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She nodded her blond head against my chest. “He’s too calm. Too dangerous like this. They’re going to go to New York and my brother is going to die and he doesn’t even care.”
I didn’t know what to say to help her right then so I just held on to her. I felt her tears soak through my shirt but didn’t mind. I hadn’t been this close to the woman who had always been the sister of my heart in far too many months. I couldn’t even remember when she’d last let me hug her. Not even when Bash had left her had she let me comfort her. She’d gone to Spider instead.
That was the trouble when you and your best friend were complete opposites in most things. Raven had always kept her emotions tightly in check whereas I was the kind who wore mine on my sleeve for the majority of my life. Holding her now was a bittersweet moment for me.
After only a few minutes, she lifted her head and wiped at her eyes with the back of her hand. “Will you go with them, Flick? Please? I need someone I trust looking after my brothers and I can’t go myself because of Max. And fucking Bash has put me on house arrest.” She shook her head and glared at the kitchen door as if she could see her husband through the thick wood.
“Why New York?” I was lost. Obviously they had learned something but I had no idea what it was. If it was the senator, wouldn’t they just go to his house or even Washington, DC? Senators worked in DC, right?
Raven blew out a tired sigh and dived into telling me what had happened that morning. How Hawk had been shot and the Italians had snatched Gracie. The bombs had been decoys and the real target had been poor Gracie. She even told me about Gracie’s father’s will and the money she was supposed to inherit if she followed
the stipulations—to marry someone her grandfather and uncle approved of. Yeah, I was pretty sure Hawk was losing his mind thinking about that right then.
“When Bash carried me out of the hospital, Doc Robertson was just walking in the door. Hawk is going to release himself from the hospital even though he just got out of surgery to repair the torn mess of his shoulder and back. How is he going to shoot when his shoulder is like that, Flick? How?” Her chin trembled and she closed her eyes before another tear dared to fall.
“I don’t know, honey.”
“Will you go?” Raven’s voice was pleading and I knew that it was costing her to do so.
“Yes,” I assured her without giving it another thought. I would do anything for her, but I was going for myself just as much. Hawk and I might not be the best of friends any longer, but I still cared about his stubborn ass.
Raven threw her arms around my neck, hugging me tight. “Thank you,” she whispered.
I held on to her for another moment before pulling away and smiling at her. “Since you scared off the sheep, I guess you get to help me finish up lunch.”
“Great,” she muttered but went to the sink to wash her hands.
By the time we had the sandwiches finished along with some fresh fruit salad and a French onion dip for the chips, Uncle Jack and his men had arrived. I carried in the heavy tray of sandwiches and noticed the old man up in Bash’s office with a few of the other brothers. Raven set her own platter down and followed my gaze.
“Is it true? Is Uncle Jack really Gracie’s grandfather?”
Raven nodded. “Yep.”
“Huh. Didn’t see that one coming.” I stepped away from the table just as the brothers started lining up to make themselves a plate.
Raven let out a small laugh. “Yeah, well there are even bigger surprises if that blows your mind.”
My brows lifted. “For real? Like what?”
“Nope. I can’t tell. Hawk would kill me.” She grinned and snatched a sandwich before the first brother could reach them. “But keep your ears open. I’m pretty sure that shit is going to hit the fan before this week is over.”
~*~
Jet got to the clubhouse at just after one that afternoon. He wasn’t alone. Doc Robertson had driven Hawk home and had a huge list of dos and don’ts that he expected Hawk to follow.
Yeah, right. Like that would happen.
He handed over two bottles of medicine to Raven, who just as quickly gave them to me and pushed me in front of the doctor to listen to the signs I needed to watch out for in case Hawk got sick. “If he starts showing any signs of fever, get him to a damn hospital, Flick. Or if his wounds start bleeding make sure they get stitched up again. The idiot should still be in the hospital getting more blood transfusions but he refused. Make sure he eats so that his body will replace the blood he lost.”
“I’ll do my best, Doc.”
“I know he probably won’t take the pain meds, but they’re there just in case. Spike his drink or something if he gets out of hand. The antibiotics are a must, though. The risk of infection is bigger than he could imagine. Make sure he takes all of them.” He glanced at his patient and grimaced. “The nurses couldn’t get him to take the first dose and he was already walking out of the hospital before they could sneak and give him a shot of it through his IV. The surgeon gave him some during the surgery to repair the torn muscles but that isn’t enough. Do what you have to do to get them in his system.”
I nodded. “Will do.”
He gave me a small smile. “Good luck, Flick. You’re going to need it.”
“Yeah. I’m aware of that much.”
