by Naomi West
“Okay.” He closed his eyes, still holding her hand. He would get through this, and so would she.
23
It was late, late enough that most of the lights in the hospital had been dimmed and the nurses only came around every few hours to check Blade’s vitals before slipping back out quietly. Champ had come by earlier, staying just long enough to let Blade know he was handling things at the clubhouse and the repairs were going smoothly. Venus had been comforted by his visit, but things were lonely again very quickly once he’d gone.
She sat in the chair, feeling restless. She couldn’t sleep. She was glad she was there with Blade, and she’d meant it when she’d said she wouldn’t want to be anywhere else. Blade was everything to her now, and she was afraid of getting too far away from him in case something happened. He’d told her she could go back to the house if she wanted, as long as she let him arrange for one of his men to be there, but she didn’t want to. It was too big and empty without him.
Her stomach rumbled, followed by a wave of nausea. How long had it been since she’d eaten? Maybe all day? She couldn’t be sure. Checking to see that Blade was thoroughly asleep and not likely to wake up anytime soon, she slipped out of the room.
“Excuse me,” she said to a young woman in scrubs at the nurses’ station. “Could you tell me where the cafeteria is?”
The girl gave her a friendly smile. “The cafeteria is closed this late at night, but there are some vending machines down there. Just head down this hallway to the elevator, go down to the first floor, and then take a left. You’ll see the signs.”
“Thanks.” She headed down the hall as another wave of nausea crashed over her. Stopping at a water fountain for a cold drink did little to help the feeling go away, and the elevator ride only made things worse. Her mouth was watering too much, and she felt so dizzy she had to lean against the wall as she got off on the first floor. Venus desperately hoped to stumble on a waiting room, someplace with a chair where she could sit down for a minute, but the hall that led to the cafeteria was stark and desolate.
Her vision tunneled, blackness closing in around the edges, and Venus slumped against the wall. She couldn’t stop her descent to the floor.
“Hey. Hey, honey. Wake up now.”
Venus opened her eyes to see a strange woman looming over her. “Who …” She tried to ask what was going on, but the words didn’t seem to quite make it out of her mouth.
“It’s all right, sweetie. I think you fainted. Are you ill?”
Venus shook her head, still not quite understanding. “Let’s get you to the emergency room. We can run some tests and see what’s going on.”
A young man in an orderly’s outfit arrived just then with a wheelchair. They helped her up and into it, and then the nurse wheeled her swiftly through the halls. “If you feel like you’re going to pass out again, you let me know, all right?”
She nodded, finally understanding. She’d lost consciousness in the hallway, and this nurse must’ve come along and found her. Venus still felt horrible, but she thought she would be all right for a bit.
Apparently, passing out in a hospital had its perks. Venus had expected the nurse to take her around to the registration area and make her fill out paperwork, but instead they went through a door that brought them to the back side of the emergency room. After speaking with someone at the nurses’ station, the woman took her directly to one of the curtained areas for patients and transferred her to an exam table.
“Now you just lie back and relax. I’m going to take your vitals, and you can tell me what happened.” The nurse was a hefty woman who moved with skilled confidence as she wrapped a blood pressure cuff around Venus’ arm.
“I don’t really know. I was on my way to get something to eat.” Her own voice sounded small and distant to her ears.
The nurse nodded. “And when was the last time you had something to eat?”
“I had some coffee early this morning. I think that’s about it.” She looked around the tiny area, feeling silly for being here when Blade was upstairs recovering from emergency surgery. She noticed the name tag the nurse wore said Angela. “I probably just need some food.”
“I’ll bring you a snack shortly.” Angela pulled off the blood pressure cuff and picked up a lighted scope to check Venus’ eyes and ears. “Would you like to tell me about these bruises?” she asked gently.
Fortunately, Venus already knew what the story was for those. Might as well be consistent. “Yes. I was mugged a couple days ago.”
Angela shook her head and clucked her tongue. “Good lord, I keep hearing about that happening! I hope they catch him soon.”
“Yeah. Me too.”
When the nurse had finished her ministrations, the doctor came in to talk to her. He ordered a blood test, but he wasn’t immediately concerned. “It was probably just low blood sugar from not eating. You said you’re staying here at the hospital with someone?”
“Yes.” Venus thought of Blade and hoped he hadn’t woken up while she’d been gone. She’d only meant to run down and get a snack and be right back.
“Okay. Once they take the test, just give Angela the room number where you’ll be. We’ll contact you if we find anything. And make sure you schedule a follow-up appointment with your regular doctor.” He shook her hand and was gone, off to see other patients who probably needed him much more than she did.
Angela had brought her a vending machine sandwich and a Coke, and Venus was feeling much better. She thanked the nurse profusely, ate the sandwich, and headed upstairs. She slipped into Blade’s room as quietly as she could, but he woke up as the door latch clicked behind her.
“Hey there, gorgeous,” he whispered. “Out for a late-night stroll?”
She immediately felt guilty. “I didn’t mean to wake you,” she started.
“You didn’t. A nurse came in a little while ago to poke at me, and I haven’t been able to go back to sleep since.” He gestured at the can of Coke still in her hand. “Did you get something to eat?”
Venus didn’t want to tell him the truth, but she wasn’t about to lie to him. Not now, not after everything. “That’s what I was trying to do, but I passed out. A nurse found me and took me to the ER. They don’t think it was anything serious, probably just lack of food.” She continued to repeat this diagnosis to herself, even though she had a sneaking suspicion it was something else.
Blade looked alarmed, but he seemed mostly satisfied with the cause. “Yeah, that or the stress, or all the beatings you’ve been through lately. I’m so sorry that happened, Venus. I wish I could’ve been there with you. I told you I would protect you, and that hasn’t changed. I’ve just got to get out of this stupid hospital first.”
She laid her hand on his arm. “You’re right where you need to be, and I was fortunate enough that the nurse came along and found me. I’ll be all right. You get some sleep, okay?”
Venus settled into the chair once again, listening as Blade’s breathing deepened and he finally dozed off again. She couldn’t sleep, though, haunted by just what might be going on with her body.
24
He’d had more sleep over the last few days than he’d had in his life, but Blade still felt tired. He hadn’t bothered asking Dr. Nolan just how much blood he’d lost. It was over with, and there was no point in dwelling on it now. He was already starting to feel a little bit more like himself, although he knew it would be a long time before he was completely back to normal.
It was sometime in the wee hours of the morning, and he knew he should be going back to sleep, but he couldn’t. He pushed the button on the remote, raising the head of his bed so he could sit up a little. The bed made a gentle hum that fortunately wasn’t loud enough to wake Venus, who was finally sleeping soundly in the chair.
The hospital chairs were supposed to be comfortable for visitors, modified recliners that practically turned into small beds. He knew it couldn’t be anything close to sleeping in a real bed, and he felt bad that sh
e was in this situation. They should be at his home, naked and warm in his bedroom with his arms around her and her head on his shoulder.
Watching her eyes move under her lids, he wondered how lucky he’d been to stumble upon this woman. Yes, getting the chance to be with her had been quite an obstacle course to go through, and it was one that had nearly taken his life. But he wouldn’t ever have met her if he hadn’t been having problems with the Skulls. He liked to think these things were just meant to happen. It wasn’t fun or easy, but maybe they were paying in advance for a less complicated life in the future.
He also had to wonder if Jet was dead or if he was hiding out somewhere. Venus had confessed to all the phone calls she’d made, both to her father and to all the area hospitals, as well as her thorough search through the news outlets. She hadn’t been able to find a single word about him.
Blade knew that was either really good news or really bad. If the few remaining Skulls had found him, they would have buried him quietly without announcing it to anyone. A man like Jet wasn’t the sort of man to be mourned except by the few in his inner circle, and even they would jump at the chance to vie for a better position themselves with Jet out of the way. While Blade doubted the Skulls would truly ever be a gang again, that was simply the way it would work for them.
But if Jet was alive, that was another story. He was lying in wait somewhere, healing up from his wounds and making plans. It was an idea that didn’t sit well with Blade, especially since he knew there was nothing he could do about it at the moment. He’d need to talk to Champ. Venus might not like having the brothers watching over them, but it was the safest thing until they could be completely sure.
His eyelids were just starting to get heavy again when he caught the movement of a shadow across the room. Venus had turned off all the lights so that they both might sleep better, and at the time Blade had liked the idea, but now he wished they hadn’t done it. Pale moonlight filtered in through the blinds and mixed with the deeper shadows of the room, creating odd shapes around the furniture and equipment. He blinked, focusing on the darkness, knowing that something had moved. The doctor had warned him against getting up at the risk of bleeding again, and he didn’t want to wake Venus if it turned out to be nothing.
Blade was just starting to think he’d been seeing things when he heard a distinctive click. It was the slide of a gun, and it sent a chill down his spine. As if he’d conjured him out of his own mind, Jet stepped into the moonlight. The bruising on his face had faded, nearly invisible in the dim light, but his limp must’ve come from an injury in the gunfight. He smirked as he pointed the gun steadily at Blade.
“Easy there. I’m sure you wouldn’t want to aggravate your injury. No point in going out in pain, after all, right?”
Blade watched Jet’s trigger finger, noting that it was shaking. Whatever was going on with the man, whether it was from fear, adrenaline, or an injury that he’d refused to take care of properly, Jet wasn’t as smooth and confident as he liked to pretend. “What the hell are you doing here?” Blade growled. “Haven’t you done enough?”
“Oh no.” Jet came a step closer, even though he was more than close enough to do whatever he wanted. “You and your men killed most of the Skulls, and nearly killed me. You’re going to pay, and so is my worthless daughter.”
25
Venus was having a horrible nightmare that Jet had died, but he had come back from the dead to get his vengeance. None of it really made sense, and yet it all seemed so real. She wrenched herself out of the dream, knowing it was time to get on with her life.
But her dreams were continued in reality, and Jet was standing there in the hospital room. It took a fraction of a second to assess what was happening, and she instinctively reached to her side for her gun. She touched only her pants, realizing in that same instant she’d left the gun at Blade’s house. Champ had stashed it in the bedroom before the ambulance had arrived, and Venus couldn’t have taken it with her to the hospital anyway. Weapons weren’t allowed, but now she had no way to defend herself or Blade.
“Wakey, wakey,” Jet said menacingly, turning the gun to point at her. “I was perfectly content to shoot you in your sleep, as I’m sure either one of you would’ve done the same to me. But if I get to see those horrified looks on your faces, then that’s worth it, too.”
“How did you survive?” Venus asked, slowly rising from her chair. She didn’t really give two shits how he came to be standing here in front of them, but she knew she needed to buy some time. Blade couldn’t move, and if he did, it might cost him his life anyway. If Venus dove across the bed to wrestle the gun away from Jet, he’d shoot her in an instant. Screaming wasn’t going to help, because he’d still have plenty of time to kill them both before the nurses came running.
“I have my ways,” Jet replied, still smiling smugly. “I won’t bore you with the details. It’s not like you deserve them anyway.”
“Maybe not.” Venus knew that what she was about to say would hurt Blade, but she could explain it all to him later if they lived through it. “But I just can’t believe you’re alive! I’m so glad to see you!”
Her words threw him off a little, just enough that Jet readjusted his grip on the gun. “Yeah right.”
“I mean it. I’ve been such a terrible daughter. I’ve caused you nothing but trouble.” Venus didn’t know if this was going to work or not, but it was the only chance she had. She leaned against the side of the hospital bed, pressing the call button.
“You’re damn right you have,” Jet replied vehemently.
The small click let her know the nurse was about to come on. Venus coughed, wracking her body painfully in an effort to make it sound real. She hoped it would be enough to cover up the sound. If it wasn’t, they’d both be dead in an instant, and it wouldn’t matter that they were in a hospital. “I’m really sorry. If you could just put the gun down, we can talk. I know we can work this out. You don’t really want to kill anyone, and you don’t have to.” She hoped it was enough and the nurse wouldn’t think it was just a prank. She let go of the button.
“I think we’ve done enough talking,” Jet retorted. “You already played me for a fool once, making me think you actually wanted to be a part of the Skulls. You don’t get to take me for a fool a second time.”
“But think about it. If you kill us now, you’ll never get out of this hospital without someone catching you. I don’t want you to rot in jail, and I know you don’t really want to kill me. We can go our own separate ways, and nobody has to know.” Venus avoided looking at Blade, hoping he understood that this was all just a farce. There was no telling just how angry he was.
“I got in this hospital without anybody knowing about it, so I’m not concerned about getting back out again. And as for going our separate ways? That would never fly. I told the Skulls I’m taking the both of you out, and that’s exactly what I’m going to do.”
“But why would they care?” Venus argued gently. “They never really paid any attention to me. You could just tell them you killed me if you wanted. I’ll leave town. I’ll start a new life somewhere else.”
“Ha, more like you’ll ruin someone’s life somewhere else. You’re nothing but trash. Both of you are.” He leveled the gun at them one again, a sense of finality in the way he wrapped the tip of his finger around the trigger.
The door slammed open. Uniformed officers flooded into the room. Shouts filled the air. A shot was fired, but it went wild. Jet was slammed into the wall, his gun clattering to the floor. It all happened so quickly that Venus only had time to huddle against Blade and watch it all unfold, his arm coming around her waist to comfort her.
Jet screamed and shouted nonsense, fighting the police tooth and nail. They subdued him and dragged him from the room. It pained Venus to see it, but she knew it couldn’t have turned out any better. If he was in police custody, then Blade wouldn’t need to worry about killing him, nor would she need to worry about Jet coming back to try to kill them
again.
“Okay, I think that about does it.” Officer Blankenship folded her notepad closed and looked at Venus. “I’m afraid your father is going to be faced with some very serious charges. You may be required to testify in court, but given the situation, the state’s attorney can probably arrange for that to happen without your father present. In the end, though, he’s getting ready to go away for a very long time. Probably life.”
Venus let out a breath she hadn’t realized she’d been holding. Seeing Jet in handcuffs had completely changed the way she thought about her father. He was no longer this all-powerful creature who could control every nuance of her life. He was just a man who’d done some terrible things, and he was going to be punished appropriately for that.
As a result, she’d opened up the floodgates as soon as the officer had started asking her questions about why Jet would want to kill them. She’d explained everything, from the way Jet had practically kept her prisoner in their home, to the way he’d tried to sell her off to business associates for his own profits, to the horrific beatings she’d endured. She’d also offered full cooperation on helping the police get the evidence they needed, whether that was showing them Jet’s accounting books or giving them all the files on his computer system. Him having the gun in the hospital was incriminating enough, but she could give them so much more.
“Okay, thank you,” she said quietly, suddenly feeling exhausted. She had every right to be, considering how the last twenty-four hours had gone.
Blankenship reached out a hand to touch hers. “You’ve been through some really major stuff. I know this has to be hard for you, but I want you to know I’m here for you. There are a lot of other people who can help, too. It looks like you’re already on the right track,” she said with a smile at Blade, “but don’t hesitate to reach out.”
