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“Colt, you need to get to the hospital now—its bad.”

Thats all Liam said when he called to let me know Ellie had been in an accident. One minute she was talking to me on the phone, and the next, the call dropped.

I tried calling her back, over and over again, until finally, I got a call from Liam.

I rushed through the automatic sliding doors of the hospital entrance, shoving my body through the smallest of openings as it slid open.

I looked around, frantic.

Where was Ellie? Was she okay? She was nowhere in sight.

A few steps behind, everyone followed me inside—Jace, Molly, Mom, Dad, and Cassie too.

I rushed to the front desk, the receptionist’s eyes lifting as I approached.

“Can you tell me where Ellie Brooks is? I’m her…” I hesitated. “Family. ”

“Just one moment, I believe she arrived not too long ago on the air ambulance. The doctor will be out shortly to give you an update. I’ll let him know you’re here,” she explained.

I turned to look at everyone’s expressions: confusion, frustration, sadness, anticipation. Those same emotions twisted in my chest.

A few agonizing minutes later, a man stepped through the glass doors from the emergency room bays, where patients were being assessed. According to his white coat, his name was Dr. Andrew Tate.

“I’m looking for the family of Ellie Brooks,” he said, scanning the room.

“Thats us,” I replied, turning towards him, eager to hear how Ellie was doing.

“Hi, I’m Dr. Tate,” he said, addressing us.

“I’ve been treating Ellie since she arrived.

I’ll get right to it. Ellie has extensive bruising and internal bleeding,” he explained.

“The seatbelt caused some internal bleeding on her left side, and the airbag left her with several broken ribs. She’s in a lot of pain, so we have her sedated to let her body rest. We’ve stopped the bleeding for now, but the next twenty-four hours are critical for both her and the baby. ”

The what?

“Did you just say the baby?” I choked out.

“Yes,” the doctor said, nodding. “Ellie’s pregnant—just a few weeks along.

It’s possible she didn’t know yet, depending on what symptoms she might have been experiencing.

We did an ultrasound on her stomach when she first arrived, looking for the internal bleeding.

That’s when we discovered she was pregnant. ”

If I thought my emotions were reeling before, they definitely were now.

“As far as we can tell, the baby is okay. Its heartbeat is strong. But with Ellie’s current condition, we can’t say for certain how her body will respond. We’re monitoring her closely. I’ll give you another update as soon as I have one. For now, no visitors—her body needs as much rest as possible.”

He walked off without saying another word.

I put my hands on my knees, trying to gain some semblance of control. The room spun violently around me, like the air itself had turned hostile.

My mom’s hand gently gripped my shoulder.

“Colt, honey, it’s going to be okay. Take a deep breath. We’re all here for you, whatever you need.”

But I couldn’t breathe. I couldn’t process a single thought. None of it made sense.

I turned as a commotion to my left snapped me out of my daze. Liam was walking a man out of the hospital—someone with a large white bandage over his head and blood splattered across his clothes.

“You’re under arrest for stalking and the attempted murder of Ellie Brooks,” Liam said, his voice cold.

Realization hit me like a punch to the gut.

It was Jason. And he looked exactly like I’d imagined a piece of shit like him would.

“You have the right to remain silent,” Liam continued.

Rage flared in my chest. I wanted revenge—for Ellie. I wanted him to feel every bit of pain she was in right now, while she carried our child.

“Anything you say can and wi— ”

I lunged forward, driven by every raw, pent-up emotion. My fist shot out, slamming into his face with a sickening thud. He didn’t see it coming.

Bones crunched beneath my fists as they hammered down, again and again, blood splattering across my knuckles as his skin split open.

He’d pay for everything he’d done to Ellie—for every time he hurt her, screamed at her, manipulated her.

For every damn time he crossed a line and thought he could get away with it.

“Colt!” Molly screamed. “You’ve done enough. Get off him! Let Liam handle this!”

But I couldn’t stop. Not yet.

I kept punching. Kept taking my revenge.

“This is for every time you put your fucking hands on Ellie. She’s lying in that room because of you, you piece of shit.”

A few seconds later, someone was pulling me off him, yanking me back. Jace’s face came into view, his strong hands gripping my arms, dragging me away.

“This isn’t what Ellie needs right now, Colt,” he said, his voice firm but urgent. “She needs you to stay level-headed. She needs you more than ever. They need you.”

“Code Blue, Room 3. Code Blue, Room 3.” The hospital intercom blared overhead.

I watched through the glass doors of the emergency room, numb, as nurses rushed into Ellie’s room. The doctor who had just given an update was pulling silver paddles from a cart beside her bed .

Mom started crying, her body shaking as she buried her face in Dad’s chest. Cassie and Molly stood frozen, their hands covering their mouths, tears trickling down their cheeks.

Jace stood next to me, arms crossed, eyes fixed on Ellie’s room, waiting for what would happen next.

My world stopped spinning—complete stillness. Silence.

Ellie, our baby , everything I’d ever wanted was in that room, and it could slip through my fingers any second.

I dropped to my knees and pressed my hands together in a desperate prayer. My voice, cracked and hoarse, whispering to God, pleading with everything I had left.

“Please… save them. I’ll do anything. I’ll give anything…”