Chapter 215: Hold On, Big Guy When Max heard Joe’s scream, something inside him dropped, heavy and fast, sinking straight into the pit of his stomach. His vision started to blur. But it wasn’t from pain. It was the storm of emotions crashing through his chest, panic, fear, dread, all clawing at him from the inside, telling him he didn’t want to see what he was about to see. But he had no choice. With a shaky breath, Max forced himself to move, planting both feet firmly on the ground. Aside from a few torn holes in his trousers and scuff marks on his uniform, he was fine. Physically, anyway. He turned his head slowly. In the distance, he caught a glimpse of the car speeding away. A black vehicle with a green license plate, and just before it disappeared around the corner, Max saw the first letter. A. It wasn’t much. But it might be enough. ’Green license plate... black body... starts with A,’ Max thought, his gaze scanning the area. ’That should narrow things down. And since we’re on a public road...’ He looked around. There had to be surveillance cameras nearby. Street cams, building cams, something had to have caught the car. And if they had, he’d find it. He’d find them. Then finally, his legs started moving. "MAX! Max, what do we do? What do we do?!" Joe was panicking, pacing near Jay’s body with blood-stained hands, his voice cracking as he shouted. Max’s eyes dropped down to Jay at last. His body was slightly twisted, one leg awkwardly bent over the other. From a distance, it didn’t look like any major bones were broken, but that wasn’t the problem. The real damage was to his head. Max could see it. Jay must’ve hit the bonnet first, then the back of his skull slammed against the hard concrete. That’s where the blood was pooling. Thick and dark. And if that was the outside damage... Max didn’t want to imagine what was going on inside. Without wasting a second, Max pulled out his phone and dialed. "999," he said, his voice steady. "We’re at the intersection near East Gate, right outside Brinhurst School. It’s a hit-and-run. One injured. Head trauma. Send an ambulance. Police too." As soon as the dispatcher confirmed they were on their way, Max dropped to his knees by Jay’s side and gently turned him just enough to check his arm. "He’s still breathing," Max said, more for Joe than himself. "His pulse is steady. And his body’s on its side... it’s good positioning. He’s not flat on his back, there’s less pressure on the lungs." "Good position? Good position?! Have you gone mad, Max?!" Joe screamed. His voice cracked with raw fear. "He was hit by a car! A freaking car! I don’t care how big he is, he’s not made of metal!" Joe pointed to the blood on his hands. "Look at this! Look at what happened!" Max didn’t respond. He wasn’t ignoring Joe, but something had shifted in him. There was a strange, quiet stillness to the way he moved, the way he stared. It was like he was forcing himself to shut everything off. The panic. The guilt. The fear. Shoving it all down so he could focus. So he could go through the checklist. Handle what needed to be done. There would be time to feel later. Right now, Max had to make sure Jay stayed alive. "Don’t touch or move his head," Max instructed firmly. His voice was tight, but controlled. "It might make any injury worse. If he stops breathing or loses his pulse, we start chest compressions. Immediately. Until the ambulance gets here." Joe nodded silently, his hands trembling as he knelt nearby. Max set his phone down beside him, activating the flashlight and positioning it carefully. He was monitoring Jay’s pulse, counting each beat, watching the rhythm, making sure it stayed steady. He checked for any other signs of severe bleeding. Chest, arms, legs. Nothing. Just the head. ’That car... we crossed at the green light. Then it sped up,’ Max thought, eyes narrowing. ’It was a zebra pedestrian crossing. The driver should’ve been cautious. That wasn’t just reckless... it was deliberate.’ An electric car, silent. A high-speed impact, no hesitation. And it didn’t slow down afterward. It rushed away. ’I was on the car’s side...’ Max realized. ’Jay pulled me out of the way. That means... I was the target.’ His mind was racing, connecting the dots. He’d started to let his guard down. Everything had been going so well lately, his business booming, his plans falling into place. But he had forgotten something important. This wasn’t just Max Stern anymore. He was living in a body that had once belonged to someone else. Someone who’d already lost their life. And there were still enemies, killers, out there who wouldn’t hesitate to finish what they started. Max’s heart pounded louder. His fingers started to shake, his breathing hitched. It was getting harder to hold everything in. This was different. ’I’ve been to so many funerals,’ Max thought, clenching his fists. ’I’ve seen death. Felt loss. Again and again. But this... this is the first time I’m scared of losing someone I care about.’ 𝕗𝐫𝐞𝕖𝕨𝐞𝗯𝚗𝕠𝘃𝐞𝚕.𝐜𝗼𝚖 He looked down at Jay’s body, motionless, barely breathing. "You idiot," Max muttered, voice cracking. "Why did you do that?" He leaned closer. "Why did you throw me across? Why were you thinking about me in that moment instead of yourself?!" Emotion finally bled through his voice, raw and unfiltered. Joe turned, finally seeing what Max had been holding back all this time. The pain. The fear. The helplessness. He wasn’t cold or distant, he was just forcing himself to stay in control. But now, it was breaking. "You have a sister," Max continued, his voice shaking. "You have someone waiting for you. Someone who needs you. You’re supposed to get back to her, tell her you’re okay. That you made it." He slammed his fist on the ground. "You damn big idiot!" His throat tightened, and he could feel tears threatening to push through. "You only get one life," Max said softly now. "You’re not like me... you don’t get a second chance." Then, louder, desperate. "So come on, Jay. Make it. Fight. Get through this!" He glanced back at his phone, at the steady pulse monitor he was using, and his heart dropped again. Jay’s pulse was slowing. No, Then came the sound. The distant howl of sirens. It grew louder, faster, until the ambulance turned the corner and screeched to a halt next to them. The medics jumped out immediately, working fast. One of them checked Jay’s vitals. Another unrolled a stretcher. Devices were placed on him, and then, he was lifted with practiced urgency. They carried Jay into the ambulance. Max and Joe stood frozen on the curb as the doors slammed shut and the vehicle sped away. Max took one breath, then another. He pulled out his phone. His thumb hovered for only a second before tapping the screen. "Aron," Max said, voice low and ice-cold, "I need your help. And I need it now."