Total pages in book: 86
Estimated words: 81245 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 406(@200wpm)___ 325(@250wpm)___ 271(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 81245 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 406(@200wpm)___ 325(@250wpm)___ 271(@300wpm)
My vision blurs with unshed tears so I force myself to take a deep breath and put a lid on the roiling emotions inside. One step at a time. Logan needs me to hold it together.
We travel in a procession all the way to the hospital, the guys flanking me like Logan and I are VIPs in a parade, except I’m driving an ancient, puke yellow sedan I bought off a neighbor. More than a few people stop and look as we pass through the miles of parking lots looking for the right entrance. Lash raises a hand and swings into a spot where there are enough spaces for everyone to fit.
Jackal opens my door to let me out. “First step. You good to go in?”
That's a very, very good question. “I think so.”
“Hey buddy, careful.” By the time Stiff has Logan’s door open, Logan has popped his harness and is scrambling to get out the door.
“I am!” he states firmly, but takes Stiff’s hand for support anyway.
I’m not used to having help. It’s been me and Logan against the world almost from the night Georgia showed up at my door with a black eye and a crying nine month old I’d never met. Dad helped for a couple months, but when Georgia vanished the first time, he told me I needed to pick between a life cleaning up her messes and my own future. Since then we stick to phone calls on birthdays and Christmas. He doesn’t approve of my choice, and I will never regret making it, not for a second. Even if days like this are the price, Logan is worth every penny.
“Are people always like this?” I ask Lash under my breath, walking into the waiting area and seeing how people react to their presence. Not everyone reacts, but quite a few of the men puff up like territorial cats when a larger predator walks by. And the women fall into two camps, either shrinking away, or staring with a little too much enthusiasm.
He shrugs, unconcerned. “Not so much in our territory, but yeah.”
“It’s rude.” If I hadn’t gotten the chance to get to know them, which would I be? I’m honestly not sure.
Jackal grins. “You’re protective. It’s cute.”
The nurse at the desk looks up when I get close. He glances at the bikers and his eyebrows go up. “Can I help you?”
“Hi, I’m Dakota Vale. I got a call earlier.” I glance out the doors where Logan is still with Stiff, examining something on the sidewalk. It’s almost comical to see such an imposing man crouched down next to such a little boy, nodding patiently as Logan tells him all about the bugs he’s found. “I’m supposed to identify my sister, Georgia Vale.” If my voice quavers a little at the end, nobody points it out.
Jackal’s hand goes to the small of my back, resting there in support.
The nurse nods, checking my ID and telling us to wait while he makes a call and they make sure everything is ready. It feels as personal as picking up a package at the post office. I hate it. Something like this should feel different, bigger.
I walk out and join Stiff and Lo in their inspection of the local insect population. “I need to talk to some people. Are you boys going to be okay out here by yourselves?” I hate the idea of letting Logan out of my sight, but I trust Stiff. He gave me a promise before we even met, and he hasn’t let me down.
Stiff nods. His gray eyes are full of the knowledge of the things I’m leaving out. “I think we’ll manage. Right, man?”
“Uh huh. We’re gonna look for roly-polys. Stiff says, he says he hasn’t seen ‘em.”
“Don’t make too much of a mess, okay?”
“I knooow,” Logan says, like I’m the lamest person on earth, making him look bad in front of his friends.
If this is him at four and a half, I can’t wait to see fifteen. “I’ll be back as soon as I can, and then we can order pizza and pick it up on the way home.”
“Pizza?” Logan’s face lights up. “From the pizza castle?”
“Yep.”
“Awesome!”
Inside, the nurse lets us know that someone will be out soon. My thoughts start to spiral, going back and forth between hoping it isn’t her, to feeling like a monster because if it is then in some ways life would be simpler. Not better, but simpler.
“Pizza castle?” Jackal asks, distracting me.
“Someone bought Nights at the Round Table a couple years ago and converted it into a bunch of food stalls. It still looks like a budget renaissance festival and it’s Lo’s favorite place in the entire world.”
Lash laughs. “Really? I remember the old TV commercials for that place. Can you watch jousting while they make your calzones?”