Page 60 of Rescuing Mary

“Because she doesn’t back down from anyone or anything. We also talked a lot last night. She had a shit childhood, and it’s only made her stronger.”

“Yeah?” Hollywood asked.

“You don’t know?” Truck asked in surprise.

“She’s not very open,” Hollywood said. “Kassie doesn’t know a lot about her. Only pretty recent stuff.”

“Agreed,” Ghost said. “Rayne is her best friend, and even she doesn’t know a lot of details. She knows that her mom wasn’t the greatest and that she’s been on her own since she was eighteen.”

“That’s the understatement of the year,” Truck agreed. “We have that in common.”

“Come on, you guys, let’s continue on while we talk,” Beatle urged.

The six men continued their run and Truck said, “Mary mentioned that I hadn’t told her about my parents. That got me wondering if I’ve told you guys in the last three years, because I know I never said anything before that.”

“No. All we know is that they aren’t in your life,” Coach said. “I mean, we know they came to see you after you got hurt, but you made it clear when they left that talking about them was a no-go. We didn’t push.”

“Right. So you should know, I haven’t been purposely keeping them a secret from you. It’s just that I never think about them anymore, since they’re not part of my life.”

He took a glance at the others and saw they were paying attention even as they were running. So he continued, “I also have a sister.”

Ghost tripped over his feet and almost fell flat on his face. The others stared at Truck with their mouths open.

He held up a hand to forestall their questions. “I know, I know. Mary’s reaction was much the same as yours. Mercedes—Macie—is almost five years younger than me and I haven’t seen her since I left for boot camp. We used to be close, but for some reason, she never tried to contact me after I joined the Army. And yes, I wrote her, but she never wrote back.”

“And you never went home?” Coach asked.

“No.” Then he proceeded to explain about growing up as the skinny, picked-on kid and how his parents didn’t seem to care. He told them about their visit when he was in the hospital after he’d been disfigured, and what they’d said. It wasn’t easy, but it felt good to open up to his friends.

He’d gotten a second chance at life. He was more than aware that he could’ve died instead of just losing three years. He wanted these men to understand he valued their friendship, and he couldn’t think of a better way to let them know than truly opening himself up to them.

By the time they got back to the parking lot, Truck’s head felt as if there were little sledgehammers inside it, but he still felt lighter somehow.

“If you ever want help in finding Macie, if nothing else but to clear the air, you know we’re more than willing to do what we can,” Ghost told him. “I’m sure the commander would have no problem using his connections to help find her as well.”

Truck didn’t immediately reject the offer. Ever since his talk with Mary, he’d been seriously thinking about calling their friend, Tex. The man could find anyone, no matter how deeply they’d hidden themselves. But maybe he’d start with the commander first. It was a good idea. “I’ll think about it.”

Ghost nodded then held out his hand to Truck and they shook. “Rayne was right,” Ghost said.

“How so?”

“We’ve been babying you too much. I’m sorry we kept shit from you. I’m still worried about your health, but we’ll try to chill, right guys?”

Everyone agreed.

“Want to come over and meet Kassie and my Kate?” Hollywood asked.

“Fuck yeah,” Truck told his friend.

“Great. I’ll make that happen.”

“Uh…you should know that there’s a group wedding in the works,” Beatle informed Truck. “My fiancée, Casey, is his sister.” He pointed to Blade.

“Holy shit,” Truck said, his eyes wide. “That’s awesome!”

Blade beamed. “I think so.”

“Congrats, Beatle,” Truck said, slapping the other man on the shoulder.