A Mahogany Moment

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

  Olivia ran as fast as she could her hear racing and feeling as if it would beat out of her chest. Leaves rustled underfoot as Olivia's heart raced, each breath sharp with anticipation. Her footsteps echoed like a desperate plea, as she ran down the road, her mind waging a battle between hope and dread. With every step, memories of Jamie flooded her thoughts, a montage of shared laughter and whispered promises. As she pushed forward She recognized the building and didn't see anyone. Coming to a stop she she noticed the car that Harold and his men had driven was gone. Olivia frantically looked around for Jamie.
"Jamie!" Olivia called out.
"Jamie are you here?"
"Olivia?" Olivia spun around and found Jamie walking towards her from the opposite end. He was covered in blood and Olivia thought she'd empty her stomach.
Running towards him she threw her arms around his neck and hugged him tightly.
"I heard a gun go off. Are you ok? Are you hurt?" She searched his body for injuries but he stopped her.
"I'm fine the blood isn't mine." Jamie assured and Olivia breathed a sigh of relief.
"What happened? Whose blood is that?"
"Harold's. He dropped his gun and I managed to grab it and shot at him."
Olivia hugged him tighter needing to feel that he was real and she wasn't just imagining him. She laid her head on his chest and listened to his heart beat.
"Where's Tommy?" Jamie asked.
"With any luck he's bled out." Olivia replied, her head still resting on his chest.
"What?"
She looked up at him and sighed, "Tommy he..."

Everything happened in a blur, as if the world had turned into a chaotic whirlwind of noise and motion. One moment, she was standing there, and the next, a searing burst of pain erupted from her side. Her body jerked involuntarily, a violent shudder that threw her off balance. It was as if time had been suspended, and all she could hear was the deafening echo of the gunshot ringing in her ears. Heat surged through her, intense and overwhelming, followed by an almost eerie coldness that seemed to seep into Olivia's very bones. Her breath caught in her throat, and a sharp gasp escaped her lips, though it felt like she was struggling to draw air into her lungs. She clutched at the searing pain radiating from the wound, her fingers coming away sticky with blood.
Jamie looked down and saw the blood and his own went cold. Looking around frantically for where the shot had come from his eyes widened when he saw Tommy standing behind her, a hand gun in his hand. Jamie felt Olivia slipping out of his grasp as she slowly fell to the ground and he fell with her. He watched as Tommy took off in a run and turned his attention back to Olivia.
"Stay with me!" Jamie cried as he pressed his hand to her wound to stop the bleeding. Olivia gasped for air and Jamie realized she was trying to speak.
"Shhh...shh. I'm here. Don't speak. Dear God don't speak." Jamie pulled her into his lap as he rocked her back and forth.
"Somebody help me!" He screamed out. He looked back down at Olivia as she struggled to breath.
"He pressed his forehead against hers, tears falling onto her skin. "Stay with me, please. I'm here, right beside you. We'll face whatever comes together, just don't let go. Don't leave me behind." Every word was a plea, a fervent prayer sent out into the universe, hoping that somehow, she would hear it and choose to stay."

I cried actual tears writing this chapter. I do hope Olivia pulls through...until chapter seventeen!