CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
Axe
“Son,” Cal said,catching my attention as I went to stand.
“Yeah, prez?”
My body fell back into the chair. He put his hand on my shoulder and I knew whatever he was about to tell me wasn’t going to be good. My gut clenched and for some reason, I had to fight the urge to throw up.
“You need to go see Ethel,” he said his eyes turned sad and I hated what he was insinuating.
“No…” I breathed out in a harsh whisper.
“It don’t look good, boy. I know how you like the old bat and I’d hate for you not to get a chance to say your peace before it was too late.”
I nodded simply because I couldn’t do anything else. My whole body went numb and it felt like my heart had stopped beating for a minute.
Damn.
The last few days had been some of the best ones in my life and today had proved that good things don’t last very long. With just a flick of the wrist, the wheel could turn and everything could be turned upside down.
I took a moment to gather myself before I headed out. I wasn’t looking forward to going to the hospital, but I knew I had to.
“Hey, man,” Brand called out as I made my way to the front door.
“Yeah?” I turned to him, my head still felt like it was in a daze.
“You alright?” he asked, his face pinched tight with worry.
“Sure. I gotta get up to see Ethel. Can you call the prospect at the house and tell him to let Allison know I’ll be back in a little bit?”
“I’m going to go help Chris fix some boards on his porch, so I’m heading that way now. I’ll tell her myself and check on them.” He clapped me on the back and I appreciated that he was looking out for us.
“Thanks, brother,” I said, clapping him back.
“She, uh…” he said and his eyes looked down at the ground. I could tell he was wrestling with his emotions and so I let him have his moment even though I needed to get going. “Ethel looks really bad. And Reagan is falling apart.”
“Thanks for the heads up,” I said as I sniffed.
Fuck, I couldn’t handle this. I knew he was close to Ethel and I imagined this was as hard on him as it was for me. “I’ll send my love for you.”
He replied with a chin jerk then turned and walked out the door. I followed behind him and climbed on my bike.
The short ride gave me time to mull over everything that was going on in my head.
I should have been happy but I wouldn’t allow myself to feel that until this was all over. We were one huge step closer. We were practically standing on Savage’s doorstep, about to knock down the damn door.
I cleared my head and tried to brighten my mood as I pulled up to the hospital. I wanted to go in with a positive attitude. Ethel didn’t need anything heavy hanging around. And Reagan and Loch didn’t need to see that shit was going on. The last thing they should have been thinking about was club stuff.
“Hey, brother,” I said as I saw Loch coming down the opposite direction of the hall carrying two generic coffee cups.
He looked tired and worn out. I could only imagine how this was getting to him. He’d known Ethel his entire life. Hell, he’d lived next to her that long. She’d seen his naked ass when he was a toddler running through the sprinklers in the backyard. Yeah, I wasn’t around that long ago but she loved to tell that story. Not only was she his old lady’s grandmother, she was like family to him too.
“Shit,” he said like he had been caught off guard slightly even though his eyes had been trained in my direction. “Sorry, brother. It’s been a long few days.”
“I know, man. It’s alright.” I clapped him on the shoulder trying my best to lend some comfort. “Any change?”
We turned our attention to the small window on the door and he let out a long sigh. Reagan had her back to the us, her body blocking any view that I might have gotten of Ethel. I was scared to step inside that door, but I knew I’d have to.
“Not really. She’s breathin’ on her own, so that’s good.” His lips thinned like he was trying his best to pull himself together. “She still hasn’t woken up.”
“Come on,” I muttered as I gathered all the strength I could muster and pushed open the door, holding it open for him.
Reagan’s head turned as soon as we entered. She didn’t look any better than Loch. The dark circles under her eyes showed the strain this was putting on her.
“Hey, Axe,” she whispered like Ethel was sleeping rather than in a coma.
“Hey, Reagan.” I shuffled side to side in place and scratched the back of my neck with my hand.
“Got you a coffee.” Loch awkwardly held up the cup as if to prove his point.
Reagan turned her attention back to Ethel and grabbed her frail, bony hand. She leaned over and whispered something into Ethel’s ear and I felt like I was encroaching on a private moment. I felt like I shouldn’t even be there. What good was it going to do anyway? It wasn’t like Ethel knew I was there. Or did she somehow? I had no fucking clue. All I knew, was that I needed to see her. I needed to lend my support and let her know that she better come back to us.
“She won’t leave the room. I can’t get her to eat. And she hasn’t slept. I just…I don’t know what I can do to fix this.” Loch didn’t take his eyes off of Reagan as he spoke about her.
After a minute, Reagan shuffled over to us, her feet dragged as if they were held down by a heavy weight. Loch handed her one of the cups and they walked over to the couch in the corner of the room.
“Old bat,” I said as I took Reagan’s vacated seat. Yeah, I was taunting her a bit, hoping to shake her out of this damn shit. “Look, I don’t know what kinda game you’re playing, but your sympathy card is about to run the fuck out. Don’t you think it’s time? Besides, you’re missing all the good shit.” My voice was low but held a surprising amount of emotion, especially for me.
My hand grabbed hers. It was cold and the skin that covered it was so pale it looked translucent. I sat there for a long while just watching her chest rise and fall.
“I swear on my cut that if you’re faking this shit, you will never pinch this ass again.” A small, sad laugh escaped my lips.
I waited. Nothing. I burned a hole in her head with my eyes, willing her to blink, or cough, or squeeze my hand. Still nothing.
“I don’t…” Ethel’s voice sounded raw and barely above a whisper. I blinked, unsure if I had really heard it. Hell, my mind could have been playing tricks on me.
Then Reagan and Loch were there on the other side of the bed and I knew I wasn’t insane.
“Nan?” Reagan called out.
Ethel let out a small cough and tried to get her words out again.
“I don’t believe you for one damn minute, Axe,” she said and fuck, I laughed.
“Get the doctor,” Reagan yelled, but Loch was already pushing the call button. Then for good measure, he walked out the door, I assumed to find someone.
“Wait.” Ethel swallowed. “Did you get him? Is the girl safe?”
I looked up at Reagan, who looked just as confused as me.
“What are you talking about?” Reagan asked.
“That boy, Mercer’s son, he was the one that did this. He ran my car off the road. But first…”
She drew in a deep breath like she was struggling.
“He followed me. He was waiting in the parking lot by my car. I just…just needed some new candles…”
“Ethel, take your time, but get to the point. Someone did this?” I said and my voice held a dark edge.
“Your voice…” Her milky eyes looked up at me but I didn’t respond. “The girl…she’s the reason, isn’t she? You feel…something now.”
“Woman, not the time. When you get home, you can see for yourself.” My eyes pinned her with a serious stare.
“That good for nothing boy, I never trusted him. He was wearing a cut, but it wasn’t anything I recognized. He…he was asking about the girl.” Her eyes closed and I had a feeling that was all I was going to get out of her.
The girl?
Fuck!
She was talking about Allison.
Cut?
Everything slid into place as my brain spun with what Ethel had said.
“No,” I said my voice shaking as much as my hands.
“Go,” Reagan called as if she understood everything. “Fucking move your feet, Axe. Go!”
My sneakers squeaked on the cheap tiles as I spun and headed for the door. My shoulder clipped Loch’s as I flew out of the room.
No.
I promised I could protect her.
I vowed I would keep them safe.