Page 10 of Love in the Wild

“I know. Looks like I made my bed, and I have to lie in it, presumably until the doctor discharges me.”

Gage leaned closer, lowering his voice. “You have to leave.”

“You have to leave,” the nurse said behind him. “Don’t make me call security.”

Gage stopped to give Thea one last look before turning for the door. Hopefully, she’d listen to him this time.

4

GAGE

Gage followed Brett through the hospital hallway, fighting the itch in his fingers to ball into fists. His enemy was within striking distance, and he couldn’t do a thing about it.

When they’d walked far enough from Thea’s room, Brett rounded on him. “Who did this to her?”

“I don’t know. I’m looking at suspect number one.”

“That’s not a good enough answer,” Brett said.

Gage scoffed. “Take it or leave it. Truth is, I didn’t know Thea was in town. When Emerson told me she thought…”

Shoot. Emerson should have told him the second Thea stepped into town. She shouldn’t have told Thea about their mom in the first place.

“Don’t stop there,” Brett said. “Spit it out.”

“Was it one of the Pattons?” Gage carefully asked. He was showing his cards, but he wasn’t going to find any answers if he didn’t help put the pieces together.

Brett wasn’t the one who hurt Thea, but there was a good chance his family had been in on it. If Brett killed their dad to protect Thea…

Brett rubbed his hand over the scruff on his jaw. “Very unlikely. With my dad dead and my uncle in prison, the others are too lazy or drugged up to care about the Howards. That leaves your side. Who do you think did this?”

“I don’t have to tell you anything,” Gage said.

“Listen, I don’t know what you think you know, but I didn’t kill your dad. This doesn’t extend to the rest of my family, but I am not capable of murder. End of story.”

Gage lifted the baseball cap off his head to run his hand through his hair. “Emerson said Thea came to town hoping to see Mom. She got another diagnosis. It’s in the lungs this time, and the docs said she won’t see next Christmas without a miracle.”

Brett stared off down the hallway and slumped against the wall. “I’m sorry.”

“You and me both. Mom never deserved any of this.” After all Thea had lost, losing their mom was going to be just one more injustice.

“But who did this to her?” Brett pointed down the hall toward Thea’s room.

Gage planted his feet shoulder-width apart. How much could he share in order to get the information he needed? “I’m pretty sure I know who it was.”

Brett’s fists clenched at his sides. “Care to share with the class?”

“Nope.”

“Tommy, Bruce, and Cain?” Brett asked.

Man, it was a good guess. The one Gage had been considering the most. “I’m not telling you what I think.”

“You don’t have to. I can make my own assumptions. I’m assuming it’s them, but what do they have against her? She’s their family. I thought their fight was with me.”

Gage stared at Brett. He needed answers, and not just about what was happening to Thea right now. “What happened that night?”

“I thought we were talking about Thea. Someone just beat her to a pulp, and you want to chat about ancient history?”

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