“Jack!” she screamed as she saw him stumble to the ground. Sydney rushed to his side. Blood gushed from just above his shoulder blade.
Bennett shot her and Jack a look of contempt. “You knew there would be casualties. Leave him behind or we’ll all get caught, you fool.” Her nostrils flared. She hated that man with a passion. “Go ahead. I’m staying here with Jack.”
Thankfully Jack was still conscious. He turned his head in her direction. “He’s right, Sydney. You have to keep running, or they’ll catch up to you.” Sydney shook her head. “Then they’ll have to catch me because I’m not leaving you. Can you get up?”
Jack rolled over with gritted teeth and managed to wobble to his feet with her assistance. “The building should explode any minute now, so that may provide us with a temporary distraction. We need to get a good enough distance away from it though before it’s too late.”
“Put your arm around me.”
“Sydney, you don’t have to do this.”
“The longer you stand here and argue the more chance they have of capturing us. Let’s go.”
Jack looked like he wanted to protest, but thankfully didn’t. They kept running, but their progress was slow. He was obviously in a lot of pain, but he continued on. The other members of their team were way ahead of them and Sydney could hear the footsteps getting closer behind them.
They would need a miracle or else they wouldn’t get out. Just then, the bombs detonated. The force of the explosion was enough to send them flying off their feet.
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Jack grunted in pain. Sydney looked over her shoulder to see a trail of blood left behind them. Someone could easily track them down if Jack continued on. She’d have to bandage his wound somehow.
With nothing at her disposal, she ripped the bottom of her shirt and swabbed up as much blood as quickly as she could. Stealing a glance over her shoulder, she didn’t see anyone behind her, but she was sure it would only be a matter of moments before someone did find them. The explosion would only buy them so much time.
Sydney stuffed the rag inside his shirt over his wound. “This will have to do for now, but that should at least prevent a trail. Let’s go.” This time when Jack made it to his feet, he swayed unsteadily. He was probably dizzy from the blood loss. “Is there a temporary hiding place we can go until things calm down a little? We’re not going to get out of the city with your injury.” Jack’s face had lost all color. “Yes, there’s one not too far from here. But don’t worry about me. I’ll catch up with you all later.” She wasn’t going to bother arguing about it. “Let’s find the hiding place.” They had to duck into shadows along the way. A few times Sydney believed they’d be caught for sure. A group of Cyrellians had run right past them as they hid behind a trash bin before they found the hiding place.
Jack’s hiding spot turned out to be underground, which required them moving a manhole cover. Sydney had to do most of the lifting because of Jack’s wound. She was exhausted by the time they climbed down to the sewer and she replaced the cover. Not that she’d ever been in one before, but the sewer wasn’t as disgusting as she’d believed it would be. There was an odor but nothing unbearable.
Along the walls, on either side of the water flowing in a steady stream, were platforms long and wide enough for them to stretch out their legs comfortably. These weren’t ideal resting conditions, but they would have to do for the time being.
Jack was deathly white and Sydney couldn’t remember a time when she’d been so scared in her life. It wasn’t likely the search would let up any time soon. She only hoped the rest of the team had been able to get out of the city.
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“Jack, I’m going to need to take off your shirt to take care of your injury properly.”
His breathing was ragged and his forehead was beaded with sweat. His eyelids fluttered open and shut as if it was difficult for him to remain conscious. “You should have left me,” he whispered.
“So they could capture and then kill you? Are you crazy? We’re in this together.
Isn’t this what teammates are supposed to do for each other?”
“I’m the leader and I gave you an order.” His teeth were clenched and she knew he was in a great deal of pain.
“Well, I disobeyed it and there’s nothing you can do about it. There’s really no point in arguing because I’m not going anywhere. I probably wouldn’t get far without you anyway, so the point is moot.”
He shook his head with a heavy sigh. “You are so stubborn.”
“I can be, when I’m fighting for something I care about. Lift your arms.” Sydney was careful and she tugged Jack’s shirt over his head, being as gentle as she could. Jack didn’t make a sound, but she felt him flinch.
He was staring at her in a strange way, but she shrugged it off. He asked, “Do you mean it, Sydney?”
“Turn around so I can see the damage. Did I mean what?” Jack turned around. “That you care about me. You said you fight for things you care about.”
A lump formed in her throat. She’d let slip more than she’d intended to, but the truth usually came out in the heat of the moment. She wasn’t quite ready to have this conversation. She needed to gather her thoughts in order to come up with the right things to say. Besides, she still had to determine how serious his injury was before delving into her feelings for him. The rag she’d stuffed in his shirt stuck to the dried up blood.
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“This may sting a bit.” She pulled the rag away as gently as she could. A large area of his back was caked with blood, making it difficult to see anything properly. She reached over for the canteen to wash his wound, but Jack caught her hand in his.
“You didn’t answer my question. You can’t say something like that and expect me not to question you about it.”
She hadn’t meant to blurt out her feelings for him, at least not in these circumstances. Ever since they’d had their talk, Sydney had had some time to think about what he’d told her, and deep down she knew he was right. She’d been giving him the runaround for days, while he’d bent over backward to comply with her wishes.
She’d never given them a fair shot. She’d like to blame it on what Anna had said, but knew that would be a cop out.
Sydney had come to the conclusion she’d been looking for an excuse, any one, to put some distance between her and Jack, because she was too scared to pursue their relationship any further.
Seeing Jack injured made her realize just how much she cared for him. How much she loved him. For that brief second when she’d believed she could lose him forever that’s when she’d known.
“Yes, I care for you, Jack. Probably more than I should but I do.” He winced. “Ouch. As far as confessions go, that wasn’t exactly flattering.” She took a deep breath. “Let me clean your wound first and then we can talk. I promise I won’t hold anything back.”
His grip tightened on her hand and he didn’t look like he was ready to let her go, but finally did. “Okay, but I’m not going to let you wiggle your way out of it no matter how you try to dance around the subject.”
She nodded, collecting the canteen. Carefully she poured some water on her rag and placed the canteen back down. “I don’t know how bad the wound is, but it looks like you lost a lot of blood.”
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As gently as she could, she washed the area around the wound. Relief filled her when she realized it didn’t look as deep as she’d thought initially, but she could see a piece of jagged metal poking out.
“What’s the verdict?” he asked through gritted teeth.
“It’s not as bad as I thought, but I’m going to have to get this piece of shrapnel out. It’s probably going to hurt, but I’ve got to stop the bleeding. I’ll pack it and bandage it up for now, but as soon as we get back to the base, you’re going to need to get it taken care of properly.”
“Then hurry up and get it over with. It already hurts like shit.” Sydney had never considered herself squeamish, but when she tugged on the sharp, slippery bit of metal buried in his skin, she thought she’d throw up. It would have been easier if she’d had pliers. After several attempts, she finally managed to get a firm grasp on the metal shard and slowly eased it out.
Unfortunately, that started the bleeding again. She pressed the damp rag against the wound as hard as she could.
“Ouch!” he shouted.
“I know it hurts, Jack, but you can’t make that much noise or they’re bound to hear us.”
“I feel like passing out,” he groaned.
“Hold on for me, Jack. You’re doing great.”
“I think you enjoy hurting me,” he growled.
There was a wealth of meaning in his words and a wave of guilt hit her. He had every right to be annoyed with the way she’d treated him. “No. Actually I don’t. But I hope I won’t ever hurt you again after this.”
“You actually sound like you mean it.”
“I do. Now be quiet and hold still. It may take a few minutes before the bleeding stops again. Then we’ll eat. I’ve got some rations packed. We may have to spend the day down here and wait until nightfall to get out of the city.” Jack chuckled.
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Sydney frowned. “What’s so funny?”
“I think it’s interesting how far you’ve come in such a short period of time.”
“What do you mean?”
“Remember when you first left the city? You were so uncertain about the life you’d left behind and all of your creature comforts, but look at you now. You’ve taken charge and I like this a lot. It seems like you’ve done a lot of growing up.” Heat rushed to her cheeks and a warmth filled her heart at his compliment. “The life I once knew was a lie. I realized I can’t mourn something that never actually existed.
When I sit back and think of how the Cyrellians have used and exploited our people, I get angry. It’s why I couldn’t stay back at base while you and the others went on this mission. And now, I’m especially glad I came because… well, if I didn’t who would be here to take care of you?”
When he made an attempt to turn around, she clasped his shoulder to keep him still. “Don’t move until I tell you to. When I finish patching you up we’ll eat.”
“And talk too. Don’t forget that.”
“How could I? You won’t let me.”
“Damn right I won’t.”
A silence fell between them as she held the rag against his injury.
“How much longer is this torture going to take?”
“Stop being such a baby. I haven’t heard this much whining since I babysat when I was a teenager.”
Jack chuckled. “You try being wounded. I doubt you’d take it so stoically.”
“And you’re such a big brave man.” She kissed the spot just above where he’d been hit, before wrapping it up with the rag. “There. You’re good as new.” He snorted. “If that’s true then why do I feel like shit?”
“You’ll be okay. I know you will. Now let’s get something to eat.”
“And talk.”
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“Of course.” She pulled the bread and fruit out of her backpack and divided it between the two of them, giving him the majority of the food so he could regain his strength.
Jack raised a brow. “You didn’t take much for yourself.”
“I’ll be fine. You need it much more than I do.”
He rolled his eyes. “You don’t have to baby me.”
“I’m not babying you. I’m making sure you’ll have the strength to get us out of the city tomorrow night. My motives aren’t completely noble you know. I’m getting something out of this too.”
“Oh, is that so?” He took a bite of his apple.
“The truth is, I wouldn’t have the first clue how to get out of the city without you.”
“You had your opportunity to go with Bennett and the rest of the group. Why didn’t you?”
She raised a brow, seeing through his ploy. “I’ve already told you, I wasn’t going to leave you behind. I think you just wanted to hear me say it again.”
“After the ego crushing way in which you treated me, don’t you think I deserve to hear it?”
Sydney took a deep breath, her heart heavy at the reminder of how she’d trampled over his feelings. “I didn’t leave you behind because I couldn’t stand the thought of something terrible happening to you. I need you, Jack. I know I’ve been a jerk to you, and you had every right to blow up at me the way you did. I have no excuse except to say I was scared.” She lowered her head, ashamed to look him in the eye.
“Look at me, Sydney,” he said softly, but there was an underlying band of steel in his voice and she knew he wouldn’t be denied.
Slowly she raised her head to meet his obsidian gaze. “I’m sorry.” He nodded. “I don’t need your apology. I just want you to be honest with me from here on out. I’m just as scared as you are, but I’ve opened myself up to you as best as I can. I’ve never felt this way about any other woman in my life. Like you, I’m used
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to having control of my emotions, but I don’t when you’re around. I can’t eat, sleep, or think properly, so you tell me how the hell I’m supposed to feel?”
“I-I don’t know.”
“I’m just as new at this love thing as you are, but all I’m asking is for you to work with me. I probably shouldn’t have snapped at you yesterday, but I was so frustrated I didn’t know how else to react.”
She shook her head. “You were within your rights. I was being a pain in the ass. I really was trying, but I was ashamed of what I did with Anna, and I didn’t know what you’d think so I shut down again.”
“Sydney, I wasn’t mad at you, just concerned over why you would lash out at her. I’ve known Anna longer, but I’ve learned enough about you to know hitting her wasn’t characteristic. Are you ready to tell me what happened?” Sydney snorted. “Hasn’t she already given you her version? She’s been acting like a martyr ever since it happened.”
“Well, you did give her a really nice shiner. All she told me was you attacked her for no reason. I didn’t believe her for a second, which was why I came to you to ask your side of the story, but that’s when you started acting funny and then I kind of blew up.”