Daniel crouches in front of Lynell, cradling her face in his hands.

“Lynell. Oh, my god. It’s okay. I got you. You’re safe. You’re okay,” he says, pulling her against him.

Her head falls against his chest as she’s lifted from the bed. The world falls into darkness again.

It was the third anniversary of the day they met and Daniel had just surprised her with two tickets to Chicago. They hadn’t been since their honeymoon.

“I don’t deserve you, Daniel Carter,” she had said, straddling him on the couch and smiling down at him.

“You, Lynell Mize-Carter, deserve the entire world.” He tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and gazed at her with so much love that she thought she would explode under his gaze. “And every minute of every day I can’t believe my own luck that you settled for me.”

“Settled?” she said, laughing. “You’re my world.”

He grinned. “I’m so thankful you suck at biking and have the attention span of a squirrel.”

She playfully smacked his shoulder. “I still have a scar from that crash,” she said.

Daniel threaded his fingers through hers and ran his thumb over the back of her left hand, where the scar in question sat prominently. He then pulled her hand to his face and kissed it, watching her as he did.

Her knees went weak and she leaned in, catching his lips with her own. “I love that scar, and I love you. I will always love you,” he said, holding her close.

His arms are still around her. His hands are still just as reassuring. His chest is still just as strong.

“It’s okay, Lyn. I got you. You’re okay,” he says over and over, whispering it into her ears. She grips his shirt and feels his chest moving as he runs.

Take me back.

“We are going to get you out of here.”

Lynell’s eyes flick open and she finds herself staring at Daniel’s chest. She lifts her head slightly to look over his shoulder and sees Zach following them with his gun held out. He glances over his shoulder before looking forward again.

Their eyes meet and Lynell tenses. The broken fingers throb and fear thrums through her body. She whimpers and curls further into Daniel, shaking.

“Shh, it’s okay,” he says, taking a turn. He starts up some steps, jostling Lynell as he takes them two at a time.

She keeps her eyes trained on Zach. “Danny . . .” she moans.

“I got you.”

“Zach . . . No. Please,” she mutters. She thinks of full-length sentences she’d like to say, but the words don’t form. Her brain teeters on the edge of unconsciousness.

“He helped me get you,” Daniel says. “He—” he stops short as a gunshot explodes next to them. He slams his back into a wall and pulls Lynell close. She squeezes her eyes shut and focuses on Daniel’s arms holding her securely. There’s screaming and more gunshots and a splatter of something like bits of rock hits her face. Her eyes fly open and she turns to see what’s happening, but Daniel’s hand settles behind her head, pulling her to his chest again. “No, don’t move.”