Page 121 of Patching Over

“What do you mean?” Rory questions.

“Well, growing up, most of them were happy with their single life. They definitely embraced the whole ‘bikers get all the women’ philosophy, so for them, variety was the spice of life. Now, though, they’re wholly devoted to their ol’ ladies, a few even have a couple of kids running around. Since they were some of the biggest manwhores around, it amuses me that they’ve turned into such devoted husbands and fathers.”

“So far, only Brick and Banshee have ol’ ladies,” Rory replies. “But I suspect more of the brothers will be getting them.”

“It definitely changes how things are around the clubhouse,” Ryleigh adds. “The club girls only come around when there’s not a family event. We have our own place, of course, but we still spend a lot of time here.”

“We do too,” Rory says. “So, what’s your story, Belle? You don’t have to tell us, of course, but we want to know how we can best help you and your friend heal.”

“Moira’s here?” I whisper as they finish rinsing me off so I can step out of the shower and grab a towel.

“She is, but she hasn’t said anything to anyone,” Ryleigh warns as she cleans out the shower stall while Rory grabs another towel to dry herself off.

This has me inhaling deeply. If she’s catatonic, then something pretty bad happened to her. Moira is one of the most jovial and talkative people I’ve ever known. “Has a doctor seen her?” I question, wrapping another towel around my hair, and twisting it into a knot above my head.

“Brick called one in that helps the club out from time to time, and he treated her injuries, but it’s like she’s lost in her head,” Ryleigh says. “Kracken’s spent a lot of time with her, too, only she acts like no one’s there.”

“I need to see her,” I murmur, applying lotion to my dehydrated skin. Despite them not knowing me, the bathroom has lotions, moisturizer, deodorant, and all the things a woman needs to finish up after a shower. Grabbing the brush, I take down the towel and begin working it through my hair, being careful of all the tangles that weeks of not being able to brush it have caused.

“Let’s get you cleaned up and fed first, then we’ll take you to see her. Maybe you can break through her fog,” Rory suggests.

I nod because my stomach chooses that moment to loudly growl, causing all three of us to start giggling once again. Part of me wishes I lived here because I can see myself becoming goodfriends with both women, but my home is in Cleveland, and I’m sure my brother won’t want me out of his sight any time soon.

After I dress and eat, I ask Ryleigh, “Is Jingles around? I’d like to talk to him if he is.”

“He is! He’s downstairs waiting for your brother to arrive. I’ll go get him,” she replies, grinning at me.

I want to tell her it’s not like that, I merely want to thank him for not giving up the search for me. But I’d be lying, because Idowant to see him so I can tuck the memory deep inside and add it to all the others I have of him throughout the years.

Rory left a little while ago, so when Ryleigh heads to get Jingles, I’m alone for the first time in a long time.

Breathing deeply to ward off a panic attack that’s shown up from out of nowhere, I don’t hear Jingles come into the room, until my hands are taken in his. “Breathe in, hold it, then breathe out,” he instructs, lacing our fingers together. “Focus on the sound of my voice, Belle. There you go,” he says, praising me for doing something as mundane as taking oxygen into my lungs.

“I’m sorry,” I murmur once the threat of an imminent attack has subsided. “I don’t… I don’t know why that happened.”

“Is it the first time you’ve been by yourself since y’all were taken?” he asks. At my nod, he continues. “It probably has something to do with that then. What were you doing when it happened?”

I’m sure he probably knows everything, because knowing my brother, he had the club’s IT person scour every available camera in the area, but I talk anyway. “Moira and I went shopping to get the clothes we were going to need before westarted working at the camp. We were at my car when the van came up next to us, grabbed us both, and tossed us inside.”

Shudders wrack my body as the memories assail me, and I find myself pulled into strong, capable arms as Jingles murmurs into my ear. Do I know what he’s saying? Not that first clue, but it soothes me enough that I’m able to calm down.

“I didn’t mean to bring up bad memories, babe,” he says, brushing my hair away from my face. “Huh, just a small bruise left, Angel did good,” he murmurs, his thumb brushing across my jawbone.

“Who’s Angel?” I question, “and what does he have to do with anything?”

I watch him take in a big breath, then another one. “There are some brothers in different club chapters who have… abilities, for lack of a better word. Angel is able to heal people, and he used his skills to fix what that fucker hurt.”

I’m not sure I fully believe him, because what he’s saying is the stuff of fantasy or maybe even science fiction, but the fact of the matter is, my open wounds on my back are completely healed, and while there are some scars from older gashes that got infected after being untreated, the ones I know Alvin left on me yesterday are gone. So is the dislocated shoulder, the broken jaw, and the other lacerations he left with his knife while he was cutting off my clothes.

“Really?” I ask.

“Yeah, Belle. It’s not talked about, of course, but I know you’re well aware of how badly you were hurt, so you wouldn’t buy a line of bullshit.”

Now that I’m calm, we’re leaning against the headboard, and I’m still wrapped in his arms. Suddenly, I feel shy, and worry that I won’t be able to tell him what I wanted to say. “Um, thank you for finding me, Jingles,” I murmur, my face lying against his chest.

“Never stopped looking, Belle. Since Sleeper’s first phone call, I’ve been tracking down every lead any of the IT guys gave me. There was no way I was going to let your brother down, or let you stay in a situation that I knew was likely hell.”

Tears prick my eyes at his words since I was missing for quite some time. Yet he’s saying he never gave up. “Didn’t you ever get discouraged?”

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