Page 18 of Addiction

“What went down was you.” The sneer on Collins’ face revealed his true character. “And without me, you’d have been a dead man.”

“That’s true,” Tucker admitted. “I sure have a lot to thank you for.”

“Why am I hearing raised voices in here?” Nurse Kennedy stood in the doorway, her usually gentle voice hardened as her focus flitted between the two men. “Color Sargeant Collins, I thought I told you that my patient needs to remain calm?”

“Oh, it’s Lieutenant Collins now, Nurse.” Tucker couldn’t resist the final jibe. “I believe his recent promotion meant he jumped more than one rank.”

“Fuck you!” Collins hissed in Tucker’s direction.

“Mr. Collins!” Nurse Kennedy jabbed a slender finger at Collins.

She was rather too attractive to be a nurse, and Tucker could easily imagine how she might have looked out of her starched uniform, but the mixture of medicines he’d been on had subdued his usually rampant libido. These days he wondered why he’d needed so much pussy in the past.

“I don’t care what rank you are. Inside this room, I’m in charge, and I will not tolerate that language from patients or visitors!”

Collins hung his head like a naughty schoolboy. Tucker had the distinct impression that in another scenario, Collins might have enjoyed the scolding.

“Apologies,” Collins mumbled. “I let my anger get the better of me.”

“Yes, you did.” The nurse’s hands rose to her hips. “And now I’ll ask that you leave.”

“Sure.” Collins peered back at Tucker, his gaze withering as he made his way past Nurse Kennedy to the door. “I’m sorry to have upset you, Nurse.”

“I’m not sure it’s me you should be apologizing to.” She sighed as Collins strode straight out of the room.

“He’s under a lot of stress,” Tucker offered by means of explanation as she wandered over to check his pulse.

“And he’s done nothing to help your blood pressure, I’m sure.” Her gaze slid to the machine he was connected to. Its bleeping noises never stopped, and Tucker couldn’t wait to be free of the damn thing.

“I’ll survive.”

That much was clear. However Tucker had managed to escape assassination in the bunker, he was alive, and he held onto that idea with the type of gusto he’d rarely contemplated before the experience. Death was a foe that soldiers lived with on a daily basis, but after such a close brush with it, Tucker realized his end held little fear anymore.

Whatever he did next, he intended to live as if every day was his last. He’d hold his head up and feel the sun on his skin, he’d relish the rain in his hair, and if his plans came to fruition, he’d build the cabin that had been haunting his dreams for so long. Preferably, somewhere he could plant some of those purple flowers his mother had always liked.

“Yes, Tucker.” Her lips curled as she released his wrist. “I think you might. A couple more days of healing and you should be ready for discharge.”

“Great.” He glanced out of the nearby window as she collected the clipboard from the end of his bed and made a note of his latest stats. “It’ll sure be good to get some fresh air again.”

“Are you due back on duty when you leave here?” She peered at him over the clipboard, but he noticed the small blush that bloomed on her face.

“Why, Nurse?” He straightened, aware of what might be on her mind. “Are you going to ask me out?”

“Of course not!” she snapped, dropping the clipboard into place and dashing to refill his water. “Even once you’re discharged, that would be totally unethical.”

“Right… totally unethical.” He stifled laughter as she spilled the liquid and busied herself with drying the puddle it left on his table. “I’m actually thinking of discharge from service as well as here.” He looked around the depressing little room, conscious of how glad he’d be to finally be out of the cell. The staff here might have brought him back to life, but the décor did little to make it worth living.

“Oh.” Her brow rose as she dabbed up the spill. “You want to leave the military?”

“Yeah.” He sighed as he eased himself back against his pillow. “I’ve done my time. I’m ready to move on.”

The memory felt like a thousand years ago to Tucker as the road he was driving finally found an intersection with the highway. A lot had happened since that day in the hospital.

Bringing the car to a halt, he looked over at the Sleeping Beauty beside him. Ella was one wonderful example of that change, but there was a litany of others. Tucker wasn’t the same man who’d wielded a gun for his government, and he never would be, but still, the question of Collins’ betrayal burned in his mind like a loose end that threatened to unravel the fabric of everything if he didn’t attend to it.

He turned left, enjoying the purr of the Lamborghini as he dashed them off into the night. By the time Ella was awake, they would be close to the city and a life that resembled the one she’d once known.

Part Two

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