Page 46 of Rage's Redemption
“It’s me,” Ezra breathed harshly into my ear.
My struggles stopped, and I relaxed as he removed his hand. Ezra was alive. That was all that mattered.
“They were waiting,” I whispered, and Ezra nodded.
“Two remain, and they’re excellent. Head towards the boat.”
Ezra took the lead, moving silently as I crept behind him.
My gaze swapped between his back and the ground. I tried to avoid stepping on branches or twigs. Ezra let out a low hiss as he noticed the man I’d shot, and I began shaking when I knew he’d come across the guy I’d stabbed in the throat.
Ezra’s eyes burned with anger as he saw the signs of a scuffle and then the body. He dragged me to his side for a brief moment and then pointed to the boat. With both our guns out and ready to shoot, we moved towards it. A shadow rose from close to the shoreline, and Ezra fired without hesitation. I was spun around as a second shot followed Ezra’s, and I hit the floor dazed.
Ezra shot back several times, and there was a loud thump as a body hit the ground.
Without a word, Ezra picked me up and placed me in the boat, forcing me to lie down as he crouched low and started it. The noise of the engine ripped through the quiet night, and I heard running footsteps. Ezra guided the boat out onto the calm waters of the lake as bullets pinged the surrounding water. He didn’t bother firing back, more intent on getting us to safety. Once we were out of danger, I sat up with a sharp pain in my shoulder. I touched a hand to it and was surprised when it came away wet.
“Ezra,” I said faintly.
“Babe?” he asked, keeping his eyes flicking between the fading shoreline and the one far in the distance just coming into view.
“Um, I’ve been shot,” I whispered as black spots danced in my vision.
Ezra’s head snapped around with a speed I wouldn’t have thought possible. His gaze latched onto my shoulder where I was holding it, and he moved across the boat, causing it to rock. He carefully removed my hand, and the air hissed between his teeth as Ezra took in the wound.
“It’s a through and through,” he said. “Are you feeling faint or dizzy?”
“Some black spots, I’ll be okay, but it hurts,” I almost wailed.
“So sorry, baby; they must have hit you when we got onto the boat,” Ezra replied guiltily.
“It’s not your fault; it’s theirs,” I muttered as nausea rose.
Holy shit, I’d been shot.
“Hang on, once we reach land, I am going to find us somewhere to hole up until help arrives,” Ezra mumbled as he yanked out his phone.
“Drake, yeah, I know what time it is. We were attacked at the cabin, Dana’s been shot, a shoulder wound through and through… No, we can’t leave; we’re cut off from the car and opposite to where we were. I’ll send coords. Get back up here and inform Hawthorne.”
Ezra cut the call to Drake and kept a watchful eye on me. His lips tightened. I knew he was stressed and worried, so I smiled gamely and did everything possible not to throw up and make him feel worse.
The boat hit the shoreline after what felt like hours, but honestly wasn’t. Erza leapt out, tied it up, and came back for me. He didn’t mean to, but as he jostled me, my stomach lurched, and I shoved away and threw up in the water. Pain made my eyes water as the retching jolted my injured shoulder. Ezra held my hair away and rubbed my uninjured shoulder as I emptied my stomach. Luckily, the water moved the vomit away from us, or I probably would have kept on throwing up.
Ezra picked me up and carried me to the treeline. As he walked, his eyes scanned back and forth, looking for danger. Finally, we saw a cabin in the distance, and Ezra placed me gently on the ground.
“Dana, I’m going to check it’s empty. Stay here, baby,” he murmured.
I nodded, feeling too weak to do anything else.
Ezra faded into the shadows, and I was left alone in the dark night. Fully aware I should be afraid of the noises that came out at night; I didn’t have the energy. The flight to the docks, the subsequent fight, and shooting the man before being shot had taken everything from me. The vomiting had stolen what little strength I had.
A noise close by made me look up, and Ezra appeared.
“The cabin’s empty and fully stocked. It’s safe there,” Ezra said, bending his knees and gathering me up in his arms. He stood up with little effort and carried me away. I didn’t pay much attention to our surroundings as he carried me inside and placed me on a sofa. He pulled the blinds down over the windows and flicked the lights on.
Ezra then grabbed a bowl of water and a fist aid kit before hurrying back. He carefully cut the torn tee away and cleaned the blood up. Fresh blood began flowing, and Ezra slapped a bandage over it while he attended to the wound on my back.
“These need stitching, baby,” Ezra said with a guilty expression.