Levi watched the older couple walk up to the information desk and while their backs were to him, he did something that he’d never done for anyone before. He had put his vest back on before riding over to the hospital; he slipped it off again now and folded it up over his arm so the patches weren’t showing. He glanced at the waitress and she smirked at him. He turned away from her and looked back toward the couple, who now turned to look at him and the woman next to him.

“Donna? What happened?” the older woman said as she came toward them. “They won’t tell us anything. They just said they’d let the doctor know we were here. The police officer said she’d been shot…” The woman’s voice was pressured. The man put his hand on her shoulder and looked at Levi.

“Who are you?”

Levi stood up, leaving his vest on the chair. Holding his hand out he said, “I’m Levi Stanton, a friend of Zoe’s.”

“A friend?” the man asked, as he took Levi in from head to toe.

“Vincent, don’t be rude,” the woman said. She was the one that took Levi’s hand. “I’m Zoe’s grandmother Linda and this is her grandfather. Do you know what happened to her?”

“She was taking her break out behind the diner. I was in the parking lot next to the alley, having a smoke. I heard a small scream and when I got around back, this guy had his gun pointed at her and he was telling her to give him her wallet. He turned the gun on me when he saw me and Zoe…she jumped in between us. She probably saved my life.”

Zoe’s grandfather’s face changed…just barely, almost imperceptibly, but Levi saw it. There was a flash of pride. “Who was he…the man…did Zoe know him?” her grandmother asked.

“I don’t think so,” Levi lied. “I think he just saw her back there alone and he was looking for some fast cash.”

Donna jumped in then and said, “Gilbert, our cook, spoke to the owner a few weeks back about putting a fence around the break area and installing a light. It’s not a good neighborhood to begin with.”

“Mr. and Mrs. Bennett?” The nurse came out of the back and Zoe’s grandparents hurried toward her. Levi sat back down and Donna said:

“Why didn’t you tell them that man was just in the diner talking to Zoe? I saw you follow him in.”

“Why didn’t you tell them?” Levi asked.

“I guess it wasn’t my place.”

Levi sighed. “I guess it wasn’t mine either.” She looked him over again, suspiciously, before turning her attention back to the magazine in her hands. Levi leaned his head back into the wall behind him. The sun was just beginning to go down and he was already exhausted. It had been a long fucking day and he hadn’t gotten a single thing accomplished. He slid his phone out of his pocket. There were three text messages from Cheney, one from Grant, and one from his mother. He read the one from his mom first:

“Levi, I’m calm now. Can we talk before you decide what to do?” Levi texted her back:

“Sure, Mom, I’ll be by in the morning. Get some rest and take care of that hand.”

His phone vibrated again before he was able to read the next text. “I love you.”

He smiled and texted back, “I love you too, Mom.”

Next, he pulled up Grant’s text. That one said, “Man, where are you? Cheney is pissed that you haven’t checked in.”

“At the hospital with a friend,” he texted to Grant. “Will call and explain later.” The texts from Cheney were just demands for him to show up at the clubhouse. Levi texted him the same thing he did Grant and then slid the phone back into his pocket, ignoring the next vibration. He found himself missing the little silver pendant. He reached up and touched the tattoo on his neck. It used to always calm him down…but today, it did nothing for him. He leaned his head back into the wall and closed his eyes. A picture of Krissy was called up into his memory and then immediately replaced by one of Zoe lying on the pavement, bleeding. He wasn’t sure he could take another loss at the moment. Zoe had to be okay. He may have exaggerated when he told her grandparents that she saved his life, but her intentions were just that and to a guy who put so much stock in loyalty, that meant a lot.

* * *

Levi was startled out of his sleep by the sound of someone clearing their throat…loudly. He pulled open his eyes to see Zoe’s grandfather staring down at him. He looked over and saw the seat next to him was empty; Donna was gone.

“Hey,” he said, wiping at his mouth to make sure he wasn’t drooling. “How is she?”

“The bullet went clean through,” the older man said. “It nicked her liver so they had to go in and repair that, but she’s stitched up now and they replaced the blood she lost so they think she’ll be just fine.”

“Can I see her?”

“She’s in recovery and then they’ll be moving her to ICU for at least a day. You won’t be able to see her until she gets moved out to the floor.”

Damn. Levi believed her grandfather when he said she was going to be fine, but he’d still feel better if he were able to see her with his own eyes. “Okay,” he said, pushing up to his feet. Zoe’s grandfather was a tall man and Levi was eye to eye with him, standing up. “Thank you.” He turned to pick up his vest, still trying to keep the patch hidden. When he straightened back up, the old man was looking at the vest in his hands.

“Before you go, I have a couple of questions.”

“Okay.”

“First of all, how do you know my granddaughter?”

“I just met her a couple of weeks ago. It’s a long story, but my father and my girlfriend died in an accident…Zoe was the first one there.”

“The girl she watched…damn…I’m sorry for your loss.”

“Thank you.” The man seemed to soften, but only for a second. His next question was even more direct and slightly accusing.

“The man who shot her, you said she didn’t know him.”

“Technically, I said that I didn’t think she knew him. I didn’t really get a chance to talk to her about it, though.”

“The police have a witness who was in the diner that says he came in and he and Zoe exchanged words. Then they say you stepped in and then out and followed him around back. So…do you want to tell me why you’re lying?”

Levi sighed. “I’m sorry. I don’t know who he is, but Zoe seemed…uncomfortable. I just wanted to make sure he wasn’t bothering her.”

“You know her history?”

“A little.”

“I have a friend in Vice who tells me that one of the dealers that works the neighborhood where she used to hang out has long, red hair. His name is Patrick…something. Did you hear anything about drugs?” Levi thought about what he heard. He assumed that the conversation was about money Zoe owed the guy, but he didn’t know that for sure. He was pretty sure she wasn’t buying drugs from him. He was threatening her, and her family. He just didn’t know how much he was supposed to say to her grandfather.

“No, sir, nothing like that. I heard him telling her to give him the money and that was it. He sounded threatening, so I interrupted.”

Zoe’s grandfather looked like he was trying to decide whether to believe Levi or not. Levi waited and finally he said, “Okay, thanks for your help.”

“No problem. I’m glad she’s going to be okay. I’ll be back to see her when they’ll let me.” Levi started to walk away and the older man said:

“What do you want with her?”

Levi stopped and turned around. That was a question he didn’t really know the answer to himself, but for some reason, it annoyed him that her grandfather would ask. It wasn’t because he sounded protective…it was because he didn’t. It was almost like he couldn’t imagine why anyone would want her, and that made Levi’s heart hurt.

“I like her,” he said, honestly. “I want her to know that she has friends…people who care about her. You have a good night, sir.” As he walked away this time, he put on his vest. He knew it was childish, like a “screw you” to the old man…but screw him.

* * *

“What the hell is going on with you?”

Levi was sitting in front of Cheney and Jackie D. He had spent a restless night, worrying about Zoe and trying to figure out what his next move would be. He knew that he needed to talk to Hannah Carter before he did anything else, but that meant pretending things were okay with Cheney, and that was going to be hard.

“I’m sorry. I should have called you yesterday. It’s just been rough, you know? I’m still dealing with Dad and Krissy’s deaths. I’m having a hard time getting back to business as usual.”

Cheney sighed and said, “Look, I’m not a heartless man. I feel for you. Hell, you know how I felt about your old man.” Levi forced himself not to roll his eyes. “I know how crazy you were about your old lady…but this is business, man, and you know as well as anyone around here that business comes first. How did things go in Texas?”

“Good,” Levi lied. “It all went smoothly.”

“Great. We got a nice chunk of cash from the Skulls and I wouldn’t mind collaborating with them again in the future.” If he only knew that Levi planned to “collaborate” with Dax and his crew a lot in the future, but it wouldn’t have anything to do with him. “I need you to go on a run today.”

“Where to?”

“Knoxville.”

Fuck. The word was on the tip of his tongue. Knoxville was a five-hour ride, each way. He wouldn’t get back in time to see Zoe at the hospital. He steadied himself as he said, “What’s in Knoxville?”

“There’s a mechanic’s shop just outside of the city. The mechanic that runs it was arrested last week for beating up his old lady. He’s in county jail and the old lady moved out.”

Levi waited and when Chaney didn’t go on he said, “And…?”

“And the guy’s specialty was air-conditioning repair. He’s supposedly got a whole room full of Freon. We need it for the lab.”

“So does this guy know we’re coming?”

“I told you, he’s in county lockup. He couldn’t make bail, so he’ll be there until Monday. I’m sending two prospects in two of the vans, you, Grant, and Bobby Ray.” Levi did roll his eyes then. Bobby Ray was one of Spider’s best friends and since Levi killed Spider, that whole clique had treated him like shit. It didn’t matter that Spider blew up their lab, stole their drugs, and tried to kill his own father and his ex-old lady…or most importantly of all, that it was Cheney who sent Levi after him. They were still pissed.

Levi didn’t want to go on this run, but he knew there would be no getting out of it. “I think Grant and I can handle it on our own.”

“I didn’t ask you what you thought,” Cheney said. Levi felt a ripple of anger at the way the other man was talking to him. “I want all three of you there. Bobby Ray and Grant are helping the prospects get things ready to go now. I’ve already briefed them…they weren’t late.”

Levi bit back a sarcastic reply and said, “When do we leave?” He was hoping maybe there was time to run by the hospital before they left, but Cheney dashed that hope by saying:

“As soon as the vans are ready, which should be any time now. Jackie has something for you.”

Jackie unrolled the papers in front of him. They were blueprints. One glance told Levi that they were plans for the shop they were taking the Freon from. For the next half an hour, Levi listened to Jackie tell him how to disable the security system and how to get in and out of the building. “Make sure you go over this with Grant and Billy Ray before you leave.”

“I will,” he said, growing more frustrated by the second. He stood up. “Is that it?”

“That’s it. Don’t make me have to come up with bail money. Make sure this all goes smoothly and there will be a bonus in it for you.” Levi nodded and headed for the door. Before he got there Cheney said, “Keep in touch.” Levi nodded again and kept going. As soon as he got outside, he called the hospital and asked for the ICU.

“I was wondering if I could check on a patient.”

“Are you a family member?”

“Yes, I’m her brother, Levi. I was checking to see how Zoe Bennett was doing. I’ve been out of town and haven’t had a chance to get in to see her. I’ve been trying to reach our grandparents, but they’re not answering today.”

“One moment please.” She put him on hold and he listened to the crappy music as he walked toward the shop. He was almost there when a woman’s voice came on the line.

“Levi…my grandson, I presume?”

Levi felt his face go hot. “Hi, Mrs. Bennett. I’m sorry. I just wanted to check on Zoe and they wouldn’t tell me anything if…”

“I understand, Levi. It’s fine. Zoe is awake and she’s doing very well. Would you like to speak to her?”

“Yes, I would. Thank you.”

A few seconds later, in a soft, weak voice, Zoe came on the line. “Hi, Levi.”

“Hey. How are you doing?”

“I’m good. How are you?”

He chuckled. “I’m good too. Thanks to you.”

“I’m sorry that you got caught up in that.”

“It was my fault for sticking my nose in your business. Zoe, is that guy your dealer? Your grandfather said…”

“That his friend in Vice said Patrick is a known dealer, I know. He’s right. Patrick is a dealer, and he used to be my dealer, but he’s not anymore. I haven’t used anything in months. I’m freaking out about what they gave me here in the hospital…I don’t want to be that person anymore.”

“What does he want from you?”

“It doesn’t matter, Levi. I don’t want you involved. I appreciate you trying to help yesterday, but leave it at that, okay?”

He sighed. “Yeah, okay,” he said, not meaning it. “I have to work today, but let me give you my number, in case you need anything…”

He heard her sigh. “My grandparents have been here around the clock, so I’m good. Thank you.”

He rolled his eyes. She was stubborn. “Okay, well, take care.”

“I will.” He thought she hung up and he was about to end the call when he heard her grandmother’s voice come on the line again.

“Levi?”

“Yes, ma’am?”

“She’ll be moved to a regular room today, room 221…if you want to visit her later.” He smiled as he heard Zoe’s loudly whispered “Nana!” in the background.

“Great, thank you. Mrs. Bennett, can I leave my number, in case she needs anything?”

“Of course you can, dear.” Levi heard Zoe sigh loudly in the background as he gave her grandmother his number and she repeated it back to him. He was smiling when he ended the call, and he realized as he walked into the shop that just knowing Zoe was going to be okay had completely changed his mood. He still didn’t understand this strange connection they had, but he was slowly starting to accept it.