Page 156 of Broken Saint

“No,” I scream, desperately fighting to follow them, but he’s too strong.

“Let them do their jobs, Ella,” Kane’s deep, cracked voice says behind me. “We’ll get you to the hospital to be by his side. I promise.”

“B-but I need—” My words are cut off as they all disappear from sight.

It’s a whole new kind of torture.

My knees give out, but thankfully, Kane predicts this and keeps me pinned against his padded chest.

“We’ve got you, Ella.”

In a heartbeat, Letty, Peyton and Macie are surrounding me.

“We’ve got a car ready,” Letty tells me, her voice strong and unwavering as she and Peyton take my hands and pull me from Kane’s arms. “We’re going to get you as close to him as we can.”

I nod absently, hearing her words, understanding them, but not really registering them.

Movement catches my eye, and when I look over at the players that are still on the field, I find them down on one knee with their heads bowed.

“No,” I whimper. “No, don’t do that. He’s okay. He’s going to be okay.”

With Letty and Peyton’s arms around me, they turn me away from the image of Colt’s teammates paying him respect and usher me toward a set of security guards protecting an emergency exit.

My legs move without instruction from my brain, relying on my best friends to take me where I need to be.

The stadium might be silent behind me, but it’s drowned out by the white noise filling my ears.

As we approach the men, both of them nod at us, their expressions glum.

“Thanks, Rick,” Letty says before they open a door and allow us to leave the stadium.

A few feet beyond, there is a black town car idling.

“Come on,” Letty says, taking my hand and leading me toward it.

Questions about how they managed to organize this so fast flicker around my conscience, but I never voice them. They don’t matter.

Nothing matters right now but him.

The man who stole my heart all those years ago but has only just given me his in return.

This can’t be over.

It just can’t.

It’s not fair.

We need more time.

By the time we pull up out front of the hospital, I’m numb.

I stare out the window, but I don’t see any of the people rushing around. I don’t see anything. It’s all just a blur.

A rush of cool air hits my skin. It’s the only thing that makes me look over.

“Ella,” Peyton urges from outside the car. “West is waiting for us.”

I stare at her, and I swear I feel my heart split in two.