Obsession (A Bad Boy's Secret Baby)(24)

A call came over both Brendan and Drew's radios. I couldn't make out the code that was used, but I knew the location. It was an apartment building in the area that I used to ride my bike past as a kid.

Drew finally responded, giving a labored E.T.A. He hadn't nearly recovered, but he was at least picking himself off the ground. He grabbed hold of Brendan's uniform as a crutch to stand up.

“Fuck him. We'll finish this later.” There was agony in Drew's voice as he whined to Brendan. Brendan didn't let go, so Drew had to pry his hand off me. “Two-one-seven. We gotta go!”

Then they left.

I just slumped by the wall and bled. My phone had buzzed in my pocket a few times, but I hadn't had the inclination to check it. A call for more fire trucks went out over our radio. I guessed that the fire probably spread to the next building in the factory.

I hadn't bothered cleaning myself up yet. There wasn't a rush to do anything, Earl and the guys weren't coming back any time soon.

Kait's shriek echoed through the firehouse.

I thought I imagined it, I probably wasn't thinking straight. She had run up to me a moment later and I realized that it wasn't a dream. Not even all the gore in my eyes could hide her soft, pretty face.

Was it already eight? Kait said something about swinging by with some takeout, but I couldn't remember clearly.

“Oh my goodness, Mal are you alright?” She sounded very worried.

“I'm alright.”

“Like hell you are! I'm calling the police.” Kait's shaking hands fumbled with her phone. I put a hand over hers when she pulled it out of her purse, stopping her from using it.

“That's not a good idea.”

A look of confusion washed over her at why I wouldn't want them to come. Then, like sudden thunderstorm, her sharp chestnut eyes hardened and darkened.

“Brendan.” The word was lightning, crackling across her lips.





Chapter 13


Mal

“You can look now.” I tied off and cut the surgical suture, then dropped the tools into a bowl for sterilization.

“Why couldn't we have just gone to the hospital?” Kait shook her head, refusing to uncover her eyes.

“This is nothing, I've had worse.” Aside from the stitches above my eyebrow and some swelling, my face wasn't that bad. It was the blood that made it look worse than it was. The worst part was resetting my nose. That hurt worse than the original break.

“Mal, you looked like hamburger meat.”

“And how do I look now?” I grabbed her hands and peeled them away from her face. Her squeamish concern was adorable.

Kait hesitantly opened one eye, then relief washed over her and she hugged me.

“You look less like hamburger meat.” The squeezing tightness of her embrace reminded me why I had come back in the first place. For as strong as I was, sometimes I needed that reminder. “I'm going to murder my brother for doing this to you.”

“Easy on the ribs.” I adjusted her arms so they avoided them.

“Sorry!” Kait let go completely but I caught and repositioned her arms into a better angle instead. “Wait...” She leaned back to look at me, a look of realization marred her soft features. “That accident you got into, that was Brendan too wasn't, it?”

“He's still going through a lot of stuff, Kait.” I flicked my eyes away. I had every reason to hate Brendan by now, but I just couldn't bring myself to do it. There were too many good memories.

“I'm so tired of this!” Kait fumed. “I lost my father too! You don't see me going around and beating people up. This is crazy.”

“No, you put up walls instead.” My hard gaze recaptured her eyes. “I'd rather take ten more beatings than not know what's going on with you.”

Kait didn't respond, her lips pursed tightly together. Even taking a pummeling by her brother wasn't enough for her to open up to me. If I was going to get anything out of her I had to make her trust me.

I walked over to the main doors, the sun was setting over a row of one-story brick stores. The sky blazed with a maelstrom of dying color.

“I ran away once. It was about a month after we left Springfield. Tonya had taken us to live in her new boyfriend's house in North Carolina. I was hell bent on coming back here.”

Kait followed, stopping a few steps away. Her worried expression gradually diffused into one of pained curiosity. “What happened?”

“I hadn't eaten in a few days because I spent all my money on a bus ticket that only got me about halfway. When I finally made it into the state I was arrested for stealing food from a supermarket.” I chuckled dryly, remembering how obvious I had been about it. “Once they found out who I was, I was sent back to N.C.”

“That had to be before you turned eighteen. Why did you wait so long to leave again?”