The End - Blackbird book 7

7. an inch

The man was surrounded in a heartbeat by a wall of anxious, upset faces, so he flashed a quick smile.

"She's fine," he said, and heard how everybody exhaled. "It took us a while because there were some minor complications. But we were able to repair all the damage caused by the bullet. She'd be in her room soon. The anesthesia will wear off in about an hour. You can see her then, but no more than a few minutes. Two persons at a time tops. Next akin can stay."

Brock's lips moved in a voiceless, 'thank you', as relief washed over him.

Cooper was the only one in shape to nod at the man. "Thanks, Doctor..."

"Cole. Benjamin Cole," he replied.

"Doctor Cole." Cooper's tone suggested his name had been duly noted to hold him responsible for Gillian's fate over the next fifty years.

Cole smiled once more and left, with Fred and Ron on his heels. As soon as they walked out, Connor let out a suffocated cry. Everybody turned to boy, who staggered a step back and dropped himself on the nearest armchair, hands covering his face as tears overflowed his eyes.

Tanya and Aldana reacted at once. The girl sat on the armrest and held Connor tight, allowing him to hide his face against her chest. Aldana hurried to fetch a paper cup with fresh water for him. The boy tried in vain to hold back his tears, but he just couldn't stop crying.

Banks stood behind the armchair and pressed Connor's shoulder. "Easy, kiddo. You heard the doctor. She's gonna be fine."

"I know, I know..." the boy muttered, wiping his eyes with the back of his hand, only to make room for new tears. "It's just that... She was there waiting for me, Bob! And I was late! Had I been there in time...!"

Russell crouched before him and rested his hands on the boy's knees. "Look at me, Connor," he said, gentle and soothing, and waited for the boy to face him. "This is not your fault, kiddo. We've watched the video and you've heard us talk about it. They were following your mom to do this. The only one responsible for this is the scumbag who pulled the trigger."

Brock scowled. That was supposed to calm the boy down? His habit of keeping Andrea away from the risks of his job would've grabbed Russell by the neck and shaken him hard. Yet it worked. Connor frowned first, then he nodded, still agitated. He sat up and looked back at Brock.

"Are we gonna catch that son of a bitch?" he asked.

Not like Brock had much of a choice to answer. However, his voice carved his reply in stone: "Yes."

Connor nodded again and rested back in his armchair, pressing his eyes with another shaky sigh. Russell patted his knee and left him to Tanya's care.

Brock wasn't about to linger on the boy's reasons to demand that answer from him. He was busy acknowledging that no matter what he felt for Gillian, he was the outsider here. Everyone around him was closer to her and her son. All of them knew them better. Appreciate the irony, Brockner.

He realized that Cooper and Banks talked not a step away from him.

"I'll get in touch with Vice," said Banks. "If this is related to what happened to Gomez, maybe they can give us something to help us figure this out."

Russell joined them as Brock said to Cooper, "We need to go to the office and start working on this right now."

Cooper's chin pointed at the hall outside the waiting room. They turned in time to see Taylor and a dozen other men, some of them uniforms, hurrying from the elevators.

"What are they doing here?" she asked, back to her canon annoyed ways.

Banks flashed a mild smile. "Well, twenty years is a lot of time, y'know. We still think of Reg as our own."

Cooper didn't reply. However, her face screamed, 'but she's not'. Banks smiled wider, getting the memo.

"I'll see you guys in your office."

He poked Russell's arm and they walked out together to welcome the men before they reached the waiting room. They lingered there, answering questions. When Banks and Russell waved for them to go back toward the elevators, Taylor looked past them, straight at Brock. Not a hostile look, Brock noticed, holding the young man's eyes. But as if making sure he was there for Gillian. Banks pressed Taylor's arm to keep walking. Taylor stared into Brock's eyes for a heartbeat longer, then allowed Banks to lead him away.

Ron came in, a thumb pointing back over his shoulder. "They're giving us the bullet," he said. "Fred's there to get it."

Russell and Banks came back as Hank asked, "Did you find out anything else?"

"Close range shot, we saw it on the video, so not much of a trajectory," Ron replied. "But Cole said the shooter must have aimed for her heart and something made him miss."

"Maybe he got nervous and his grasp faltered," said Russell.

"That'd point at a first-timer," said Brock.

"That's what Fred thinks, too," said Ron. "Whatever happened, that's the only reason why Reg's still alive."