Philip chuckled. “Yes, she will. She won’t have a choice.”
His bruising grip held me tight across the neck and I could barely breathe. Closing my eyes, I concentrated on the syringe in my hand and unscrewed the top as gently as I could. I’d been a nurse for years and knew exactly how to administer a shot with one hand. Leaning close to my ear, Philip’s hot breath fanned down my neck, making me cringe in disgust.
“This would’ve been easier if you’d just fallen in love with me.” With his finger on the trigger, I knew this was the time to act. “When you see his bleeding corpse, just remember it all could’ve been different.”
The syringe cap fell to the floor. “You’re right…it could’ve been. But now it’s over.” As hard as I could, I jammed the syringe into his thigh, pushing in every ounce of liquid inside the vial. Unfortunately, it didn’t stop him from pulling the trigger.
Clutching my neck, Philip grunted and pulled me down to the floor, but luckily Evan was there to catch me. Picking me up in his arms, he carried me across the room away from Philip, but still where we could see him. I breathed a sigh of relief when I heard the sound of sirens in the distance.
Holding me tightly, Evan kissed me hard and held me to his chest. “Thank fucking God, I got here in time. Are you okay?”
I looked over at Philip, who was convulsing on the floor, his eyes rolling into the back of his head. Tears filled my eyes and my body shook. “I’m fine, I promise. I wouldn’t have been if you hadn’t shown up when you did. You saved me from a fate I don’t even want to think about.”
“What did he do to you?”
Swallowing hard, I could still feel Philip’s hands on my body. “Nothing I couldn’t handle. I’m just glad it’s over. Whatever he had in that syringe worked.” If he had succeeded in his plan, I would’ve rather been dead. Thank God I didn’t have to worry about that, but for a moment there I’d thought my life and Evan’s were over.
“I guess he made the wrong choice then,” he murmured, pointing down at the gun.
I peered up at him. “What do you mean?”
“There were no bullets. If he’d chosen the syringe, I don’t know if I’d be here right now. Did you know the gun wasn’t loaded?”
“I did. I was hoping my bluff would make him back down.” It was a gamble, but I’d been desperate.
Taking my face in his hands, he rested his forehead on mine. “I’m sorry I didn’t get here earlier. When I couldn’t get in touch with you, I knew something was wrong. The thought of him—”
“Stop,” I whispered across his lips. “I’m okay. It’s over.” Looking over at Philip, I held Evan close. “Or at least I hope it is.”
—
“Out of all the nights Grayson and I could’ve taken off, it had to be the one when you’re attacked,” Lara cried, lying over me. I’d been at the hospital for three hours and neither Grayson nor I could get her to stop crying.
I patted her head. “I think you should be the one in this hospital bed. Clearly, you’re the one who needs help.”
She snorted and sat up. “How can you be so calm? You have a broken wrist and could’ve easily ended up dead.”
“But I’m here and I’ll get through it. My wrist doesn’t hurt…much.”
Evan came to my other side. “We need to see if they can give you some pain meds.” Pain meds would be nice, but I didn’t want to be in a fog.
“When will we find out the test results and what’s going on?” Grayson asked from across the room.
Evan tensed and huffed through his nose while Lara began to cry again. The doctors wanted to be sure I hadn’t been raped during the time Philip had succeeded in sedating me. I knew my own body and tried to tell them nothing had happened, but they wanted to be sure. It left doubt in Evan’s mind. He was tense and on edge.
“Hopefully soon. I’m ready to get out of here,” I replied.
While we waited, I made Evan climb up on the bed and hold me. After everything that had happened, I needed his touch. I wanted to erase all memories of Philip’s hands on me. Grayson eventually left to check on the restaurant while Lara lay snuggled up in the recliner, half passed out. Our parents were on their way down from Virginia, but they still had a five-hour drive ahead of them. I was on the verge of falling asleep when the door opened and Dr. Scott strolled in.
Evan hopped off the bed, but stayed close and held my hand. My heart began to race, especially when I saw the expression on her face. “What’s wrong?” I asked her.
Sighing, she looked down at the file in her hand. “Honestly, I don’t know how you’ve handled this so well. Coming from a friend and not just your doctor, I have to say you’ve grown a set of balls. After everything you’d been through with your husband and now this…” A tear escaped her eye and she wiped it away. She cleared her throat and continued, “Sorry, didn’t mean to choke up there.”