Cooper’s phone rang with a local phone number he didn’t recognize. He stared at it as if it were the devil himself coming to take him to hell.
Izzy looked at the phone, seeing what he did. She gripped his hand tighter, and God, he needed her right now. It could be the hospital or the police or another nosy reporter who’d gotten word that hockey star Cooper Black’s nephew had been involved in the school shooting. The press loved shit like that, especially if they could get him in a vulnerable moment showing some real emotion.
Bastards.
But it sure had been fun seeing Izzy put that woman in her place.
“Aren’t you going to answer it?” Izzy nudged him.
“Yeah.” Cooper hit the Talk button and held the phone up to his ear. “Hello.”
“Uncle Coop, it’s Riley.”
Every bit of tension drained out of Cooper. He didn’t know whether to laugh, cry, or scream to the heavens that his nephew was okay. Izzy stared at him, reading his relief, and a tentative smile graced her beautiful face.
Riley? She mouthed the words.
He nodded and grinned at her. Izzy’s smile lit up her face and tears fell down her cheeks. Hell, tears were falling down his cheeks. It was a strange bittersweet happiness while a woman wailed in the background, obviously receiving the worst news of all. Cooper’s heart went out to her even as his own spirits soared.
“Uncle Cooper?” Riley’s voice jerked him out of his stupor.
“Yeah, yeah, I’m here, buddy. Are you okay? Where are you?”
“Yeah, I’m okay. I’m at the hospital.” Riley sounded strange, like he was sleepwalking and taking at the same time.
“The hospital? Are you hurt?”
“My arm was grazed. I’ll be okay.”
“Grazed? By a bullet?” Panic rose in Cooper. Sweat dripped down his face, and his hands shook. He swore he was going to throw up right here. Using every ounce of control he’d learned from playing hockey, Cooper fought the panic and nausea.
For Riley.
Riley didn’t need his uncle in a panic. He needed him to be brave because Riley was facing some tough times ahead. Cooper could only imagine what he’d seen, what he experienced, and how many of his classmates and friends he might have witnessed being gunned down before his very eyes.
Cooper swallowed and pulled himself together. Izzy held his hand, watching his face, her own face hopeful yet concerned.
“Is he okay?” she asked anxiously.
Cooper nodded. “Ry, where are you? We’ll be there as quickly as we can get there.”
“I’m at Harborview. I—I need you guys.”
“Izzy and I will be there in a few.”
“Thanks, Uncle Coop.” The phone went dead.
“Let’s go.” Cooper grabbed Izzy’s hand and almost dragged her from the church. Together they sprinted to his car and once in, tore down the street.
Izzy patted his arm. “Cooper, slow down. Riley’s okay. We need to get there in one piece.”
Cooper nodded and slowed the car to the speed limit. “He’s okay. Thank God he’s okay.”
“I know, honey, I know.”
“All those other people who weren’t so lucky—”
“Cooper, I know, but Riley needs the two of us more than ever. Let’s concentrate on what we can control.” Izzy rested her head on his broad shoulder.
“I’m so glad I have you. Together, we can do this.”
“Together, we can do anything,” Izzy said, and she meant it.
Riley sat up in the hospital bed with a bandaged arm. He didn’t need to be hospitalized. He needed to go home. He stared at the open door, watching nurses and doctors hustle back and forth, and wondered about Gina.
He’d asked about her, but no one would give him any answers. He gripped the blanket, feeling so very lost and alone.
He lay back against the sheets and closed his eyes, but the images of his earlier nightmare ran through his head in vivid HD color. He snapped his eyes back open and wiped the sweat off his face.
His uncle’s big frame filled the doorway, and their eyes locked. He’d never seen his uncle look like that, almost crazed with worry. Uncle Coop always seemed so in control, almost cold. He didn’t look cold right now. He looked scared shitless.
Uncle Coop looked him up and down, as if assessing his injuries. Relief relaxed the tension on his face, and he grinned as he strode to Riley’s side.
Riley reached out his arms in a totally spontaneous gesture, and his uncle smothered him in a hug, careful to avoid his bandaged arm.
Riley couldn’t be strong anymore. Sobs wracked his body, and he buried his head in his uncle’s shoulder. His uncle might think he was a wuss, but he couldn’t stop. He’d looked death in the eyes and somehow survived. Why him—the kid who never had anything go his way? Why him?
Uncle Cooper finally let go, only to be replaced by Izzy. She hugged him tight and blubbered, her tears wetting his shoulder. She finally stopped hugging him, but she sat on the bed and held his hand, while she sniffled and wiped her nose and eyes with a tissue.
Riley hiccupped a bit and squeezed his eyes shut, but nothing stopped the tears from leaking out so he opened them.
“Are you okay?” Uncle Coop asked, wiping his own eyes. Shit, Uncle Coop had been crying? Riley couldn’t believe it. His uncle was too strong to cry.
“Yeah,” Riley managed.
“The doctor told us you saved a girl’s life and put yours in danger.”
Riley hadn’t thought of it that way. “I just did what I had to do.”
“I’m proud of you, Riley.” Cooper smiled at him. “And damn glad you’re okay.” A tear ran down his uncle’s face, and he didn’t even bother to wipe it away. Riley watched it, mesmerized as it left a wet trail down his cheek and a wet spot on the leather jacket he wore.
“Is she going to be okay?” Riley glanced from one to the other. Their troubled expressions said it all.