Zaryk

by C A Jonelle

  “Zayden, please. Can we talk about this? Please.” Jessica begs.

  He whirls around to face her again. “Just fucking leave.” His voice is so angry it almost makes me flinch.

  Jessica slumps her body in defeat. She looks to me and Zayne, her eyes pleading for help. I look away. This is not something I want to get involved in. Zayden’s made up his mind and I won’t argue with him. I’d be just as furious if Lyndsay didn’t talk to me before doing that.

  “Get the fuck out!” Zayden’s voice roars through the house, making us all jump. Jessica blanches and does as he says, slamming the door.

  “I … I need to leave for a bit.” He tries to push past us.

  “Whoa, there. Have you been drinking?” I ask, my hands on his shoulders. “Zayden?”

  “No, I’m okay.” His eyes are blood shot so I don’t believe him.

  “I’ll go with you,” Zayne offers. “You shouldn’t be going out alone like this.”

  I’m not sure I want to be involved in this mess. But I want to make sure he knows I’m here.

  “Find me when you both get back, okay?” Zayne looks at me like I’ve left him with a job for the night and Zayden won’t even meet my eyes.

  I watch them walk out the door and I go back to Lyndsay. She’s talking to Deklan and Kreed about some new books that have come in at the library. Deklan looks bored to tears, but Kreed is taking it all in. He’s a bookworm like me.

  “Everything okay, Z? There’s worry brewing in those eyes of yours,” Deklan says.

  “Jess was pregnant. She had an abortion.”

  Amberlynn storms into the kitchen. She slams an empty bottle of tequila into the sink and it shatters. We all stare at her. She lets out a loud, frustrated growl and turns to us.

  “Damn her! I’m one of her best friends and she never said a word! ”

  I’ve never seen her seething this bad before.

  “Hey, calm down,” Deklan says as he rubs her arm.

  “What the fuck is wrong with her? Why would she do that? Why? Where’s Zayden?” She looks around.

  “He left with Zayne,” I answer her.

  I was going to be an uncle. The thought makes me smile. That would’ve been awesome.

  Time passes and a weird feeling hits me straight in the gut. A burst of panic rips through me and I pull my phone out of my pocket. I feel a strong urge to call Zayne. The phone goes straight to voicemail. Maybe they’re just talking and he doesn’t want to answer his phone while Zayden pours his heart out. Or he has it in silent mode. But since he’s texting the nurse, I doubt it.

  I move to the window and look outside. Zayden’s Escalade is gone and the dreadful feeling in the pit of my stomach grows.

  ******

  Lyndsay

  “You okay?” I rub Zaryk’s back. He looks pale and terrified.

  “Something doesn’t feel right. I want to go make sure they’re okay.” He turns to grab his keys and I stop him.

  “You can’t drive. You’re too spooked. Kreed!”

  He rushes over. “What’s up, sweetheart?”

  “I have to go make sure they’re okay. Have you been drinking tonight?” Zaryk asks, his voice sounding a bit shaky.

  “No, no. I’ve had one beer, that’s it. Let’s go.”

  “Call me when you find them.” I give Zaryk a quick kiss on the lips.

  He follows Kreed out the door and they drive off. I join Amberlynn back in the living room as people start to leave. Before too long, it’s only Amberlynn, Deklan, and I in the house.

  My heart’s breaking for Zayden. I’m not so sure I could have gone through with what Jessica did. I wonder what her reasoning was for doing it. Amberlynn’s still seething as she paces back and forth behind the couch. Deklan’s staring at his phone as if he’s willing it to ring.

  “Have you heard from Zaryk or Kreed yet?” I ask him, desperate to know if they’re okay.

  He shakes his head and goes back to staring at his phone. Now I’m starting to get horribly worried.

  ~ Twenty-Seven ~

  Zaryk

  “What’s that?” I narrow my eyes at the flashing lights ahead of us.

  Kreed slows down as we get closer and pulls off to the side of the road. I focus on a body sitting on the back of an ambulance.

  “Fucking shit. That’s Zayne!” I jump out of the car and Kreed follows.

  We run up to the slew of police cars and I yell to get Zayne’s attention. The paramedic motions for us to come closer. I look over and see Zayden’s car, completely beat to shit. Where’s Zayden? Where the fuck is Zayden? I swallow down the hard lump forming in my throat and begin to shake. Please god no. Don’t let him be dead.

  We reach Zayne and I look him over. Nothing. Not a scratch on him.

  “Holy shit, what the hell happened?” I bend down to get a better look at my brother. Panic is still seeping through my body. “Where’s Zayden?”

  Zayne’s lips tremble. “I fucking hate myself. What the hell was I thinking?” He pauses for a moment. He looks like he’s about to have a complete melt down. “They rushed him to the hospital right away. I was just about to head there myself. They won’t tell me if he’s dead or alive, man.”

  “What happened?” Kreed asks.

  “I over-corrected and next thing I know we’re in the field. The car went down into the deep part of the ditch and flipped, shit, I don’t know how many times. The windshield disappeared and Zayden was found God knows how many feet away. He wasn’t wearing his seat belt. Oh god, I’ll never forgive myself if he’s dead.”

  “They told you absolutely nothing?” Kreed asks.

  Zayne shakes his head.

  “Let’s get you to the ER and get you checked out, okay?” the EMT says as he marks a few things on a piece of paper attached to a clipboard.

  “I don’t need to go to the ER,” Zayne protests.

  “You need to have a doctor look you over.” The EMT has a tinge of annoyance in his voice. I wonder how many jerks like Zayne he deals with when he’s on the clock.

  “I don’t need any of that shit. I’m breathing. I can see just fine. And as you can see, I’ve not got a mark on me. I’m not fucking …”

  I cut him off. “You’re going to the ER, Zayne.”

  He glares at me. “Are you fucking kidding me?” A long, deep growl rumbles from inside him. “I’m fine. Worry about Zayden, not me.”

  “You’re my brother too, Zayne, so deal with the worry. Get your ass to the ER and we’ll see you there.” I nudge Kreed’s arm and we turn to walk back to his car.

  “I’m not going!”

  Zayne is trying to push past and the EMT’s threatening to restrain him. We hurry back and I push him back down so his butt is attached to the ambulance again. “Calm the fuck down!”

  His eyes widen and he’s breathing heavily.

  “You’re going to the fucking hospital whether you like it or not. Get that fucking stubborn ass of yours checked out and get your goddamn head looked at, because you clearly aren’t thinking straight! Stop freaking out and let them do their job. They’re concerned for your well-being. So quit being a pain in the fucking ass and get going!” I release his shoulders and straighten up.

  I nod at the paramedic and they proceed with loading him into the back of the ambulance; Zayne doesn’t look at me.

  “Let’s go.” Anger fills my voice. Zayne’s such a fucking hothead and I can already tell this is messing with his head. He’s willing to sacrifice his health for his brother and I totally get that, but dammit, he’s getting help too. As much as I want to get to the hospital to see Zayden, we wait until I know Zayne’s on his way. The moment they take off, we follow.

  ******

  “Mom and Dad are already here.” I point to the black SUV parked toward the front of the parking lot of the hospital. We park beside it and rush inside. Mom and Dad are in the lobby pacing.

  “We saw Zayne. How’s Zayden?” I hug my mom tight. I hold her back from me and look her over
. She looks so pale and fragile.

  “Zayne called us when the paramedics left with Zayden. He said to get straight here. They’re, uh, getting Zayden ready to go up to the ICU. He suffered a serious injury to his head, and he’s in a coma.” She stifles a sob.

  I can’t even speak. The words just won’t form. All I can do is pull her in for a tight hug and gently kiss the top of her head. Dad continues his pacing up and down the lobby. After what seems like an eternity, the doctor comes out and tells us they have transferred Zayden upstairs; we can go up when we’re ready and Zayne is ready for visitors.

  “I’ll go call Deklan,” Kreed says and disappears outside.

  I nod and follow my parents through the emergency room doors. Dad pulls back the curtain and Mom lunges for Zayne, wrapping her arms around him.

  “Mom, I’m fine.” He’s annoyed, pissed, you name it - he’s feeling it. He closes his eyes and swallows.

  I know what he’s about to ask so I tell him. “He’s up in ICU; in a coma.”

  His eyes fly open. “What? In a coma? Oh god, no,” he groans. “Please tell me he’s going to be okay. Please.”

  Mom rubs his arm. “We haven’t been up to see him yet, honey.”

  The curtain flies open making us all start. “Hi folks,” the doctor begins. “Well, Zayne, you’re going to be just fine. You must have had a guardian angel watching over you, you’re very lucky. We’ll get you discharged and you can go up and see your brother, okay?”

  When we reach Zayden’s room I hesitate. I swear our family is plagued by bad luck or by our atrocious behavior. Mom walks in first and she gasps at the sight of her son. The three of us follow. I feel absolutely numb when I see him lying there. He looks dead.

  The color drains from Zayne’s face and Dad grabs him before he falls over. “Have a seat, son.” He helps Zayne sit down across from Zayden and his head immediately drops into his hands. I move beside the bed and look at Zayden’s beat up face, the ventilator, the bags of different fluids, and the tubes from them going into both arms. His leg’s in a cast, and his head is bandaged to cover God knows what. I squat down and cover his hand with mine. My thoughts flit back to Zoey.

  Please don’t die, Zayden. Fight. Don’t give up.

  To be continued…

  About the Author

  C.A. Jonelle/Piper Thomas is a writer, book lover, iPad and tea addict, and lover of rock music; new or old. She resides in Ohio with her police officer husband and two beautiful daughters.

  As an introvert, she doesn’t go out much and prefers to lose herself in the words of a great novel; whether she's reading one of her favorite authors or writing her own. As a good form of therapy, writing has always been a passion of hers. She was rarely ever seen without a book nearby as she was growing up.

  Her first real piece of writing happened while she was in high school. She penned her first poem and had it published. It was then she found her love for writing and with a big push from a great friend she published her first novel in 2015. Since then she’s joined the Romance Writers of America (RWA) and plans to publish more in the future.

  When she’s not reading or writing, you can find her spending time with her family and friends, or just catching up on her favorite shows such as Bob’s Burgers, Vikings, Game of Thrones, Hell’s Kitchen, and Everybody Loves Raymond.

  Contact

  Official Website:

  www.pipercajonellewriter.com

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  Upcoming Books by

  C.A. Jonelle

  Twisted Epiphany Series

  Zaryk (Book 1) ~ Released February 28, 2015

  Zayne (Book 2)

  Kreed (Book 3)

  Zayden (Book 4)

  Deklan (Book 5)

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