by Jessie Cooke
“What’s your name, darlin’?”
“Candace,” she said, shyly.
“Candace, that’s pretty. You ever go by Candy?” David noticed a subtle change in her face and he heard Dax sigh.
“No,” she said, still smiling. “Are you ready to order?”
“Really? No one ever called you Candy? Weird…is that because your name is really Jessie?”
“No,” she said again, this time looking alarmed and glancing over her shoulder toward the kitchen.
“I’d like the special,” Dax said, as if he hadn’t noticed any of that, “With mashed potatoes.”
David knew something was about to happen, he just wasn’t sure what. He might not be a street cop, but his instincts were on target. “I’ll have the same,” he told the girl, trying to go with the flow. She wrote it on her pad and then almost reluctantly looked back at Hunter again. He was smiling as he said:
“You know, I feel like a steak. Gimme the steak and eggs and tell Horatio to make them both over-medium.” That was when all hell broke loose and David finally understood why Hunter had shoved the piece of wood underneath the back door. Candace, or Jessie or whatever her name was, ran for the kitchen. Hunter sat calmly at the table until seconds later, a large Hispanic male charged out of the kitchen and vaulted the counter. That was when Hunter moved, quickly clotheslining him before he made it to the front door. The whole time, “Candace” was screaming and the other patrons and staff were either hiding underneath their tables or gathered around watching. When Hunter had the big guy on the floor he smiled and with his black cowboy boot in the center of the man’s chest he said, “Well, hello there, Horatio, we meet again.”
34
“So, it turned out that Horatio was actually a guy named Robert Lopez. Robert was out on bail for grand theft and hasn’t shown up for his last two court dates. Hunter tracked him to that restaurant and he was on his way there when Dax caught up with him about something else. Then I called and somehow we all ended up in the middle of it.”
Kat smiled as David told her the story. “It was fun to watch though, right? I like Hunter, he seems like a cool guy.”
David cocked an eyebrow. “How well do you know Hunter?”
Kat laughed. “You’re jealous!”
“I am not…but I might be if you tell me how well you know him. The guy is a dog.”
Kat laughed again. “What guy isn’t?”
“How well do you know him?”
“Seriously? Are you asking me if I slept with him?”
“Did you?”
“Does it matter?”
“If you mean will I love you less, then the answer is no. But if the guy is going to be hanging around, I’d like to know.”
“Really? Okay, I’ll tell you who I’ve slept with and you can do the same.”
David laughed. “That won’t take long.”
Kat’s jovial mood suddenly darkened. She was joking…she couldn’t ever actually make him a list. Most of the guys she’d slept with were so long gone and forgotten that she didn’t even remember their faces, much less their names. Would David still love me if he knew what a slut I’ve been? “It’s stupid anyways,” she said. “I don’t care who you were with while we weren’t together. Hell, it’s not even for me to say who you can or cannot be with now.”
David reached for her hand and grabbed it although she tried to pull it away. “You know that I don’t want to be with anyone but you, right?” Kat did know that. David not only told her how he felt, he was so much better at showing her than she was at reciprocating. She just didn’t understand why he wanted her. What do I really have to offer? Unless he needed a kidney or something, she was pretty much useless. The bar was failing. Her business had barely taken off and now it would be put on hold for at least a month, probably longer. She was going to be in debt to a loan shark for the rest of her life. She wasn’t fooling herself. She knew there was no way she’d ever be able to pay Tucci back almost a quarter of a million dollars. David deserved better than that. “Hey, Kat? Are you okay, baby? I’m sorry about the Hunter thing. He seems like an okay guy…I’m not really worried about the two of you…”
Kat reached up with her other hand, trying not to pull out the IV as she did. She put her palm on the side of his face. God, he was so beautiful, inside and out. Kat wasn’t sure what she believed about God and things like heaven and hell, but if there was a heaven, David was a shoo-in. “There’s nothing to worry about. I’ve only met Hunter a couple of times. He helped me one night when Dillon was sick. He’s not really my type.”
“What is your type?” David asked.
“Hmm…you,” she said with a smile as she patted his face. Withdrawing her hand, she said, “I know it seems strange when you look at me and who I’ve spent most of my life with…but I like the clean-cut, intellectual types the best.”
“Really? You’re not just saying that to make this clean-cut, intellectual type feel better?”
She laughed. “No, I’m not just saying that.” The truth was that as easy as it would have been for Kat to find a biker bar in L.A. to hook up with guys, her favorite place was one where young professionals hung out. She liked a guy in a suit and tie. She liked the ones that showered regularly and smelled good…and strangely enough, she liked to know she was fucking a guy with a brain. She often wondered if that tendency was thanks to how badly she missed David. Was I looking for a replacement on a subconscious level that entire time? She told herself that none of that mattered now.
“Miss Brown?” The female voice was followed by a tap on the door as it was pushed inward. Kat looked up to see her nurse come in the room. “We’re getting ready to take you down to pre-op. Are you ready?” Kat took a deep breath and willed the panic in her chest away before looking at the nurse and saying:
“I’m ready. Let’s get this over with.” The nurse smiled and said:
“Okay. I’ll be back in a few minutes.” She stepped back out the door and Kat looked at David.
“You’re doing a good thing,” he said. “Dillon’s a lucky guy.”
Kat shrugged. “I guess in the grand scheme of things, I wouldn’t have a liver if it weren’t for him, so I owe him that much.”
David squeezed her hand and said, “It’s okay to be scared, Kat…and it’s okay to talk about it.”
She shook her head. “I’m not scared, at least not of this operation. I’m scared of losing the only parent I have…but don’t repeat that to anyone or I’ll break your kneecaps.” David laughed.
“It’ll be our secret.”
“Okay, can I tell you another secret before I go?”
“Please,” David said. Before Kat could say anything, the door was opened again and the nurse came in with two orderlies. David had a look of disappointment on his face. Kat pulled the hand he was still holding loose and used it to pull him down so that his face was close to hers.
“I love you, David Brady. If something happens to me today, remember that, okay?”
David’s eyes were watering. “Nothing is going to happen to you, but thank you, for telling me that. They haven’t given you any meds yet, right? I mean, you can’t blame this on a sedative later, can you?”
Kat laughed. “No sedative, and that makes it even harder for me. I hate this feelings and emotions crap.”
David smiled softly. “I know.”
Something came over her and she said, “The only other time I felt the kind of pain I did when you walked out, was when my mother died. I expect people to leave me, but you were the one person I always thought would stay.”
“I’m so sorry, Kat.”
She smiled and pulled him down further so that their lips met softly. “No more apologies, it’s in the past. I was just trying to explain why I’m so fucked up.”
He smiled. “You’re not fucked up. You’re perfect.”
She chuckled. “Damn, if I was ever considered the perfect woman, humanity would be in big trouble.”
“You’re
perfect for me,” David said. “I love you.”
“We have to take you down now, Miss Brown.”
“Go get something to eat,” Kat told him as the nurse took the brakes off her bed. “You didn’t get to eat lunch after Hunter’s antics, did you?”
“Nah, he arrested the cook, nobody got lunch.”
Kat chuckled. “That’s fucking funny.”
David laughed too and bent down to kiss her once more. “Yeah, baby, it is. I’ll see you soon.” He followed them out of the room and down the hallway, but the nurse made him stay behind once they pushed her onto the service elevator. Kat had never had surgery, so she didn’t know what to expect. She hadn’t lied to David earlier; she wasn’t scared. She was fucking terrified.
Olden Tanis watched as David stood in the hallway outside the elevator. His face was filled with love for the young woman that he’d just watched being taken away, and a worry line was etched between his eyes. Olden had done his research, since he wouldn’t have the luxury of spending time with this one before he ended her life. In researching the woman, he’d also learned much about the man. David Brady came from a good Catholic family. He had a good job, helping people. He loved his family, and he lived a good life. He was just the type that she would chose. Her dark soul sought out the light in others. David had that light, the light that Olden used to have…a long time ago.
Olden didn’t have any animosity toward David, or any of the other men she’d tried to ruin over the years. He understood all too well what the young man would have to endure, and he hated the thought of it. But he’d also come to know first-hand that if he left her to her own devices, the damage to the man who loved her would be incomprehensible and irreparable. He was a prime example of that. That knowledge was the only way he could deal with the remorse and regret that had tried to consume him for years. He kept reminding himself that ultimately, he was their savior. Olden knew the darkness would eventually bleed from her soul and into those closest to her. The fact that he was here to save a man from Victoria’s daughter was all the proof of that he needed. That, and Marta’s direction. He thanked le Bon Dieu for her every day, and he lit a candle weekly and prayed for her soul. He could still feel her surrounding him with her love and knowledge. If not for her, he might have never recognized the darkness in his own Lauren when he was only nineteen years old. Marta made Olden understand that only the purest souls could recognize the darkness…and he was one of those souls. That knowledge, however, had left him obligated to spend his life in pursuit of the darkness…and unfortunately it also left him obligated to end the lives of those who had been infected by it, the way that Lauren had been, even if he didn’t want to do it.
Olden wept when he found out that Victoria Brown had a little girl, but he did what he had to do anyways. Now, he wished he’d done it sooner…Victoria’d had time to infect the sweet child before he sent her to burn in hell. Olden hadn’t expected to get away with killing Victoria, but he had been ready to face the consequences. When they didn’t come for him, it gave him a bigger sense that what he was doing was right. He got better at hiding the bodies after her and no one ever came looking for him…until that Creole woman washed up after the floods. Her husband started asking questions and searching the tattoo parlors around the Quarter, showing photographs of his dearly departed Marta. Olden was worried at first…but then, he’d followed the man to Massachusetts and he’d heard him talking to David. That was when Olden realized he’d been brought there because the darkness had come there before him. He was being led to where he was needed.
He watched now as David stuck his hands in his pockets and walked away from the elevator toward the stairs. There were other people in the hallway, sitting in the chairs that overflowed from the surgical waiting room, so Olden was sure the young man didn’t know he was being watched. Olden was finished following him anyways. David had led him to Katrina and Olden had seen the tattoo. She was different, in the fact that he hadn’t been the one to ink it and she seemed to be trying to hide it atop of all the other ink she already had there. But to Olden it shone like a beacon, as did the darkness she’d been infected with. Olden knew what he’d been brought there to do, and once the woman had saved her father’s life, Olden was prepared to take hers.
35
David stepped out into the fresh, cold air and took a deep breath. The air inside the hospital got thick sometimes, and it hurt his lungs. It was probably just his imagination, caused by the stress he was feeling. He hated thinking about Kat being cut open, even if it was for a good reason and by professionals.
“Hey, bro.” David looked up at the sound of the voice. The sun was in his eyes so Kyle was shrouded by a halo-like image.
“Kyle?”
His brother walked in closer and his large frame blocked the sun from David’s eyes. “Yeah, it’s me. I guess it’s been too long since you’ve seen me if you didn’t recognize me,” Kyle said with a grin.
David smiled back. “The sun was giving you a halo…so at first I was sure it wasn’t you.”
Kyle laughed. “True story. If any of us have a halo following us around, it’s you. How’s Katrina?”
“Did you really come here to check on her?”
“I’m not a monster. I care about you and you care about her…so yeah, I came to see how she was doing and if you needed anything.”
David was touched. Maybe there was hope for Kyle after all. “Thanks, that means a lot. She just went into surgery. They tell me it will take five or six hours and another two in recovery before I can see her. It’s going to be a long eight hours.”
“You want to get a beer?”
“I’d rather get lunch. I’m starving.”
“Cool, me too. I have my bike, want to take your car?”
“Sure.” As they walked toward the garage where David’s car was parked he said, “You think you could teach me how to ride?”
Kyle chuckled. “I’m sure I could—what makes you want to learn suddenly? I tried to teach you years ago, and you weren’t interested. Trying to impress Hurricane?”
“Shut up. No. I don’t need to impress Kat. She loves me the way I am.” Kyle rolled his eyes. “I’ve just been thinking about it lately. Maybe it’s time I learned so I can keep up with the rest of this family.”
They reached the car and David unlocked it. Once they were both inside Kyle said, “Let me know when you have some time. We’ll go out to the ranch and…”
“I don’t want to learn how to ride in front of a bunch of bikers. If I wanted that, I would have asked Dax.”
Kyle laughed again. “You worry too much about what other people think, little brother. But okay. We’ll find another place. Speaking of the ranch, have you talked to our sister lately?”
“Not for a few days,” David said. “But I’ve been preoccupied with what’s been going on around here. Why? She’s okay, right? I saw Dax today, and he didn’t say anything.”
“You saw Dax today?”
“Yeah. Is Angel okay?”
“Yeah, she’s okay…I guess. She just seems stressed, and I was hoping she and Dax weren’t having problems.”
David chuckled. “Really? It wouldn’t make your year if she and Dax split up?” David looked over at his brother as he came to a stop at the garage exit. Kyle gave him a wounded look.
“You really do think I’m a monster. I want Angel to be happy. For some reason, Dax does that for her. I’m over it, so no, her leaving him would not make me happy…unless of course it made her happy.”
David shook his head and pulled the car out into the slow traffic. “It won’t happen. She’s crazy about him and they’re in the process of adopting Susie. Angel loves her life. If she’s been stressed out, maybe it’s about work…or something else.”
“What’s going on with the Skulls and Chaos?”
David shrugged. “I have no idea. I’m not privy to that kind of information. I thought you kept tabs on that kind of thing.” David almost threw in, “Even though you�
��re not a cop any longer, and it’s none of your business,” but he decided he’d rather forego the argument.
“Something is going on; I can feel it…I just haven’t been able to put my finger on it.”
It suddenly occurred to David why his brother suddenly wanted to join him for a beer…or lunch. “So…you thought you’d see what I might know. Damn, Kyle, every time I think you’re trying to be a decent human being…”
“What the fuck are you talking about? I came by to check on you. Katrina is not my favorite person, I admit that. Even though Angel told me about the baby and I feel shitty about that, I still think you can do better, okay? But you’re my brother and I care about you, so I hope she’s okay because I know it will hurt you if she’s not. Shit, David, the other stuff was just me making conversation. I don’t know what the fuck else to talk about.”
David was pulling up in front of a sandwich shop down the street from the hospital. He parked the car and then turned to his brother and said, “Look, if I was wrong, I’m sorry. You have to admit that you haven’t given me much to go on over the years.”
Kyle sighed. “Mom died, Dad worked sixteen-hour shifts, Angel cooked and cleaned like a grown-ass woman and Mickey and Sam checked out a long time before the rest of us even had this life shit figured out…it made me overprotective and people interpret that as me being an asshole. How do you think I feel about letting Angel spend so much time with Micah? That man was pure evil and I didn’t fucking see it. I don’t want the same thing to happen to her again…or you.”
“Kyle, you can’t see evil no matter how hard you look. But if you love us and want us to be happy as much as you say you do, you’re going to have to learn to trust us. Angel made a mistake by falling for Micah. But in her defense he had everyone fooled, and I believe the reason she didn’t marry him was because something in her gut told her things weren’t what they seemed. But Dax is different. You and I might not agree with how he chooses to live his life…but I can see how he feels about our sister when he looks at her and even when he just mentions her name. He’s not perfect, but he has a good heart and I believe that he would die before he’d ever hurt her. Trying to dig things up that make him or his club look bad is only going to upset our sister, so please stop.” Kyle nodded and although David knew he wouldn’t give in that easily, he went on, “And as far as Kat is concerned, you never took the time to get to know her. She’s a good person too. She’s made mistakes, but which one of us hasn’t? I love her, Kyle, and as much as I love my family, I won’t make the mistake of giving her up again because they don’t approve.” Kyle nodded again and then he said:
