Beth hugged me as we both cried. She walked over to Kim and sat down. When Kim only offered a weak smile, Beth pulled her into her arms.

Jared put his arm around me and led me back to the couch. Kim rehashed the account to the others until Josh interrupted.

“Why didn’t you just give him the damn ring, Nina?” he asked in an accusatory tone.

“This isn’t Nina’s fault,” Jared grimaced, squeezing me closer to his side.

“Her father gave her that ring, Josh,” Beth added.

“It’s just a ring,” he murmured.

Jared looked into my eyes with an understanding expression; he didn’t want me to feel worse than I already did. I didn’t expect anyone to understand my attachment to the ring anymore than I expected them to understand my relationship with my father.

“How did you get away?” Beth asked.

I felt Jared shift uncomfortably beside me when Kim spoke, “Jared took all four of them on. He was amazing. Apparently he’s taught his little sister everything she knows.”

All eyes darted to Jared, who leaned forward and clasped his hands together. “I’m in the security business.”

“Where? In Iraq?” Josh sneered.

“Nah,” Jared said, downplaying Kim’s explanation.

I knew better. I had just glimpsed into a fraction of Jared’s secret.

I jerked against Jared’s shoulder when he whispered that Ryan was being wheeled into Intensive Care from recovery. “It’s okay, you’re safe,” he whispered, pressing his lips to the top of my hair.

“Oh,” I said, wiping my eyes. “I must have dozed off for a second.”

“More like an hour,” Kim said with heavy eyes.

Jared squeezed me to him. “You didn’t miss anything; you needed to rest.”

“What time is it?” I yawned.

“Seven thirty,” Beth said, looking as exhausted as I felt.

The nurses pushed the stretcher down the hall with a barely-coherent Ryan attached to monitors and tubes. I ran into the hallway and grabbed his hand, walking with them.

“I’m so sorry.” My voice broke before I could attempt a braver tone.

Ryan mumbled something inaudible and I felt my face compress. “It’s okay, you don’t have to talk.” I choked at how familiar those words sounded. “We’ll be right down the hall, okay?” I kissed his hand and he smiled, reaching his shaky fingers to brush my cheek with the back of his fingertips. I held his hand to my face for a moment, kissed it, then let go as they passed through the double doors.

The doors shut in my face, and I brought my hand to my mouth to stifle the cries. Beth came up behind me and Kim joined us, followed by Josh and Chad. We all huddled in the middle of the hall as we hugged and cried.

I had been nestled in Jared’s warm arms for twenty minutes when a nurse came out.