“What stopped you?”
“He did. Apparently, he thought more men would be coming after us and we had to run away. Blah, blah, blah. You know how it goes. But I’m telling you, the way his muscles flexed every time he threw a punch or twisted a man’s body…” She stopped talking and her eyes went wide. Then everything rushed out in a river of word vomit. “Not that I like seeing people being abused or anything. I mean, these were bad people and they deserved to die. I would never wish this on a woman. Not that all women are good. I’m sure there are some really terrible women out there that could use a good beating. But definitely not someone like you. Well, not you specifically, but a woman like you that just got wrapped up in shit unintentionally. At least, that’s what I’ve heard from Derek and I really hope that he’s not wrong because then you would break Jackson’s heart and he’s a really good guy. Not that he’s in love with you or anything. He’s just a normal guy that hates commitment and pushes people away until someone knocks him upside the head, but he could someday with the right woman. I don’t know if that’s you or if you’re even interested in something like that after having the crap beat out of you, but Jackson would never do that. I mean, look at him. He’s like, really hot, and believe me, I’ve seen him work out. The way sweat drips down his body makes me- I mean, any woman want to lick every drop of sweat from his body. Not that I stare. I’m a married woman after all, but we can still look. It’s not like it’s breaking the law or something. It’s just looking, just-”
I slapped my hand over her mouth to get her to stop blabbering. “Are you always like this?”
“Mmmaahwah.”
I removed my hand so she could speak.
“Not always. It’s just when I get really nervous, like when I say something stupid. And then one thing leads to another and I’m shoving my foot in my mouth. Figuratively, not literally.”
She went quiet as she sucked her lips between her teeth, obviously trying to hold back from saying more. She must be a riot when she’s drinking.
“You don’t have to worry about offending me. It takes a lot to make me lose my shit.”
“I would imagine, otherwise you would have left that asshole a long time ago.”
She shook her head, closing her eyes as she bit her lip in shame. I huffed out a laugh. She was right. There was no point in being offended by it.
“That’s exactly what I said. You know, I stayed with him through drugs and arms dealing, but the minute he decided to take over someone else’s territory, I was like, that’s crossing a line and I can’t believe you’re such a terrible person.”
“Well, it could have been worse. He could have been stealing puppies and kittens, then forcing them to dress up like Anne Geddes does for her pictures.”
“I know. That’s truly cruel and unusual punishment, but I think she did that with babies,” I said.
“That’s even worse. No child should ever be dressed up like a flower unless the baby is running from the police or something.”
“And you know many babies that are on the lam?”
“Hey, it could happen. Kids are dangerous. They steal your time, your body, your sanity! I’m just not sure I can do it. I like having sex with Derek too much. I mean, how could I have my superhero fantasies if there are kids all over the place? And not only that, but I wouldn’t be able to watch Derek kill people. Somehow, I don’t think that would be appropriate for kids to see.”
“I don’t know, they already have a training center for the kids here. I’m thinking that their kids seeing someone being murdered isn’t that big of a deal to them.”
“Hey,” Becky yelled. “Jackson and Knight are here!”
Becky had gotten out of the Reed Security building soon after the fighting started. Cazzo had dragged her to the back stairs and made sure she got out. She had run over here and had been working on securing all the information and setting up a new site for everyone to meet up at later.
The doors to the panic room opened and Jackson and the Black Prince rushed in. When Jackson saw me, his shoulders sagged in relief and then he was running toward me. I wasn’t really sure how to act around him. I always put up a good front, but inside, I was disappointed that he saw me as a damaged woman. He thought I wasn’t ready for a relationship because I hadn’t faced reality yet, and he probably had a point. But I wasn’t asking for a relationship. I just wanted him to look at me like I could be something more than the woman that stayed with Xavier too long.
So, I was really surprised when he practically crashed into me, pulling my body to his and smashing his lips down on mine. I was so shocked that I didn’t know what to do for a moment. But just when my brain came online and I responded, he pulled back. His eyes bored into mine, but I couldn’t read him. I didn’t know what he was thinking. Was it a mistake? Was he wishing he hadn’t kissed me? Or maybe he was thinking about doing it again. My eyes dropped to his throat as he visibly swallowed. He took a step back, running his hand over his head. It was only then that I noticed he was favoring one leg.
“Oh my gosh! What happened to your leg?”
“It’s fine. I just bent it awkwardly.”
“What about everyone else? Is anyone hurt?”
His eyes cringed slightly and I knew that it was bad. “I need to talk to everyone.” He turned and let out a high whistle. Everyone got quiet and Knight walked over to where he stood, his arm still wrapped around Kate’s waist protectively.
“You all know we were attacked. We have a lot of injuries, but most aren’t too serious.”
“Most?” Claire asked stepping forward.
“I need Lucy and Lindsey to come to the hospital with me. Nobody else has life threatening injuries, so I want the rest of you to stay here.”
“I want to go with Lucy,” Claire said quickly, but Knight shook his head.
“For now, we need to know that everyone is safe. It’s too distracting if we have more people than necessary to watch.”
Jackson looked back to me and then turned away, walking out of the panic room with Knight, Lucy, and Lindsey. The women looked scared to death and they were gripping each other’s hands. Neither had said a word when Jackson said their names, which was either shock or understanding.
“What’s gonna happen now?” I asked Claire quietly.
“Now we go to war.”
CHAPTER SIX
Jackson
Knight and I drove Lindsey and Lucy over to the hospital. As soon as we got in the truck, the questions started pouring out.
“What happened?” Lucy asked.
“How bad are they hurt? You said life threatening.”
“Yeah, is that like a life threatening paper cut or life threatening like getting shot in the head?”
“Are we going to be able to see them?”
“I swear, if Hunter dies on me, I’m going to use his body for witchcraft rituals.”
“Tell me about it. John didn’t even have the courtesy to clean the hair out of the sink before he went and got himself shot or knifed or body slammed into a hard wall.”
“Men are so inconsiderate. You know, this is just like Hunter to go out and make something about him. I told him I wasn’t ready to start a family, so he went out and got shot so he could wield that sexy body against me. I could be dead right now, Lucy. We should make a baby now while we still have the chance.”
Lindsey leaned over the front seat, grabbing at my shirt. “Is this payback? Like, I scared him when I got thrown down the stairs by a burglar, so now he’s going to one up me? Because I can do worse.”
“I don’t think-” I tried to break in, but was cut off by Lucy.
“You know, you’re right! Hunter’s trying to show me how upset he was when I was hurt and didn’t want help. Is that it, Jackson? Is he trying to teach me a lesson? Because I will take Kate with me and we can sit outside the house all night, just like he did with Knight.” She turned her steely gaze on Knight. “Did you put him up to this? Is this some kind of test?”
Knight just glanced over at me with a bored look on his face. Knight didn’t put up with crazy shit like this. His woman didn’t freak out like these ladies were. Then again, he watched her like a hawk, so she never had the opportunity to freak out.
“Seriously, Jackson, why aren’t you talking? Why aren’t you telling us what happened?”
“If you two would shut up for a minute I could get a word in!” I yelled.
The two women looked shocked and then slumped back in their seats, crying and holding each other. I closed my eyes and tried to regain my composure. I had to remember that they just found out their husbands were injured and they were still trying to process what was happening.
“That’s why you don’t say anything,” Knight grumbled beside me.
I turned around, hating that I had to tell them what happened. “Hunter was shot in the neck. It was pretty bad, but Knight got there pretty fast and applied pressure. Rocco took over and got him out of the building and to an ambulance. I don’t know anything more than that.”
“But he can survive that, right?” Lucy asked, wiping the tears from her eyes.
“He can,” I said hesitantly. “We just have to hope we were fast enough.”
“What about John?”
“He was shot in the chest. Chris was doing everything he could for him, but there was a lot of blood.”
“What does that mean?”
I looked at Lindsey, trying my best not to show my doubt. “It means that we’ll have to see when we get to the hospital.”
After that, it was silent the rest of the way to the hospital, apart from the sniffles that came from the back seat. As much as the girls wanted to run ahead, Knight and I made them walk between us so we could protect them. We didn’t know if the threat was gone yet and we weren’t taking any chances.
It was chaos in the hospital. Nurses and doctors were rushing around the emergency room and shouting to one another as they tried to handle all the men that had been brought in. I wasn’t sure what the hell was going on and who else was injured. Cap was pacing the waiting area as a nurse followed him, trying to get him to sit down. His arm hung loosely at his side and he was shouting at someone on his phone.
Florrie was sitting in a chair with her head in one hand while her other arm was still in the sling. Cazzo, Sinner, Derek, Lola, Chris, and Jules all stood together, talking animatedly. It only took one look at Sinner to see he was favoring one leg, much like I was. But he had blood running down his leg, which made me wonder what the hell he was doing out here.
“Sinner!” I shouted as I walked over. He gave a chin lift but stayed where he was.
“What the hell are you doing? You have blood dripping all over the fucking floor.”
Cazzo jerked Sinner around, checking where the blood was coming from. Then he smacked him upside the head.
“What the hell are you doing? You should be getting checked out,” Cazzo snapped at him.
“It’s just a ricochet. I’m fine.”
“You have blood dripping all over the fucking place,” Cazzo shot back.
Sinner rolled his eyes. “I think I can handle a little blood loss. It’s not that bad.”
“Let me see,” Cazzo said, flicking his hand up as if to tell Sinner to raise his pant leg. Sinner took a seat and pulled up his pant leg and Cazzo grabbed his foot, placing it on his knee.
“See?” Sinner laughed. “It’s just a-ow! What the fuck?”
Cazzo pressed on his wound, making more blood seep out and causing Sinner a helluva lot of pain.
“Doesn’t look like just a little blood to me.” Cazzo dropped Sinner’s leg to the floor with a thunk.
“That’s because you just shoved your fucking finger in my hole!”
I glanced to my left and laughed when I saw Cap and the look on his face. “We’re at a fucking hospital. Is it possible that just once I can walk in on a conversation with you guys without feeling like a fucking pervert?”
“Not that hole,” Sinner grumbled. “He shoved his finger in my bullet hole.”
“Sinner…” Cap just shook his head and sighed. “I want everyone checked out. Go check in with the nurses and tell them what the fuck is going on with you. I want everyone seen by a nurse before we leave this fucking hospital.”
“Does that go for you too, Cap?” Cazzo asked.
Now that Cap was closer, I could see that he wasn’t too steady on his feet anymore and the amount of blood that still leaked from the hole in his shoulder said that he should be in a fucking hospital bed right now. As if on cue, his eyes fluttered and he started to tilt. I grabbed onto his arm right before he started to go down and Cazzo caught him from the front, holding him up so he didn’t crash to the floor.
“Nurse!” Chris yelled. “We need a stretcher over here.”
A few minutes later, Cap was plopped none too gently on the stretcher and was being wheeled off, but before the last nurse could walk away, Cazzo snagged her by the arm. “That’s not all. We have one more patient refusing to be seen.”
Chris hauled Sinner out of the chair and pushed him forward.
“What’s wrong with this one?” the nurse asked.
“Bullet wound to the leg,” Cazzo informed her. “But watch him, he’s a sweet talker.”
“One of those, huh?” The nurse smiled and waved over another woman. “I have just the nurse for you. Winnie loves the bad boys, really knows how to handle them, if you know what I mean.”
A mean looking older nurse walked over, smiling sadistically at Sinner. “What do you have for me?”
“Nothing!” Sinner insisted, panicking at the sight of the mean woman. “It’s a scratch. I’m fine.”
An orderly brought over a wheelchair and shook his head with a smile as he walked away.
“Relax, sir.” Chris pushed him into the chair and grinned, as the nurse leaned in and whispered. “It’s not like I’m going to give you a colonoscopy.” She turned to wheel him away, but then turned back to us with a grin. “Yet.” She laughed maniacally as she wheeled him off, all the while Sinner tried to escape the wheelchair.
“Do you need to be seen?” Cazzo asked me. “You’re limping pretty bad.”
“No, I just tweaked my leg. It’s just a muscle strain.”
“You’re sure?”
“Positive. How are Ice and Hunter?”
Cazzo looked over to where Lindsey and Lucy were sitting, waiting to hear anything about their husbands and leaned in close to whisper. “Hunter was barely alive when he was brought in. Rocco said he was shot in the neck, but there was no exit wound. He was taken into surgery immediately, but we haven’t heard anything yet.”
“Shit,” I said, scrubbing my hand over my face. “Lucy was threatening Hunter with all kinds of shit on the way here. If he doesn’t survive this…”
“I know. Ice isn’t in any better condition. He was hit in the chest and…”
“Yeah, I saw. It was pretty fucking bad.”
“We just have to wait for updates. Burg was brought in with wounds to his leg. Gabe has a pretty nasty concussion from what I could tell. Alec jumped in front of Florrie and took a bullet to his side. I don’t think it hit anything major, but again, we have to wait and see. Rocco,” Cazzo scoffed, “the asshole had a knife wound and didn’t tell anyone. We didn’t know he was hurt until the fucker almost passed out when we got here. The rest of us got off easy.”
“Wait, where’s Craig?”
“I thought he was with you.”
“No, I haven’t seen him since we were attacked. He came into the conference room with me, but…He was going on and on about having a bad feeling on the way to Chance’s house.”
Cazzo pulled out his phone and dialed, his eyes searching the room as he waited. “No answer.” He dialed again. “Becky, I need anything you have on a location for Craig. Can you pull up the footage from the conference room? Okay, let us know.” He pocketed his phone, swearing under his breath. “She’s going to look, but she said that t
here wasn’t very much before the cameras went offline.”
We split up and went around the room asking the last time anyone had seen Craig. Nobody had seen him, everyone thinking they had seen him leaving with someone else. The hospital hadn’t admitted him, at least not under his name, and there was no record of a John Doe being admitted either.
“Fuck, I hope to God we didn’t leave him in the office to burn.”
Bile churned in my stomach as I tried to remember where everyone was when I looked back before leaving the building. I just couldn’t remember seeing anyone but our enemies lying on the ground. But that didn’t mean he wasn’t somewhere else I hadn’t seen.
“The chances of him being left behind in the building are miniscule. None of us would have walked past him if he was injured. One of us would have grabbed him. He’s gotta be somewhere else.”
“But how the hell do we find him?”
“We wait and see what Becky says. Maybe he went home or…”
“Ran to the grocery store for some beer?” I said sarcastically.
Cazzo was under a lot of pressure at the moment and I didn’t need to be laying my shit on him right now. It was bad enough that we had so many injured, but then Cap was down for the count and that just made it feel like we were missing a limb.
“So, what’s the plan now?” I asked.
“We need someone posted outside everyone’s rooms. We can’t afford to take any chances right now.”
We gathered everyone up and got our orders from Cazzo. “Alright, I want someone posted outside every room our men are in. Derek, you’ve got Sinner. Lola, you’ll take Hunter when he gets out of surgery, but until then, cover Rocco. Chris, you’re outside Ice’s room when he gets out of surgery. Jackson, you’re outside Gabe’s room. Knight, you stay out here with the girls. Jules, you’re on Burg. Florrie, if you’re up to it, you’re outside Alec’s room.”
“I still have one good arm. That’s all I need.” Florrie was so badass.
“What about Chance and Craig?” Derek asked. “What’s the plan?”
“We’ll wait for Cap to wake up for that. We just don’t have any manpower right now. Becky’s working on it and she’ll call us if she finds anything. Until then, we take care of our own. Cash is on his way, but he’s not gonna be here for at least a day. Our best bet is to lay low until we can figure out our next move.”
Jackson Page 5