Released(Devil's Blaze MC 3)(73)

“We’re all okay, Skull. We’re great now that you’ve come back to us.”

“What happened to me, Beth?” I ask, needing to understand everything, but before she can tell me, a nurse comes into the room and asks everyone to leave while the doctor examines me. They don’t. Beast, Katie, Torch, Briar, Candy, and Sabre stand there with Beth and Tucker. “Gabby?” I ask, clinging to Beth’s hand and refusing to let her go.

“She’s fine, sweetheart. She’s with Mattah. I’ll be right outside.”

“No.”

“Mr. Cruz, we need the room cleared while we examine you.”

“Beth stays,” I tell the nurse, managing to get my hand to cooperate so I can hold on to her harder.

“Skull, I’ll…”

“You’re staying. I don’t want you out of my sight again.” She must know I need this because she doesn’t argue any further.

I listen as the doctor explains how I coded on the way to the hospital and how I’m short a kidney now. I even listen as he drones on about all of the complications I went through. Bottom line, I fought to come back to Beth and Gabby. Nothing else matters, except maybe one thing. When the doctor clears out and before the others come in, I say one word to Beth.

“Colin?”

“Gone forever. They all are, except for that bitch Teena. But Torch said he had something special planned for her.”

“Special?” I ask.

“Apparently Viper liked to supply women to a man in Northern Russia. Turns out, he got most of his ladies from Jane Does and women who lived on the street that check into the hospital who were unlucky enough to have Dr. Torres treat them. Torch thought it would be great to have Dr. Torres join the last bunch of ladies that Viper’s crew sent.”

“The last bunch?”

“Seems now that Tucker has taken control, the Chrome Saints are no longer involved in the human trafficking business.”

“Fuck no, we ain’t,” Tucker says. I look up to see all my men gathered around. Katie and Sacks are standing off to the side, and there isn’t a single one of the assholes who look happy.

Why does it feel like I might not like where this conversation goes?





I feel the tension in the air. And I know the men are upset; they haven’t made a secret of that in the last month. I even kind of understand why, but Skull’s decisions are his own. I almost lost him and I don’t want them causing him to relapse. Gabby needs her daddy to be healthy. There’s so much that Skull and I haven’t been able to enjoy as a family and it just seems like one thing after another keeps popping up to take that away from us.

“Not right now,” I warn them, and all eyes turn to me. “We’re not doing this right now.”

“It’s our right…”

“It’s my right to have my man back. My right for Gabby to have her daddy back, and you guys will not come at him right now, especially since I haven’t even had him back for more than thirty minutes. So drag your asses out of here and you can have your pissing contests later.”

“Pissing contests?” Torch repeats, sounding like he thinks I’m crazy.

“She’s been hanging around Mattah too much,” Katie says.

“Will you two quit discussing me like I’m not even here? It’s annoying. You haven’t even been married for two weeks. Go have sex or something.”

“I really don’t need to hear that,” Tucker says, and that almost makes me smile. It was a surprise to meet my real father, but it’s one of the few things in my life that has been a good surprise. He’s a good guy, if not completely rough around the edges. In some ways, he reminds me of Skull, so I’m thinking I’ll only grow to care about him more. Gabby adores him, and he dotes on her, so that’s one thing already in his favor. It’s also more than I would have ever hoped for. I can definitely see Katie’s crazy side in our father, which makes sense, since Tucker says I remind him more of my mother.

“Married? I missed the wedding?” Skull asks.

“We eloped. Figured if we waited around for you to wake up from your power nap, Torch would be old and gray and not able to get it up. I’d like to make sure Gabby has a cousin who will help get her into trouble and make your life miserable,” Katie says with a way too-sweet smile, walking over to squeeze Skull’s shoulder.

“Dulce Jesús,” Skull mutters.

“Ten years older than you. Ten. That’s just barely old enough to teach you all the tricks you need to know to keep me entertained.”

“You’ll be too old and gray to do those tricks,” Katie tells him.