Menace in the Keys: A Logan Dodge Adventure (Florida Keys Adventure Series Book 17) by Matthew Rief

Author:Matthew Rief [Rief, Matthew]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Exotic Latitudes Press
Published: 2023-05-01T16:00:00+00:00

TWENTY-FOUR

Scarlett was going to be fine. I was sure of that. I told myself that again and again.

She’d lost a good amount of blood before I’d gotten her to my truck. Then she’d lost some more during the blurring race to Stock Island.

But she hadn’t lost more than half a liter, I was certain of that. Barely ten percent of her body’s supply, at most.

She’ll be fine, I told myself once more.

But serious injury and shock can do a lot, and despite my analytical mind’s attempts to keep myself calm and optimistic, I couldn’t shake the fact that I was a father who’d just seen my daughter get struck by a high-caliber bullet. Who’d just seen her get swiftly carted away through big doors by emergency medical staff. And that now it was all out of my hands.

I couldn’t sit in the waiting area. I was too wired. Too distraught. Too infuriated.

Instead, I stepped back out through the automatic doors and into the humid night. Breathed in and out. Fresh and calm air from barely a football field away from the waters on the Gulf side.

The deep inhalations of salty sea air were powerful reminders of the evening that, up until fifteen minutes earlier, had been one of the best of my life. A blissful night out with my second-favorite person in the world.

And now that person was lying unconscious in a hospital bed.

The distant groan of a familiar engine filled the air.

The noise grew, then headlights flashed from College Road. Scarlett’s Bronco barreled into the lot, shaking and blurring past cars before braking hard beside me.

Ange left the engine running—just threw the door open and jumped out and sprang toward me. Threw her arms around me and locked them tight. She was quivering worse than Scarlett had been, and it boiled my blood even more. Flashing to steam in my veins.

“How is she?” Ange said, relaxing her grip just enough to look deep into my eyes.

“She’s fine, Ange,” I said, kissing her forehead. “Like I said, just a ricochet. Bullet barely dug in and didn’t hit anything vital.”

We headed inside together, the bright fluorescent lighting washing over us. My adrenaline subsided a little, and for the first time, I mentally processed the fact that my arms and chest were coated in my daughter’s blood.

I eyed the nurse behind the counter.

“Nothing yet, Mr. Dodge,” she said solemnly. “The doctor will be out soon.”

I headed for the bathroom. Stood in front of a sink and let the water flow. Ran it as cold as the spigot would spit out and cupped it with two hands and splashed it over my face.

Blinking into the moment and realizing that my hands were coated in red as well, I slid off my jacket and hung it on a hook. Rolled up my sleeves and washed the blood off my hands. It hadn’t had time to dry yet and came off easily. Every splash of the crimson against the spotless white porcelain made my heart skip a beat.

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