Drake Sisters 06 - Turbulent Sea

lungs. No matter what, Ilya would come for her. If someone was trying to harm her, they'd never get away with it.
    'Let me look, Joley. There's blood everywhere. Stop fighting.'
    This time she recognized the voice of her manager, Jerry. She wiped at her face, blinked rapidly and looked at his blurry face through stinging eyes. Her hands were covered in blood. Shocked, she stared at the mess around her, the dust settling to the ground, her ears still ringing from the explosion.
    She was barely aware of her manager crouching beside her, wiping at her face again. 'Are you all right, Joley?
    Answer me. Should I call an ambulance?'
    She could barely see, her vision blurry, but she peered around her at the debris that had been her trailer. Smoke and dust littered the air, while splintered furniture and her belongings were scattered around her.
    'Joley!' Brian rushed to her, followed by Denny. 'Are you hurt? Is she hurt, Jerry? There's blood all over her. Get an ambulance. Get one now, Denny!'
    She blinked up at him, shock in her eyes. 'My God, Brian. This has something to do with that girl's disappearance. It does.' She tried to think, but her brain seemed scrambled, thoughts bouncing so fast she couldn't catch them. She caught a glimpse of Steve off to the side, staring as if dazed at the wreckage.
    'She's in shock,' Jerry said.
    She shook her head, although she was certain he was right. She was cold - too cold - and she couldn't stop shaking.
    Even her teeth chattered. 'No, I'm not. And I don't need an ambulance.' She wiped her face and stared down in surprise at the blood smearing her hand. 'It's a small cut, nothing serious.' She hoped it was true.
    'You're bleeding from your leg and arm, too, Joley,' Brian said.
    She hurt, but in so many places she couldn't process it all. Her hands were trembling. The ringing in her ears was so loud it sounded like a swarm of angry bees. She pressed her hands to her ears in an effort to stop it. 'It's nothing, small cuts.' They didn't feel small. She couldn't quite move, her, body refusing to obey her, and that was terrifying. Where are you? He had to come; she didn't know what to do.
    'The cuts aren't small,' Jerry protested. 'And you're losing blood all over the place.'
    'This is crazy, Jerry' Joley peered around her, more dazed than coherent, her body shaking involuntarily. 'Brian, look at this, look at my bus.' She couldn't get her mind to work. She tried to stand, but her legs wouldn't hold her up.
    Brian kept a hand on her shoulder, keeping her still. 'Stay there, Joley. The police are swarming the place, security's everywhere, and they'll be sending in a doctor to look at you, so just sit still until someone gets here and clears you.'
    'This is about that little girl who went missing. That's what the bomb was all about - getting us to back off trying to find out who she was with. Someone put this on my bus.' She still had the picture clutched in her hands and she held it up.
    'That's crazy. It's only drawing more attention to her disappearance.' Brian pressed a cloth to her forehead. Ignoring her wince, he pressed hard. 'And why go for you? You have nothing to do with it. Jerry maybe and me, certainly. We're the ones asking questions, not you.'
    She pushed harder at his arm. 'That hurts.'
    'You're going to need stitches, so just sit there until we get a doctor in here.' Brian scratched his head. 'Joley, this doesn't make sense. Why bother warning you to back off and then try to kill you? How stupid is that?'
    Joley could barely think with her ears ringing, the throbbing cut at her temple and the way her heart squeezed hard and painful in her chest. She was really afraid now. Someone wanted her dead. She should have gone into the bus, would have if Jerry hadn't called out to her.
    Sirens wailed and voices grew louder. Joley stiffened, feeling energy surging toward her aggressively.
    Joley! Answer me. Are you all right?
    The voice in her head trembled with anxiety, but held a firm, commanding note, pushing at her mind to obey instantly. Finally, Ilya Prakenskii, and he was close. Her heart leapt, began pounding a welcome. Adrenaline surged.
    She clenched her teeth against the need to run to him and fling herself into his arms. She hated weakness in herself, and Ilya was a huge weakness. Cameras were everywhere now. If she turned to him, it would be all over the tabloids, but she wanted to - needed to - be held by him.
    Joley. There was a tinge of fear this time, and God help