Love beyond the mask (Whitney) novel Chapter 1162

Whitney felt like her brain had just exploded.

She barely had a second to process the news—her mind was filled with one thing: Ludwik was hurt. “Where is Ludwik now? Why would he risk his life and go after Bryce? Where is he?”

“He’s being brought to my hospital right now. Just get here, head straight to the ER!” Shane’s voice was rushed, and he hung up before she could ask more.

Whitney realized her phone was slick with cold sweat. Her mind was buzzing, her face had gone pale, and beads of sweat chilled her skin. She stood frozen for a second, then bolted out the door.

“Mom? What happened?” Sammy, still short and young, had only caught pieces of the hurried phone call.

Whitney clenched her fists, willing herself not to cry. She managed to keep her voice steady. “Your dad’s been hurt. Sammy, I need you and your brother to stay with your little sister. Mom has to go see Dad, okay?”

“How did this happen…? Mom, go, just go!” Sammy looked terrified, but didn’t want to slow her down.

Whitney rushed out of the house, heading for the emergency room. Her legs felt like they might give out, her whole body exhausted, but she couldn’t stop—one family crisis after another, and she couldn’t seem to catch her breath.

How did Bryce break out of prison? Who helped him?

How bad were Ludwik’s injuries? Did he catch Bryce?

Questions and fears swirled in her head as she burst into the ER entrance. She barely had time to wait before an ambulance screeched up to the doors. Parker jumped out first, followed by a team of doctors racing a stretcher inside.

“Ludwik?” Whitney ran to the gurney. “Ludwik!”

She saw the stretcher, stained with blood, and her heart nearly stopped. “Parker! Where is he hurt?”

Parker looked up, startled to see her there. He was holding a large black bag, rectangular and thick—Whitney caught a glimpse and couldn’t help but feel uneasy. It looked like the kind of body bag she’d seen in crime shows, the kind the police used… She hesitated, unsettled.

Parker dropped the bag to the ground.

On the stretcher, Ludwik was fighting the doctors, wild with adrenaline and fury. “Let me up, Parker! I need to finish him myself—I need to kill him with my own hands!”

Let the police handle it. The President’s already ordered a full lockdown on the coast—no way they’re slipping out of the country.”

Whitney’s fingers brushed the tense veins on Ludwik’s arm. “He was shot twice?”

“Once in the thigh, once in the left side.”

“Get him to surgery, now!” Whitney shouted, not wasting another word on Ludwik, shoving the stretcher herself.

Parker yelled for the doctors to move faster.

That black plastic bag hit the ground again, and Whitney couldn’t help but notice the sharp, metallic smell of blood coming from it. She frowned, curiosity getting the better of her. She bent down and unzipped a corner to peek inside.

Before she could see what was in the bag, Ludwik’s voice cracked through the chaos, cold and sharp: “Whitney! Don’t touch that!”