“Just tell me what it is!” I exclaim.
“You’re impatient, just wait.” He twists the knob and goes inside the house, then returns with his keyless pad, holding them up for me to see. Instead of waiting, I follow behind toward the G-Wagon as he unlocks it.
It happens so fast I can’t even process it—a loud explosion and a burst of flames erupt—then complete darkness.
Chapter Fourteen
LIAM
I walk outside with the key and Maddie starts following before I press unlock. Then it all happens way too fast. As soon as I hear the double beeps of the G-Wagon unlocking, it explodes in front of us, and I fall to the ground. As I look toward Maddie, I see a piece of metal flying off the vehicle, and it strikes her. It’s in flames, burning, hissing, cracking. Smoke invades the air, and the heat nearly burns my skin because I’m so close, but I stand and rush to Maddie, picking her up and carrying her away from the debris. She’s limp in my arms, and there’s blood dripping down her face. Sophie opens the front door and hysterically screams at the sight in front of her before everyone rushes out. She dials 911 and frantically speaks fast. I’m in shock, trying to wake up Maddie, noticing she has a large gash on her head.
“No, no,” I whisper, adding pressure to the wound with my hands. Mason takes off his shirt, then hands it to me, and I try to contain the bleeding. My brain is scattered, and I know how dangerous it is for us to be standing close to the burning vehicle and inhaling the smoke, but I can’t think straight.
“Who would do this?” Lennon cries, and Sophie begs Maddie to open her eyes.
“Where is the fucking ambulance?” I ask, feeling helpless, and need them to come faster.
Mason is bent over, checking her pulse. “She’s breathing, but her heartbeat is weak. I think she might have gotten knocked out from the blunt force, but there could be internal bleeding in her brain.”
I look at him with worry in my eyes as adrenaline pumps through my veins. I’m in so much shock, I barely notice the sirens in the distance or the police car pulling up. Moments later, there’s a firetruck and the EMTs bring out a stretcher, and I move back slightly so they can examine her.
“What’s the patient's name and age?” one of them asks me, but I can’t move my lips. I’m stunned into silence.
“Maddie, she’s twenty-one,” Sophie answers.
“Any allergies?” the other asks as he places a brace around her neck.
“No. I don’t think so,” Sophie responds again, looking as worried as me. Mason holds her close while Lennon stays close to the house with Hunter and Aaron.
The EMTs talk to each other and count to three, then lift her up onto the stretcher. “She’ll need a scan of her head and probably some stitches,” one of them informs us as I stand. “We’ll take good care of her, don’t worry.” I watch as they stroll her to the back of the ambulance, and that’s when I finally snap out of it. Maddie needs me, and I can’t be lost in my thoughts right now. Whoever did this will fucking pay. I don’t give two shits about that G-Wagon, but the fact that Maddie’s unconscious has me seeing red.
“You all need to back up. It’s too dangerous until we get this fire contained,” one of the firemen come over and warn us.
“I have some questions first.” I hear a familiar voice, turning to see Blake and his partner walking toward me. Of fucking course.
Narrowing my eyes at the asshole, I grunt. “I don’t have time for this right now.” I follow behind Maddie as they load her inside, adding an oxygen mask to her face and checking her blood pressure.
“We need your statements and to write up a report considering your car exploded,” Blake says sternly. “You think you’re getting out of this that easy?” He steps closer, lowering his voice so no one else hears. “I know this shit is your fault.”
I flex my jaw. “Still pissed you didn’t get that second date, huh? Go fuck yourself,” I whisper-hiss loud before stepping into the ambulance.
The EMTs look at me.
“I’m riding with her,” I demand before the back doors close, and they drive off. I take Maddie’s hand and rub my thumb across her knuckles, hoping she can feel me comforting her. I grit my teeth thinking about what happened. One button is all I pushed, and a goddamn bomb went off. The vehicle has keyless-go too, so as long as my keys are on me, all I have to do is touch the handle and it unlocks. So whoever did it probably hoped I’d be next to the vehicle when it exploded so that I’d blow up with it. Two days ago, I moved the G-Wagon into the street to get to my truck and left it there since I don’t drive it anymore, so this had to be planted between then and now.
What the actual fuck? None of it makes sense.
Someone was watching me and planned this recently.
I’ve sent some bad guys back to prison over the last year, ones that weren’t happy I caught them, but for some reason, this has Victoria’s name written all over it. However, she bought the G-Wagon and when our deal ended, she wanted it back. If it was her, I don’t understand her motives, but then again, I never have, not until it’s too late. Unless her plan was to kill me and get the ultimate revenge so I couldn’t use those pictures against her ever again.
We finalized the divorce last weekend, and she seemed fine in court that it was over. It’s not like we ever loved each other, and the marriage was strictly business. She said she’d pick it up when she could. So if it wasn’t her, I’m gonna have to explain what the hell happened, and at this point, I have no idea. My mind goes crazy with theories, but I need to focus on Maddie right now.
Leaning over, I whisper in Maddie’s ear, telling her everything is going to be okay and that I love her. Nothing will ever make me leave her, not even Blake and his insinuations. Her being unconscious and her having the possibility of internal bleeding from the hit concerns me the most. The piece that smacked her flew over so fast, there was no way she could’ve seen it in time to move out of the way. Guys on my college football team used to get concussions all the time but were never out for this long. Granted, they were much bigger than Maddie.
The ambulance slows and pulls into the bay outside of the emergency room. They unload the stretcher, but I don’t let her out of my sight as they rush Maddie inside and take her into a room. I hear one of the EMTs giving the nurses a brief summary of what happened and her injuries. I watch in panic as chaos ensues, a nurse hooks her up to an IV of fluids, another puts a blood pressure cuff around her arm, and another inspects the wound on her head. They talk to each other, listing what tests need to be done, and what they’re looking for.
“Her O2 is a little low, putting an oxygen mask on,” a female nurse instructs to the other who’s typing on a portable computer desk.
“What? Why’s her oxygen low?”
“It’s not uncommon, especially if she inhaled any smoke.” She gives me a soft smile. “It’s mostly precautionary.”
I can’t inhale deep enough to fill my lungs so I’m nearly gasping for air. Maddie lays on the bed, looking so fragile and battered, and I feel helpless as hell. Standing here, all I can do is hold her hand and beg her to wake up.