April handed Violet to Caden just long enough to climb into the back seat, then opened her arms to take Violet back. He placed Violet onto her lap, and gently wiped away the blood from her nose and face with a handkerchief. “She saved our lives today,” Caden said, his voice barely above a whisper but still so full of emotion. “We would’ve never held out against Ned’s guys if it hadn’t been for her.”
April nodded. “I just wish her own stepfather wasn’t the man she had to protect the people she loves from.”
Caden sighed, then stepped back and quietly shut the door. Ranger Wilder got in the front driver’s seat and then to April’s surprise, the back door opened on the other side and Martin got in. “Where did you come from?” April asked, confused on how and when he’d arrived.
“Just got here. Blake filled me in on what happened. When my firehouse got the call to this address, I had a feeling it might have something to do with you and Violet. I asked my captain to take charge on this call because I had a situation that needed my attention. He’ll be fine. My men and women are good at what they do and there’s no actual fire here. Just some clean up. Let’s go, Wilder. I want to see Tanner for myself, and we need to get this little girl to a doctor.”
April shook her head. “No, no doctors. She’ll be okay. The only thing she’ll need is a bath and some rest.”
Martin ran the back of his hand over Violet’s forehead, like he was checking her for a fever. “She looks drained.”
“What the hell happened back there?” Wilder asked, peering at them in the rear-view mirror. By the time he and the rest of the cavalry had arrived, Violet had already passed out, so all they’d seen was a bunch of gunfire.
April looked to Martin, then to Violet, and finally to Wilder. “All hell broke loose and we managed to survive.”
Wilder looked like he wanted to ask more questions, but April caught Martin pinning him with a glare.
He drove them to the hospital, making good time. They arrived just a few minutes after Tanner’s ambulance, but Tanner was immediately rushed into surgery, while April, Martin, and Violet were ushered into a waiting room. Violet’s color was already improving and she was starting to move around more.
“Are you sure she doesn’t need a doctor?” Martin asked. April looked over at Wilder who was busy staring at his phone, acting like he wasn’t paying attention to them.
April nodded. “Just give her a few more minutes. I wish we knew more about how Echo was doing. He saved her.” Even after everything she’d said to him, blaming him for everything that was going on, Echo had still come through. If he hadn’t jumped in front of Violet like he’d been trained, those three bullets would’ve probably hit her niece, and likely killed her.
“I’ll go see what I can find out,” Martin said. “I saw a restroom across the hall. Maybe take her to go get cleaned up.”
April sighed, feeling the stickiness of Ned’s blood on the back of her neck. She nodded and stood, carrying Violet to the restroom as Martin headed for the nursing station.
In the restroom, she sat Violet on the counter between the two sinks. Then she grabbed a handful of paper towels, ran some warm water over them, and used them to wipe off as much of the blood from her neck as she could. A bruise was starting toform at her throat where Ned had gripped her, but she tried not to focus on it right now. After cleaning herself up, she snagged a few more fresh paper towels, ran them under warm water, and wiped Violet’s face and neck. She needed a bath as much as April craved a shower, but this would have to do for now.
“How are you feeling?” She asked Violet, who still seemed a bit out of it and a little lethargic.
“I want to see Daddy. When can we see him?”
“Soon,” April said, hoping Tanner’s surgery was going well. “Do you need to go potty?”
Violet nodded.
Martin wasn’t back yet when they returned to the waiting room a few minutes later. April sat with Violet in her lap in one of the chairs arranged around the perimeter of the room. A large flat screen television hung in the corner, currently playing an infomercial for some skin care line.
With Violet drifting off to sleep again in her arms, April leaned back in the chair, resting the back of her head against the wall behind it. She closed her eyes and let out a breath she hadn’t realized she’d been holding.
“Hey,” Martin said, quietly, as he came back into the room and sat in the chair next to hers. “I called Tanner’s family. Let them know what happened.”
“Thanks. Any news on Echo?”
“The nurse said he was in surgery, but she couldn’t tell me more.”
April nodded. It was only then that she registered that Ranger Wilder must’ve stepped out because they were the only ones in the room. “I’ve always hated that man so much. Every time I saw him, it was like a trigger. It always meant Violet was about to be attacked. And even though he’s never been the one to attack her, a part of me blamed him for it just the same. Sorry, I’m totally babbling right now.”
“Don’t even worry about it. You need to let it out, and I’m more than happy to listen,” Martin said. “I’ve only heard about what she can do from the guys, but it sounds intense.”
April was grateful Wilder had stepped out of the room, giving them some privacy. It was the only reason April felt comfortable opening up a little. Then Violet started to squirm and opened her eyes, looking around in a panic.
“Hey, Sweetie,” April cooed. “It’s okay. You’re safe. Just rest.” She swiped a few stray hairs out of Violet’s face and helped her sit up. Violet leaned back against April’s front, her head falling heavily onto April’s shoulder.
“Did I stop all the bullets?” Violet asked.
April closed her eyes, not wanting to answer. Violet had always been able to stop any and all bullets that came at her, at least when April was there. But tonight, that just wasn’t possible. There were too many guns and too many bullets. “You did amazing,” April said.