Page 58 of Mine to Keep
Exiting the car with my gun in hand and at my side, I race through the back entrance, taking the service elevator up the second floor, then the stairs up to the third. Before I step into the hallway, I peer around the corner, making sure no one is around to jump out at me.
Once I’m sure no one else is in the hallway, I jog on quiet feet to our room, swipe the keycard against the lock and enter as quietly as I can.
I quickly race into the room, grabbing my bags from the floor. My boys don’t stir as I quickly stuff shit into bags and pull out an extra clip for my gun.
“Wake up,” I shout, shaking them both by the shoulder.
They startle awake, looking at me with sleepy eyes. Talon is the first to register me. He sits up quickly, looking me over as fear creeps into his eyes. “Knox! What happened? You’re…you’re bleeding!”
He knee walks over to me, touching my face and my arm, making me hiss. Javier turns on the bedside light, alarm clear on his face. He gasps as he looks at my still-bleeding hand.
“I can’t talk right now,” I say urgently. “You two need to get up and pack. Now. We don’t have much time.”
“What’s going on?” Javier asks, pulling his shirt over his head. “Where are we going?”
“Not now. Please just?—”
“Knox, talk to us.”
“Just pack your shit! Now!” I yell, my patience snapping at their lack of urgency.
But what do I expect? I come into the room looking like hell and expect them to leave without question?
Fuck! I’ve never done this before. I’ve never worried about anyone like this. I’ve never been this on edge, worried that I’ll lose them because I pulled them into my world.
They didn’t ask for this. They thought I was a normal guy, asafeguy. Someone who wouldn’t put their lives in danger because he’s too selfish to let them go.
Talon’s face crumples at my tone and a hard look crosses Javier’s as he steps closer to Talon, wrapping him in his arms.
No. No, they can’t be afraid of me. If they’re afraid, they’ll leave me. Ineedthem.
Cursing, I sit heavily on the bed and pull them to me. No one was following me, so I have a little time to explain as much as I can, but not much.
They come to me, but reluctantly, making my heart squeeze. I have to fix this. I’m not sure how, not when they’ll find out who I really am. But right now, if it keeps them safe, I’ll do what I need to do.
Ignoring my wounds, I wrap my arms around them and look between them as I say, “I had a job tonight that went wrong. Now some people are after me. I have to keep you two safe. So please, pack your things so we can go. I need…I need you both safe, okay?”
Talon searches my eyes, panic shining back at me. Javier’s expression matches his, but they’re not running from me, so I think they’ll at least let me get them to a safe place.
“Okay,” Talon says. “Come on, Javi. We’ve been living out of our suitcases, so there’s not much we have to grab.”
“Thank you,” I say softly, wanting to kiss them, but I know my face is a mess and I don’t want to mar them with my violence. “Go on. Be ready in five minutes.”
Javier grabs Talon’s hand to lead him out of the room. “We will.”
I let out a long breath as they exit, the aches and pains of my body scream as the adrenaline wanes, and I feel every bit of the beating I took tonight.
But I can’t sit for too long. If I do, I don’t think I’ll get back up.
Pushing off the bed, I head to the bathroom to take a look at my face. “Shit,” I murmur as I take in my reflection. My lip is swollen, blood trickling down my chin. There’s a cut on my cheek that’s slowly leaking and one of my eyes is swollen, already bruising underneath. My nose is the only part of me that came out relatively unscathed.
I grab a cloth and wet it, mopping myself up as best I can. There’s not much I can do until I get to the safe house and fix myself up.
After I toss the cloth into my bag to take with me, I look down at my hand. It’s still bleeding, but not as much. Thankfully, I pulled the blade straight out, so I hopefully there won't be any lasting damage.
I pull up the sleeve of my shirt and hiss at the burning pain. When I check the wound, I see that it’s a thin slash, but the small wound is probably deceptive. I know I need medical attention to make sure it didn’t affect anything vital or some shit, but I can’t afford to do that right now.
The fucking Void is retiring me. Now it makes sense why The Director didn’t speak up about me telling him I was done. He was thinking the same thing, just in a different way than me.
