Royce(7)

“He’s gonna pick the lock,” Kasey’s uncle told him. “I told him we thought Kasey was hurt and he said he thought someone was, there was blood all over the stairs when he’d gone up to his apartment just after she’d gotten in.”

Royce didn’t ask why they didn’t knock and see if she could come to the door, he just kept his mouth shut. The other kids seemed to know what he was thinking because one of them answered Royce’s unvoiced question.

“Reasonable cause like them police shows. We heard her moaning, didn’t you? ‘Sides, she ain’t gonna open the door anyway for anyone on accounta she don’t supposed to be here this time a day. She’s hurtin’ to miss work.”

Before Royce could comment one way or the other the kid at the door swung it open. When he stepped back Royce saw Jay give him some money, but couldn’t see how much. Royce stepped over the threshold, thinking to ask so he could pay the man back, but the room, the bed, and the girl took his entire attention.

Her face was swollen beyond anything he’d ever seen. The eye that was turned up was closed shut and blood seeped from it. The side of her head where she lay against the bed was soaking blood into the mattress and a small stain now saturated the blanket. Her arm lay at an odd angle and her left pant leg was tight around her thigh and made Royce think if they cut the seams, the flesh would spill out. The fingers to her hand were all bloodied as well as swollen. He thought some of them might have been broken, but couldn’t be sure with all that blood. He startled out of his shock when Jay shook him.

“Call an ambulance, I said. She’s got to get to the hospital.”

Royce pulled out his cell again and dialed the number. He’d had to ask for directions twice and assured the dispatcher that he’d remain there with her until the police arrived. Royce thought that the emergency vehicles might get called to this address a lot if they knew to ask if it was Sebastian or Jesus who had over dosed again.

“No, an injury. Miss York, Kasey York. It looks like she has a head injury, leg, and her arm. I’m betting by the way she’s laying there are probably a good many ribs broken as well.”

Within an hour after leaving his building, Royce was racing after the ambulance with a police escort and Kasey’s uncle sitting beside him. And her injuries were more extensive than they had thought.

Five broken ribs on her left side and three on her right, a concussion, and seven stitches in the back of her head. There was the contusion to her forehead and another to just below her ear. Two of her fingers were broken on her left hand and one on her right. Her leg was sprained and there were about three dozen cuts on her body that would heal quickly; the others would take their time. The tape they’d pulled of the incident showed that when White had hit her with his fist the first time, she’d fallen back but had not been too seriously injured from what they could see. She’d gotten right up and beat the living shit out of the man until he’d gotten the upper hand by using a ball bat on her ribs. When she’d gone down he’d stood over her and beat on her several times before his brother had come into the room and wrestled the bat away from him.

White was currently in jail pending charges filed by Royce and the company. They were also waiting for Miss York to wake up enough to tell them she was pressing charges as well. Royce was still smiling when his mom walked in.

“Must be a pretty girl for you to look like that this early in the morning. Is it that Strouse girl?” She sat in the chair across from his desk. “Or is it that girl…what was her name? The one that laughed like she was a bad muffler? You remember her.”

“Porsche Strouse and the muffler girl… You mean Candace Sheppard? Christ, no. She has been with more men than the NFL has players. Whoever she marries is going to need to put in a revolving door to his house. No, I was thinking about the merger deal we’re finalizing tomorrow morning. You still planning to be here?”

He knew she didn’t believe him by the smile. He didn’t care so long as she didn’t point it out.

She smiled that mom smile and leaned back in the chair. “Keep your little secrets. I’ll find out sooner or later. And yes, I’m going to be here. I’ve been helping with this deal for three months and I can’t wait to see the look on Charles’ face when he realizes what we plan to do with that building. He’ll be furious.”

Charles Benton had messed with the wrong person when he’d pissed off Royce’s mom. Annamarie Hunter was a person who got results. She’d been doing some volunteer work at the hospital when a young girl had been brought in. Jessica had been fourteen, pregnant, and beaten. She lost the child and then died two days later, but not before telling the police who had beaten her and why. Her daddy had said no child of his was going to shame him.