Bluegrass State of Mind(71)

She felt nothing but air for a second before she landed. Pain ripped through her hip as she landed, and her head snapped upwards before slamming against the ground. She heard Will call her name as blackness started to close in.

“Kenna! Kenna! Answer me, are you okay? Kenna?” She felt Will touch her head but the blackness was closing in.

Oh God, was she dying? She couldn’t die without Will knowing how much he had come to mean to her. Pushing back the darkness, she tried to focus on the blurry image of Will leaning over her. “I love you, Will.” And then her world went black.





Chapter Fourteen





Kenna was with her parents. She was sitting on their favorite bench in Central Park smiling and laughing. “I've missed you so much.” Her heart felt swollen with grief and happiness all at the same time.

She felt her mother squeeze her hand. “Come back to us, dear. Come on now, it’s time to come back to us.” Kenna shook her head. That wasn’t her mother’s voice.

“Kenna, I know you can hear me. Open your eyes. Come on, honey, you can do it.”

That was Will’s voice. What was he doing with her parents in New York? But as she tried to reach for her mother, the image was torn apart by a bright white light.

“That’s right, dear. Open those eyes.”

Miss Lily? Was that Miss Lily? Kenna struggled to pry open her eyes. She shut them instantly against the harsh light. She let out a groan when she saw stars behind her eyelids.

“Turn down the overhead light a little,” she heard Will order to someone. Instantly, the bright light dimmed and the throbbing lessened. She opened one eye and then the other.

“Oh thank God!” She turned toward the prayer and saw the Rose sisters at her side. Miss Lily held on to her hand for dear life.

“Hi, ladies,” she coughed. It felt like she had swallowed half the pasture. Miss Violet turned and poured her some water.

“Thank you.”

“Nonsense. Just drink up.”

Kenna took the cup and gulped it down. She turned to the other side of her hospital bed and saw Will standing there looking pale and worn out.

“It’s okay, Will. I’m all right. I just hurt a lot. Nothing some Rose Family Sweet Tea won’t take care of,” she tried to joke.

She heard a snort and looked at the foot of the bed and saw Paige and Mo. Behind them were Betsy and William.

“Hi, everyone.” She saw some smiles and knew the worst was over. “Can someone fill me in on what happened after I was apparently knocked out?”

Will sat on the side of her bed and took her hand in his. “I managed to shoot a tire and it exploded. They were forced to drive off. My parents heard the gunfire and called 9-1-1. You were unconscious for almost four hours.”

Kenna looked around the room. “Where’s Ahmed?”

Mo stepped forward a bit. “He’s looking into some things with Agent Parker. They should be here soon.”

“Who’s Agent Parker?” she asked, looking around at the group.

“He’s an FBI agent from the Lexington branch that we’ve called in to help us out. Red was more than happy to have his assistance when he saw that the problem was escalating,” Will explained to her.

Betsy stood up and William followed. “It’s late and we should let Kenna get some rest. They'll discharge you tomorrow so long as all your scans come back clear.” Betsy approached the bed and bent down to give Kenna a motherly kiss on the forehead. “We're so happy you're okay. You let us know if you want to stay with us or if you need anything, okay?”

“Thanks, Betsy. I will.”

William followed suit and gave her a kiss on the forehead and a pat on the hand before turning and leaving. The Rose sisters were next, leaving just Will, Mo, and Paige with her.

“I want you to know I'm using all of my resources to find out what is going on. It is one thing to break down some fences but quite another to injure my friend,” Mo gently squeezed her hand.

“Ah, don’t take too much time away from your lovely bride,” Kenna joked.

“Bride?” Will and Paige said at the same time.

Kenna tried to laugh, but it hurt too much.

“See what rumors you've started. There's no bride, unless Kenna changes her mind and decides to marry me.” Mo winked at her and the tension in the room finally fell away.

All four of them stopped laughing when the door to the room opened. Mo and Will moved protectively in front of Kenna but then relaxed and moved back to her side when Ahmed and Agent Parker entered the room.

She noticed that Agent Parker took in the whole room and everyone in it in a matter of seconds. He seemed quiet but confident. He looked more like a boxer than an FBI agent. He was tall, had a tiny waist, massive shoulders, and nose that looked like it had been broken a time or two. He was just a bit shorter than Will’s six-feet-two, probably closer to six-feet even. His hair was raven black. But it was his eyes that drew attention. From where she lay, she couldn’t tell if they were silver or such a pale blue that they appeared silver from a distance. Whatever they were, they were intriguing. Apparently, she wasn’t the only one who thought so. She tried to hide a giggle as she watched a flush creep up Paige’s cheeks.