Alissa
“Wait!” I pressed my palms against his chest. “I’m a nurse. I can help him.”
Tony stilled. His gaze narrowed on me, scrutinizing. “You’re a nurse?”
I lifted my chin. “Yes.” Like I’d told Nate, I had my nursing degree. I’d just never used it because I’d made more money modeling. And then after the brutal attack of three years ago, I’d become more or less a hermit and let Kenny take care of me, too terrified to venture out in public any more than necessary.
But I could help Nate now. Like he’d helped me. I too had emergency medical training.
“Please. Let me help him.”
There was another pause, then Tony yanked me down onto the top rung of the stairs. “Come on. He’s barely conscious.”
Tony never let go of my ankle as we descended the stairs, probably because he was afraid I would try to flee if he let me go. His face was scrunched, as if he were in deep physical pain.
I feel his pain like it was my own.
Had he meant that literally? Could he feel Nate’s physical pain?
Tony’s hand around my ankle made it difficult to maneuver down the wobbling stairs, and twice I almost fell. I wanted to kick him in the face again, but I wanted to live more, so I didn’t. Once I reached the bottom of the ladder, he grabbed my wrist and dragged me from the room. The man had no mercy. He didn’t care about the bullet wound in my thigh. He just yanked me along behind him. I hobbled after him as quickly as I could, trying to ignore the pain in my leg. Nate’s soothing touch apparently only lasted so long, and the pain in my thigh became more apparent with each agonizing step down the corridor.
When we reached Nate’s room, the other dregs were all gathered around Nate’s bed.
Tony thrust me forward. “Fix him!” His voice was a low, menacing growl.
The other dregs parted to let me through, and I hurried forward, shaking so badly I barely reached the edge of the bed without falling.
Nate lay in a pool of blood, his eyes glazed with pain. He glanced up at me. “Alissa? You shouldn’t be here.” He pulled his gaze to Tony. “Get her out of here.”
Tony turned that fierce black gaze to me. “She says she’s a nurse. So let’s see if she’s telling the truth.” Tony’s words indicated he thought I was lying.
“I am a nurse.” I straightened my spine, bravely holding Tony’s gaze. “I was trained to be in high-stressed, emergency situations.” And it was time to prove that. Time to let go of the timid, broken girl I’d been these past three years. I couldn’t let Nate die. And I couldn’t let Tony intimidate me anymore.
But wouldn’t Nate be better off if they just took him to a hospital?
I grabbed Nate’s hand and squeezed. I glanced around at the other dregs. “Wouldn’t he have a better chance at survival if you guys just took him to a hospital?”
Tony glowered at me. “All gunshot wounds have to be reported to the authorities.” His voice was hard, clipped. “It’s too risky. His identity could be discovered. The last thing we need is the cops involved. Are you too scared, puta?”
Ignoring the insult, I glanced back at Nate. “You can’t heal yourself?”
“No. Unfortunately, it requires a certain amount of energy to heal others, so if I’m wounded, I don’t have the strength for healing.”
Okay. That meant it was up to me to save Nate. No pressure.
I glanced around the intimidating group of badass men again. I was an ER nurse, dammit. I could do this. I’d had all the proper training for this very situation. It was time to take charge. I had to save Nate. There was no other option.
“Do any of you have any medical training? Was Nate never injured before?”
The shaggy blond-haired guy stepped up beside me. “I’m a physical therapist, but I have some basic emergency medical training. It’s been over a year since Nate was wounded, and our employer had trained physicians on staff who fixed him up.” His speech was slightly off, throatier than most people’s. Kind of like a deaf person’s.
All right. Well, at least this dreg had some training.
“Good. Then you can help me. What was your name again?”
“Logan.”
I glanced back at Tony, who was still glaring at me with those black-as-sin eyes. I tried not to cower under his glare. His face was still scrunched as if he were hurting and trying to hide it. Was he truly feeling Nate’s pain? I cleared my throat.
“Tony, will you fetch me Nate’s medical bag, please?”
For a moment, I thought Tony was going to refuse. His eyes darkened further, if that were possible. But then he marched off to retrieve the bag.
“We need to strip him so I can find out where he’s injured.”
Logan nodded. “We already discovered he has a bullet wound in his upper thigh and another one just above and to the right of his heart.” He removed a knife from a small sheath at his belt and quickly cut Nate’s shirt away, then stripped his pant leg, cutting the fabric clear up and pulling it back away from the thigh wound.
Tony returned with Nate’s medical bag and plopped it on the bed next to Nate’s leg.
I felt Nate’s gaze on me and glanced at his face. “You would make a good field nurse,” he praised. “Calm and collected under pressure.”
I held up my shaking hand. “Calm? I’m scared to death.”
He squeezed my hand. “You’ll do fine. If I can stay conscious, I’ll walk you through it.”
Tony grunted loudly behind me. Asshole. I spun around and glared at him. “If you’re not going to be helpful, then leave. Or shut the hell up.”
His cold gaze burrowed into mine. Someone snickered—the guy with the prosthetic arm, I think. Tony’s gaze jerked to him and thankfully, away from me.
I opened the medical bag and removed some antiseptic wipes, then gently cleaned Nate’s blood-drenched torso and thigh. Damn, the man was muscular. I’d seen a lot of hot bodies during my modeling career, but never a man that was built quite like this. He was “cut” to the extreme, not an ounce of fat on him anywhere. Beautifully sculpted muscles lined his entire torso, sleek and elegant waves of pure masculinity. The man was rock hard beneath my fingers. The term “abs of steel” didn’t do him justice. He was mouthwateringly beautiful. I mean, hell, I’d known he was fit, but seeing all those muscles without a shirt hindering my view filled me with breathlessness. And left me lightheaded.
Get a grip, Alissa. And pay attention. This isn’t the time to ogle.
Hot body aside, Nate was seriously injured, and it was up to me to help him.
“He has a pacemaker,” Tony announced, his hard gaze scrutinizing my every move. “So be very careful, puta. If you do something to cause it to malfunction, I won’t hesitate to kill you.”
Nate had a pacemaker? I’d had no idea. Then I noticed the scar at the top of his chest above his heart. That had to be where the pacemaker was located. It was only a few inches from the bullet wound. I swallowed hard, my doubts about my ability to save Nate increasing rapidly.
“Leave her alone,” Nate murmured. He locked stares with Tony, then glanced back at me again. “Pacemaker malfunctions are rare. My heart isn’t beating erratically, so the pacemaker is working properly, which means the bullet didn’t nick any wires. Don’t let Tony intimidate you. You can do this, Alissa. Just be very careful when you go in after the bullet, okay? Are you ready?”
Damn, the man was calm even when it was his own life that was in danger.
“Yes.” I took another deep breath and slowly exhaled, clearing my head, blocking everyone else out. Then I went to work on Nate’s injuries. Logan assisted me, and every once in a while, Nate would offer advice on what I was supposed to do. He was amazingly calm, and endured what had to be painful while I searched for and then removed the bullet fragments from inside him. I was extra careful with the wound near his heart, cutting slowly and gently to avoid any contact with the pacemaker wires.
Nate was gradually weakening, and by the time we were finished removing the bullet pieces and patching him up, he lay still with his eyes closed. Was he asleep? If he was, I didn’t want to wake him. He would need sleep while he healed. I checked his vitals, noting his heart rate was good, and his temperature was in the normal range. His blood pressure was still low, but that was normal from loss of blood. I let out a sigh and finally let myself relax. I’d done all I could for now.
I had helped him. Me. The scared, damaged girl who’d hidden away from the world for three years. Being around Nate was giving me courage. Helping me find myself again. I’d returned the favor. He’d helped me, and now I’d helped him. I felt good about myself for the first time in a long time.
I closed the medical bag and set it aside.
Logan surprised me by pulling me in for a quick hug. “Good job. I couldn’t have done that without you.”
“Thanks.” Heat washed into my face. “I couldn’t have done it without you, either.”
I hesitated, curious about this gentle, handsome man who obviously cared a great deal about Nate. “I know Nate’s the Healer, so what’s your dreg name?”
Logan cocked his head to the side and smiled, his light brown eyes open and honest. “I’m the Trainer.”
“Because you’re a physical therapist.”
“Yeah, but I’m also a linguistic specialist.”
“Linguistics? Like, different languages?”
“Yes. I can speak any language.”
Seriously? How cool was that?
“So, if I ask you to say something in any language, you can say it?”
“Yes.”
“That’s so cool. Okay, how do you say hello in French, German, and Russian?”
His lips twitched. “Bonjour. Hallo. Здравствуйте.”
I felt my eyes go wide. “Wow.”
He chuckled softly. “Those were easy ones. Pick a less common language.”
A less common language? Hell, the only language I knew was English, so all the others were less common to me. I searched my brain. “Um…say hello in Italian, Portuguese, and, um, Danish.”
Logan didn’t even hesitate. “Ciao. Olá. Hej.”
The tallest dreg, who had spiky, light-brown hair and hazel eyes, smacked Logan on the arm. “Show off.”
Logan flushed. “Hey man, she asked.”
My lips twitched. “So, why were you discharged?” I asked curiously. “A man with your talent would be invaluable to any employer.”
Logan turned his head sideways and lifted his shaggy blond hair away from his left ear. I stared at the faint bump where his ear should have been. What had happened to him?
“My ear and half of my face got blown off in an explosion. I’m totally deaf in that ear.”
I nodded slowly. Was that why he tilted his head sometimes, so he could hear what people were saying? That explained his “throaty” speech.
“Wow. Well, your plastic surgeon did a fantastic job on your face.” Only two faint scars were visible, one near his jawline and another near his hairline. “I can hardly tell.”
The dreg who’d goaded him a moment ago shoved Logan back. “Enough showing off. My turn.” He held out his hand. “I’m Noah, The Hacker.”
A soft laugh escaped as I shook his hand. “And why do they call you that?”
“Because I’m an IT expert. I can hack into anything…computer, phone, iPad. There isn’t a firewall anywhere that can keep me out. My brain will find a way in. The binary system is to me what candy is to a little kid. My sugar high. Computers, networks, internet…that’s my playground. I’m a techie genius.”
Logan slugged Noah in the arm. “Look who’s showing off now.”
Another laugh burst out of me. These guys were funny. “And why were you discharged, Noah?”
He winked, then pointed to his right eye. “Bullet through the eye.”
I gasped. “Seriously?”
“Yeah. Watch my eyes.” He glanced sideways, but only one eye moved, the other staying still. His prosthetic eye was so realistic—it was even the exact same hazel color as the real eye—that I wouldn’t have been able to tell it was fake if he hadn’t moved his natural eye.
“Okay, show-offs. Step aside and let her meet a real man.” The dark-haired dreg with a prosthetic arm stepped forward, shoving Noah aside. “I’m Ryan. The Extractor. If you ever want to have a good time, come see me, doll. I promise to take good care of you.”
Heat washed into my face at his bold flirtation. I glanced at Nate in the bed, but his eyes were closed, so he must be sleeping. I cleared my throat, more than a little embarrassed. “O-kay, and why do they call you The Extractor?”
Ryan waggled his brows. “Because I seduce women. I give off a pheromone that drives women wild with lust. They can’t resist me. While they’re in the throes of passion, I extract information from them.”
I choked out a disbelieving laugh, unable to stop myself. “Are you serious?” I studied him for a moment. Ryan had pretty-boy good looks with his dark hair and amber eyes. I doubted he needed a pheromone to seduce women. His looks and his charm would be more than enough. “Okay, then. And I see that you have a prosthetic arm, so I’m assuming that’s why you were discharged.”
He lifted his prosthetic arm and wiggled the fingers at me. “Yep. But it doesn’t interfere in the bedroom. These fingers can touch a woman as intimately as my real ones.”
I blushed furiously, jerking my gaze back to Nate in the bed, but thankfully, he was still sleeping. “That’s a little more information than I need.”
Noah and Logan each grabbed one of Ryan’s upper arms and yanked him away from me. “Leave her alone,” Logan ordered, pushing Ryan toward the door. “You’re embarrassing her.”
The other blond guy, who stood on the opposite side of the bed, snickered. He seemed to be a bit of a smart ass. I glanced over at him. He was strikingly good-looking, his eyes an intense, piercing blue. He could easily be a male model with those chiseled features and unfathomable, deep-set eyes.
“And you are?”
The corner of his mouth quirked. “Luke. I’m The Enforcer.” His gaze was almost too intense as he looked at me. I struggled not to squirm under his stare.
“Ahem. And how did you get that name?”
“I enforce things, like punishment. I’m also an expert interrogator with mind-controlling abilities. When I interrogate, I know how the get the truth out of you. I know when someone is lying. Most of the time I don’t need to use enforcement, because I can get you to admit the truth with mind control, and without any force.”
Mind control? Enforcement? I gave out an involuntary shiver. That was a little scary. I certainly didn’t want him inside my mind or to use any “enforcement” on me. As I stared at him across the bed, I picked up an air of violence from him, though he didn’t seem to be directing that violence toward me. I got the impression he was very jaded and harsh. I could only imagine what types of things he’d gone through.
I cleared my throat. “You’re not going to use any of that on me, are you?”
His gaze narrowed slightly as he studied me. “Not unless you give me a reason to.”
O-kay. Don’t ever give him a reason to.
“So,” I went on quickly to hide my discomfort. “Why were you discharged?”
He came around the bed toward me, walking with a slight limp. He paused in front of me and tapped each of his knees. “Artificial knees. Both blown out by bullets.”
“Ouch,” I murmured sympathetically. “That had to hurt.”
He shrugged. “All in the line of duty.”
Tony harrumphed from where he stood across the room, leaning against the doorjamb. He hadn’t spoken at all while the other dregs introduced themselves.
“Thanks for helping Nate,” Logan said. “You did a great job.”
The others all nodded their thanks and then they filed out of the room.
The dregs were all very handsome and talented in their own unique ways, their personalities all so very different. I decided I liked them all, but especially Logan. He’d eagerly assisted me with Nate’s injuries. He was a sweetheart.
Tony remained in the room after the others left, watching me with those black eyes.
And then…there was Tony. The Asshole. Well, that’s what I called him, anyway. I didn’t know what his dreg name was, and he didn’t appear to be in any hurry to tell me. But I suspected it had something to do with the way he’d made himself disappear back at Paine College. I wished he would go away, but it wasn’t as if I could make him leave.
Trying to ignore him, I sat on the edge of the bed near Nate’s thigh. Nate appeared to be sleeping soundly now, his even breaths a good sign. I still couldn’t believe I’d pulled that off. I had saved his life. I was proud of myself.
I glanced over at Tony. He hadn’t moved. “Do you really feel his pain?”
Something flickered in his black eyes, but it was gone so quickly, I couldn’t figure out what it was. He seemed to hesitate, then said, “He’s my dreg partner, so I feel everything he feels to some extent, and vice versa. Not that it’s any of your business, puta.”
His eyes hardened again. “We still have that issue of the tracking device in your neck,” he reminded, a very distinct threat in his words. “So, what are we going to do about it?”