Red Hot(Sex & Mayhem #5)(89)
Sweat dripped down Red Jack’s neck, but he’d let it be blood if that was to help Loki in any way. Christian sacrifice or some shit. Whatever it took. And didn’t Loki deserve to be healed? He’d survived an ordeal that was yet to be fully avenged. How much was one guy supposed to take in his life when other fuckers were born into BMWs and mansions? Red Jack knew very well that life wasn’t fair. He’d had to climb up the financial ladder himself, learn to fake confidence in the spotty skin God gave him, work his ginger mane to his advantage. But there was no way Loki could ‘work’ with brain cancer. How fucked-up was that? Red Jack couldn’t even pinpoint when he’d started caring so much. Was it when Loki shot him? Maybe he’d made some permanent indent in Red Jack’s soul?
A loud sob wouldn’t be enough to take Red Jack out of his own thoughts in a room where pretty much everyone was either in pain or scared, but the way the constant noise of whispering voices died down made him look up. A short woman dressed in a long black skirt and matching T-shirt was covering her wrinkled face with one hand. Some of her faded hair slipped out of a loose ponytail at the back of her head, adding to the image of utter misery.
One of the staff, who helped the doctor prepare the patients, walked up to her and gently pulled her toward the door, whispering. Red Jack had talked to her before, and according to her badge, her name was Jenny.
The old woman pushed her away with surprising force. “No, I need to speak to the doctor. Now!”
Red Jack sat up straight. He was not about to let anyone interrupt Loki’s surgery. He’d throw the woman out himself if need be. He relaxed when a male attendant with bright gray eyes joined his colleague and took the old woman by the hand.
“Please, calm down. Doctor Arvelo is performing a complicated procedure and can’t be disturbed at the moment. You may have a word with him when he’s done,” he said softly.
“I can prepare some tea for you. It’ll help you relax,” said Jenny, but the old woman snarled at her, showing her incomplete teeth.
“I don’t need tea! My son’s surgery was botched! He died less than a day after coming back home. I demand to speak to the doctor now!”
Gasps and murmurs went through the waiting room, but Red Jack was the only one to actually get up. His heart stopped beating and got stuck in his throat. Could he have made a horrible mistake by coming here?
“What happened to him?” he asked as he walked up to the three people standing.
Jenny looked back, her mouth open. “Please, sir, calm down. We don’t know anything about this yet.”
“No? The surgery was just days ago, and you were the one to put us on the list!” yelled the old woman, sobbing yet still determined to get her justice.
Gray Eyes shook his head. “Please, calm down. The doctor will review your claims once he’s done. There’s many things that play a role, and even the best of surgeons can’t keep a patient alive if his body’s too weak.”
“How do you fucking know if someone’s body is ‘too weak’, when you clearly don’t?” Red Jack was on the verge of wheezing, and grabbed the man’s arm.
Jenny raised her hands, wide-eyed. “Sir, any procedure carries a risk. That’s why all patients have to sign the consent form, as in any other clinic.”
Red Jack let go of Gray Eyes, just to grab the woman by the collar of her white coat. “If my cousin dies in there, I’ll stick that consent form up your ass myself!”
Gray Eyes let go of the old woman and turned to Red Jack. “Let her go. Please, calm down, nothing’s gonna happen.”
“That’s what they told me,” hissed the old woman, her pale eyes zeroed in on Red Jack.
He shoved Jenny at her desk and rushed down the corridor where he’d seen Loki taken. “I think I’ll go see the doctor myself.”
“Sir, I’ll be calling the police if you don’t return to your seat!” she called after him, but Red Jack didn’t hear anyone following him. Wise choice.
His pulse drummed in Red Jack’s ears as he went all the way to the end of the corridor, past a colorful curtain, and faced two doors, both painted bright red, with yellow fingerprints all over. He exhaled, wondering which to go for, but when he noticed a low, mechanical pulsing from behind one of them, he made his decision.
Red Jack gently opened the door on the right and was glad about the hum. If the doctor was still working, he shouldn’t be distracted by the sound of someone coming in. The last thing he wanted was to have a scalpel slipping into Loki’s eye. His breath caught in his throat when a loud, slick sound resonated through the room from the direction of a table covered by white cloth. The air carried a dense, herby scent, which must have originated from the thick candles spread around the operating table in the center.