Page 8 of Gunnar

I lunged for my older brother, driving the heel of my hand into his chin. From the way his eyes widened the split second after I moved, Cyclone had thought he’d see any move I made in time to defend himself, if not get the jump on me and go on the offensive. What he hadn’t realized was, telegraphing your movements like that in prison would get you killed. I’d gotten good at being unpredictable and fast. Another strike out with my hand smashed his nose.

This time Cyclone stumbled backward, backing off to reassess the situation. He wasn’t giving up, but neither was I.

“What the fuck is going on out here?” Mama threw open the door and stomped between me and Cyclone. She shouldn’t have bothered because Cyclone was shaking his head as he backed off. “Daniel Gill, get your ass outta my office! If you can’t be a decent fuckin’ human being, don’t come in here anymore. And this is youronlywarning.” Mama stomped the two steps separating the two of us and jabbed her finger against his chest. “Next time you say or do something utterly stupid, I will call for your fuckin’ patch.”

“How do you know it was me who was stupid?”

“Really, Cyclone?” I drawled. “Are we twelve?”

He rolled his eyes. “You know what I mean. Why assume it was me?”

Mama smacked the side of his head. “Because when you get something in your head, you won’t leave it alone. You’re pissed at your baby brother because he grew up faster than you and doesn’t need your help anymore. And while you’re trying to take out your anger on Gunnar, you’re also taking it out on a young woman who doesn’t deserve anyone’s anger. Gunnar can take care of himself. Right now, Pippa cannot.”

Cyclone winced. “Fuck. I didn’t think about it that way.”

“You didn’t fuckin’ think at all,” Mama snapped. “Now stop being such a fuckwit and admit you missed your brother.”

Cyclone rubbed the back of his neck, glancing between Mama and me with a pained expression. “I… fuck. You’re right,” he admitted grudgingly. “I’ve been an asshole.”

I clenched my jaw, seconds from walking out, leaving Bones for good. I mean, Iwasleaving. How long I stayed gone and to what extent I kept in touch was still up for debate. The tension was palpable and the absolute only reason I hadn’t already gotten the hell outta Dodge was because I wasn’t leaving Pippa behind. Not even with Mama and Pops.

“I’m only here until Mama says Pippa is OK to travel. Last thing I want to do is bring trouble to your door.” I did my best to keep the sneer out of my voice but wasn’t sure I managed. “Torpedo and Bohannon said we could hole up there as long as we like.”

“Stay here, Gunnar.” Ice held out a hand to me, wanting me to take it. I wanted to, but I wasn’t ready. I knew everyone was angry with me for how things went down. Not because I’d confessed to killing the man who’d assaulted my sister, but for me not even trying to fight the charges and mount a defense. But mostly for making my mother cry.

“I don’t think that’s the best idea. For so many damned reasons I don’t even want to think about them.” We were all silent for a long moment, them studying me, me studying them. All three of us trying to figure out how to get the upper hand. Finally, it was Cyclone who broke the silence. I’d never wanted to hit my brother more in my life than I did in that moment.

“You want to get out of here before either of them can get here.” Cyclone sat back in a chair and crossed one ankle over the opposite knee, all smug like he’d won this round. Which he might have. “Who are you afraid of seeing most? You know. Now that you’re out of prison and all the monitors and guards and inmates listening aren’t a factor?” That smug expression on his face was nearly my undoing. “Mom? Or Hannah?”

“Fuckin’ Christ.” Mama grabbed my upper arm and tugged me back inside her clinic before I could attack my brother again. “When Angel and Hannah get here, the two of you are on your own. You’ve effectively ruined any chance of convincing Gunnar to keep Pippa here instead of leaving just when Angel got him back.” She shot my brothers an angry, exasperated look. “God help you when Cain finds you, because this time, it’s not Gunnar who’ll make your mother cry. And your father will be less tolerant with the two of you than he was with Gunnar because your infraction was completely uncalled for.” She shoved me toward Pippa where my woman lay on the stretcher, then shut the door behind us.

Chapter Three

Pippa

I could hear Gunnar arguing with the men outside. It sounded like they were pissed as shit, but I couldn’t make out much of it because my ears were ringing and the room was spinning. “Why did I have to experience my first time being high like this?” I had no idea who I was talking to or even if anyone was there.

“Not to worry, dear.” An older woman with steel-gray hair and piercing blue eyes leaned over me and gave me a kind smile. “I’m sure there will be other, more enjoyable times to explore.”

“No, there won’t.” I was emphatic, shaking my head, which only made the disorientation worse. “I’d never be able to afford the amount of drugs it took to get me this high.”

She handed me a bottle of water. “Drink up child. The more fluids you get in you, the better you’ll feel.”

She was right. I was thirsty as shit so I took a long pull, savoring the cool liquid sliding down my throat like I hadn’t been able to before. In the Humvee I’d been hurt, scared, and more than a little nauseous. I know I managed to drink some, but not nearly enough. Now that I’d had a moment to register just how delicious it was, I gulped down several more swallows. Mama helped me undress, making sure to always keep me covered. I swear, the woman was a saint. Gunnar had put clean clothes on me when he’d found me, so my clothes weren’t soiled enough they needed to be thrown out. It was more the thought of what they represented. Mama tossed the garments in the trash and tied the bag shut without a word.

“The night they took me, I was at a party for a friend’s birthday.” I wasn’t sure why I was telling Mama this, but I wanted to get it out now for some reason. “We’d all gone to a local bar and I snuck in. Since I hadn’t planned on ordering myself anything other than water or soda, I figured I’d be OK as long as I stayed away from anyone who might check an I.D. after I got in. A guy struck up a conversation with me and handed me a drink. Obviously, those were my first and second mistakes all rolled into one.”

Mama raised an eyebrow at me. “Which were?”

“First, I’m not old enough to drink and had never drunk before. I thought I was prepared but I grossly underestimated the atmosphere. The first time, in a bar, by myself, was not the place to experiment with alcohol, but I liked the guy and wanted to fit in. My second mistake was also because I’m not old enough to drink and I had to rely on someone else to purchase my drinks. Which meant accepting something intentionally mind-altering from a man I didn’t know, that I couldn’t verify hadn’t been laced with something.”

She stared at me for several seconds before I spoke. “That’s a bunch of lessons.”

I huffed out a breath. “You know what I mean!”

“Of course, I do. So hediddrug you.”

I shrugged. “I don’t know.”

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