Page 17 of Ignite
~15~
Kenzi
I took my mom’s hand in mine and listened to the beeping of machines that monitored her vitals. Her face was bruised and cut—an aftermath of the almost-deadly accident. It had left deep cuts on her face, carving scars down her cheeks—like a knife carving thin lines into a piece of wood. Eventually, the marks left on her beautiful face would heal, but not her trauma. I was sure that would never go away. As I looked down, I thanked God that she wasn’t taken from me. God had been watching over her. Her life had been spared.
When her eyes fluttered open, they were clouded with memories of what had happened to her. I tightened my grip on her hand gently and whispered, “Everything is going to be okay, Mom.” I wasn’t sure if I was reassuring myself or her.
She blinked twice and squeezed my hand back. The tears that fell from her eyes onto the pillow were a reminder of the accident. I wanted to lie beside her, hold her tight, and take away all the pain. Instead, I remained at her side.
When she opened her mouth to speak and nothing came out, I offered her a sip of water. Once her throat was moist, she said, “I don’t understand. Why?” There was hurt and panic coming from her voice.
How could I answer her question? There were so many things that I didn’t understand. Why would Van and Niles target my mom? Why not me or Axe? “I don’t know. Davian is working on finding out who did this to you.”
That was the only thing I could tell her. Davian andThe Societywould work nonstop to find out the person who ran over my mom. They would also make sure nothing bad happened to her again.
We sat in silence, the only noise in the room coming from the machines. Every so often, a nurse would come in to check on her and to see if she needed anything. When her dinner arrived, she pushed it away. I didn’t blame her. Until the doctors were certain that she could hold something down, she was only given liquids. The Jello and beef broth on her tray looked less than appetizing. My mom was an amazing cook, and by the look on her face, she wanted a home cooked meal with meat, potatoes, and gravy, with a salad on the side.
As she looked up at me with pleading eyes, I wanted to get her a decent meal. Even if that meant going against doctor’s orders. I was determined to make her feel better, because I loved her more than anything. I rose to my feet and kissed her on the forehead. “I’ll be right back with something that you can actually sink your teeth into.”
The cafeteria was on the main level, and as I rode the elevator down three floors, I thought about my mom and how much I wanted her to get better. When the doors to the elevator opened, I looked up to find Axe, Davian, and another man walking my way. At first, I thought that the man walking with them might have been an employee at the hospital, then it occurred to me he wasn’t wearing scrubs or a white coat. As they got closer, there was something familiar about him.
I was about to let them know where I was headed when he pulled me in for a hug.What the hell?This guy clearly thought I was someone else. My eyes darted to Axe, but all I saw was anger on his face.
Axe stepped to us and stood over him. He wore a scowl as his eyes moved from the stranger to my face. He took hold of the man’s arm, exhaling sharply. “Release her, McBride,” he said. “Before I kick your ass.” He turned his head toward me, anger rolling off of his body. His hand found its way to my lower back, and he slowly dragged it upward until it was resting on the back of my neck. I knew he wished he could protect me from everything that hurt me, but right now I just wanted him to take it down a notch, so I didn't feel as if I were in a scene out of a movie.
Axe’s eyes were on the man and blazed with fury. I thought for sure he was going to take him down right then and there. I didn’t want a scene. The lobby of a hospital was the last place a fight needed to break out. Placing my hand on Axe’s shoulder, I said, “It’s okay, Axe.”
Whomever he was, he yanked his arm out of Axe’s grasp. “You need to chill out, dude.”
I was so focused on what was happening between Axe and this guy that it didn’t dawn on me that Axe called him McBride. It was too much of a coincidence that this guy shared the same last name as Levi. “McBride? Are you related to Levi McBride?”
Before he could answer, Davian stepped in. “Yes, Kenzi. West McBride is Levi’s older brother.”
Never once while Levi and I dated had Levi ever mentioned that he had a brother. Not knowing he had a brother was just one of the many things I didn’t know about him. When I turned my head toward Axe, his gaze was still on McBride as if he had taken root there and refused to move. “Did you know this?” I asked as I kept my eyes on him.
“Just found out today,” Axe replied. “Davian informed me that West McBride is now part ofThe Society.”
West McBride stared at me in a way I didn’t like. His eyes traveled down my body as though he was trying to determine if I was worthy of his attention. Although I hadn’t formally met West before, I suddenly remembered where I had seen him. He looked different then. His hair was much longer, and he was always unshaven. The first time I saw West was at a nightclub Levi and I snuck into—another one of Levi’s bad boy ways. Levi never introduced us but said he had a reputation for being a bit of a womanizer and drank too much. Levi told me that West had spent more than his fair share of time at the bars, and the women who hung around him tended to do the same. According to Levi, West liked the slutty ones who wore short skirts, with their boobs leaking out of their tops like soggy cupcakes.
I knew this because we had run into him and his entourage multiple times when I was with Levi. Levi had steered clear of him because he thought if he kept me away from him, it wouldn’t tempt me to do something stupid like fall for someone like West. Bile rolled into my mouth, and I wanted nothing more than to puke on McBride’s shoes. I wanted nothing to do with this man.
“Walk with me to the cafeteria,” I said as I looked at Axe. It was the only way I could get us away from an uncomfortable situation.
I walked hand in hand with Axe, away from Davian and West. As I did, I couldn’t believe that Davian would trust West McBride enough to hire him as part ofThe Society.Maybe he had changed from who he was, but I highly doubted it. I stopped in my tracks and turned toward Axe. “I don’t trust West McBride. Keep an eye on him. I have a feeling he is nothing but trouble.”
Axe met my gaze while still holding onto my hand. “I couldn’t agree more.”
~
Axe and I had selected meatloaf, mashed potatoes and gravy, and a dinner roll for my mom to eat. As we headed back to her room, I couldn’t help but think about how strange it was seeing West again, especially after all these years. After talking to Axe, I found out West joined the military and was stationed overseas. All this time, he was in the military. It made sense. How he dressed was a far cry from his dress preference years ago. I guess he grew out of his gigolo ways.
When we got to my mom’s room, the doctor was with her. I didn’t try hiding the food we got for her, especially since the aroma alone gave her meal away. The doctor turned, and his gaze met mine. “Ms. McCall, I was just reviewing your mom’s care plan with her.”
I placed my mom’s dinner on the side table and stepped up to the bed where the doctor was standing. “How long do you think she will need to stay in the hospital before she can be released?” I asked, even though I knew it wouldn’t be anytime soon.
“Well,” the doctor began as he looked down at my mom’s chart. “I think that if Margot continues to improve as quickly as she has been and her rehab goes well, she could be released within a week.”
It was great news. Still, there was a need for concern regarding her safety. I feared for her once she was released. My mom couldn’t go back to her home. I thought about her staying at Axe’s apartment with us, but it only had one bedroom. It wouldn’t be fair for her to sleep on the couch in her condition.
