Slade Read online

  “Keep your head down, Trisha,” Moon yelled at her.

  The engine died and someone screamed from below as Brass kept firing. He dropped a clip, snapped another one in and continued shooting after a pause of only seconds. Moon fired his weapon from the window.

  Trisha’s heart pounded. Those men had driven a truck through the front of the cabin. Bullets tore up the floor by the bed where Trisha watched holes appear in the wood and continued on through the roof. Debris rained down. Trisha turned in to Harley’s still form and she grabbed him, clinging, until she realized her hand felt wet and warm on Harley.

  Blood. He’s bleeding. She opened her eyes to stare in horrified shock at Harley, sprawled on his back. Her hand over his heart on his chest lifted and it was covered in blood. All hell broke loose around her as men yelled, guns were fired and the cabin continued to be riddled with bullets. Trisha hated feeling helpless as she stared at her bloodied hand, knowing if she sat up she’d be of no use to him with bullets slamming into her as well.

  A loud roar sounded over the shouting, the gunfire, and the cabin being sliced apart by bullets. Trisha had heard that ear-splitting roar before. It sounded as if Valiant had entered the cabin.

  Chapter Eighteen

  Trisha felt hot tears running down her face when the gunfire ceased. She heard another roar, closely followed by something similar to a wolf’s howl. She lifted her head and watched Brass shove up from the floor. Moon hovered by the window grinning.

  “You should see this. There’s about ten of ours out there now and they have the assholes. One son of a bitch is trying to run from Valiant. Oops. He thought he could flee from Valiant. Now he’s a flying…ouch. He was doing a bird impression but now he’s part of a tree. Well, he was until his body hit the ground. Now he’s dead.” Moon chuckled. “That had to hurt. It seems the last thing on his mind was bark.”

  Trisha fought her way to her knees to stare down at Harley, realizing he wasn’t moving at all and instantly reached for his neck. A sob tore from her throat when she didn’t find a pulse. She frantically gripped his shirt and tore it open to examine a gaping wound on the left side of his chest.

  “Oh no,” Brass gasped.

  Trisha moved. It was hard to do on the soft mattress but she got beside Harley and she tilted his head to open up his airway. Trisha leaned over him, gripping his nose with one hand, supported him with the hand behind his neck, and covered his mouth to start breathing for him. She blew in air, shifted her gaze to watch his chest rise, and sat up. She released him to press her hands together over his chest above the wound. She counted in her head as she did compressions.

  “Trisha?” It was Slade’s voice and he was close.

  “Get help,” she gasped in air and blew into Harley’s mouth. She forced air into his lungs again. She did more chest compressions. “Life flight. Nearest trauma center. Hurry.”

  “Trisha?” Slade was very near, almost as if he were on the bed behind her. “He’s gone.”

  Trisha forced air into Harley’s lungs again. “No!” She refused to give up. He’d used his body to shield her to reach the stairs. He’d taken bullets protecting her and the baby. No way would she give up on him. She’d saved patients with worse wounds before.

  She kept going until she stopped, checked his pulse, and nearly collapsed with relief. “I’ve got a heartbeat.” She stared at his face to make sure he continued breathing. Relief swept through her as he took a breath on his own and then another. His pulse was weak but there.

  Trisha studied his chest to discover it was a sucking wound, telling her that his lung had been compromised. “Someone get me something plastic, now. A baggy, anything. Hurry. His lung will collapse.”

  Someone handed her a new, folded trash bag and she went to work while Harley kept breathing on his own. She put pressure on the bleeding wound over his chest. She just had to be careful not to put too much weight down for fear of collapsing the injured lung. Forever seemed to pass as Trisha knelt over him until she finally heard a helicopter.

  Arms gripped Trisha around her waist. “Help is here. They can’t see you, Doc. No one can. Let him go. Moon will hold that in place for you.” Slade held her, speaking softly against her ear. “Come on, sweet thing. You’ve done all you can do. They aren’t our people inside that helicopter, they are yours, and if you stay there will be too many questions.”

  “Take her out the back window,” Brass ordered softly.

  Trisha twisted her head to stare at Slade. “I’m the New Species doctor and he needs me.”

  Slade hugged her harder against his body. “Think of the baby, Trisha. They can do for him what you could.” He lifted her completely away from the bed and hurried toward a back window.

  Brass kicked out what was left of the window. Bullets had broken it mostly out but sharp, jagged corners had remained. Brass stepped through the window first and onto the porch roof, only to disappear over the edge. Slade gripped Trisha, turned her inside the cradle of his arms and bent. They barely fit through the opening but then they stood on the roof. Slade walked to the edge to peer down.

  “Harley needs me. Put me down, Slade.” She frantically wiggled, trying to get a look at the bed and caught a glimpse of her friend laying still with Moon huddled over him. “Please? I’m a doctor!”

  Slade seemed to be ignoring her as he spoke to someone else. “Can you catch her?”

  “I can,” Valiant growled. “Drop her.”

  Drop me? Trisha’s eyes widened as she stared at Slade, pulled from her frantic need to monitor Harley’s condition. Slade’s grim expression didn’t reassure her.

  “Freeze just the way you are, sweet thing.” He lifted her out away his body to dangle over the edge of the porch roof and let go.

  Trisha had a horrible sense of falling and grunted when two strong arms caught her around her upper back and behind her knees. Slade had dropped her about seven feet down into Valiant’s waiting arms. She stared in shock at the ferocious New Species. He spun and bolted into the woods with her clutched close to his massive chest. Panic hit her hard when he sprinted away with her. They reached a thicker part of the woods far from the cabin but he kept going.

  “We’re far enough,” Brass stated, running alongside them.

  “Take me back,” Trisha demanded. “I need to help Harley. I could do things a medic can’t during the flight.” She could still hear the sound of the helicopter. They’d probably have a hard time stabilizing him and she wasn’t sure where the nearest trauma center was located. “I need to monitor him and—”

  “Shut up,” Valiant snarled.

  Trisha’s fear overrode her outrage at being taken away from her patient. She sealed her lips as the guy kept going with her held inside his massive arms, taking her farther from the cabin.

  Valiant finally slowed and glanced down at Trisha, frowning. “You should eat.” He looked away, peering at their surroundings.

  Trisha was thrilled to see Slade jog out of the woods behind them. He grinned. “Clean getaway.” He approached Valiant and opened his arms. “I’ll take her. Thanks.”

  Trisha met his gaze. “Harley needs—”

  “The humans have him and you’re not going back.” Slade’s dark gaze narrowed. “You can argue with me but it won’t change anything. You saved him and now it’s up to them to make sure he survives. Our priority is you and the baby. Harley knew it would be dangerous when he took the job and accepted the risks.”

  Tears spilled down her cheeks. She wanted to protest but realized as she heard the helicopter growing fainter that they’d already scooped him up and transported him away. She couldn’t do anything more for him. She just had to hope that the life-flight crew were top notch and that his lung didn’t collapse. His heart could stop again. A hundred other things that could go wrong began to filter through her head until she pushed them back. She couldn’t do anything more for him and worrying about all the “what ifs” wouldn’t do anyone any good. She was a professional and knew she ne