The sick fucker smiled at me. “Why don't you ask your mother about how I like pretty things?”
What the fuck?
Enrico, thinking he took me off guard, went for a knife from the butcher block. I pulled the trigger of my gun and shot him in his other leg, and this time it wasn't a flesh wound. Enrico hissed in pain, not wanting to show how much that must’ve hurt.
“Tell them to stand down. The only reason you’re still alive is to ensure we get the fuck out of here. If they don't back down, you’re dead,” Shane said through the rapid gunfire.
A bullet grazed Ace’s shoulder and he shouted, “Fuck this!” He took out a fucking grenade and threw it. The room seemed to explode, dust was everywhere. Men were screaming.
“Fuck,” Shane shouted. Somehow during the explosion, even with his wounded leg, Enrico managed to get away.
I looked down at Charlie. I wanted to go after Enrico. I wanted to make him pay. Shane, seeing my torment, shook his head. “Not now.”
“We don't have time! Let’s go!” Ace shouted.
I wanted to kill Enrico, but my focus needed to be on Charlie. Above everything else, I needed to keep her safe. We moved through the hole in the wall to the outside. As we did, Ace pulled out another grenade and threw it into the house. I just prayed that this explosion killed that sick fucker. Flames were everywhere. Smoke filled our lungs, but we moved quickly.
Once outside, there were far fewer men, so Shane and Ace flanked my sides taking men out as we left the burning building behind. We could hear screaming and shouting, a mixture of pain and revenge. Those men wanted us dead.
We moved through the jungle and before we knew it, we’d made it to the SUV. I climbed in the back still holding Charlie close to me. Shane and Ace got in the front, and we sped off. We zoomed through the Colombian streets, and in what felt like seconds, but was surely longer, we were at the airfield. Shane had called ahead to the pilot and within minutes of arriving, we were in the air. I wrapped Charlie in a blanket, and continued whispering that she would be okay, even though I wasn't really sure if that was the truth. She wasn't conscious and from the way her breath labored, I wondered how long we had.
“We need to get her to a hospital. I don't know if she’ll make it to the States.”
Shane went to the cockpit and spoke to the pilot. “We’ll land in Costa Rica. He knows someone. They’ll meet us as soon as we land.” I looked up to the heavens and said a silent prayer.
“ETA?” Ace asked.
“Fifty minutes,” Shane met my eyes. The look he gave me made me feel like he thought I was fighting a losing battle.
“She’s not gonna die,” I gave him a hard look, daring him to challenge me.
“I know, brother.”
“No, she’s not going to die. Are you, Charlie? You’re going to hang on.” My voice cracked and I realized I was fucking crying. “I have Gun. He’s such a good kid. You did so good with him. I promised him I’d bring you home, so don't you make me a liar to him. You hang on. You hear me? Hang on.” I was rocking her back and forth praying that I wouldn't lose her.
We landed at another airstrip in the middle of nowhere. A woman with a medical bag boarded the plane a few minutes later.
“She’s going to do what she can from here. Enrico still has reach here, and if he made it out of there and finds out we landed here, we’ll have more problems than we can deal with.” I nodded to Shane understanding.
I couldn't miss the way the woman sucked in a breath when she saw Charlie. “This woman needs a hospital. What happened to her?”
“A monster,” Ace answered for me. The lump in my throat was making it hard for me to talk.
She took a stethoscope from her bag and listened to Charlie’s heart, and then she felt her gaunt stomach. “Pulse is faint. Can you lift her, so I can hear her lungs?”
I cradled her front to me and moved the blanket revealing her back. A loud gasp escaped the doctor’s lips. “Lord have mercy,” she whispered. As I moved Charlie, she was completely limp in my arms. Her body felt lifeless. I couldn't let her die. It couldn't be too late.
“This woman is barely hanging on. In fact, I’m surprised she’s still breathing. Without a CT scan to make sure there’s no internal bleeding, I’m limited in what I can do. I’ll start an IV. She obviously needs fluids. I’ll give her antibiotics and hopefully, that will tie her over until you can get her to the States. You’ll have to change the bag, when this one is empty.”
I found my voice, “Will she make it, Doc?”
She looked at me with a small amount of pity. I hated being pitied. “If I were you, I’d pray.”
Ace led her off of the plane and ten minutes later, we were back in the air. I held Charlie close to me, rocking her back and forth. Ace and Shane remained quiet the rest of the flight. By the time we landed, Charlie’s skin looked a little better. She wasn't as pale. She was still unconscious, but the small amount of pink in her cheeks gave me a little hope.
“We can't bring her to the hospital,” Ace said as we exited the plane. I had been thinking the same thought, so I nodded.
Shane handed the pilot a large envelope. I had no doubt that everything the pilot did for us today would cost a pretty penny.
“We just pissed off a whole lotta bad guys. We bring her in, we’ll be a target.” Ace wasn’t saying anything I hadn’t already suspected.
“I think we all need to head to the mountains. Safe-house should be ready to go. I’ll make the calls and get Doc to meet us there.” Shane pulled his phone from his pocket and started calling the brothers.
He powered off his phone. “Reggie said your kid’s doing fine. He’ll pack up some things for him, and they’ll be on their way.”
My brothers helped me place Charlie in the truck that I’d left parked at the airfield. I hated to even move her from my arms, but their bikes were here and we needed to get to cover. We had just started a war and we had to be prepared.
Chapter Seventeen Gunner
“Her vitals look good. I’ll keep her on the drip for at least the next twenty-four hours, and then we’ll go from there.”
“Thanks, Doc. When do you think she’ll wake up?”
“There’s no telling, right now, exactly how much trauma she’s been through. She needs to heal right now, and the best way her body knows to do that is for her to remain asleep. Plus, her mind could be shielding her.” He rubbed his white beard while the wrinkles around his eyes softened, “If I were you, I’d talk to her as much as possible.”
I nodded and felt a little of the heaviness weighing on my chest lighten. Doc gave me hope that she was going to make it, and that’s more than I had a few hours ago. A knock on the door interrupted us, “Reggie’s here,” Austin, one of my brothers, poked his head in.
“Will you stay with her for a few minutes? I have to figure out what I’m going to tell my boy,” I asked Doc.
“You want some advice?”
Considering the whole parenting thing was brand new to me, I’d take any advice I could get, so I conveyed that to him with my eyes.
“I know she looks bad, but if I were you, I would let him see her. He’s been without her for some time now, so he’s probably already imagined the worst.”
He’d answered the question that I’d been going back and forth on. Truth was, a part of me was afraid to damage him even more, but I knew Doc was right.
“Thanks, Doc.”
I hated leaving Charlie, but my son needed me. Reggie was just grabbing a suitcase from the trunk when I approached. I didn't see Gun at first, and then I noticed him kicking dirt on the other side of the black sedan. “A Camry? Really?” I said to Reggie as I passed him.
“It’s my mom’s. I didn't really have much time to figure out how I’d get him here. I haven’t owned a cage in years.”
“Dad!” Gun rushed forward and threw his small arms around me. “You’re okay!”
I ruffled his sandy, blonde hair, “Told you I’d be back.”
“Where are we?” he asked.
“He was asleep most of the car ride. That kid of yours could sleep through anything. I even cranked up some metal.”
“Reg,” I gave him a ‘what the fuck’ look.
“We’re in the Allegheny Mountains in Pennsylvania. It’s a few hours east of home. These are safe houses no one knows about.” I moved my head toward the five small cabins behind me. This place was once rented out to campers, but the owners went belly up and we bought it through a shell corporation a few years ago.
“Safe houses? Why are we in danger? Is it Mom? Is she okay?”
Fuck, why did I use “safe houses”? Sometimes it was easy to forget how smart this kid was.
“We’re safe here. Follow me.” I motioned my head towards the small front steps of the cabin and sat down. Gun sat down next to me and peered up at me through his long lashes.
“A real bad guy had your momma. Me and the boys got her back.”
“She’s okay? She’s here? I need to see her.”
I put my hand on his shoulder to calm him, “Kid, she’s hurt. She’s inside and the doctors have seen her. They think she’s going to be okay, but she’s sleeping and might be asleep for a long time.”
“I need to go to her.” This kid. He was already so brave.
Doc grabbed his bag, “I’ll be in cabin four, if you need me.”
He stood up and I followed, “I want you to be prepared. It’s not good.”
He raced inside and I stepped in front of him placing my hand on top of his before he was able to turn the door handle. “Son, I’m right here. She’s going to get better, alright.” His lip trembled and I could tell he was trying to hold back tears. I opened the door and Doc had put Charlie under the blankets. The IV drip was next to the bed.
Gun spoke up, startling me, “Is she… Can I touch her?” With a shift of my head, I silently told Doc that I had this, and he left, closing the door behind him.
I grabbed Gun’s hand and sat us both on the side of the bed. He watched as I held her hand. “Mouse, Gun’s here. Want you to work on getting better and coming back to us.” I lifted her hand to my mouth and brushed my lips across her knuckles. He eyed us, and then he climbed closer to her, laid down next to her and wrapped his small arm around her waist.
He didn’t say anything, at least not for a while. He held her, and I stared at the two of them, suddenly slammed with more possessiveness than I’d felt my entire life. These two were my everything. Charlie might be broken, but I’d move heaven and hell to put her back together.
I leaned over the bed, kissed my son on his forehead and then dipped a knee into the mattress so I could kiss Charlie’s forehead.
“Don’t knock the IV, yeah? If she stirs, even a little, you come get me.”
“Where are you...”
I cut him off. “I’m not going far, just need to make sure that the bad guys don't get away with this.”
“Dad?” That word alone coming from my son’s mouth made my chest tighten every time. His chin wobbled and he barely got out, “Hurry back.”
Ace and Shane were in the living room/kitchen area of the cabin when I walked out. It was like they knew I’d need to meet with them.
“Are the last of the guys here?”
Ace gave me a head nod.
“Call church then. Need to see where everyone’s heads are. If I don’t have everyone’s support, I’ll…”
Shane cut me off, “You’ll nothing. We were there--saw what he’s capable of. There’s none of that going it alone bullshit. When will you get it through your thick skull?” He smacked me upside the back of the head. I supposed I needed it, but I glared at him anyway, to which he returned a toothy grin.
Fifteen minutes later, myself and roughly thirty other members were situated around a campfire, while huge tents wove between the cabins which were saved for families. There weren’t a ton of families, but enough that we wouldn't leave them out in the open for anything to happen to them.
“Listen up,” Shane bellowed, “Most of you have heard what went down. It went, for the most part, as planned. We got Gunner’s woman back, but not sure if we got the sick fuck.”
“Threw a few grenades at his ass,” Ace sat and sharpened a large M-9 Bayonet, the metal made a loud, scraping noise as it moved fluidly against the sharpening stone.
Shane continued, “We’re not sure if he made it out or not. I’ve already put out some calls and am waiting for confirmation from our contacts. That’s why you’re all here. I don't want to take any chances. Until we know for sure, you’re all to remain here.”
“Let’s just assume he’s alive, and start planning on what we’re going to do next,” I suggested knowing that I’d rather be prepared.
“Going to Colombia just depleted a huge chunk of our funds,” Ace added barely looking up from that damn blade.
“So, we have to be smart. He doesn't know where we are so, that’ll be in our favor.” Shane and Ace looked at me nodding their heads, agreeing as I spoke.
“Anyone hear anything about Hades lately? They’ve been awfully quiet,” Razor, one of the brothers, asked.
“Good point,” I added.
“We need to make calls, make sure every Bleeding Scar knows what’s going on. I want all eyes on this. Every contact we have needs to be looking out for signs of Enrico, and I need an ear to the ground on the Hades Runners,” Shane began barking orders.
Ace stood looking like the Marine he once was, “Need you men to think like soldiers on this one. We need to learn every in and out of these grounds. There’s no one around for miles and leading the enemy here might just work to our advantage, if we play this right.”
“All due respect, Ace, my wife and kids are here,” Porter flicked his cigarette into the fire.
“Mine too,” another brother added, “And I got a newborn.”
I put my hand up to stop them, I’m sure Ace had a plan. “My whole world is right there,” I pointed, “How do we protect them?”
“Rocket launchers are a start,” Ace laughed, but I knew he wasn't fucking kidding. I saw them. “We scout, for now. Get the lay of the land. And then, when the time is right, we take the women and kids out of here and end those motherfuckers once and for all,” Ace finished his go get ‘em speech adding more inspiring lines about loyalty and family.
By the end, the men all agreed. That was followed by the usual campfire shit, not the kumbaya shit, but the haze and blaze shit. Weed was plentiful and the booze ran freely. I didn't partake, though. No, I went inside the cabin and found my son curled up next to his mom asleep. I made sure loaded guns were within grabbing distance and then laid down on the other side of Charlie.
I was careful not to move her IV as I shifted Charlie so that my arm was around her. Her neck laid against my bicep and my other arm was around her waist. It laid on top of my son’s. He blinked up at me and momentarily stirred.
“She didn't open her eyes,” he whispered.
I didn't imagine she would. “She’s not ready yet. It’ll happen. In the meantime, get some rest. Yeah?”
He shifted so he was under the blankets, “You won't leave, will you?”
“I’ll be right here,” I squeezed his hand which had found mine again and listened as his breathing evened out. Once he was good and asleep, I talked to Charlie. I’m not even sure what I said, quite honestly. I babbled until I could no longer keep my eyes open. The last thing I remembered was reassuring her that she was safe, and begging her to come back to me.
***
When I woke up, the room was just beginning to glow from the early morning sun. I gripped the sheet around Charlie and held her closer to me. I closed my eyes, not wanting to face the horrors of what had happened to her, and thought about the two of us laying underneath the stars. I thought of how quiet she’d been with everyone else, but how she seemed to speak to me with no hesitation. I thought about how pretty I always thought she was, even when I was only a boy. I thought about how sh
e thought that I didn't notice her, even when I did. She was always so strong. “Be strong for me, Mouse,” I said in a hushed whisper as I opened my eyes to face another day.
I noticed the empty IV bag and hurriedly sat up to change it. That’s when I saw the door was slightly cracked and that Gun wasn't here. I jumped up, angry at myself for sleeping so soundly. I moved out of the bedroom and rushed to the common area about to call his name. There he sat at a small table with a box of Lucky Charms in front of him. Reggie sat across from him and he lifted his blue plastic bowl towards me, “Want some?”
I let out a breath, I was so nervous. “Nah, gonna hit the head,” I said and moved to the bathroom to relieve myself.
When I came out, Doc was there pouring himself a cup of coffee. “I was about to change her drip,” I told him.
“I can do it. I need to change her dressings anyways.” He took a sip of the steaming hot liquid and picked up his black medicine bag.
“I’ll help. Reggie, you good keeping an eye on Gun?”
“No problem. I was just telling Gun, that I’d beat him at Grand Turbo Three.”
“What! You haven't beat me yet. You’re on!”
I couldn't help but smirk, but then Doc placed his hand on top of mine. “You might want to sit this out. You weren’t here when I dressed them. It ain’t good, Brother.”
I looked at him pointedly, “That woman in there, she went through that. She felt that. I won’t shy away because it’ll hurt. What kind of man do you take me for? Now, you going to stare at me all day, or can we take care of Charlie?
He nodded his head, resigned to the fact that nothing he could say would stop me. She was still out of it as Doc took her vitals, “She’s a fighter, alright. Heartbeat is stronger today.” He rolled her onto her side so that her back was to us and moved the blanket exposing her. I hadn’t realized last night that she was basically wrapped in sheets. There was a sheet around her front, even covering her shoulders and then there was another on her back. He moved the sheet on her back, and ordered, “Well if you’re here, you might as well be useful. Get me some clean water and a trash can.”
Cut Wide Open (A Bleeding Scars MC Book 1) Page 12