Page 86 of Misery and Ecstasy

Gripping my hair with both of my fists, my entire body tenses with a fury I can’t keep contained. Kins would know what to do in this situation. She’d tell me to calm the fuck down or that I’m acting like an ass.

But she’s not here with me.

At once, I snap. A frustrated scream rips from my throat as I tug on my hair, nearly pulling it from my scalp.

The entire room feels like it’s evaporating around me.

Finally, mid breakdown, I feel strong hands clasping me by my biceps and escorting me outside.

“—don’t want to see you back here again, got it?”

When my vision finally clears, I’m staring at the hospital’s parking lot.

What the fuck?

Spinning around, I come face-to-face with one of the hospital’s security guards. Olivia is standing behind him, looking beyond stressed out.

“You have five minutes to remove yourself from the property before I call the cops.” The guard jabs a finger in my direction as I hear the roar of motorcycles pulling into the parking lot before their engines cut.

Turning, I find Royce and Atticus quickly dismounting their bikes and walking up the sidewalk.

“What seems to be the problem here?” Royce questions as he saunters over to us.

I look back to the guard with what I’m sure is a shit-eating grin on my face. He clears his throat and removes his hat. Shifting it between one hand and the other, it’s clear that the arrival of the president of the Gettysburg Bastards is making him nervous.

“Look, we don’t want any trouble. But he was scaring the other patients. These people are sick enough already. They don’t need any more stress.”

Royce nods.

“I’ll keep him out here and contained—” he pins me with a stare “—as long as someone comes to get him as soon as there is an update. Deal?”

The thing people don’t know about Royce is he never makes deals. He always chooses his desired outcome then spins it in a way to make you think you have a say in the matter.

“I can do that.” The two of them nod to one another before the guard quickly retreats back into the building.

Royce turns to me with a grimace.

I shrug my shoulders at him. It’s all I’ve got left. I look back toward the entrance to the ER to see Olivia sitting on the brick wall lining the sidewalk.

I join her, my boots heavy, like they’re filled with mud. I hear the firm footsteps of Royce and Atticus behind me, surely following close behind to make sure I don’t charge the building or something else to make this situation worse than it already is.

“Olivia, this is Royce and Atticus. Guys, this is McKinsey’s best friend, Olivia.”

Her pursed lips and narrowed eyes tell me she’s apprehensive, but she offers them a weak wave as Royce and Atticus sit on a bench a couple feet away.

“Fuck… I’m ready to burn this whole fucking building down just for a chance to look into her fucking eyes again.”

I don’t mean to say it out loud. Olivia probably already thinks I’m the most unhinged person in the fucking world.

“I shouldn’t have argued with you.” Shocked by her admission, my eyes snap to hers. “I should have just agreed with you and helped you get her into the car.”

I rub my hand down my face before reaching into my pocket for my cigarettes and lighting one up.

“I don’t know if it would have mattered.”

It certainly didn’t help, but apparently, I’ve gotten a handle on my asshole attitude enough to not say it out loud.

“I keep thinking we could have gotten her here before she collapsed. Or maybe our fighting made her worse, and we were the ones to cause her to pass out.”

---