He took out the phone, showing it to her.
“The hospital’s ten minutes away.” Hammer honked at a car going too slow.
“No, drive to our hotel room.” Killyama’s order was given in a hoarse whisper. “I don’t want Shade to know anything went wrong.”
“Fuck that!” Hammer growled. “I’m driving you to the hospital. I can meet Shade.”
“He’ll know when I don’t show.”
“I don’t give a fuck what Shade or Train figure out. I had to watch for years as your father turned you inside out. I’ll be damned if I watch The Last Riders do the same.”
“Please, Jonas.” He was always the one she went to when she had to get Hammer to see reason. “As soon as I give the phone to Shade, I’ll be out of there. If Shade finds out, he’ll call Train. I don’t want him asking any questions.”
Jonas stared at her sympathetically before telling Hammer, “Go to the hotel. Hurry. She’ll disappear if The Last Riders show up.”
“They won’t show, but they will want to know why I helped.”
The good part of being hurt was that Hammer and Jonas stopped arguing when they reached the hotel. It took the two men an hour to get her cleaned up enough to pass Shade’s inspection. She carefully redid her makeup, concealing the lower portion of her jaw that was turning purple.
“Hand me a jacket.” She was afraid to bend over to pick up the leather jacket.
Hammer’s face was grave as he zipped it up, hiding the bandage at her throat. “Little girl, you’re breaking my heart.”
Killyama forced a smile before going to the mirror to apply a cherry shade of lipstick. “You don’t have one.”
“Yes, I do.” Hammer’s pain-filled expression showed she had hit a nerve.
“I was joking. I’m going to be fine. I’m looking forward to the painkillers the doctors are going to hook me up with.”
“Like you’ll take them. You hate to take a Tylenol.”
“That shit is bad for you.”
Minutes later, Killyama let Hammer help her into the SUV.
“Let’s get this show on the road, Jonas. If she groans one more time, she’s going to the hospital.”
Killyama pouted. “Don’t be mean to me. I’m hurt.”
“No, shit. You are your own worst enemy.”
“Not anymore. The Last Riders are.”
When they didn’t contradict her, she wished she were capable of crying.
“I wish it would rain.”
“It rained last night. The skies are supposed to be clear tonight.”
Even the Heavens were frowning down on her. It didn’t matter, anyway. It would take a flood to wash away the damage she had done to herself.
“Rae? You need me to get the nurse?”
Jonas’s concern brought her back to the present.
“I could use some water … and a Tylenol.”
The men fussed over her until she told them to leave and let her sleep.
“We’ll go when you fall asleep,” Hammer promised, settling into a chair by her bed as Jonas stood by the door.
She was about to doze off, but she forced her sleepy eyes open.
“Go to sleep, Rae. No one is getting past us. Have I ever broken a promise to you?”
“No, never.” Letting her eyelids close, she started to drift off to sleep, confident the two men would keep her safe.
They had filled her father’s shoes even before he had died. She used to aggravate them sometimes, talking her father up like a hero, bragging about his military accomplishments. What she could never put into words was that Jonas and Hammer were truly the meaning of the word hero, and she was blessed to have them both. She had learned early on that a father wasn’t a word; it was deeds.
Damn, being hurt brought the sensitive side out of her. She needed to get better so she could show them she could still beat their asses.
“Hammer?”
“Yeah, Rae?”
“When you come back, bring me a pack of gum.”
16
Train was starting his bike when he felt his cell phone vibrate in his jacket pocket.
“Where are you?” Viper barked out as soon he answered the call.
“In the parking lot, getting ready to pull out. What’s—”
“Stay there. I’ll be out in five.” Viper disconnected the call before Train could ask what was wrong.
He looked over at Viper’s house, seeing the lights were on. Earlier when he had come down the steps, both houses were dark since he had slept longer than he had intended. By midnight, most of the brothers and the women had already turned in for the night. Turning to face the clubhouse, he saw lights had been turned on inside there, too.
“Fuck,” Train swore, impatiently waiting for someone to come out and tell him what was going on.
He was almost ready to get off his bike when Viper finally appeared.
“Shade called and told me that he wants you and Crash to come to Ohio. When I told him that you were already on your way, he said I might want to be there, too.”