I throw up as soon as I lose sight of the car and then I turn and run as fast as I can back into the hospital.
People are staring but fuck them all because they didn’t help the screaming girl before she was grabbed and shoved into a car.
I hit the elevator up button but it takes too long so I run up the stairs.
Just to the third floor and feels like it took me just two steps to get there.
I barrel down the hall, run to my mum’s room.
“Jonah—” I lean against the door to steady myself — am I going to throw up again? Holy shit.
“Woah—” Jonah steps towards me, eyes wide. “Whats going on?”
I pull him out into the hallway and Dad sits up straighter, looking over, wondering what’s happened.
“They took Daisy,” I tell him, shaking my head. “I need your help — they took Daisy.”
“Who?” he asks, surprisingly measured.
“Miguel—” I shake my head. It doesn’t make sense. “And Romeo — they grabbed her, threw her into a car — and Jo, she didn’t want to go—” I shake my head. “She was screaming, trying to get away from them—”
Away from them and back to me and I couldn’t get to her.
“Ey—” He pulls me further away from the room, down the hall, a bit away from all the people.
I frown at him — he seems unreasonably calm.
“I need you to listen to me, okay — you’re listening, yeah?” He stares at me, face serious in a way I don’t think I’ve ever seen it. He swallows heavy, breathes out his nose.
“Magnolia was in a car accident.”
My head pulls back, confused. “When?”
“About an hour ago—”
“What?” I shake my head.
Jonah’s face pulls and his eyes go glassy. He blinks it all back. Breathes through his nose twice. “It was a hit, Christian.”
I stare over at him in disbelief. “Bullshit.”
He wipes his nose. “Julian found a bunch of magnolias delivered to his desk like—”
My heart drops in my chest.
“The daisies.” Fuck. “Is Magnolia okay?”
He shakes his head. “Still in surgery.”
I rub my hand over my mouth and stare over at my brother, wonder if I’m going to be sick again. What the fuck?
“Daisy—” I shake my head, feel lightheaded, if I’m honest. “I need to get to her—”
I push my hands through my hair, check my watch like the time’s going to tell me anything.
I look at my brother. “Where are they taking her?”
Jonah shakes his head. “No, you’re not understanding, Christian—”
I give him a look. “Not understanding what?”
Jonah’s eyes go heavy and sorry.
“I don’t know where they’re going—” He shakes his head. “They’re fleeing the country.”
I stare over at him.
“What?”
“It’s not safe for her here—” Jo starts and I shove him hard as I can, point my finger in his face.
“I swear to God, you tell me where they’re taking her or I’ll kill you right now.”
Jonah shoves me off him and I shove him back harder.
“Tell me—” I shove him again.
“Christian, I don’t know.”
And then I pull my gun out, press it against his chest. “How ‘bout now, do you know now?”
“What the fuck are you doing?” my brother yells.
“Tell me where they took her!” I yell and my eyes are white. “Now, Jonah!”
“Why!” he bellows. “What’s you knowing going to do — you can’t go after her—”
“Yes I can—” I tell him, press the gun deeper into him.
“Yeah, and have the people after her follow you right to her? No — you can’t know, man—”
“Christian—” my dad says from the side. “Give me the gun.”
I’m crying now. I didn’t know I was before — maybe I had been — crying again now, though.
Reluctantly I pull the gun away from my brother’s chest and drop it into my dad’s hands. He opens the magazine, pockets the bullets, pockets the gun.
Then he grabs me, pulls me in to him, and I lose my fucking shit.
Cry like I never have before in my life.
Because I’m afraid of all of it, of what it means, of where she’s going, how long she’ll be gone, what I’ll look like without her — how can I have lost her again when I’ve just gotten her back?
