Page 42 of Creed

“I mean, you should take his advice. Creed offs people for a living.”

“He does what?”

“It’s true.”

“I’m going to shoot myself if the two of you don’t shut up.” He aims the gun at his temple and brings his hand down and the gun fires, blowing his right upper ear off.

“Did he just…” Lottie stares at me with her mouth open as Cade touches the side of his head, then looks at the blood on his fingers that’s also sprayed all over the wall behind him.

“I think he’s going to pass out,” she says as I ease off the bed and take the gun from him.

“Get a towel, beautiful. And maybe a bowl of ice.”

She nods and runs out of the room.

“How bad is it?” Cade asks.

“Could be worse. You almost blew your own brains out.”

“Am I going to die?”

“I’m no doctor.”

“Didn’t she say you do this stuff professionally?”

“Yeah, but when I shoot, it’s to kill. You’d do well to remember that in case you walk out of here and think about getting more ideas, yeah?”

“I’ve got a towel, and I called 911.” Lottie hands the towel to Cade and he presses it to the side of his head where his ear should be.

“Hey. I don’t feel so good.” He falls back into the wall, and we help him slide down to the floor.

“What should I do with the ice?” Lottie asks.

“Do you know if they can reattach an ear?”

“What?”

I nod to the partial bit of what’s left on the floor.

“Oh.” Lottie’s face screws into a pinched expression and then she’s running to the bathroom to throw up.

The EMT’s show up a few minutes later and load Cade up in the ambulance to take him to the hospital. I may have also told them he was trying to kill himself in front of us because Lottie dumped him to get with me and how he left a bullet under her pillow as a threat. So if he tries saying shit about me, they will think he’s just nuts and having a mental health break. Other than his injury, the dude should recover. Having a fucked up ear is enough punishment for his stupidity, but he tries to pull anything again or even looks at Lottie. I won’t hesitateto kill him.

“You okay?” I hug Lottie to my chest as the ambulance pulls away, followed by the police officer who came to investigate. I gave him Cade’s gun. If they have any sense, they won’t let him have it back.

She’s still shaken from the whole situation, but holds back from crying. “So I was thinking…”

“You want to stay at the clubhouse with me?”

“Mhmm. You know I don’t really like my apartment that much, anyway.”

“The bedroom could really use a paint job,” I tell her and she lets out a giggle.

“Oh my god. That’s so mean.”

“It’s true.”

I take my woman home with me and get her settled for the night.

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