Spies in Stilettos [Book Two]

Chapter Eleven: The Only Thing Zach's Really Stolen Is My Heart

Hola eek it's my birthday!! Finally 16 - look out suckers, Monica's on the road! Just kidding, I only just got my permit before Christmas so it'll be a while but whatevs. Here's my birthday present to all you lovely people - thank you so much for making this past year be amazing and making me cry when I see how much you support me. Love y'all so much :D Now I'll stop being all mushy and give you the chapter. Enjoy :)

Gracias! <3 vb123321

Chapter Eleven

The Only Thing Zach's Really Stolen Is My Heart

I guess I must've passed out in the backseat of the car because I wasn't really aware of anything after that until I opened my eyes and saw a much different setting. A thick blanket swallowed me from head to foot, enveloping my body in so much warmth that I didn't have the capacity to feel scared. I appeared to be lying on some sort of padded bench against an unfamiliar wall, and all around me people rushed by, their noise strangely muffled.

For a few minutes, I stayed where I was. Somehow my glasses were still stuck firmly to my nose, and so I watched the chaos in front of me, completely unaffected by it. Men in suits were yelling at each other and dashing in and out of a set of doors to my left. One of them looked vaguely familiar, giving orders while talking on a cell phone, but I didn't make any connections until someone screamed my name.

"Nat!"

A moment later, a deep crimson dress blocked my view, accompanied by a wild head of brown curls and puffy, scared eyes. I tried to smile at Molly as she laid a hand on my blanket-covered shoulder and shook me a little.

"Nat, you're awake! You're okay!"

"Of course I'm okay, silly," I told her. "Why wouldn't I be?"

I wasn't quite sure how it happened, but all at once Molly started crying, tears streaming through her makeup as she tried to contain them. Alarmed, I struggled into a seated position, taking her hands and holding them tightly.

"I'm okay," I told her earnestly. "Stop crying, I'm okay."

She threw her arms around me, and I let her hug me as I patted her back. Her body shuddered with unshed sobs – Molly never cried in public if she could help it – and as I looked her over, I realized her dress was torn and dirty, her hair a mess, and a pair of moccasins had replaced her heels. I was still wearing my dress, too, with Zach's suit coat hanging over my shoulders, a little damp still from the snow.

"What happened?" I asked when she pulled away. "Is Jer okay? And Patrick? Where are my parents? Is Zach –"

Molly put her hand over my mouth, her eyes wide. "Don't talk about him!" she whispered, glancing over her shoulder at the men in suits. "Nat, this is such a big mess, I don't even know what to tell you –"

"Ah, Miss Grimm!" The familiar-looking man from before noticed I was awake and strode over to the bench with a tense smile. "Glad to see you're with us. How do you feel?"

"Where's Jer?" I asked immediately. "Why isn't he here?"

Harry Moore's smile slid off his face. "Your brother's in the hospital," he said gently, rubbing his thumb across the screen of his phone. "As is Patrick Ryan. Don't worry," as he saw the look on my face, "they'll both be fine. They just need some surgery from the bullet wounds."

"I need to talk to Jer," I said, my voice quivering as I remembered the blood pooling on the round next to my brother's leg. "Please, it's really important!"

Moore shook his head sympathetically. "We all would love to, Miss Grimm, but I'm afraid he's under heavy anesthesia right now and can't talk to anyone. The moment he calls, I'll let you know."