Page 53 of Nicoletta
“Fuck yeah,” Diesel agrees. “You were bleeding out way worse than this.”
Smoke turns in the passenger seat, nods to me, then gives Bolt and Diesel a look. “Watch what you’re sayin’.”
“I think taking a bullet while running a sting makes her one of us,” Bolt says to Smoke, then looks at Diesel. “Take off your t-shirt. I wanna put pressure on it.”
Diesel shrugs out of his cut, then pulls his t-shirt over his head. Bolt balls it up, and when he presses it against my side, I wince. Then he cuddles me tight to him, and my eyes slide shut.
“Hey,” Bolt is in my face, “you stay with me. No sleeping.”
I force my eyes open, but intoxicating sleep is so close and inviting.
“You know what?” Bolt asks. “You’re officially one of us now.”
The words “one of us” resonates in my foggy brain.
Blood leans over the back seat. “You claiming her?”
“Of course he is.” Diesel smirks. “How else could this bastard get a woman unless she was half unconscious?”
This wasn’t about breaking the rules or being a rebel anymore. Or the romantic notion of being free, the wild sense that Bolt made me feel more alive, carefree, without the restrictions of my former life.
This life has its own set of rules and regulations. Codes that have to be followed. Orders given and taken. Freedom, yes—but different. Because no one or no life is truly free without limits or obstacles.
Now, it comes down to a matter of choosing one over the other. A decision I will be forced to make. A decision I thought would be easy has just become dangerously hard.
CHAPTER 19
BOLT
Nicoletta’s head lolls against my shoulder.
“C’mon, babe, you gotta stay awake.” I jostle her against me, and when she moans, I feet like a total shit.
Diesel’s t-shirt along with my hand are soaked with her blood. “She’s bleeding out. We gotta pull over.”
I spy a gas station up ahead. Perfect. “Pull into the side of that gas station,” I tell Manny.
He looks at Smoke, and when Smoke nods, Manny pulls the SUV off the road. We park at the far side of the building, and he keeps watch in the rear-view mirror.
I ease away from Nicoletta, open the door and retrieve the first-aid kit from the cargo space. I unzip it, already knowing what I need. Says a lot about my life. Gauze, med tape, and antiseptic.
I cut away more of her gown. “Flesh wound,” I say more to myself.
Diesel pulls out the antiseptic and hands it to me.
I hold it in front of her face. “This is gonna feel cold, then sting.”
I drench the wound, and she sucks air through her teeth, then clenches her jaw.
“I know, babe, it hurts like a bitch.”
Diesel unwraps the sterile gauze and hands it to me. I press it to her side, and she arches her back off the seat.
“Keep it together, babe,” Blood says. “You’re doin’ great.”
I pull off the length of tape, tear it with my teeth, then press the edges down against her skin. I shove everything back in the bag, toss it in the back, and gently lift her onto my lap.
Diesel leans in to take a look. “That should keep the bleeding down till we hit Long Beach.”
