Wild Renegade

by Andria Large

  I blink up at him. "Yeah...yeah, I'm okay, go check on Alex," I say, my voice breathier than I would have liked, but hey, I did almost get hit by a car. When Ace doesn't move, I shove at him. "Go! Go help him, dammit!"

  He does as he's told and gets to his feet. Sneakers skid as Ace runs over to Alex, who is moaning weakly in agony in the middle of the street. A couple of older men come over and help me get to my feet, wincing at the ache in my back and hip. I thank the men before I limp over to Ace and Alex. Ace is on his knees next to his best friend, holding Alex's head still. He's bent over, talking softly to him. My head is somewhat foggy, but I still have enough sense to pull out my cell phone from my back pocket. The screen is cracked but I'm still able to use it. I call 911 and tell them everything that just happened.

  The operator wants to know if Alex is bleeding anywhere that I can see. I swallow hard. I hadn't looked past his face, afraid of what I'd see. But I glance down the rest of his body. One of his leather jacket clad arms is bent the wrong way and I can see that his right tibia is broken and bleeding through his jeans, which probably means that the bone came through the skin. The bile rises in my throat and I have to take a moment to swallow it back down before I can tell the operator everything I see.

  Ace glances back at me, his eyes wide and frantic. "Tell them to hurry!"

  I nod and repeat that to the operator. I glance up and down the street, seeing that a crowd is now forming. The sidewalks are pretty packed with people walking to different places, so I’m not surprised to see tons of them gathering around. Most have their cell phones out, either talking on them or pointing them in our direction, taking pictures and video. I stay on the phone with the 911 operator until I hear the sirens. When I hang up, I go and kneel down by Alex's head. He's actually awake, his eyes glazed over. Ace still has a hold on his head, probably terrified that his neck is broken, which I can totally understand. Alex moans in pain and it absolutely breaks my heart. He squeezes his eyes shut as his breath catches.

  "Help is almost here, Alex, hang on," I say, my voice cracking with the threat of tears.

  He swallows convulsively a few times before asking, "You...okay?"

  "Nothing but a couple of bumps. You saved my life, Alex, thank you," I whisper, my chin trembling as I fight back tears.

  A small watery smile curls his lips. "Rather me...than you."

  The sob catches in my throat. "Oh, Alex," I croak, shaking my head.

  An ambulance and police car pull up and the EMTs rush over. The first thing they do is put a neck brace on him, telling Ace not to let go until they have it on. Once it is secure, Ace stands, immediately pulling me into his arms.

  "Fuck, Nikki, are you okay? You fell kinda hard, you should get checked out, too," Ace says, his hands roaming over me.

  I nod. "I will, let them focus on Alex first," I whisper, swiping away the tears running down my face.

  Ace tugs me closer, pressing my head against his chest. He buries his face into my hair. "I thought that was going to be you laying in the street broken and bleeding," he rasps.

  "So did I."

  "I'll never be able to thank him for sacrificing himself," he says, his voice thick with emotion.

  I just shake my head against his chest. I don't know how I will ever thank him either. As they get Alex loaded up, another ambulance shows up. Ace makes me go over to let them check me out while the police come to talk to us. Ace calls Alex's father so that his parents can meet him at the hospital. Then the police start asking questions. I relay the license plate number to them and Ace is able to give them a description, even though it's weird.

  "She was wearing a pink wig, sunglasses, and a scarf over her nose and mouth," he says to the cop.

  I glance up from watching the EMT clean my scraped up palms. "What?" I ask incredulously.

  Ace looks at me and nods, scratching his head in confusion. "I know, it's odd, but I swear, that's what I saw."

  I frown. "You don't think Hillary would go this far, do you?" I ask him.

  Ace opens and closes his mouth a couple of times before shaking his head. "I don't know, it's possible."

  "Who's Hillary?" asks the cop.

  Ace explains what went down between Hillary and us and how she was fired about a month ago for her antics. After a few more questions and clearance from the EMT, we are able to leave and go check on Alex at the hospital . I ended up with only a few scrapes and bruises. Luckily, wearing jeans and my winter coat saved me from losing more than just some skin on my hands. My jacket has a couple of tears in it, so I'll need to get a new one, but whatever, that's the least of my worries right now.

  When we get to the hospital, we find out that Alex has been taken into surgery to stop some internal bleeding. While in surgery, they are also going to set his broken arm and leg, which might possibly need to be pinned. Poor Alex. We sit in the waiting room with his parents for a good seven hours while he's in surgery.

  I'm half asleep with my head on Ace's shoulder when the doctor comes into the waiting room to give Alex's parents an update on how their son is doing. Apparently, surgery went well, they were able to stop the bleeding. At the moment, he's in a medically induced coma due to some swelling on his brain, most likely from hitting his head on the car or the ground. They placed him in the ICU for now to keep an eye on him.

  We all go up to the ICU floor. Ace and I wait in the waiting room up there while Alex's parents go in to see him first; only two visitors are allowed at a time. I lean against Ace, who puts his arm around me. My whole body aches. The EMT said it would, but damn, I didn't think it would be this soon. I grunt and groan softly as I shift under his arm, trying to get comfortable.

  "You okay?" Ace asks.

  "Getting stiff and sore," I mutter.

  He kisses my forehead. "Well, we won't stay long, and when we get back to my place, you can soak in the tub."

  I sigh. "Yeah, that sounds good right about now."

  Ten minutes later, Mr. and Mrs. DeGrassi come out and let us go in. He's hooked up to all kinds of beeping machines. His right arm is wrapped and propped on a pillow, as is his right leg, The doctor said that they wouldn't be able to put a cast on until the swelling goes down. It's like a punch in the gut to see such a strong man reduced to lying in a hospital bed, broken.

  "Shit," Ace breathes and rakes a hand through his hair.

  I fight back tears as we both walk over and stand next to the bed. I gently place my hand over Alex's. Ace places a hand on his shoulder and leans closer.

  "Hey, buddy, I don't know if you can hear me or not, but I'm here for you brother. You’re gonna be just fine, okay?" he rasps quietly.

  With my free hand, I find Ace's and lace my fingers with his. Ace squeezes it and gives me a grateful glance. We stay only for a few more minutes. When we walk back out into the waiting room, Lizette and Beau are there, pacing with worried looks on their faces. There are also a few police officers standing off to the side, one in a suit, probably a detective. Lizette is the first to notice us and rushes over.

  "Oh my god! Nicole, are you okay?" she gasps and pulls me into her arms.

  I hiss as my aching body protests. Lizette quickly releases me.

  "Oh! I'm so sorry! Are you hurt?"

  "Nothing serious, just really sore from the fall." I wince.

  "How did you guys hear?" Ace asks as Beau pulls him into a hug.

  "It's all over the news, my man," Beau grumbles.

  "Shit." Ace grunts.

  "The publicist is waiting for the go ahead to put out a statement. I wanted to talk to you first before doing anything," Lizette says.

  I see Ace glance over at Alex's parents before turning back to Lizette. "Just tell people to respect Alex and his family’s’ privacy."

  Lizette nods. "Okay."

  "There is already a big crowd outside of the hospital," Beau says, pinching the bridge of his nose.

  I sigh. Nothing can ever be easy or personal when it comes to being famous.

  ~Ace~<
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  It's no surprise that there is a crowd outside of the hospital. I'm sure it's a mixture of newscasters, paparazzi, and fans. I hate hospitals; the last time I was in one was when Beau was kicked in the face by a horse. There is never a good reason to be in a hospital, it's always for something bad.

  The police that were standing off to the side start to make their way over to us. The man in the suit takes the lead. "Mr. Vaughn, I'm Detective Brice," he says, holding out his hand.

  I shake it. "Hi."

  Detective Brice is a younger guy, probably mid-forties. His hair is a medium brown and styled in a very business-like manner, parted on the side and swept over. He looks to be about my height and in decent shape. His eyes are a light brown and he's decent looking - not ugly, but I don't think he's got women falling all over him, either.

  "I'm going to be the lead detective on the case. I would like to talk to you and Ms. Gionelli about what happened, if you have a moment?" he asks. He's not being pushy, which I appreciate, so I nod and let him lead Nicole and me away from everyone.

  "It seems as though either one or all of you might be the target, so as a precaution, we're going to provide two officers to stand guard outside of Mr. DeGrassi's room for the remainder of his stay or until the suspect is apprehended," Detective Brice says.

  "Do you really think whoever did this will try to do something else to Alex?" Nicole asks in concern.

  Detective Brice frowns. "We don't know that for sure, but it's better to be safe than sorry."

  Nicole nods in agreement.

  "Mr. Vaughn..."

  "Ace is fine," I interrupt.

  He nods. "Okay, Ace, I've been told that the person you saw driving the car was a woman wearing a pink wig, large sunglasses, and a scarf over her nose and mouth. Is that correct?"

  I nod. "Yes."

  "Okay. Well, we ran the tags and found that the car was stolen earlier this morning, and we have yet to find it." He sighs.

  "What about Hillary? Have you checked her out?" I ask.

  "An officer went by her place but she wasn't home. It could mean nothing, or she could be on the run. We put out an APB on her, and as soon as we find her, we'll bring her in for questioning."

  "Good." I nod.

  "Do you know of anyone else who would want to see either of you hurt?" he asks.

  "Man, I'm famous and have tons of crazy ass fans, so who knows?" I scoff.

  "Right. Well, if you have any questions or see Hillary anywhere, give me a call," Detective Brice says and hands me his card. "Also, we have an unmarked car waiting around back to take you home whenever you are ready to leave."

  "Thanks, Detective."

  "No problem," he replies before leaving.

  I wrap my arm around Nicole's shoulders and lead her back over to Lizette and Beau.

  "We're gonna go. Nicole needs to soak in a hot bath and we both just need some time to process all of this," I say wearily.

  Beau and Lizette agree. We all say goodbye to the DeGrassi family, and I assure them that I will be back soon and ask them to call me if anything changes. Beau and Lizette leave out the back, too, since that's the way they came in. Nicole and I get into the unmarked police car where a plain-clothes officer drives us back to my place. On the ride to my place, Nicole gets calls from her mother and Raelynn, who both heard about what happened from the news.

  When we get to my condo, I take Nicole on a little tour since it's her first time here. It's a large condo, consisting of an open floor plan for the living room and kitchen. Straight ahead are floor to ceiling windows that overlook Central Park. The living room is to the right, and is actually sunken, so you have to step down two steps. There are five bedrooms - one that I converted into an office, another I made into my own personal gym, a master suite, and two spare bedrooms. There are three full bathrooms - one in the hall, one jack and jill between the two guest rooms, and my ensuite.

  We end in my bathroom. I turn on the water in the tub. It's one of those endless water tubs, where you can fill it all of the way to the top and it has a lip to catch the overflow. I've soaked in it a few times and it's seriously relaxing. Nicole starts undressing; it's a slow process because she's hurting. I go over to the medicine cabinet and grab her a few ibuprofen. I fill up the cup I have sitting on the counter and hand them both to her. She takes the pills and offers me a thankful smile, then finishes undressing. I take her arm and help her get into the tub. She sighs heavily and leans back, closing her eyes.

  I take the small purple bottle that is always sitting on the edge of the tub and open it. Tilting it over the water, I let a few drops fall in. The scent of lavender fills the air and Nicole moans. I smile, place a kiss on her forehead and turn off the water since the tub is full. The smell of lavender always helps me relax...yeah, I'm a total girl, shut the hell up. I quietly leave the bathroom to go get changed. I just finish changing into a pair of sweatpants when my house phone rings. I lie down on my bed and pick up the cordless from the cradle.

  "Hello?" I answer.

  "Hey, Ace, you okay?" Dean's worried voice asks.

  "Yeah...yeah, I'm okay, I guess." I sigh heavily.

  "How's Nicole?"

  "Stiff and sore. She's soaking in the tub right now," I reply.

  "There's a video out on the news, someone actually got the whole thing on tape. My heart was pounding just watching it," Dean croaks. "I really thought Nicole was going to get hit."

  I squeeze my eyes shut. "Fuck, so did I," I breathe, scrubbing a hand down my face.

  Every time I close my eyes, that's all I see, Nicole standing there with a car barreling toward her. It makes me sick to my stomach.

  "How's Alex?" Dean asks softly.

  "He's doing okay, they've got him sedated because of some swelling on his brain, but they sounded confident that it will go down on it's own. He's gonna be out of commission for a while, though, with his broken arm and leg."

  "Mmm, yeah...hey, isn't Lizette's brother a Marine? Maybe he could fill in as your bodyguard until Alex gets better," Dean suggests.

  "Oh, yeah, I forgot that Dennis is a Marine. I'll have to have Lizette ask him if he'd be willing to fill in. Good thinking, Dean," I say.

  "Hey, don't let the blonde hair fool ya," he jokes.

  I chuckle.

  "Alright, man, I gotta go check on Nicole. Thanks for checking in bro," I say.

  "You got it, call me if you need anything," he says.

  "Will do," I reply.

  I hang up then roll out of bed to check on Nicole. She's still relaxing, but now her hair is wet. She must have dunked herself. I go into my all-glass shower and grab my shampoo and conditioner, then go and sit at the edge of the tub by her head.

  "Who were you talking to?" she murmurs without moving.

  "Dean," I reply as I squirt shampoo into my hand.

  "What are you doing back there?"

  "I'm going to wash your hair," I say softly.

  I work the shampoo into her dark hair. Once it's thoroughly lathered, I start massaging her scalp. She groans low.

  "Mmm, that feels so good," she moans.

  "I used to work in a hair salon before joining Renegade, I was the shampoo boy," I tell her.

  Nicole laughs. "Shut up! You did not!"

  I laugh. "Nah, I'm just joking."

  She giggles and it makes my heart skip a beat. I'm glad that even after the horrible day we had, I can still make her laugh.

  "How does the rest of your body feel?"

  "A little better, thank you."

  After a couple of minutes of massaging her head, I grab the cup off the sink and rinse her hair out. I apply some conditioner then rinse that out, too. I tell Nicole to sit tight while I go get a towel. I go out to the hallway where the linen closet is, pick out a large towel then go to my small utility room where I stick the towel in the dryer for a couple of minutes. When it's nice and warm, I go to help Nicole out of the tub. I wrap her up in the huge warm towel as she steps out.

  "Oh, ma
n, so warm and cozy," she murmurs, snuggling into the towel. She lifts her eyes to meet mine. "What did I do to get so lucky to have a boyfriend who washes my hair and warms up my towels for me?" she asks with a big adoring grin on her pretty face.

  I don't have an answer for that, so I just lean down and kiss her tenderly.

  "Hey, are you okay?" she asks with a hint of concern after our kiss ends.

  I give her a tight smile. "Yeah," I lie.

  No, I'm not okay. I almost lost the love of my life today and my best friend is laid up in the hospital. I'm far from okay. I'm torn between feeling relieved and guilty. Relieved that Nicole wasn't the one hit by the car and guilty that I'm relieved that it wasn't Nicole. Nicole gives me a doubtful look, like she doesn't believe me, but she lets it go and walks into my bedroom where I pull out some sweats and a T-shirt for her to wear.