Run Bad Boy Run

Chapter 28

"My mom," I choke, pushing myself up. "I need to find my mom."

Hayden holds me down. "We'll find her, Ember. Right now we—"

"No!" I shove him away and clumsily climb to my feet. Dizziness punches me in the gut but I push through, sprinting to the door.

She could be anywhere! Her phone isn't on! What if I'm too late?

But as I move to race down the porch, I miss a step, tumbling forward and hitting the ground with a thud.

"Fuck!" I scream. "My ankle!"

Hayden jogs over and crouches in front of me.

"You're stupid," he whispers. As he speaks, Hayden kneels beside me and pulls me forward by my hips, lifting my jeans at the ankle to examine my leg. His steel eyes pierce into mine. "Do you want brain damage and a broken leg?"

"Too late. I think I already have it," I whimper, dizziness washing over me.

"It doesn't look broken," he says more to himself, poking at the skin. I clench my teeth and pull away, growling. Hayden catches my chin between his fingers and forces me to look at him. "My connections tell me your mom is okay."

Tears stream down my face. "Thank God."

He shakes his head. "They shot her," he murmurs, voice void of any emotion. "But they missed something important. She was alone when they found her."

The pain in my chest melts away. "He fucking left her," I hiss. "Jason. He bailed, didn't he?"

Hayden answers with a curt nod.

"Where is she?"

"They have her at Valleyfield Medical Center."

A sob lodges in my throat when I try to shift my weight and stand up. "Maybe we can be in the same hospital room."

"It's fine." Hayden's hands brush my shoulders. He takes a deep breath. "We need to get you checked out."

The next thing I know, I'm being picked up off the ground. Hayden tucks his arm under my legs and lifts my stiff body into his chest. Neither of us dares to breathe and I hate the fact that I have to wrap my arms around his neck to keep from falling forward.

"Oh, so I can go to the Emergency Room for an ankle injury, but when you're practically turned into deli-meat it's okay?" I chuckle darkly. The muscles in my neck strain from forcing my head up, so I reluctantly let cheek rest in the crook of his neck. Adrenaline slowly seeps out of my blood stream and newfound pain throbs in my veins.

"That's different," Hayden informs me. I can feel the rapid pulse of his heart beneath my skin. "I've dealt with knife wounds before."

"I can't believe it."

"Well, I did." Hayden walks towards my car. "Cuts and bruises are different from broken bones."

"My ankle is not broken." I insist more to myself than him.

Hayden pulls the passenger side door open and plops me onto the seat like a sack of potatoes. My ankle twists beneath the seat and I bite my lip at the pain.

"Did your contact say how she's doing?" I ask anxiously. Hayden climbs in front of the steering wheel and checks his phone. "Do they know who did it?"

"She's okay. And no, they don't know who did it."

Twisting in my seat, I stare at him. "Derek would've broken my skull."

"I know," he simply answers. Lines of tension thread along his jaw.