“Oh, cheer up. It’s not that bad.” Ryan smiled.
“You’ve been drinking; I’m concentrating on not tripping over your two left feet.”
“I’ll catch you,” he said, too close to my face.
“Great, then we’d both fall.” I grinned.
Ryan hugged me to him. “I don’t mind falling to catch you.”
I relaxed my chin on Ryan’s shoulder until the song ended. He seemed to want to keep dancing, but the next song was upbeat. He hesitated and then let me go, leading me back to the table by my hand.
We tabbed out after last call, and Lisa and Carrie decided to take a cab to someone’s apartment for an after party. Beth decided to ride with Chad again, and my heart leapt for her when I saw him lead her by the hand to his Jeep.
We quickly crossed against the light to the parking lot, and Kim and Ryan giggled while I fumbled for my keys.
I cursed as my keys tumbled to the ground into a pot hole. I reached down to get them, but a dirty hand beat me there. Kim and Ryan were silent as I slowly stood to face the raggedy man in front of me.
“Thank you,” I said, holding my hand out for my keys. I noticed there were three other men with him, emerging from the shadows of the alley.
“You’re welcome,” he rasped. He had an unkempt brown beard, and his black eyes were abnormally deep-set. Upon first glance, he appeared homeless, but his fingernails were too clean and his face wasn’t nearly worn enough. Even growing up on the East Side, I had seen my share of the destitute on the docks with my father.
“I don’t suppose you could spare some change for my trouble?”
“Er, sure,” I said, looking at Kim and Ryan before I dug into my wallet. I handed him a ten-dollar bill, and he glanced over to my BMW.
“I’m sure the key to this car is worth more than that,” he insisted.
I reached into my wallet and handed him a twenty. “There. Please give me my keys,” I said, holding out my hand.
He stared at me for a long moment, prompting Ryan to walk over to us. “She gave you some money. Give her back her keys.”
The man looked Ryan over and then peered back at me. “I don’t think that’s quite enough.”
My eyes narrowed. “How much do you want?”
“How much do you have in your wallet?”
“What?”
“And I’d like that pretty green ring on your finger, too, baby doll.” He nodded.
“You’re not getting her ring,” Ryan said, stepping in between us.
“Benson?” the bearded man called behind him. One of the men behind him nodded and signaled the others to move forward.
“Ryan,” I whispered as he sidestepped to hide me behind him.
“Aw, look, Graham. She’s got a little bodyguard.”
“Shut up, Stu,” the bearded man growled. “Give me the ring and the money and you can go,” he said, spitting on the ground.
“I don’t think so, Graham.” Ryan shifted as he assessed the other men.
“Ryan,” I warned and then looked at the ring leader. “Listen, this is everything I have on me,” I said, shoving at him several large bills and more fives and ones. “This is everything in my wallet. Take it.”
“And the ring,” Graham said in an obstinate tone.
I looked at Kim’s horrified expression and then back at the thief. “I-I can’t give you my ring. My father gave it to me, and he passed away recently.”
“That’s a very sad story,” he mocked. “Give me the ring.”
I hid my shaking hand behind me and looked around for someone, anyone, who could help. “I won’t.” I swallowed. “I’m sorry.”
Graham glanced away to follow my line of sight, and Ryan took the opportunity to attack.
Kim ran around the car. “NO!”
A scuffle ensued with the other three jumping on Ryan. They were in a huddle, punching and kicking Ryan mercilessly.
I took a step toward the cluster. “STOP IT!”
Ryan let out a muffled cry and stopped fighting. My hands flew to my mouth as I saw that Stu held a knife dripping with blood.
“STOP IT, PLEASE!” I said.
The men were chuckling to each other; the brutality had ended with one last kick to Ryan’s ribs. I stared in horror as he lay broken on the wet pavement. Just as he attempted to pull himself up on all fours, Stu used his boot to press Ryan’s cheek back into the pavement.
“Agh!” Ryan groaned.
“I didn’t tell you to get up yet, did I?” Stu said.
The attention turned to my hand. I balled it into a fist. I wouldn’t give up my father’s ring. Graham seemed to notice my decision, and they all took a step forward, preparing to take it from me. Four sets of malevolent eyes shifted in unison as a familiar voice growled from behind me.
“I think it’s time you gentlemen moved on.”
Jared strolled past me, and the air escaped from my lungs with overwhelming relief.
“Jared,” I said.
He shot me a reassuring smile. “It’s okay, sweetheart. You don’t have to give them your ring.”
“The hell she doesn’t. You want some of what this boy got?” Stu warned.
Graham eyed Jared suspiciously. “You’re Ryel’s boy, aren’t you?”
My blood ran cold as I looked down at Ryan’s limp body. He was still breathing, but in small, shallow gasps. I looked at Jared, terrified of what would happen to him.
“Gentlemen, you can either leave now with the money the lady has offered, or you can stay without further use of your arms and legs. It’s your choice. Either way, the ring won’t be leaving her finger tonight.” Jared’s voice began polite, but as his offer ended it became low and frightening.
Graham chuckled as he lowered his head. Once his laughter ended, his eyes darted up, peering at Jared from under his brow. “Then I guess we’ll just have to cut her hand off.”
I froze.
Jared turned to me, his eyes steely blue, and then he looked back at the men as he took a step towards them.
“See?” Jared sighed. “Now you’re just pissing me off.”
“I’m sick of this,” Benson said.
“Benson, wait!” Graham ordered.
Two of the men rushed Jared, and just as a scream grew in my throat, I saw Jared pull one of them off his back and throw him across the lot—an incredible distance, at least thirty yards—against the stone wall of the alley. The man’s body flew into some trashcans with a loud crash. Benson flew back after Jared punched him in the face, and I recoiled when blood exploded from his nose. Stu ran at Jared with his knife, but Jared lithely dodged out of the way and caught the man’s arm as he jabbed the knife at him. Jared pulled Stu’s arm to the side and quickly rammed his fist into his elbow from behind, hyper extending it until it snapped. Jared punched him again, this time in the face, and the man fell to the ground.
Graham attempted to turn and run, but with amazing speed, Jared reached out and grabbed his overcoat, stopping him in his tracks. The man whirled around and pushed Jared back against my car.
My hands flew up to my mouth.
Jared quickly spun to elbow Graham in the side of his face. The bearded man plummeted to the ground, the blow causing him to thrash about in stifled groans.
When I gawked down at him, I noticed that his jaw appeared askew. He held it against his face with his hands and moaned in agony.
Jared pulled my car keys from the ground beside him and noticed a worn, black wallet next to them. He picked it up, and it unfolded automatically to reveal a large metallic object.
“Agh. This is not good,” Jared said, rubbing his forehead.
“What? What is that? Is that his?” I tried to get a better look as Jared stuffed it into his jacket pocket.
Breathing heavily, Jared took a few steps closer to me. “Are you okay?”
“Am I? Are you okay?”
Jared nodded, but I could see blood oozing from a small cut on his cheek bone, just below his eye.
Jared wiped the cut and glanced down at the blood smeared across the back of his hand. “It’s not bad. I have to get you out of here before the police show up.”
“Ryan’s going to need a doctor,” I said, rushing down to Ryan’s side. He was still breathing, but he’d been beaten badly.
“Ryan? Can you hear me?” I asked, but he didn’t respond.
Jared nodded and then effortlessly lifted Ryan into his arms to put him in the back seat of my car. Kim ran around to jump into the back and covered him with her coat.
“He doesn’t look good, Nigh,” Kim said, cradling him in her arms.
Jared opened the passenger side door. “Get in, Nina, I’ll drive.”
We flew through the darkness, making every red light a blurry afterthought. I wrapped my arms around my chest, finding it hard to breathe.
Jared rested his hand on my forearm. “Are you hanging in there?”
“I’m just worried about Ryan,” I whispered, peeking back momentarily at my friend. Jared’s hand gripped tighter.
“Everything’s going to be okay, Nina. Ryan’s going to pull through.”
“You shouldn’t have . . . You could have been killed, Jared.”
Jared raised an eyebrow, looking at me as if I were overreacting.
“It was necessary.” His hand left my arm and gripped the steering wheel. “They’re lucky I spared them their lives after he . . .” He paused, seeing my expression. “You don’t need to worry. I won’t let anyone hurt you. Least of all me.”
When the scowl didn’t leave my face, he squirmed in his seat. “Is something wrong?”
“Nothing is wrong with me, Jared. You’re bleeding and Ryan is . . .” I turned around, “Ryan? Can you hear me?” I touched his battered face gently with my fingertips.
I could see Jared in my peripheral vision; his entire body tensed as if I were touching a live grenade.
“We need to get to the hospital!” Kim begged, holding her fingers to his wrist.
“Hang on, Ryan. We’re almost there,” I said, wincing when he did.
I had to turn back around to wipe my tears; I didn’t want him to see me cry. Jared tucked my hair behind my ear, and with his warm thumb wiped the moisture away. I didn’t notice that I was turning my ring mindlessly around my finger until Jared gently squeezed my hand.
“You don’t have to do that. It’s going to be okay, I promise.”
Ryan was whisked away to surgery, and Kim, Jared, and I were directed to the ICU waiting room. Jared sat beside me, brushing my bangs back from my eyes.
Kim sat on the adjacent couch, her knees shaking up and down. She bit her nails, staring straight ahead. “I called Beth half an hour ago! When are they going to get here?”
I couldn’t look at her; Ryan’s blood was smeared on her shirt and jacket.
Beth, Josh, and Chad filed into the waiting room, wide-eyed and breathless. Beth crashed into me, hugging me until I thought my ribs would break.
“Oh my God, Nina! Are you okay? Is Kim okay?”
“We’re okay,” I whispered.
Beth put her hands to her mouth when she noticed the blood on Kim’s clothing and shook her head. “Ryan?”
“He’s still in surgery,” Kim said. “He has some broken ribs, and they think the knife may have punctured his spleen. They’ll remove it if they can’t get the bleeding stopped.”
My eyes welled up with tears.
“Whoa,” Josh sighed, rubbing his forehead in disbelief.
Beth hugged me as we both cried. She walked over to Kim and sat down. When Kim only offered a weak smile, Beth pulled her into her arms.
Jared put his arm around me and led me back to the couch. Kim rehashed the account to the others until Josh interrupted.
“Why didn’t you just give him the damn ring, Nina?” he asked in an accusatory tone.
“This isn’t Nina’s fault.” Jared grimaced, squeezing me closer to his side.
“Her father gave her that ring, Josh,” Beth added.
“It’s just a ring,” he murmured.
Jared looked into my eyes with an understanding expression; he didn’t want me to feel worse than I already did. I didn’t expect anyone to understand my attachment to the ring any more than I expected them to understand my relationship with my father.
“How did you get away?” Beth asked.
I felt Jared shift uncomfortably beside me when Kim spoke, “Jared took all four of them on. He was amazing. Apparently, he taught his little sister everything she knows.”
All eyes darted to Jared, who leaned forward and clasped his hands together. “I’m in the security business.”
“Where? In Iraq?” Josh sneered.
“Nah,” Jared said, downplaying Kim’s explanation.
I knew better. I had just glimpsed into a fraction of Jared’s secret.
I jerked against Jared’s shoulder when he whispered that Ryan was being wheeled into Intensive Care from recovery. “It’s okay, you’re safe,” he whispered, pressing his lips to the top of my hair.
“Oh,” I said, wiping my eyes. “I must have dozed off for a second.”
“More like an hour,” Kim said with heavy eyes.
Jared squeezed me to him. “You didn’t miss anything; you needed to rest.”
“What time is it?” I yawned.
“Seven thirty,” Beth said, looking as exhausted as I felt.
The nurses pushed the stretcher down the hall with a barely coherent Ryan attached to monitors and tubes. I ran into the hallway and grabbed his hand, walking with them.
“I’m so sorry.” My voice broke before I could attempt a braver tone.
Ryan mumbled something inaudible, and I felt my face compress. “It’s okay. You don’t have to talk.” I choked at how familiar those words sounded. “We’ll be right down the hall, okay?” I kissed his hand, and he smiled, reaching his shaky fingers to brush my cheek with the back of his fingertips. I held his hand to my face for a moment, kissed it, then let go as they passed through the double doors.
The doors shut in my face, and I brought my hand to my mouth to stifle the cries. Beth came up behind me, and Kim joined us, followed by Josh and Chad. We all huddled in the middle of the hall as we hugged and cried.
I had been nestled in Jared’s warm arms for twenty minutes when a nurse came out.
“He’s resting now. If you would like to freshen up and come back later, he may be ready for visitors then.”
“But how is he?” I asked.
“It’s still early, but he’s young and healthy. I’d say he’s going to recover quite nicely.” She smiled.
We shared a collective sigh as she wheeled around and disappeared behind the double doors.
“I’m going to head home. Call me when he wakes up,” Chad said.
“Can I catch a ride with you?” Kim asked. With that, Beth, Kim, Chad, and Josh all stood up.
“You’re staying?” Beth asked.
I nodded and stood up to hug her.
“I’ll stay with her,” Jared said.
Beth smiled through her fatigue before Chad led her out by the hand.
“You’re exhausted,” Jared said. “I should take you home.”
I shook my head. “I can’t leave him here alone. I almost got him killed.”
Jared’s faced twisted when he spoke. “He almost got himself killed.”
“He tried to keep them from attacking me!” I said, offended.
“Fat lot of good it did him,” Jared said, rolling his eyes.
“I know, Jared. If you hadn’t shown up, Ryan would have bled out, and I would have been left-handed for the rest of my life, however brief.”
Anger played out across his face and he stood up, stopping just inches from me. “It’s not funny, Nina. You were in serious danger. Ryan should have diffused the situation instead of escalating it. He watches too much television. It’s the ones who try to impress the girls who end up . . .�
�
“He didn’t do that to impress me!”
“His feelings for you clouded his judgment. He tried to be a hero, and here you are, feeling guilty.”
“You’re jealous?” I said, incredulous.
Jared’s rigid posture in the car replayed in my head. I was too worried to think about it at the time, but it made sense. He had mistaken my actions for intimacy. He thought Ryan and I were more than friends.
Jared rolled his eyes. “If I were jealous, it wouldn’t be for that. I’m used to seeing you with someone else. It’s just a matter of enduring it now.”
My eyes narrowed in suspicion. “What do you mean you’re used to it?”
Jared didn’t answer right away. He heaved an exasperated sigh and his jaws tensed.
“I just meant from before. I’ve had to see you with him before.”
“With Ryan?”
“Yes. At the pub, remember?” Jared eyes wandered everywhere but into mine.
“I remember,” I said, still unconvinced.
He took my hand and worry shadowed his face. “I’m glad you’re okay. For a moment, I thought I wouldn’t get there in time.”
“Was your judgment clouded?” I said, still incensed that he had snubbed Ryan’s bravery.
“Something like that,” he glowered, looking away from me.
“You’re not going to tell me the truth, are you?” I pulled my hand from his and crossed my arms.
Jared’s head snapped back, and his eyes glared into mine. “And what truth would that be?”
“You know what I’m talking about. You took down four men—on your own—as if they were little girls. The incomparable sense of timing you seem to have and the knowing where I am all the time . . .”
“I don’t know where you are all the time, and my sense of timing tonight was almost nonexistent.”
“Are you going to be honest with me or not?” I stood there for a moment, and when Jared seemed to deliberate, I walked back to the couch.
Jared sighed in resignation and then sat beside me. “I wanted to kiss you the other night. I knew that you were upset. I wanted to comfort you, and I ended up just hurting you more.” He winced. “That wasn’t my intention, Nina. I would’ve given anything to lean into that kiss. It’s just complicated.”
The Providence Trilogy Bundle: Providence; Requiem; Eden Page 7