in the room, which I take over. She has so many wires and tubes that it’s hard to find a place to touch her. I settle on her cold fingers. Bandages cover her head and face, including one eye. They told me the pain meds will keep her unconscious until sometime tomorrow. I don’t even question what damage they could do to the baby. Sofia is all I care about. Sometime in the early morning hours I fall asleep with my head resting on the bed beside her hip. The nurses check her IV lines and vital signs every hour. They assure me in soft voices that she’s holding her own.

A nurses’ aide brings me breakfast at seven and I send a text to Skull. He texts back that he’s out in the waiting room with Red. I scarf down the food, kiss Sofia’s fingers, and head out to speak with him.

Red throws her arms around me when I walk in. I hold her tightly while she cries. Charlie is here too and she switches places with Red when Red gets herself under control.

“Thank you for coming too, Charlie,” I whisper.

“That girl’s family. We take care of family.”

I sit and talk to them for about five minutes. They have two hotel rooms close to the hospital. I’m staying here. I don’t mention the baby. It’s between me and Sofia. If she loses the child, I’ll leave it to her to explain if she wants to. As horrible as it sounds, I can live with it if it means Sofia survives.

I sleep off and on throughout the day. A low groan wakes me in the late afternoon. The nurse walks in. They have her vitals on a screen in the nurses’ station and I can see by the screen in the room that her pulse is racing.

“It’s the pain,” the nurse tells me as she adds medication to one of the IVs. “It’s actually a good sign and we’ll taper off the meds as she starts responding. You can talk to her too. She needs to know you’re here.”

The nurse checks her over and leaves the room. I sit back down and hold Sofia’s fingers again. “Hey, princess. Your family is here. Well, some of them stayed back at the club.” Fuck, I feel like an idiot. “I’m here. I’m not leaving you.” It’s all I can take and my tears spill over. I lean my head against her hand and cry. I want to tell her about the baby, but I’m too afraid she’ll lose it. “I love you,” I whisper instead. “I never told you about Savannah. I promise I will as soon as you’re back with me. She would have loved you too. She’s watching over you now. She knows I can’t lose another woman I love.” I allow the tears to flow for both women. I never cried over Savannah or my son. My anger at the world held the tears away. They deserved my tears. Sofia deserves my tears.

It’s late that night before Sofia shows more signs of life. Her moan is longer this time and I begin talking to her right away. “You’re in the hospital, princess. I’m here with you, and Red and Charlie are out in the waiting room.” I think they left hours ago, actually, but I want Sofia to know her family loves her enough to be here with her. Her fingers move just a bit and I give them a squeeze. “The nurse will give you more pain medicine so you’ll sleep. You need to get better so we can take a ride with the club. We’ll go to the river and tube down.” A different nurse enters and smiles at me. I smile back while she administers more medication.

Sofia’s fingers move against mine. “That’s it, princess. Relax, sleep, and get well. I’m not going anywhere.”

The next day is much of the same. She still has the baby. The doctor told me it’s a very positive sign. I also know more about her injuries. Her jaw is wired shut and her shattered eye socket has been rebuilt. She has several broken ribs and they removed her spleen. The bullet was the least of the damage. She’ll have a scar on her shoulder. The plastic surgeon came in and told me her face will heal and there will be minimal scarring. Like I care. I just want her back.

I’ve told her a hundred times over the last two days that I love her. I can only hope she hears me.

Sofia

THE PAIN PROVES I’M
alive. Dagger’s voice keeps me that way. He tells me I’m in the hospital. He tells me he loves me. I can’t open my eyes and I can’t feel my body. It scares me. I focus on my feet and move them a few inches.

“Relax, princess.” He’s holding my hand. “You have bandages on your face and covering one eye. Your other is still swollen shut. I’ve got you. The doctors and nurses are wonderful and they’ve taken good care of you.”

I focus some more and squeeze his fingers.

I hear another voice, a woman. “We can give you more pain medicine if you need it. Let’s try one finger for yes and two for no.”

Dagger releases my hand and I concentrate. Two for no. My brain finally connects to two fingers and I move them.

“I think she needs the medicine,” Dagger says.

“We’ll give her a little time and then give the injection. She understands what we’re asking and that’s the main thing. Let her judge her pain.”

Dagger’s rough skin wraps around my hand again. “That nurse is as stubborn as you are. I’ll give it fifteen minutes and then I’m lying for you.”

I can’t make my brain work good enough to laugh. He tells me about my injuries explaining why I can’t see or move my jaw. I appreciate it and hope I remember what he tells me. Most of all, I love the sound of his voice. The pain gets worse and when he asks me to tell him if I need meds, I lift my middle finger.