Page 36 of Rex

I land painfully on my hip but have no time to think about it before Lisa lands unceremoniously next to me. Suki is crouched down next to us, and we all look at each other in shock. When another shot is fired, we stay down and huddle together.

“Oh my God! Candy!” Lisa suddenly screams and tries to stand, but Suki and I hold her down.

“She’ll be fine,” Suki assures us, and somehow, I know she’s telling the truth.

After several long seconds, the sounds of the fight start to dim. The music is shut off, and it seems eerily quiet for a few beats before Candy’s head appears over the bar.

“You all whole?” she calmly asks.

“Yes! We’re good. Are you okay?” Lisa shouts.

“Yeah. It’s safe now,” Candy answers. “Sorry for tossing you the way I did, ladies. Figured a few bruises was better than bullet holes.”

Slowly, the three of us stand and look around the club. The first face I see is Rex’s. He’s holding a guy in place, but his eyes are frantically searching the room but stop when they land on me. I watch as they slide up and down my body and then settle on my eyes. I mouth the words “I’m okay” and watch as his body physically relaxes.

Pulling my eyes from his, I search for my brother. Finding him unharmed, I breathe my own sigh of relief. He quickly hands off the guy he was restraining and makes his way to me. Giving me a brief hug, he pulls Lisa in for one too.

“Freddy needs the first aid kit, Suki, and some help with a few minor injuries. Aria, I need you to come with me,” Drew states and immediately starts pulling me after him. “Candy, can you keep Lisa with you until we’re done?”

“Yeah,” Candy answers with no hesitation.

I hustle behind my brother the best I can in a tight dress and heels and enter the office a minute later. It takes but a second to understand the situation. Rod is the one injured, and Horse is holding a towel to the wound. What I don’t understand is why I’m here.

“Be nice if you could help me out here, Doc,” Horse states while looking at me.

I stand like a dumbass, staring at Horse like he’s speaking a foreign language.

“Aria. Can you patch Rod up before he bleeds out?” Horse asks while giving me a questioning look.

“I’m a dentist,” I respond in a near whisper.

“True, but I’m still pretty sure it says doctor before your name, and that qualifies you more than me,” Horse insists with a lopsided grin.

I continue staring at Horse then Rod until my brother steps into my line of sight.

“Hey, look at me. Rod was shot and needs to be stitched up. We need you to pull it together and help, okay?”

“Yeah, okay. Shit! Of course, I’ll help,” I say louder than necessary, but I do it while snapping into action.

Shaking off the remaining shock, I grab a chair and pull it up next to where Rod is seated on the couch. I place my hand on the towel where Horse had his and pull it back enough to see the wound. It’s bleeding, but it’s not an arterial bleed. Carefully applying pressure again, I rotate Rod’s arm enough to see that there is an exit wound. All good news for Rod’s chances of recovery.

Without looking up, I tell Horse the items I need and wait until he leaves the room. I then look at Rod’s face and notice he’s holding it together very well. I know he’s in a lot of pain, but he’s handling it well.

“Gunshot wounds are notorious for getting infected. I can disinfect it and stitch it up, but I must advise you to go to the hospital. They’re better equipped for this type of thing,” I say.

“No. No hospital. Do what you can, please,” Rod answers immediately.

“The police are going to—” I start before Rod interrupts me.

“There will be no police or hospital. This stays in-house.”

“The club will handle this, Aria. Is the wound serious enough to need a hospital? Or can you fix it?” Drew asks.

“I can do it,” I answer. “Tomorrow, Rod will need to come to my office, though.”

“Why? I was shot in the arm. I didn’t lose a tooth,” Rod responds in a gruff voice.

“Because I can give you a prescription for antibiotics, but you need to be my dental patient first. I’ll give you a quick exam and send you on your way with a prescription to stop any infection,” I answer with a small smile aimed at him. “You know, for that abscessed tooth you have.”

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