Page 53

Fifty-Three

SUNNY

Ellie is pale from the shock. I reach back behind my seat and touch her leg. She looks okay. Her seatbelt is intact, and other than wide eyes, she looks perfectly normal.

“Ellie, are you okay, sweetie?”

She nods quickly, little pieces of hair falling into her face.

Marco is unconscious, and I know I should be panicking, but instead, I jump into action.

My phone flew somewhere from the sudden hit, so I unbuckle my seatbelt and look around. Unable to find it, I open the car door and slide out of the passenger seat. Glass crunches beneath me from the broken side mirror, so I’m careful to step over it and open Ellie’s door. She’s okay. I give her a quick hug and search the backseat for my phone.

We need to call the police.

And an ambulance.

“Marco.” I reach forward and give his shoulder a shake.

“Sunny, you’re bleeding.”

“Huh?”

Ellie points at my cheek. My cold hand touches the burning sensation beneath my eye, and I wince. My fingers are stained with blood, but I shake my head. “I’m okay. We have to wake Marco up. Do you know where my phone went?”

Ellie’s eyes gloss over, and her bottom lip starts to shake.

“Hey, hey.” I place my hands on her cheeks. A tear slips out, and I shush her. “We’re okay, Ellie. Do you trust me?”

She nods.

“Good. I’m not going to leave you, okay? I’m just going to go around to Marco’s side of the car and wake him up and drive us to the hospital, yeah?”

“Okay.” She sucks up her tears and nods.

I shut her door and look both ways, hoping for someone to come along to help us.

It’s quiet, though. A thin layer of snow covers the road, and besides the tire marks from us and the other car who hit us and sped away, there’s nothing.

It’s a quiet street, not too far from Rhodes’s neighborhood. Someone will come eventually, but can we wait?

Where is my phone?

My head starts to pound.

I open Marco’s door with force. The car hit the driver’s side, but it was really the backseat that sustained most of the damage.

Thank God Ellie was behind me instead of him.

“Marco!” I say, shaking his shoulder again.

He begins to stir.

I place my cold hand on his chin, trying to get him to see me. He blinks a few times, but his eyes won’t focus. “Marco, I need you to get to the passenger side.”

“Chto?” he slurs.

Ellie pipes up from the back. “That means what in Russian.”

I reach over Marco and pull on his seatbelt. “We got in an accident. I’m going to drive us to the hospital because I can’t find my phone. You’re hurt.”

He says nothing, and I don’t have time to waste. I push the dread of going to a hospital away and do what I have to do.

“Come on.” I pull on his hand. Glass sprinkles toward me from the broken window when I get him to his feet. I wrap my arm around his waist, and thankfully, he’s coherent enough to put his arm around my shoulder.

Our blood ends up mixing together by the end from the little cuts on both of us.

Once he’s settled into the passenger seat, I rush to the driver’s side and glance back at Ellie.

Her eyes are glossy. “Is he going to be okay?”

I smile, though it’s fake. “We’re going to make sure he is. Zip your coat. It’s going to be a little chilly because of the window, okay?”

She quickly does as I say, and I slowly put the car into drive.

This is unsafe, but what choice do I have? I can’t leave Ellie here and search for help, and I don’t know how long it’ll be until someone comes. The other car is long gone.

I hope Rhodes isn’t angry with me for doing this.

Marco groans and grabs onto his side in pain.

“Hang on, Marco. We will be there in ten.”

“We need to get you looked at, Allison.”

I cringe at the name, hating that the same ER receptionist from the last time I was here recognized me right away. Ellie glances up at me from my lap with her sleepy gaze full of confusion.

“I’m fine,” I reiterate. The nurse eyes me with frustration, and I silently mouth, “I’m not leaving her.” Referring to Ellie.

She sighs with frustration but eventually walks away and heads to the doctor at the end of the hall. I can tell she’s tattling on me, for the third time since arriving, but I make no move to get up. Ellie and I have been sitting in this chair for who knows how long, waiting for news about Marco.

The ER receptionist, along with all the nurses, immediately stood when we walked through the doors.

It didn’t take long for them to take Marco back due to his confusion. When they came for me, already having my file in hand, I politely refused. I told them I wasn’t leaving Ellie with someone random, and I’m sticking to that.

My nerves are already spent, and the thought of being separated from her makes my heart rate go through the roof.

So, we wait.

The longer we wait for news about Marco, the harder my head pounds.

Rhodes is going to flip out when he finds out what happened.

“I’m tired,” Ellie whispers.

I glance at her long blinks. “Me too. We will go home soon, okay?”

She nods and snuggles in closer.

I’m not sure how we’re going to get home. Without my phone, I’ve had no way to call anyone for help. The only numbers I have memorized are my nana’s and Ruby’s—and they’re not going to be of any help.

Ellie eventually falls asleep against my chest, and I clamp my arms around her. I place my head on top of hers and try to keep my eyes open for as long as I can, because I think I might have a concussion like Marco.

But with Ellie draped over me, safe in my arms, I eventually doze off. The doctor will come get me when Marco is through with his tests, and then we can figure out what to do next.