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“Who are you?”
“Name’s Patriot.” At my look of confusion, he managed a small smile. “I’m a Marine. Was a medic while I was in. Been a few years now.” He shrugged. “Figured I was the best one to help take care of you.”
“Where am I?”
“The Crossroads, our compound.” He picked up a leather vest and showed me the emblem on the back. “I’m a Royal Bastard. We’re an MC.”
“Motorcycles?”
“That’s right, sunshine.” He sat down on the bed and gestured to my arm. “Mind if I take a look? Heard you had a bad burn.”
The reminder made my whole body stiffen. I pulled away from him and tugged one of the blankets around my body tighter. “Where’s Alexi?”
“Who?”
Suddenly frightened and panicked, I contemplated running for the door. “The Russian who hurt me.”
Patriot’s lip lifted in a snarl. “So that’s his name.”
I nodded. “He’s going to kill me, for good this time.”
“No way.” Patriot pointed to the door. “I’ll take you down to the basement if you want but it’s not gonna be pretty. My pres and Rael are kicking his ass. He’ll wish he never met you.”
“Rael? He’s here?” That was the biker who saved my life. I remembered now.
“Yep. He was hoping you would trust me.”
Our eyes met and for a few seconds I didn’t think I could. My arm was aching though, and I really needed it cleaned. The bandage was badly soiled. Slipping my arm out, I kept the blanket high up under my chin as he scooted closer.
“Is this alright? I have to be able to touch you and look at the wound. I’ll try not to make you uncomfortable and invade your space.”
He waited for my answer before moving. That simple act of asking for permission was more than I could handle. It had been far too long since anyone cared about what I wanted. Tears filled my eyes and slipped down my cheeks as I nodded.
“Oh, sunshine. I’m sorry you were abused.” His voice held a note of sincerity that I couldn’t ignore. “I don’t want to hurt you any further, so you tell me if anything I do makes you feel uncomfortable or bothers you, okay?”
Swallowing hard, it took a few seconds to find my voice. “Patriot?”
“Yeah?”
“Thank you,” I answered softly, sniffling. “No one has been that kind to me in a long time.”
“Think nothing of it.”
Patriot pulled the bandage off and his jaw closed with a snap, a vein pulsing low in his cheek as he worked to clean the wound and care for the damaged skin. Every simple touc
h was painful. I kept wincing, jerking whenever he accidentally brushed a finger over the exposed area. The tears kept falling and I couldn’t hold them back, especially when I saw the extent of the damage to my skin.
“I’ll never be the same again,” I whispered, blubbering through my tears. “He made sure of that. I’ll have to look at that wound the rest of my life and remember what Alexi did to me.”
Patriot placed a new bandage over the top and taped it in place before dropping his supplies on a nearby table. He stood and disinfected his hands, returning with a warm washcloth. With great care, he wiped the tears and streaks of dirt from my face.
“Listen to me, sunshine.”
I lifted my chin, searching his dark eyes.
“That Russian fucker tried to take your life. He didn’t succeed. You fought. You won,” he emphasized, “because that son of a bitch will die a gruesome and painful death, but you will wake up every morning with the scars to prove that you’re incredibly strong and brave. Yeah, you’re not ever gonna be exactly the same. So? Every badass has a few scars. They’re a sign of character.”
Patriot lifted his shirt and turned around, showing a full view of his back. “You see that?”
