Page 45 of Running Feral

Tristan narrows his eyes at me, obviously confused, but I just turn and wave him after me. He follows silently behind as we work our way through the building and up to the apartment.

My initial urge was to stay downstairs and talk to him about it. I wanted to make a strategy before presenting the information and the plan to Tobias at the same time. But I’m quickly coming to realize that my first instinct with Tobias always involves wrapping him in cotton wool and hiding him from the world, and that instinct is normally wrong.

I have to keep him safe. That’s not optional. But I can’t keep steamrolling his ability to make decisions for himself, or I’ll turn into the kind of man that Kasia was describing.

The thought makes me shudder.

I knock quietly on the apartment door and then let myself in. Tobias is on the couch as usual, although this time he looks more sprawled out and half-asleep. I think that’s a good sign.

He sits up to offer me a smile, only to freeze when he sees Tristan standing behind me.

“What’s going on?”

Tristan takes a few steps to brush past me. “Don’t worry, kid. I’m not here to rat you out. We need to talk.”

Tobias seems to gradually shake himself out of the frozen position and relaxes, bit by bit. Then he takes in the words and his narrowed gaze turns to me.

“Gunnar, did you bring Tristan in here to break up with me for you?”

The laugh that I bark out is unstoppable. Fuck me. I was not expecting him to crack a joke, but every twenty-four hours that gets inserted between him and the last time he saw Eamon reveals him to be more and more hilarious. Dry. Sort of biting. But definitely hilarious.

Tristan is looking between us with a smug little smile, like all of this is what he expected.

“No. Can you not be ridiculous for two minutes, please?” The words don’t land though, because I’m biting them out through my own smile.

Tobias scrunches his nose at me in this adorable, facetious way that makes me want to kick Tristan out and immediately start defiling all my furniture. But then my brain resets and I remember the point of this conversation.

With another sigh, I let the mirth drain away and walk over to the couch. Tobias is propped up on the back like a meerkat, but his smile turns downwards when he sees me get serious.

“Something’s wrong,” he says.

“Honey, I’m sorry.” I wrap my arm around his waist over the couch back, because apparently, we’re not caring if Tristan knows anything, and hold him close. “Tristan just took your lola to the hospital. He’s here because he wanted you to know.”

Tobias’s eyebrows raise, but he doesn’t say anything. Tristan takes the opportunity to move closer as well, keeping hismovements small and his voice gentle. Like you would around someone fragile.

If only he knew how tough Tobias has already been. Had to be, but still.

“Anika just went to the ED, and I checked with the nurse before I left. There’s no way she’s not getting admitted. She’s got a wound on her foot that’s pretty bad. That’s why she called me. But she’s hypertensive and throwing arrhythmias like last time as well. There’s a lot going on.”

The sympathy on Tristan’s face is clear, but not condescending. Tobias doesn’t move, though.

“What do you want to do?” I ask.

It’s a long time before he answers. When he does, I’m taken aback by how fragile he really does look, compared to all the other times I’ve seen him break down in this apartment. Even compared to when he first showed up, barely able to walk.

“Can I go?” His voice is quiet and wavering when he asks me.

Oof.

I keep holding him up, but stroke his cheek with my other hand. He leans in like he needs the contact right now.

“I can’t decide that for you. I want to, but I can’t. Do you want to go?”

Tobias huffs and chews at his lip for a minute. The brief flash of unrestrained weakness is gone, and all his exhausted resignation takes over his face again.

“Yeah. I’m not leaving her alone. I can’t not go.” He pulls away from me and stands up. “Let’s go now. The longer she’s there, the more likely it is he might find out and come looking for me.”

“Okay.”

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