Mine for Tonight

Chapter 11

Nicki sighed softly as she took a sip from the foam cup, hoping the coffee would help her focus. 

Swallowing hard to get the strong, burnt-tasting liquid down her throat, she looked up at Robyn with a weak smile. 

"I think we're almost done." 

She had already identified the two suspects from mug shots, the angry gunmen who had stormed the clinic that morning, demanding drugs. 

Robyn had been in an exam room and hadn't seen the men, but Nicki had gotten an up close and personal look. 

Grimacing, she wished to hell that she hadn't. 

Alone in the waiting room, watching over a child whose sibling and mother were in the exam room with Robyn, Nicki would probably never forget the dead look in the men's eyes and their haggard faces that told the story of years of drug abuse. 

She knew the look, had seen it often in her youth, but she hadn't had a gun in her face at the time. 

That moment, that terrifying instance of not knowing whether the next few seconds would be her last, had been enough to scare the bejesus out of her. 

She had scooped up the child and raced around the corner, hitting the alarm button under the desk as she tucked the child behind her. 

The alarm wasn't silent and the ruckus had been enough to bring Robyn running out and the men to scatter. 

One of the men had a twitchy trigger finger and his firearm had exploded at the sound of the alarm, the path of the bullet coming so close to Nicki's head that she had felt the air ripple at the side of her face. 

Shuddering, she wrapped her arms around herself, not really cold, but remembering with more than a touch of unease the faces of the men and their final brutal comment as they escaped through the clinic door. 

"We'll get you later, bitch!" 

Robyn had only seen their exit, arriving seconds after they had turned to run. 

Thankfully, everyone had escaped unharmed. 

"The nice detective should be back soon and we can affirm the police reports and get the hell out of here," Robyn responded grimly, her eyes focused on Nicki. 

"Are you sure you're okay? You look a little pale." Nicki shrugged, trying to look unaffected. 

"A little shaken up is all. I'm...good." 

Terrified. 

Scared shitless. 

But otherwise, just fine. 

The last thing she wanted was to alarm her friend, knowing Robyn already felt responsible for Nicki nearly getting shot. 

Robyn reached across the table and grabbed her hand, squeezing it until almost all of the blood left the extremity. 

"They shot at you. It's normal to be upset. That was a damn close call. I'm so sorry, Nicki." 

"Robyn, it isn't your fault-" 

"Who the hell shot at her!" 

A bellowing female voice came from the door, and Nicki didn't even have to turn around to know exactly who stood there. 

She recognized Beyonce's blustering tone immediately. 

The woman might not yell often, but she made up for it in quality. 

No one could roar more ferociously than Beyonce when her temper flared. 

"What in the fuck is going on? The police said you got attacked at some clinic-"