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“Skid.” Addison rushes toward me when I step into the living room where she’s comforting Charlie.
“You okay?” I pull back from her so I can check her over, there’s blood on her face and her left eye’s really starting to swell. That fucker is gonna pay.
“We’re not hurt. He… He…”
“Sssshhh. It’s okay now, we got him. We got ‘em all, Addison.” I hold her and Charlie tight to my chest and appreciate every little breath I feel ‘em make.
“Tommy?” She looks up at me hopefully, and when I slowly shake my head back at her, she bursts into tears.
Skid insists that me and Charlie get checked over at the hospital, despite me telling him we’re okay. But when he tells me that my sister’s there too, I go willingly. It takes us a while to get seen but after we both get the all-clear, Skid holds my hand and carries Charlie on his hip as we make our way to the other side of the hospital where my sister is.
“How is she?” He tips his chin at the guy who’s waiting outside the door to the private room she’s in.
“She’s still out. Doc said she could be for a while,” he informs us.
Skid hasn’t told me why they brought her here yet. Skid hasn’t said much at all. He’s still tense and I know he’s not going to ease up until he’s finished what he started with Chop.
“You should go back to the club.” I turn and face him.
“You must be crazy if you think I’m gonna leave you—” I slam my hand over his mouth so he has to hear me out.
“We’re fine.” I take his hand and place it against my chest so he can feel my heartbeat. “Feel that, I’m fine. Charlie’s fine and our baby is fine. I really need to be here with my sister and you need to be with the club.”
“Addison, I can’t…”
“She’s right.” His friend interrupts him. “You’ve been waitin’ on this a long time. The club has been waitin’ too. It’s time for Chop to get what’s coming to him. I’ll stay with ‘em, and I won’t let ‘em out of my sight. You got my word on that. But, Skid… there ain’t no one left to hurt ‘em.”
Skid nods his head as he takes in what his friend tells him. He told me that himself, but hearing it from someone else seems to make that sink into his own head.
“Go.” I nod my head encouragingly before I reach up on my toes and kiss his cheek. “You go, and you kill that fucking bastard,” I whisper in his ear so Charlie doesn’t hear me.
“Come on, let’s go take care of your aunt.” I leave Skid and his friend in the corridor so I can go see my sister.
I smile at the nurse who’s tending to her and when I step closer and get a look at her, my breath catches in my throat. Skid did warn me before we got here, he told me that I should wait. But nothing could have prepared me for what I’m seeing. I clutch Charlie’s hand, feeling guilty for allowing him to see it too.
“She’s heavily sedated, she won’t be in any pain,” the nurse assures me.
Everleigh looks unrecognizable, her face is gaunt and her body barely more than a skeleton. All her beautiful hair has been cut to just an inch.
“We had to cut it, the knots were too thick,” the nurse explains when she sees me trace my hand through it. “I washed her myself and treated the sores. She’s going to need a lot of help but she’s going to be okay.” The nurse takes my hand and smiles positively before she gets back to filling out her paperwork, and when I look over my shoulder and see Skid’s friend step through the door, I allow him to comfort me when I burst into tears.
“What happened to her?” I sob as Charlie wraps his arms tight around my waist and squeezes me like he’s trying to comfort me. I shouldn’t be crying in front of him like this, he shouldn’t even be here after all he’s been through today. But I need him close.
“Here, darlin’, take a seat.” Skid’s friend drags one of the more comfortable chairs in the room closer to the bed and encourages me to take it. I pull Charlie onto my lap and hold him tight in one arm while I reach out my other hand to take hers.
“I don’t know much, just that she was being kept in a basement. Clearly, she ain’t been fed properly for a while. She’s got signs of beatings and…” He pauses when he thinks he’s said too much.
“Just say it.” I shake my head and close my eyes.
“They kept her like a dog.” His words bring more tears to my eyes.
“Doc says she’s gonna be out for a while.” He looks across to the nurse who’s just about to make her way out the door. “What are the chances of an extra pillow and blanket, sweetheart?” he asks her.
“I’ll see what I can do.” She nods at me with another warm smile before she leaves.
“I say you and your boy here get some rest. She’s safe, you're both safe. And if any other fucker wants to try his luck today, he better be one helluva hard-ass bastard.” He smiles as his hand squeezes my shoulder. “I’ll be right outside,” he assures me before he steps out to take the hard, plastic seat beside the door.
