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“I rather not,” I reply sourly.
“Ask him,” Nitro mutters through clenched teeth, waving his hand at Ryan.
I glance at Ryan, who is still barely speaking but has greatly improved since his arrival. The doctors discussed moving him from the ICU, but his lieutenant says it’s best for his safety if he remains on this floor until they can track down his assailant.
Ryan’s eyes watch me closely and then turn to his brother. They seem to be communicating silently with one another. The only thing I get from that is a series of sighs from Ryan and a few grunts and moans from Nitro.
“Are you two talking about me?”
“We’re not talking.”
“Oh? You mean to tell me those cave-man-style grunts and groans aren’t a form of communication?”
I glance back at Ryan, and I see the concern in his bottle-green eyes, vastly different from his twin's piercing, dark brown ones.
I walk closer to his bed and sit down beside it. I lift his hand into mine as I stare into his eyes.
“I’ve always kept it real with you about everything you asked of me when you entered the ER during my time there. I’m asking the same of you right now. Should I be afraid?”
His eyes narrow and flicker to Nitro and back to me before nodding.
It’s hard not to let my fear show, but now is a time when I don’t know who to trust or what to believe. Ryan has always been truthful with me, but shit is happening so fast that I can’t think straight.
“Ryan,” Nitro’s gruff voice sounds beside me. “We know who we’re dealing with here and their capabilities. There’s nowhere in this city or state she can run and hide from them where they won’t track her down except for with me. Yes or no?”
Ryan closes his eyes, opens them again and looks at Nitro. A slow nod.
“Oh, my God,” I whisper, dropping Ryan’s hand and pressing my hands against my forehead.
This is all a nightmare, one that I don’t have room in my life for. Violence has been my reality since I was a teen, and I’ve had to deal with it and not cower from it. I don’t think it should be any different now, except it is.
Never has someone had intentionally violent tendencies towards me.
I push out a breath and look at Ryan. “Your brother says that I should go with him, you’re saying that he’s the only one I’m safe with, but I don’t know him. I don’t know if I can trust him, Ryan. He’s everything that I’m not. His lifestyle represents everything that I abhor. Now you’re saying that I should trust him. Find safety with him?”
Ryan reaches out, grabs my hand in his and squeezes it lightly. “I...wouldn’t...” he coughs, closes his eyes, and says, “Steer...you wrong.”
Shit! I had managed to avoid this conversation when Ryan first woke up. I knew Nitro would be looking for me after he chatted with Ryan, so I traded with one of the ER nurses for a few hours until my shift ended.
There’s no way I would have this conversation now had it not been for what happened on my break earlier today. I’d gone outside to my car to listen to music and break the monotony of my day. Our new patient, a kid, had died today, and everyone had taken it hard.
I’d been walking to my car when I noticed a black Ford Explorer with tinted windows circling the parking lot. It had done it a couple of times and then parked beside mine as I drew closer to that side of the lot.
Two men stepped out dressed in all black with sunglasses. They were walking in my direction with their hands in their hoodie pockets like they were going to the hospital.
Just as we drew closer to each other, someone called my name.
“Simone!”
I turned back to find Detective Jones jogging toward me. I stopped and smiled at him.
“Hey, Detective. How can I help you?”
“Just want to thank you for all you’re doing to help with Blackwood’s care. The doctor’s saying he’ll make a full recovery. How long will it take before he’s on the job again?” Detective Jones asks.
I notice the men walking towards me veer off in a different direction as Jones, and I continue walking towards my vehicle. I glance back and notice the two men looking over their shoulders at me.
A chill runs down my spine, and my belly knots up. All of Nitro’s warnings return to me. I glance at Detective Jones, about to alert him when I think better of it.
