Page 84 of Stepbrothers

“That might be the case, but I did take your mind off it for a while.”

“Yes. You did.” She smiled, feeling drunk on satisfaction. “Very much so.”

Parker glanced at the TV. The slight upturn of his mouth dropped, and his eyes narrowed.

“What?” She sat forward.

“Nothing.” He aimed the remote at the TV and turned it off.

“What? What is it?” Panic grew in her stomach, pushing up into her chest. “Tell me.”

“It’s nothing. They’re just playing the same thing over and over.”

“I don’t believe you.” Quick as a flash, she lunged for the remote and flicked the TV back on.

Three firemen taken to St. Bartholomew’s hospital with injuries.

Clarice read the words with mounting horror. Could one of them be Hugh? Was he hurt? Was he burned and in agony and being rushed to hospital?

“Oh no.” She brought her hand to her mouth. Her fingers shaking. “Parker.”

“It’s okay, he’ll have only just arrived on scene.”

“That doesn’t mean it isn’t him.” She stood and tightened her gown by tying a knot in the soft belt. The TV screen captivated her in a gruesome, macabre way. A helicopter was filming firefighters on long ladders aiming water at the flames.

Was one of them Hugh? It was impossible to know.

She folded her arms, hugging herself.

“Hey, it’s okay.”

“You don’t know that.”

“No, I don’t, not actually.” Parker held her from behind, his mouth by her temple. “But I know in my heart my brother is okay.”

“How?”

“It was the same when Trig did his tours in Afghanistan. I always knew he was okay, and then…”

“What? And then what?”

“And then the day he got shot at, a bullet lodging in his helmet, I knew he’d had close call.” He held her a little closer. “It was just a knowledge in my gut. A flash of fear. Hugh felt it, too. We managed to get through to him, and he told us about the contact, how his helmet had saved him.”

“So he was okay?”

“Yes, it was a near miss, too close for comfort, but he lived to tell the tale.” He paused. “If he hadn’t had a decent helmet, I’d have lost one brother.”

“And you can feel now, that Trig is okay, that Hugh is also okay?” She didn’t know how Parker coped with having two people he loved in such constant danger. Perhaps this ‘knowing’ they were unharmed deep in his soul was the way he managed his emotions.

“I like to think so.” He sighed. “We grew up close, all of us, and our mother’s death brought us closer. It’s so much more than friendship or even blood, brotherhood is a connection that I can’t describe yet cherish.”

“I like that you feel that way. I always wanted a sibling. A sister preferably.”

“Hey, what’s wrong with brothers?” He laughed softly, his chest shifting on her back.

“Nothing, as I’m finding out.” She spun in his arms. “I just don’t want to lose any of you, not now I’ve found you.”

“You won’t. I promise. Hugh will be back in no time. Tired, filthy, and hungry, but home.”

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