by Sam Crescent
“Where is your dad now?” Stink asked.
“Um, going to get some groceries, he was run over by a guy having a heart attack.” Sandy shook her head. “It was just after my eighteenth birthday.”
“You became a doctor to help people.”
“To make sure no one else ever felt loss, or knew pain like I have. If I was there, then I knew that every person who came into my care would be protected. I wouldn’t fail them.” Sandy stared down at the table. “Life sucks sometimes.”
“You’ve been on your own since then?”
“Pretty much. My dad was well off, so I’ve never really had to worry about money, or security. I’ve been really lucky that way. Others, not so much.”
“You’ll always have me.”
She smiled. “It makes me a lucky woman to have you in my life.”
He didn’t let go of her hand, offering her the support and love she needed by that one simple touch.
“I’ve never told anyone that before.”
“Never?”
“No, never. It’s in the past, and I don’t want anyone’s pity.” She let out a breath. “Wow, it’s a lifetime ago.”
“Your parents would be proud of you.”
“Really?”
“Yeah, look what you’ve achieved.”
“I’m not married, and I don’t have any kids.”
“There’s more to life than marriage and kids.”
“Do you want them?” she asked.
“Only if you do. All I want is you, Sandy—kids, no kids, I don’t care.”
“You really are a great guy, and you really shouldn’t have a name called Stink.”
He laughed. “I like it. It beats Norman.”
“I know. No wonder you were happy with your name.”
“I’m screwed either way.”
“Ha ha.”
Their food arrived, and Stink was happy. With all the shit going on, he’d found his happiness with Sandy.
Once the waitress left, he dove into his food, relishing the taste of the juicy meatballs and tomato garlic sauce. Twirling the spaghetti around his fork, he took a large bite while also watching Sandy devour her food. She wasn’t kidding.
He grabbed a chili cheese fry, taking a bite.
“Good, isn’t it?”
“Yeah, it really is.”
“I don’t know if I’d want kids someday. Maybe, maybe not. I’m getting older. Should I really be having kids?”
“I think you should do whatever makes you feel happy.”
“Being with you, it makes me happy.”
****
The following morning Angel woke up and smiled over at her husband. Lash was asleep with his arms folded. She had offered to move up, and to give him room, but he wouldn’t take it. He was always taking care of her, loving her.
“You’re awake,” he said.
“Yeah, only for a few minutes. You don’t have to worry about getting up.”
“Don’t be silly. I want to.” He yawned and stretched out.
“Where’s Anthony?” she asked.
“Tate. She took care of the kids last night with the men. Some of us stayed.”
“Like who?” Angel was curious to know what was going on. She hated being kept out of the loop on stuff like this. Lash was the President of The Skulls now, and so, to her, that meant she had to play her part. Eva had been by Tiny’s side through it all. Angel was determined to be a good old lady to her man.
Lash blew out a breath. “Don’t worry about it.”
“Seriously? I’m sitting here, and I’m worried about it because you’re not telling me the truth. Just tell me the truth, Lash.”
“Tabitha and Simon are fine. They woke up, but they need to be kept under observation.”
She nodded. Even though she wanted to shed a tear, she couldn’t. Crying wouldn’t solve anything. Being strong, and offering support would help. Simon and Tabitha were both good kids, sweethearts. No one should ever harm a child. The very thought Andrew could, angered her. There was no way that sadistic man was related to Gash. She couldn’t believe it. Gash was so damn nice.
“Alex is a father. Sunshine gave birth to a beautiful baby girl. You’ll get to see her today, if you’d like.”
“Of course I’d love to.” Angel smiled, so happy for the lovely couple.
He went through everyone who had been injured. Knowing people she loved and cared about from both The Skulls and Chaos Bleeds were hurt annoyed her. She wanted to hurt Andrew for what he’d done. The club was her family. They were uncles, aunties, guardians, everything to her son and her husband. When Lash was away from her, she knew without a doubt that he was being taken care of.
That was what separated The Skulls from many other MCs. They cared, period.
Suddenly he stopped, and the sadness in his eyes was so easy to see. “What is it?” she asked.
“Sasha, Pussy’s woman, the blind one.”
“I know. She’s so sweet, and loving. I also know she worries about him all the time.” Angel had spoken to Sasha an hour before the attack. The other woman was so worried that her blindness was taking something away from Pussy. It wasn’t. Pussy loved Sasha. All Angel saw was the love that he had for her.
“I don’t know how to say this.”
“What?”
“Sasha got shot, and hit her head. There was … swelling, and they had to perform emergency surgery to relieve the pressure.”
“She’s okay, right?”
Lash rubbed at his eyes, and all the happiness she’d had a moment ago was gone.
“There’s a chance she might not wake up.”
“But there’s a chance she might?”
“Yes, it could go either way.”
“Then we’ve got to show Pussy support during this time. We can’t fail him.” Tears filled her eyes, and she tried to wipe them away.
“I don’t want you getting upset.”
“I can’t help it. Sasha is a good person, and I’m tired of bad stuff happening to good people.” Running fingers through her hair, she shoved the blanket from her, and got to her feet.
“What are you doing?”
“I’m getting out of this blasted bed. I’m fine, Lash. It was just Braxton Hicks, and they’re taking more precautions because of who you are. I’m going to go see our friends, our family.”
“Angel—”
“Don’t Angel me. This is what is going to happen. Now, I can walk, or you can push me, but either way, I’m going to go see them.”
He stepped toward her, placing a hand on her stomach. “I’ll take you.” Lash pushed the hair out of her face, and she smiled up at him.
“Thank you. I must look awful.” She hadn’t brushed her hair, nor did she feel sexy. Her stomach was like a large ball between them.
“You’re the most beautiful woman in the world.”
“You always know what to say.”
“That’s because you’re mine.”
Her stomach fluttered at his declaration. She loved him so much.
“Let me grab the chair.” He kissed her head, and she closed her eyes, loving the feel of him around her.
Seconds later he came back, and she was sitting on the chair being escorted out. “Where would you like to go first?”
“To anyone. I want to see everything, Lash.”
****
Sally couldn’t sleep. She stared down at her leg that was currently bandaged up. The pain was only getting worse, and she was sweating worse than anything, the moisture pouring off her. There was no way she could continue to hide the pain. She’d never felt anything like it, the burning.
She needed to call the doctor, but if she did it would mean only one thing: she’d have to lose her leg.
Glancing across the room she saw Steven had fallen asleep. For most of the night she had watched him, hoping the pain in her leg would lessen.
Lacey and Whizz had left at her request. Even though she was in the hospital, she didn’t want Daisy to be
without a parent. They didn’t want to leave her, but she made them. This was not the time for Daisy to be stuck in the hospital. Daisy was just a baby really, and she needed the love and support of both of them. Sally wasn’t selfish, and she knew that they cared for her. Not once did she ever question their love for her. They’d given her a home when no one else would, and a family.
A sudden shot of pain rushed through her body, and she whimpered, gripping her thigh.
The noise woke Steven up as he got to his feet coming toward her.
“What is it? What’s wrong?”
There was no way that she could handle the pain. It hurt too much, and the pain was getting worse. She didn’t know how she was going to survive the rest of the night with this kind of pain. She had to face the inevitable.
“It hurts.” She sucked her lips in trying to keep the pain at bay. Nothing was happening. Gasping out, she felt the tears spilling down her cheeks, and it was all too much.
“I’m getting a nurse.”
“No. They’ll take my leg.”
“Then let them take your damn leg. You could die, Sally.”
“I don’t care. I don’t want them to take my leg.”
He shook his head. “That’s not your decision.” He left the room, and Sally screamed. Seconds later the doctor rushed in.
“What’s going on?” he asked. “Talk to me, Sally.”
“It hurts.”
“How long were you able to sleep?”
“I haven’t.”
He removed the bandage, and Sally knew something wasn’t right.
“We’ve got to operate now.”
“I’ll get her parents.”
She was starting to feel dizzy. Leaning over the bed, Sally vomited and saw stars.
The last thing she heard was Steven calling her name.
Chapter Five
Stink stared down at Sandy as she slept. They had come to the clubhouse last night, and the moment she’d lain down, she’d been out. He pushed some of her hair out of the way, and relished the numbness in his arm. This was what it was all about. Falling asleep beside the woman he loved after taking her out to dinner.
Time passed, he didn’t know how much, and she opened her eyes, smiling up at him.
“Hey,” she said. “Were you watching me sleep?”
“Maybe.”
“That’s not creepy at all.”
He chuckled. “Maybe a little creepy.”
“What time is it?”
Glancing over at the alarm clock he saw it was a little past six, and told her so.
“Ugh, I better get up. I want to go and check on everyone. You know Berman asked me when I was going to take my old job back.”
“What did you say?”
“I didn’t really say anything. I don’t know if I want to go back to that.”
“You don’t?”
She stretched, yawning. “You don’t think I do?”
“I don’t know what to think, baby. Being a doctor is part of you, and last night I saw why you love it.”
“It’s so hard, and it hurts. Being a doctor comes with knowing that people are going to die. I can’t save everyone.”
Stink locked his fingers with hers, holding her close. “You’re scared that you’re going to lose some of the club?”
“Aren’t you? We’ve already lost people, and this last attack, we lost our own.”
The police were going to head to the hospital today to interview the rest of them. Stink was going to be there to give his statement.
“I’m not a fan of death. You train for this. Do you miss it?”
She sighed. “Sometimes. Yesterday I was able to just help, and to know what to do.”
“You spent a great deal of your life training for this moment. Don’t let anyone ruin that for you.”
“I won’t.” She smiled. “I like this.”
“One day we’ll fuck,” he said.
“I was going to fuck you last night.”
“You were too busy snoring. Don’t worry. I wouldn’t know if you had bad breath or anything.”
“I can fart and you won’t know.”
“I can’t smell, but I’m not deaf.”
She slapped his arm.
Her cell phone started to ring, and Stink reached across her, grabbing it. He didn’t recognize the number.
“Hello.” The smile that was on Sandy’s lips disappeared as she listened to whoever was on the phone. “I’ll be right in.”
She snapped the phone closed and jumped to her feet.
“What is it?”
“Sally. Her knee has shown signs of an infection. They have to remove it now or she’ll die. He already fears septicemia. I’m needed. I’ve got to go.”
Stink got out of bed and pulled on his jeans but didn’t button them up. He followed her into the bathroom, taking a piss after her, and washing his hands then brushing his teeth. Within ten minutes they were downstairs, and out of the door.
Neither of them stopped to give a heads-up to anyone. Stink would come back and let everyone know what was going on.
Climbing in his car, he turned over the ignition, and together they made their way out of the clubhouse parking lot.
“I can’t believe everything that has happened.”
“Don’t worry about anything. We’ll all be there for her.”
Stink got her to the hospital in record time. He promised to bring her lunch, and watched as she disappeared inside. Whizz and Lacey were pulling into the parking lot, and Stink got out.
Lacey was carrying Daisy.
“Is she going to be all right?” Stink asked.
“I can’t stay. She needs me.” Lacey rushed toward the door.
“You can’t take Daisy,” Whizz said.
Stink held his hands out quickly as Lacey dumped Daisy on his lap. “Love you, darling.” She kissed the young girl and left.
Daisy smiled at him. “I can go down.”
“It’s okay.” He wasn’t used to having kids dumped into his arms, unless they needed a diaper change. The brothers seemed to enjoy watching him change a shitty diaper without heaving. He’d lost his sense of smell a long time ago. Cleaning toilets, changing diapers, doing other gross shit didn’t affect him. It was awesome that he couldn’t smell anything bad, but it also meant he couldn’t smell anything good. He went through life not knowing smells, not understanding what people were feeling.
Angel’s food tasted sort of good to him, but he didn’t get that loving smell that others got nor an overwhelming sense of taste either. He’d watched the men and women practically salivating just for a taste of Angel’s food from smell alone.
“Did you drop Sandy off?” Whizz asked.
“Yeah, the moment she got the call.”
“We should have stayed with her last night. She insisted we take Daisy home.”
“I don’t mind sleepovers. Sally needs to get better,” Daisy said.
“I know, princess.” Whizz took Daisy from him, hugging her close. “Do you know anything?”
“It’s an infection that means they have to take the leg.”
“Yeah, it’s what we heard. Fucker needs to be brought down.”
“Do you know anything?”
Whizz sighed. “I wish I did.”
“Nothing?”
“I’ve got to go back to Andrew, and I need Gash for that. I was just starting to access his life when we got this attack.”
“Seriously? You’re going back to when he wasn’t a problem.”
“Hey! Listen, the Andrew he is now, I can’t trace him. He’s got security at all angles. I go back, I follow up to this point, and I can get to him. I’ve got to go back in order to get to now. Got it?”
“It actually makes sense.”
“Of course it makes sense. I’m not some amateur.” Whizz looked toward the hospital. “I’ve got to get in there.”
“Do you want me to take her?” Stink asked.
“Would you mind?”
&nbs
p; “I don’t mind. We can do this, can’t we, kid?”
Daisy nodded then kissed Whizz’s cheek. “Kiss Sally.”
Stink took hold of her and watched as Whizz rushed into the hospital. With Andrew having them rushing around chasing their own asses, they weren’t focusing on him. This was going to end badly, and Stink needed to get someone else to see the danger that surrounded them.
“What would you like to do today?” Stink asked, placing her into his car. He already had a car seat so that he could take care of everyone.
She shrugged. “Whatever you want.”
He climbed behind the wheel, and they drove back to the clubhouse. When he walked in he saw all the kids and several of the brothers at the table. Tate was serving up some burnt bacon, and the toast was black as well.
“What is this?” he asked, putting Daisy down. He watched as she took the empty seat beside Anthony.
“I attempted pancakes. I’m not very good. Angel is clearly the talented one.”
“Clearly.”
“So what’s going on?”
“I need to go and see Murphy today. Can you watch the kids while I do?” Tate asked. “Jessica has offered to help as well. She can’t do a lot seeing as her arm is bandaged.”
“I’m here as well,” Martha said, holding her hand up. “I can help.”
“Good. We’re going to need all the help we can get.” Tate left the table, and Stink watched as someone rushed toward the trash to put in the bacon. Shaking his head, he couldn’t help but chuckle. Everyone went still as Tate came back in. “We’re also putting together a care package for Pussy. He hasn’t left Sasha’s side, and we’re going to try and offer our support.”
“Okay.”
Stink took a seat at the table and rubbed at his temples. “At lunch I’m going to the hospital.”
“That’s fine. Tomorrow we need to drop the kids off in school.”
“What about the Chaos kids?” he asked.
“Simon is in school, but he’s at the hospital. Elizabeth is in her first year, and has work to complete at home. Lexie took care of it,” Tate said.
It was the first time he’d seen Tate completely in control, and not being a bitch. He didn’t know if he liked or recognized this person. They needed to keep her stressed more often.