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“Can you stand?”

Another nod and then Eli used the back of his left hand to wipe at his tears But when I reached for his right arrabbed his wrist with his free hand

“Okay, okay,” I said softly as I watched fresh tears fall I studied the wrist Eli was protecting and saw that it was already swelling “Eli, can you ers on this hand?” I asked as I pointed to his injured arm

Eli hesitated and then carefully tested each finger Pain ritten in every line of his face and harsh breaths were seesawing in and out of hied to say “I think it’s just sprained,” he added between clenched teeth

“I’ to help you stand, okay? We’ll take it nice and slow”

Another unsteady nod I reached out for Eli’s uninjured arht as I carefully lifted hiainst the wall as he tried to catch his breath and I kept my hand on his elbow to steady him “Can you make it back up the stairs?”

It took Eli a h to talk “My…my car’s parked on this level,” he said with a nod to the door leading to the parking area

“Eli, you need to have so a children’s hospital, I doubted they’d turn Eli away At worst, they’d arrange for hieneral hospital

“No,” Eli ht “I’m okay”

“Eli-”

“Thank you,” Eli said as he carefully pulled free of my hold and stepped around me He used his uninjured hand to open the heavy door and I quickly grabbed it fro towards a darkened corner of the garage I scanned our surroundings as I easily caught up to Eli and carefully drew hi my hand on his uninjured arm

“Eli, talk to me Who did this?”

But Eli just shook his head and tried to step past me

“Was it an ex or so?” I asked

Eli didn’t see the assuo, please?” he whispered and I could tell he was on the verge of crying again He tried to tug his arnored the zaps of electricity that were firing through the pads of ers and up my entire arm

“At least let me call someone for you,” I offered “Your family A friend”

I expected hiestion over or at least tell me no, but instead his entire countenance fell and thendown his face I felt an unexpected ache in led to find the right words to say But nothing came to me and I kneas because that kind of bone deep pain couldn’t be taken aith a few carefully chosen words Whatever Eli was going through inside was sohis body had taken

I felt e to escape hit un or a knife and I was an unstoppable force Hell, even with justthrownman in front of me what he needed I wasn’t wired that way…not anyhtened ainst ainst the s away, he let out a broken sob and dropped his forehead onin earnest I was careful not to put any pressure on his injured arm as I pulled him in even closer

I didn’t say anything as his tears soaked my shirt and before I could stop myself, I lowered ht about hiht because even with ood six inches on hiuess was that I outweighed him by at least fifty pounds I used my free hand to test the softness of his coal-black hair and I ers