Page 32 of Sinful Secrets

“Yeah, just bill me, doc,” I repeat.

“Wow, I'm starting to wonder if I married the wrong Satan.” Flo smirks.

“No wondering, sweetheart, you married the fucking best!” Rip states, walking in, pulling Flo in for a kiss. “Go grab me a coffee while I talk to Khan?” he asks Flo. She raises her eyebrow and in turn he rolls his eyes. “Please,” he adds. She smiles and kisses him.

“Good boy.” She winks before leaving.

“So pussy-whipped,” I tease.

“Fuck you. I see you’re still flirting with my woman, damn good job you’re already in a hospital bed or I would put you in it.” He smiles.

“So, come on then, what’s going down?” I ask.

“What's going down is we are hitting the cult earlier than expected,” he states.

“What the fuck?”

“Brother, shipments are happening more and more. Dreads found out they have one next Saturday. After what happened to you, the brothers want blood, and it’s only right that they get it.”

I frown. “But Talitha won’t be able to help get you in that quickly, she hasn’t had time to work the system, you’re going to end up risking her life and the others by doing this too soon,” I point out.

“Brother, if we leave her in there too long, I'm more concerned she won’t make it out alive. Look at what they did to you. They need to pay and its perfect timing, their delivery truck is due to arrive at eleven p.m. Mammoth and Golem are going to follow it then when it turns down Seaton’s Street and we will hit it with a roadblock, with the help of Dreads and his men. We will empty the truck then hide in the back, driving ourselves right into the community.” He smirks.

“So, you're basically gonna trojan horse their asses?” I state.

“Trojan horse?” he asks.

I roll my eyes. “Never mind, Pres, just something I read.” He nods, and I sigh. “So, let’s get my ass discharged and ready to fucking fight.”

“Brother, you’ve been shot in the fucking chest, you currently have tubes and wires coming out of your damn body. You ain’t ready to fight a fuckin’ teddy bear,” Rip points out.

“I am not laying here in this damn bed while you and my brothers go out there, fighting against those sick fucking bastards. You are not fighting for my woman without me,” I rasp, feeling short of breath.

Rip raises his eyebrow at me and shakes his head. “Now you decide she's your woman when she’s back in the fucking cult and you're lying in a hospital bed with a hole in your chest.”

“Pres, I'm serious. Think about it. What if it was Flo?” I throw back at him. I know I have him on that, there is no way he would let anyone but him fight for his woman, and there is no way in hell he would just lay here. He doesn’t answer me. “I have nine days to get better and get the fuck out of here. I will discharge myself and be there, whether it’s with you or not. I will have my brothers backs and I will be getting my woman out of that hell-hole,” I promise.

I start wheezing and a pain shoots through my chest. “Shit,” I hiss. The machine next to me starts beeping like crazy and I feel like I'm drowning.

“Fuck! Nurse!” Rip yells as he hits the buzzer.

The room fills with doctors and nurses, and Rip is pushed out of the way. I keep my eyes focused on him as they place a mask on my face.

“Mr Jonson, your lung has collapsed, I'm going to make an incision and insert a tube, it may hurt a little, but you’ll be able to breathe,” a doctor rushes out as Rip stands in the doorway, watching. Flo comes back a moment later and her face pales. My eyes are becoming heavy as I fight to breathe, and I feel the doctor cut me.

“Ahhh,” I groan.

“Sorry, Mr Jonson,” he apologises. I feel a sharp pain then my lungs fill with air and I take a deep breath. “There, deep slow breaths,” the doctor orders. “We are going to need to operate now.” The doctor orders the staff around before I'm being whisked off to surgery. Rip grabs my hand briefly as they wheel me past.

“If I don’t make it, you get her out of there. You look after her,” I breathe.

“I won’t need to because you're going to be fine,” he answers.

“Sorry, Mr Jonson, we need to get you to the OR right now,” the doctor orders and they continue to push me to the OR.

Chapter Twenty

Talitha

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