Chapter 255 A Tacit Understanding
Liam hit the deck hard, scraping his wrist and making it bleed. But he didn't give a damn about his arm. He rushed over, all worried, "Ashley, you guys good?"
Ethan helped Ashley get back on her feet.
"Ashley?" Ethan shot a look at Liam, then back at Ashley.
In that crazy moment earlier, Ethan didn't have time to shove Ashley out of the way, so he just held her tight. That way, if Jimmy's knife came down, it would hit him instead.
But things went sideways, and Jimmy's knife ended up slicing both Ashley and Nora's arms.
"Shit, I still let you get hurt!" Ethan was pissed at himself.
The girl he was ready to die for was now hurt. The more he thought about it, the more he felt like crap.
"Ethan, I'm okay..." Ashley's eyes caught the blood on his arm, and she freaked out, "Babe, you're bleeding too?"
Ashley's heart sank.
Ethan finally noticed his hand was bleeding, but he had no clue how it happened. It didn't hurt much, so he shrugged it off. "I'm good. But you, does it hurt?"
Ashley shook her head. "Nah, I'm fine."
Her eyes landed on Nora, who was sitting on the ground, looking like she'd seen a ghost.
Nora saw Jimmy dead at her feet. She was so young and freaked out that she just froze, mouth hanging open.
Ashley saw something was off, "Nora, what's up?"
With a gentle shake, Nora's eyes rolled back, and she passed out.
"Nora!" Ashley yelled.
The cops showed up and took Jimmy's body away. Seeing Nora out cold, they said, "She's too young. The gunshots and the dead body probably scared her. You all are hurt; you should hit the hospital for a check-up."
"Got it."
The cops cleared the crowd, and the ambulance rolled up. They all piled in one by one.
They had minor scrapes, just needed some basic patching up. But Nora was still out cold.
In the ambulance, after Ethan got Ashley patched up, she did the same for him. Liam watched and suddenly had a lightbulb moment.
He always thought Ashley might be his real sister. After the DNA test came back negative last time, he figured the report was messed up. So, Liam still wanted another DNA test, but Landon had shot it down.
Liam stared at the bloodstains on their hands, deep in thought.
"Liam, what’s on your mind?" Ashley had just finished bandaging Ethan and saw Liam staring at the bloodstains on the tray, looking all puzzled.
Liam grinned, "Nah, just happy to see you two all lovey-dovey."
"Liam, let me help you with that wound," Ashley offered, but Ethan stepped in, giving Liam a side-eye. "I got it."
Ashley was nudged back into her seat, no choice but to stay put.
Liam chuckled awkwardly, "Mr. Yates, you jealous or something?"
Ethan scoffed, "Jealous of you? Not a chance!"
"Then why won't you let Ashley patch me up?" Liam smirked.
Ethan grabbed some disinfectant, took Liam's hand, and poured it on without a hint of gentleness, making Liam yelp, "Ow, that hurts!"
Ethan was rough, wrapping the wound with gauze so tight it looked like he was trying to strangle him.
Ethan mocked, "You're her brother now. As her husband, I'm happy for her. Why would I be petty and jealous of my brother-in-law?"
Ashley was embarrassed, "Babe, be gentler. Liam's face is twisted in pain."
"You care about Liam that much?" Ethan tightened the gauze knot, making it look ugly.
He wasn't jealous at first, but seeing her concern made him start to feel a bit green-eyed.
Liam grimaced from Ethan's rough treatment.
"Ethan, take it easy. I'm your brother-in-law! You say you're not jealous, but you're clearly taking it out on me!" Liam said. "I genuinely see Ashley as a sister, nothing more. You're being too petty."
Ethan's sharp eyes saw through it all.
From the way Liam looked at Ashley, it was clear he cared for her like family, no romantic vibes.
He was just annoyed that Ashley didn't tell him about making a sworn brother.
But thinking back, when he had dug into Ashley's family, if it weren't for so many accidents...
Ethan's eyes darkened, thinking, 'What if the DNA test was wrong? What if another test brought a surprise?'
Glancing at the bloodstains on the tray, Ethan had an idea.
Ethan scoffed, "Of course, I know that. I'm the best. How could Ashley ever choose you?"
Liam fell silent.
He was really confident!
Ashley couldn't help but laugh.
Seeing them let their guard down, Ethan casually said, "Just to be safe, when we get to the hospital, let's all get a blood test."
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