Page 8 of The Cleaner

"What happened?" Callie whispers, her eyes filled with tears as she burrows against me, her hand clenching my tee once again. "Mav, what happened?"

I glance away, hating the tears that are falling unchecked down her face. "I don't know," I say, but I'm lying. We both know I am. "We're going to find out. First, we need to get you checked out."

I hear her sharp intake of breath. She hates the hospital. But she needs to go. I want to ensure that she's okay. Once she's in the hospital, I'll be making a stop at Jer's. This shit has gone on for too long. It ends now.

Screw the promise I made Mam. She'll get over it eventually. Callie's more important than that, and if nothing is done about this asshole, he's going to continue to hurt her until he eventually kills her.

Chapter

Four

MAVERICK

I've been sittingon a shitty chair in Callie's hospital room for two hours when my phone starts ringing, giving me an excuse to stretch my legs. Mam and Da are here too, neither of them willing to leave. The second I called them from the ambulance, they rushed to the hospital. Both freaked the fuck out, and Mam was crying when she arrived. Thankfully, Da calmed her down before she went into Callie's room. Callie's got smoke inhalation and is currently asleep with an oxygen mask on to help with her breathing.

"Yeah?" I answer as I exit the room.

"You were right," Jer says. "We got the footage and Keith was the one who started the fire."

I fucking knew it. That motherfucker. The cameras outside of Callie’s apartment building have caught that bastard setting the fire. I fucking knew it was him.

"You have a choice, Maverick. You can stay with Callie at the hospital or you can come with me, Butch, and Stephen," Jer says.

I'm not surprised my uncle Butch is also present. Jer is Mam's brother and he runs the Houlihan Gang, whereas Butchis Da's brother and he is the President of the Dublin chapter of the Devil Falcons Motorcycle Club. Both men are involved in criminal activities, despite neither Mam nor Da being involved, and both are extremely close to Callie and I. Jer even more so than Butch.

"My car's at Callie's and I'm at the hospital," I tell him.

"This mean you're joining me?" he asks, and I know he's talking about joining the gang, not just for tonight. The was a rule Jer put in place years ago. I wouldn’t be inducted into the gang unless I wanted to, but if I were to ever purposefully kill someone it would mean that I’d join instantly. No if’s, but’s, or maybes. I always promised mam that I’d not join Jer’s business.

"Yes," I say roughly. It means going against the promise I made, but fuck, I don't care. I will do whatever the hell it takes to ensure that Callie's safe.

"I'll be at the hospital in thirty. Be waiting. Stephen has a location on Keith," Jer tells me. "Tonight, we're going to make sure this fucker can't get to Callie again."

"See you in ten minutes," I tell him and end the call. I take a deep breath, steadying myself. Today starts a new chapter, one that I'm not entirely sure I'm ready for. But I have no choice. It's now or never and I've chosen now.

"I'm going to head back to Callie's and get my car. I'll swing by again in the morning," I tell my da as I re-enter Callie's hospital room.

He watches me carefully, thankfully not saying anything about the call I've just had, and nods his head. "Is Emmanuel coming to get you or do you need a ride?"

Emmanuel is my best friend; has been since we were kids. His mam and my aunt Patricia are also best friends. It was inevitable that we'd end up being close. "He's coming," I lie. "I'll be back at nine."

He gives me another nod before closing his eyes. I step out of the room as quietly as I can, not wanting to disturb them any more than I already have. The moment I exit the building, I see Jer's car idling at the kerb. I slide into the backseat as Butch is sitting in the front passenger's seat. I grin when I see Stephen sitting beside me. I was sure that we'd be meeting him wherever the hell we're going, but I guess not.

"How is she?" Butch asks, his voice rough and gravelly.

"Asleep," I say evenly. "She's got an oxygen mask on to help with her breathing. She should be able to go home tomorrow."

"Thank fucking Christ you were there tonight, Mav," Butch says thickly. "Who knows what would have happened had you not been."

It doesn't bear thinking about. Right now, we need to focus on Keith and what we're going to do to that motherfucker.

"Where is he hiding?" I ask, needing to know.

"He's in Malahide," Stephen grunts. "Fucker's living it up while trying to kill Callie. Motherfucker."

Malahide is a posher part of Dublin county. The fucker has money, that's for sure. I'm wondering if he's using his parents’ wealth to fund his fucked up lifestyle. Hell, do his parents know that he's an abusive asshole?

"What about his parents?" I ask, reaching for my phone and turning it off. The last thing I need is to be traced back to this motherfucker's place.

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