Midnight Wreckage (Kings of Vengeance MC Book 4) Page 4

  Queenie didn’t want my help, but she didn’t get a choice. Until she was better healed, I was going to be the one there for her. If she wanted to, she could have pitched a fit and demanded one of the girls come back, but she didn’t.

  Now, whether or not that was a good sign, I didn’t know. She could have been just too exhausted to fight and said fuck it.

  It had been a long damn day and it wasn’t even over yet.

  After four more minutes, I made my way to the bathroom and knocked on the door. “Queenie?”

  “Come in.”

  I pushed open the door, and a roll of steam wafted toward me. I waved my hand in front of my face and tried to see in front of me. “Damn, woman. You got the water temp set to boiling?” I coughed.

  My eyes adjusted to the hot, steamy room, and Queenie came into focus.

  “I got the one on my arm off, but I can’t reach the other two.” She faced away from me and her pants were still on, but her back was bare. With a towel pressed to her chest, she glanced over her shoulder at me. “And this tape hurts like a mother fucker coming off.”

  No doubt. They always said to rip it off quickly, but to me, it hurt no matter how fast or slow you did it. “Which one do you want me to do first?”

  “Neither?” she laughed nervously.

  “Are we even sure you should be showering?” I asked.

  “I’m not supposed to soak them. I plan to keep the water off my back for the most part, so I think I’ll be okay.” She sighed and turned back to the shower curtain. “I just wanna try to clean up a little bit.”

  I couldn’t fault her for that. I stepped close. “Just keep breathing and I’ll try to make this as painless as I can.”

  She laughed and shook her head. “Lies. It’s gonna hurt, Sledge. For thirty seconds, I’m gonna hate you, but I promise it’s more that I hate what you’re doing and not you, yeah?”

  “That supposed to make me feel better?” I chuckled.

  “Yes, but I didn’t sound convincing. Rip it off so I can shower, you can tape me back up, and then I can fall into bed.”

  “Deal, sugar.” I peeled one of the corners of tape, and she tensed. “I’m sorry.”

  “Just do it,” she whispered.

  “Count to three.”

  She nodded. “1…2…”

  I ripped off the bandage.

  She howled in pain. “What the fuck! I didn’t even get to three,” she screamed.

  “I know. If I would have gotten to three, you would have tensed up and made it hurt even worse.”

  She bent forward and took a deep breath. “I don’t know about that logic, but whatever. One more.”

  “Count to—”

  “Just fucking rip it off,” she growled.

  I did what she said without hesitation.

  Again, she screamed in pain. While she agonized from the tape coming off, I couldn’t take my eyes off the two holes on her back.

  How in the hell could someone have done this to her? They shot her in the fucking back. What kind of coward shoots someone without looking them in the eye? She couldn’t have even defended herself.

  “Sledge,” she called.

  “Uh, yeah?” I looked up and found her peering over her shoulder at me.

  “You’re pale and look like you saw a ghost.”

  No, just the act of a fucking coward. “I’m good, sugar. Just looks like it hurts.”

  “Understatement,” she laughed. “I’m hoping each day is going to get better and not worse.”

  “Let’s hope.” I cleared my throat and stepped back. “Uh, call when you need me to put the bandages back on?”

  She nodded. “I won’t be long. I’m pretty sure I have about ten minutes left in me before I fall from exhaustion.”

  “I’ll be close.” I pulled the bathroom door shut but didn’t head back to the couch. I wasn’t moving from this door until I heard the water stop and the shower curtain pulled back.

  Queenie might have thought I looked pale, but she did too. She was a tough chick and I knew she wouldn’t raise the white flag until it was too late. I didn’t want to find her on the shower floor.

  Ten minutes later, longer than I thought she would be, the water turned off and the curtain slid back.

  I counted to fifty assuming that was enough time to towel off and called her name.

  “Uh, yeah?” she laughed.

  “I’m right here.” I was standing outside the bathroom door waiting on her beck and call. Yeah, not exactly how I saw things going in my head a week ago. I was single without a care in the world outside of the club. Now, I was terrified that something might happen to Queenie.

  “Okay. Uh, I’m not even out of the shower yet.” Her voice was hesitant. “Um, do you…”

  “What’s wrong?” My hand was on the door handle ready to whip it open.

  “It’s just there’s a bit of blood.”

  My heart dropped. “I’m opening the door.”

  I didn’t give her time to reply. She could be bleeding out right now and she was just telling me there was a little blood.

  Queenie’s bare back was to me and she was looking over her shoulder. A small trail of blood leaked from the wound on her shoulder. “Is it bad?” she whispered.

  It wasn’t bad, but it also wasn’t good. I grabbed a wad of tissues and held it to the wound. “It’s okay. It’s not a lot. This is the one the doctor was most worried about since you move your shoulder a lot.”

  “Did I overdo it today?”

  She sure as shit did. “Maybe a little.”

  A light laugh trickled from her mouth. “You’re being much cooler about this than I thought you would be. This would have been a perfect time to lecture me about not sneaking out of the house or not getting enough rest today.”

  “I just figure you like to learn the hard way, sugar.”

  “The Row way,” she muttered. “Duchess and I never really learned our lesson until we mucked things up.”

  I grabbed the towel she had laid on the counter. “Wrap this around your front and we’ll get you out of the shower.”

  She unfolded the towel and wrapped it around the front of her body. “And here I was worried about you seeing my back. You got the full show, instead.”

  I wasn’t looking. Not when I was worried she might have hurt herself. The wounds were still very fresh and the doctor hadn’t been joking when he said she needed bed rest for a week or more. “More focused on this bullet hole than your tits, sugar.”

  She half-turned toward me. “Are they both bleeding?”

  “No.” Thankfully, it was just the one on her shoulder. “Step out and I’ll help to dry you off.” I was going to need to keep the tissues on her shoulder and try to dry her off with one hand.

  Queenie managed to gingerly dry off her arms, careful of the wound on the one, and bent over slightly to get the majority of her legs dry. I grabbed the towel from her and patted her butt and back.

  “So, uh, we’re not gonna talk about how awkward this is, right?” she laughed nervously.

  “Not saying a word, sugar.” I stepped back, my hand still holding the tissue in place. “Sit on the toilet and I’ll work on getting this wrapped up.”

  “Do you think we should go to the hospital?”

  I wasn’t a doctor or anything, but I was pretty confident she was going to be okay if she just laid down and didn’t move for a while. “Some bandages and a little pressure on the wound should do the trick.”

  I managed to clean and bandage her shoulder wound and the other two wounds with ease. The pressure I had been applying helped to stop the bleeding. Then she was bandaged back up and ready for bed.

  “That should do.” It wasn’t the prettiest, but it was getting the job done. “You wearing this to bed?” I asked. I grabbed the shirt she had on the counter and shook it loose.

  “Yeah. If you can get it over my head, I should be able to get my arms in.”

  I worked it over her head, staying to her back, and
she dropped the towel from her chest. I helped her stick her arms into the holes and the worn fabric fell over her body.

  Once she was all dressed, she sighed heavily, and I managed to pull a brush through her wet hair. “I’ve never been more exhausted than I am right now. Who knew taking a shower was hard work?” she laughed tiredly.

  She shakily walked the short distance to her bedroom and I helped her crawl into bed. Her head hit the pillow and she was out before I even pulled the blanket over her body.

  I put the bathroom back in some sort of order and turned off all the lights. I double-checked to make sure the front door was locked and stood in front of the couch. My eyes wandered to the open door of her bedroom.

  There wasn’t any room in her bed for me to sleep, but I felt like I was too far away from her.

  “Fuck it,” I muttered. I grabbed the two pillows from the couch and headed back into her bedroom. The couch was uncomfortable as fuck, so I figured the floor couldn’t be any worse.

  I dropped the pillows next to the head of her bed, grabbed the extra blanket near her feet, and made do on the floor.

  Uncomfortable as fuck, but I was right there if Queenie needed me.

  That’s why I slept on the hard floor not because it eased my worry. It was all about Queenie.

  That was the story I was sticking to.

  *

  Chapter Seven

  That was exciting…

  Queenie

  “I never realized how little I knew about my sister.” I stared down at the piece of paper with only three things written on it.

  NB Clinic - Lynn

  Rain?

  Lynn

  “How many can you remember?” Sledge sat down next to me with a steaming cup of coffee.

  My coffee was growing cold and my stomach was growling for food. I had told Sledge I wasn’t doing anything until I racked my brain for everyone Duchess had ever mentioned. “Two and one that I don’t think I’m remembering right.”

  “You never met any of her friends?”

  I dropped my elbows on the table and rested my head in my hands. “I did, but most of the time it was late at night and she never introduced them. Usually, I just told her to keep it down because I had work in the morning.” I should have asked more questions. I should have talked to her more, but most of the time before she got clean, I was just so mad that she was messing up her life. “I was not the good little sister I should have been.”

  Sledge lifted his coffee cup but froze in midair. “Wait, she was your big sister?”

  I nodded and sat back in my chair. “Yeah. She was only a year older than me, though. Mom had us one right after the other.”

  “Sorry, I just assumed you were the older one because…well…”

  “Because it’s normally the little sister messing up?” I laughed and shook my head. “Yeah, no. Not when it came to Duchess and me. I won’t ever say I was perfect, but I didn’t fight the same demons Duchess did.”

  “Well, that list is at least some place to start. Hopefully, her rehab will be able to help.”

  “Except I don’t think they’re going to talk to Zephyr, Sledge. All of that shit is confidential.” I was probably going to have to be the one who went there, and even then, I didn’t know if they were going to be able to tell me anything.

  “You and I can go with him. Between the three of us, we should be able to get some information from her.”

  I looked back down at the paper. “I feel like I’m asking for a miracle, Sledge, and I don’t think I’m worthy of a miracle.”

  “Bullshit, sugar. We’re gonna find Gunner, and then everything is going to go back to normal.”

  At least he seemed hopeful. I wasn’t too sure of anything anymore.

  *

  Sledge

  “About fucking time you got here.”

  Zephyr jogged across the street and slapped his hand into mine. “It was a bitch finding parking. You would think with a bike that shit would be easy.”

  “Where did you end up?” I asked.

  He nodded down the street. “Three blocks that way in a parking garage.”

  “We need to go. We’re already five minutes late.” Queenie turned on her heel and up the cement stairs.

  We were at the NB Clinic and had an appointment with Lynn. An appointment that was five minutes ago.

  “Ms. Row.”

  Zephyr and I looked to the left. A woman stood five feet away wearing tan slacks, a light blue button-down shirt, and a gun at her hip.

  Cop.

  “Uh, yes?” Queenie called.

  I backed up one step to get closer to Queenie. “Something wrong?”

  The cop shifted closer and held her hand out to me. “Kaye Crew. I’m one of the detectives working to find Gunner.”

  Queenie must have moved down a step and she pressed her front against my back. “Did you find something out?”

  Kaye shook her head. “No, nothing worth talking about. I was getting out of my car at your place when you drove off.”

  “You followed us?” I asked. Queenie and I weren’t doing anything wrong. There wasn’t a damn reason for her to follow us. “Don’t you think maybe you should be looking for Gunner and not following us?”

  Kaye held up her hands. “I was just coming over to ask a couple of questions. My cop intuition perked up and I decided to see where you were headed.” She nodded to the building. “I think I was right.”

  “I’m just trying to find out some things about my sister,” Queenie explained.

  “Would you mind if I tag along? I think we’re all trying to get any answers that might help find your nephew.”

  “Sledge,” Zephyr growled.

  Queenie laid her hand on my shoulder. “She could help us, Sledge. I don’t know how far we’re going to be able to get.”

  “I’m not looking to get anyone in trouble Mr.?”

  “Sledge.”

  “Sledge. Has a nice ring to it,” she chuckled. She turned to Zephyr. “And you are?”

  Zephyr looked her up and down.

  The Kings of Vengeance were not fans of the cops. I think we all had bad experiences that didn’t sit well with us.

  Zephyr tipped his head back and smiled. “Zephyr.”

  Kaye gave him a small smile. I didn’t think she was too fond of us either. “Well, now that we have that taken care of, why don’t we head on in.”

  “I didn’t tell Lynn all of us were coming,” Queenie worried.

  “I’ll just hang out in the back. I’m truly just here to listen and hope something said will send me off in a new direction.” Kaye held up her hands again. “I’m just a fly on the wall.”

  I doubted that, but if I told her to get lost we might get on her radar for the wrong reasons.

  Queenie led the way into the building and over to the reception desk.

  “Hi. We’re here for Lynn Burnet.” Queenie cringed. “Also, a little late.”

  The receptionist laughed. “Trust me, honey. You aren’t the first late to their appointment and you won’t be the last.” She picked up the phone and told Lynn we were here.

  I glanced over my shoulder and couldn’t help but chuckle. Zephyr was standing behind Kaye with a scowl on his lips. Maybe Zephyr disliked the cops a little bit more than I did.

  “You can head on back. Just go in that door and Lynn will meet you there,” the receptionist chirped.

  We filed through the door single file and a petite woman bustled down the hallway toward us. Her hair was a shocking bright purple and her right arm was covered in a full sleeve of tattoos. This couldn’t be Lynn.

  We all stepped to the side to let the woman by.

  “Hi!” she called. She held out her hand Queenie. “I’m Lynn.”

  Well slap me silly and call me Lilly. The woman looked like she belonged more in a bar than in a rehab clinic.

  Queenie awkwardly shook her hand and I could tell she was just as shocked as I was.

  “I, ah, hi. I’m Queeni
e.”

  “I figured as much. You look just like your sister.” Lynn laughed. “Though I think she was a little bit taller than you.”

  “Yeah, she always liked to hold that over my head.” Queenie smiled. “She would hold things over my head.”

  “Sounds like Duchess.” Lynn hitched her thumb over her shoulder. “My office is this way.” She looked at the line of us behind Queenie. “I might have to get a couple of extra chairs.”

  She led the way to her office and held open the door.

  Queenie and I sat in the chairs in front of the desk while Zephyr and Kaye occupied opposite corners of the room. They both refused chairs and stood with their arms folded over their chests.

  Lynn moved behind the crowded desk and shuffled a few stacks of papers around. “I tried to pull up all of Duchess’ files when you called. I don’t know if any of this is going to help, but we’ll try, yeah?” She opened one of the files and rested her elbows on the desk. “I guess maybe we should start with who everyone is. I normally don’t have this big of a crowd during appointments.”

  Zephyr lifted his chin. “Zephyr.”

  “Detective Kaye. Kaye Crew.”

  “Sledge,” I grunted.

  Lynn looked expectantly at Queenie. “You have quite the entourage.”

  Queenie laughed nervously. “Uh, well, Sledge and Zephyr are, um, friends, and Detective Kaye and I just met outside. She’s working to find Gunner, so she’s here to hopefully find something to help.”

  “Sounds like a solid plan. An MC and a cop should help cover all of the bases, am I right?” Lynn laughed at her own joke, but it trailed off when none of us laughed with her. “Well…”

  “Are you a shrink?” Zephyr blurted out. “You don’t look like no shrink I’ve ever seen before.” Leave it to Zephyr to just get right to the point.

  “Surprisingly, a bachelor’s in psychology, master’s in counseling, and a doctorate in substance abuse counseling doesn’t keep me away from the tattoo chair or the hair dye.” She lifted a lock of her hair. “Plus, it makes me more relatable. Would you wanna spill your guts to someone who looks like they walked off the cover of Housewife Weekly?”

  “Good point,” Zephyr grunted.

  Lynn smiled at him. “I’d love to know how you got the name Zephyr.”