Chapter Thirty-Three
Marco
“Marco!” Someone shaking my shoulders rouses me. I groan and crack my eyes open, they’re so heavy, and I can’t seem to focus. “Marco, you have to wake up, we have to get you out of here.”
“What happened?” I ask the question, but I know the answer.
Colin stands over me, hooking his arm under mine, and forcefully lifting me out of my seat. The man is stronger than I gave him credit for. “The plane went down. Saint, Caren, and Hannah are all fine. Saint got the girls out of here, then came back to help me with Bob. He’s busted up, but he’s alive.”
“Ember?” I look down at my girl to see that she trapped in her seat. A massive chunk of metal, the drinks cart, is pressed against her right leg, and it looks as though she’s already gone. “No!” I scream while trying to reach for Ember.
“Colin, we have to get him out of here!”
“Then fuckin’ help me, Saint,”
Saint grabs me from the right as both men drag me out of the wreckage, and I’m screaming at them to let me go. But they don’t let go until they drop me to the ground next to Bob.
“We have to get her out of there!” I scream while trying to get up. There’s no way I’m leaving Ember on that plane!
“We’ll get her, Marco. But you have to stay here, it’s not safe, the damn thing could blow any minute.”
Bob holds onto my arm, stopping me from getting up and chasing after Colin and Saint. “They’ll get Ember out of there, Marco, trust them.”
I don’t answer Bob, I look at the wreckage and beg inside my head that Colin and Saint get Ember out of there alive. Christ, she was so pale, and I’m terrified that she’s dead, and I’ll never hear her beautiful voice again.
“Sally and the pilot are dead,” I hear Caren say. I should feel bad, but I can’t seem to care at the moment. All I care about is Ember.
Colin is taking too long, and I can’t sit here, waiting for him to save Ember. I drag myself to my feet, clasping my side for a second. I don’t know if I’ve cracked a rib, but I also don’t care right now.
“Marco, you need to stay here, and wait for Colin and Saint,”
“Forget it,” I cut Caren off. I don’t say anything else, I charge toward the plane wreck. It’s further away than I first thought. I suppose that’s a good thing if we don’t want to get caught up in a blast.
I ignore the calls for me to go back, and I keep walking. There is no way I’m leaving Ember on that plane, alive or dead.
Christ knows where we are, but we’re surrounded by trees, and I don’t know if we’re close to a town or people. How the hell will we even call for help? Maybe I can look for my cell on board, or one of the others will have managed to keep hold of theirs.
I push my way through what was once the emergency door. I’m assuming Colin or Saint managed to get it open. God, I don’t even recognize the inside of the plane. Seats are torn from their confinement’s, debris is everywhere, and I’m astonished anyone made it out alive.
The air is knocked out of me when I see that Ember is still pinned in her seat. She isn’t moving, and she isn’t talking, even though Saint is trying to rouse her. Colin is trying his best to free Ember’s leg, but even I can see it’s pointless.
I rush to his side, grabbing what looks like the remains of the stewardesses drinks cart. I don’t have time to question why it wasn’t locked away, or maybe the damn lock broke when the plane crashed. Either way, I need to free Ember or die trying.
“You shouldn’t be here,”
“Save it, Colin. Help me get this thing off my girl!”
“Saint, the second you see a chance, lift Ember out. Get her off this aircraft, and don’t stop for anything.” Saint nods at Colin, and he and I pull with all our mite.
It seems to be stuck on something. I look down to see the wheel is caught on Ember’s scarf. She took it off before takeoff; it must have been dangling from the seat. I yank at the scarf, but it won’t budge.
“I need something to cut the material. If I can do that, it should move the cart enough to get Ember out.”
Colin looks around himself as if that’s going to help anything. “What the hell is there to find?”
Saint growls low in his throat before taking off. I keep yanking at the scarf, but the fucking thing seems to be gripping the wheel even tighter.
“Here,” Saint hands me a small steak knife. I narrow my eyes. Where the hell did he find a steak knife? As if reading my mind, Saint tells me, “I guess Sally was serving us steak for dinner.” He shrugs, and gets back into position, ready to lift Ember.
Poor Sally, I haven’t given her a second thought. I know her body is only a few feet away from me; I saw her when I stepped on board. I didn’t look too closely because I don’t think I could have stomached it, but I’ll make sure if we’re found that Sally gets home to her family.
I’ll think about that stuff later, right now, I need to get my girl free of this damn wreckage. I hack at the scarf, but the material is so thick it’s taking forever. I’m sweating, and my body is trying to give up on me, but I won’t let that happen.
I cut deeper, cutting deep enough for me to grab the material and tear it apart with my bare hands. Nothing would stop me from saving Ember, and the strength within me right now is something I didn’t know I possessed.
The material gives, but the cart doesn’t move enough for Saint to life Ember. I get to my feet and grab the damn thing, yanking it away from Ember with all that I am.
“That’s it, Marco. Just a little more,” Saint encourages. “I’ve got her!”
Thank God!
“Get her out of here!” I watch through blurred vision as Saint rushes Ember away from the wreckage. I slump against the cart, and Colin grabs my arm.
“You could have caused yourself some real damage, Marco.”
“I don’t give a damn, Colin,” He helps me out of the plane. “I would have died before I left Ember here.” I stop walking because the enormity of almost losing Ember hits me, and I have to gulp back a sob.
Colin throws his arm over my shoulders. “It’s okay, Marco. I know how terrifying the thought of losing the woman you love is,”
“She’s everything to me, Colin. I don’t think y’all understood how much I love Ember. What if she’s not okay, Colin? I don’t think I can live without her,”
Colin wraps his arms around me, and I let him because I need someone to hold me up right now.
Chapter Thirty-Four
Colin
“Everything will be alright, Marco,” I say that, but I don’t have a damn clue if anything will ever be okay again. Shit, I don’t know if Ember is even alive, she was so pale, blood dripped from a cut on her head, her leg is crushed, and Saint couldn’t find a pulse.
Marco was right when he said that none of us understand how much he loves Ember. Sure, I believed him when he said he loved her, and even when he wanted to ask Ember to marry him. However, I had no idea that what he was feeling could be so profound. I stupidly believed that after Sasha hurt Marco so badly, he’d never learn to love again.
I should have known that Ember would be the one to show Marco how to live and love. I’ve known Ember since school, and I knew then just how special the girl was. She doesn’t have a mean bone in her body, and she sees the good in everyone.
Today she helped me realize just how badly I want the baby the love of my life is carrying. Now I only hope we haven’t lost our child. Hannah isn’t hurt, and I thank God for that. Saint, Caren, Hanna, and I seem to be the only ones who came away with little more than a scratch. How? I don’t have a clue, but someone must have been looking down on us.
It’s no secret that Hannah and Ember haven’t always seen eye to eye. But the past few weeks seem to have changed things between them slowly. They’ve become good friends, and that’s all I’ve ever wanted, my best friend and wife are getting along. I know Hannah is out there right now, scared to death that Ember has died.
>
As I hold Marco up so that he doesn’t crumble completely, I pray that Ember will be okay. Her leg didn’t look good when Saint lift her out of that seat. I have to wonder if we get out of here, will Ember lose her leg?
The thought doesn’t bear thinking about right now, especially when I don’t know if any of us will make it out of this alive. We’re in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by trees, and there’s no sound other than birds chirping.
I help Marco over to where Saint has laid Ember down. Hannah is stroking Ember’s face while Caren attaches scraps of material from her long skirt to the long sticks that press either side Ember’s leg. I don’t know what good the makeshift split will do, but hopefully, it’ll help keep Ember’s leg together.
I’m going to have to look for a first aid kit. Both Ember and Bob are going to need painkillers, and Christ knows what else. Everyone else’s wounds seem to be superficial, but I’ll check as soon as I can.
“Ember,” Marco pulls away from me and gets to his ass beside Ember. He takes her face in his hands, and I see the tear fall from his eye and hit Ember’s cheek. “Baby girl, open your eyes. Please, Ember, open your eyes!”
“What the hell are we gonna do?” Saint asks me quietly. “The pilots dead, the stewardess too, none of us have phones, and Ember is…”
“Don’t you dare say it!” Marco yells. He heard Saint, so I know there’s nothing wrong with his hearing. The man could always hear a pin drop. “Don’t you dare fuckin’ say it! Ember’s gonna be okay, she has to be,”
Hannah walks into my arms, and I hold her as she cries. “It’s okay, sweetheart.”
“How are we gonna get out of here? What if I lose our baby?”
“Shh,” I kiss her head and rock her from side to side. I don’t have the answers to the questions she’s asking. I wish I did, but I don’t.
“Marco?”
We all turn to look at Ember as she calls for Marco.
He sniffs hard. “Yes, baby, I’m here.”
“Baby,” Ember whispers.
“That’s right; you’re my baby.”
“I love you,” She whispers without opening her eyes.
Marco strokes her blood-soaked hair away from her forehead. “I love you, beautiful. Please be okay, Ember, I can’t lose you.” Ember isn’t going to gain consciousness any time soon, but at least she’s alive. Those who can walk need to find help. Bob and Ember obviously can’t move, and there’s no way Marco will leave Ember, so it’ll be down to Saint and me. Hannah will want to come with me, even though she should stay here. I’m not sure about Caren, but I guess we’ll find out soon enough.
Saint and I go back to the wreckage to see what we can find in ways if supplies. We manage to find a crate of bottled water, and some of those prepackaged foods planes usually serve up to people. I also see some snacks that I stuff into my backpack that was right where I left it. How ironic is that? The plane crashed, yet my backpack stayed under what was my seat.
I can’t seem to locate the damn first aid kit, though, and nor can Saint. I did find a bag with paracetamol and a few antiseptic wipes inside. Not the best form of painkiller, paracetamol, but it’s the best I can do right now.
I don’t know how bad the cut above Ember’s eye is, but I do know that we need to find some way to stop the bleeding. Caren was working on that when Saint and I left. The girl’s father is a doctor, and she seems to have picked up a few tricks. I hope she can fix what’s possible.
I don’t know how long the supplies Saint and I found will last, but I’m praying it’ll be enough.
As soon as we arrive back with the others, Saint and I fill them in on what we found. I make sure Bob’s legs are splinted as well as they can be, and notice that Caren has already relocated his pinky finger. I can’t imagine how painful that was, but it couldn’t be helped.
I open a bottle of water after tearing a rag from the bottom of my shirt, and Saint does the same. I leave him to clean Bob’s wounds, while I tend to Ember.
Using the water and rag, I gently wipe away the blood from Ember’s face. The cut doesn’t look too deep, thank God. Caren did a good job of making sure the wound was cleaned as well as it could be.
“Am I going to lose her, Colin?”
I look at Marco and sigh. He isn’t looking at me, his eyes are firmly on Ember, and he looks broken. “Marco, you need to snap out of this. Ember needs you to be strong right now.” He looks at me with tears in his eyes. “I know how scared you are, but we are gonna get out of this, I promise. I’m going to find help, and Ember will be just fine.” Marco nods and looks away.
I don’t know if I’ve gotten through to Marco or not, but I don’t have time to wait around. I then tell everyone that I’m going to look for help. Hannah, as predicted, wants to come with me, Saint and Caren too.
“Are you guys gonna be all right?” Marco doesn’t answer me; he simply holds Ember’s hand in his own, ignoring the world around him.
“We’ll be fine,” Bob smiles slightly. “Just try not to get lost out there.”
I tip my head and take Hannah’s hand in mine. “Marco, are you gonna be okay?” He doesn’t answer me, and I sigh while shaking my head.
“Maybe I should stay in case Marco needs help?”
“I don’t need your help!” Marco snaps loudly. Caren rolls her eyes because, like the rest of us, she’s used to Marco’s outbursts. Ember usually calms him, but he’s afraid he’s losing her, and no one will hold it against him this time. “I’m sorry, Caren, I didn’t mean to yell.”
“It’s okay, Marco,” Caren tells him.
“You guys go ahead, I’ll take care of Ember and Bob. Just try not to get lost, and remember to follow your gut.” I nod before leaving Hannah, Saint, and Caren away.
The four of us take the west route. There was no point looking for a map in the wreckage when I don’t know where the hell we are in the world. There seems to be nothing but trees for miles and miles, and if I’m honest with myself, I don’t know how to get out of this maze of trees.
Hannah may well be keeping up with my strides, but I can tell she’s already getting tired.
We can’t stop now, and that’s why we keep walking. Now and again, I hand Hannah some water. She only takes sips before giving the bottle back to me. I found forty-odd bottles on the plane, and I managed to pack twenty into my backpack. I also packed some of those meals and snacks from the plane. I don’t know how we’ll warm them through, but I guess we’ll eat them cold. I can’t have Hannah starving out here, she has my baby inside of her, and I need to keep her fed and watered.
My baby, I never thought I’d be saying something like that. After my sister died giving birth to my nephew, I swore I would never have children if I could lose the woman I love. I’ve loved Hannah for more years than I imagined were possible. She stole my heart from our first date, and she’s been mine ever since.
We’re going to get out of this, and when we do, I’m going to keep my family safe. If our baby survives, there is nothing I won’t do to show that child how much it means to me.
I turn around to let Saint know that we’ll be stopping for the night. It’s getting dark, and we’re not going to be able to go any further. We’ve been walking for hours, and we’ll have to hunker down under the trees tonight. Christ knows how we’re going to keep warm with those tiny airplane blankets, but we’ll have to make do.
I narrow my eyes at the way Saint is holding Caren’s hand. Is something going on between them? I shake the thought out of my head, there’s no time for it right now.
“Guys, we need to stop for the night. It’s getting dark, and Hannah is exhausted,”
“I’m okay, Colin,” Hannah says that while swaying on her feet.
“You’re not okay; you need to rest.”
“But the others need help. We can’t stop until we get help,”
I’m not taking no for an answer. I find a spot under a huge tree that seems clear enough to rest for the night. I brush away twigs and
small stones, then lay a couple of the blankets down on the ground. Saint grabs two. “Caren and I will sleep on the other side of the tree,”
I grab his arm. “Is somethin’ going on with you two?”
Saint looks over at Caren as she talks with Hannah. He turns to me and sighs. “All the shit we gave Marco about Ember, and I go and fall for our damn, PA.”
“What?” I can’t stop the laughter slipping out of my mouth. Saint and Caren isn’t the same thing as Marco and Ember. Caren isn’t a member of the band, though Saint is a bigger slut than Marco ever was.
“I’m in love with her, Colin. I thought we were just a fling, but we started getting closer, and she started meaning more and more to me.”
“How the hell? I haven’t noticed anything, and I don’t think anyone else has either.”
“I’m more discrete than Marco,” Saint chuckles. “On that plane as Caren held my hand, the way she looked at me, that’s when I knew I loved her. For a moment there, I honestly thought we were dead, Colin. As that plane went down, I couldn’t stop myself from telling Caren that I loved her, and she smiled and told me that she loved me too. I swore that if we made it out alive, I’d love her forever.”
I’m shocked, but I’m happy for my friend. Caren is a good woman, and we all like her, and if Saint loves her, then we all do.
“Hey, if she makes you happy, then I’m glad for you.”
“Thanks, man,” I slap him on the back, and he walks away.
I lay down beside Hannah, pulling her against me, her head on my chest, and I throw a blanket over her. It’s not big enough for the two of us, but as long as my wife is warm, that’s all that matters.
The sound of nightlife is all around us, and I pray we’re not in a place where there are wolves. I’m not going to be getting much sleep tonight. I have one eye open just in case. I can hear Saint and Caren whispering, though I can’t hear what they’re saying.
Ember: Next Gen (Snakes Henchmen MC Book 12) Page 27
