KDBookOnline
Share Us
“Room two,” Haley said, pointing to the north side of the ER.
My heart flipped, but I refused to let it show as they wheeled him toward the private rooms reserved for what we all grimly considered our VIP guests. The real reason the Gage name was on the side of the building was because their crew were our best customers. That meant they’d endowed the hospital, not just with money but also state-of-the-art equipment, so that they would receive special treatment when their people showed up bloodied, battered, and beaten.
And tonight, my brother was a VIP.
“What happened?” I demanded as soon as the EMTs left us alone to wait for an attending to assess my brother.
He tried to grin and failed. “I got shot.”
Well, that was clear as mud. I glared at him.
“I owed someone some money.”
“Gage?” I guessed.
He turned his head as if he couldn’t bear looking at me. Answer enough. “I couldn’t repay the debt. It doesn’t matter now.”
“Shooting you was enough?”
“He didn’t shoot me. We were dealing with some guys. They got away.”
I swallowed. “Dealing with?”
Channing avoided my eyes. “I have to pay Gage back.”
Icy fear splintered through me. Paying him back? I searched for the calm I usually mustered at work and found none. Nothing—not even Channing’s previous trips here—had prepared me for hearing those words. “What the fuck were you thinking?”
“You try finding a job around this city that doesn’t eventually involve working for the Gage family,” he snapped.
The blood froze in my veins. Being involved with the Gages, owing them, was bad, but working for them was a death sentence. He was on borrowed time. “How hard did you try?”
“I get it. I’m a fuckup.” Resignation weighed down his voice.
I closed my eyes and tried to remember that he was still a kid. That he was only nineteen, five years younger than me, and that I’d once been in and out of trouble as often as him. But I didn’t want him to grow up like I did—abruptly and traumatically. “You’re not a fuckup. You’re just success-challenged.”
Laughter was a survival skill people like us needed in this world. It was usually Channing’s job to deliver it, but tonight he didn’t even crack a smile. A muscle twitched in his jaw, and he attempted to sit up. Pain etched his features, and I held out a hand.
“Don’t,” I warned him.
He groaned, eyes locking on mine. “They own everyone in this city. You’re working in their fucking hospital, Cate.”
“It’s not the same thing.” I couldn’t accept that. I was helping people. I was undoing the Gage family’s damage. I stared at my brother. “You need to get out.”
His laugh was hollow. “You think it’s that simple? There’s only one way out, but unfortunately, it looks like I’m going to live.”
Cold fear twined around my heart until I thought it might shatter. “Channing—”
The arrival of the surgical team cut me off. I backed out of the room, trying to remember how to breathe.
Haley stepped beside me, assessing me like I was in triage. “They’ll take care of him.” She wrapped one arm around my shoulder.
I knew that. Here, he was safe, but out there?
“He’s involved with the Gages.” I needed to say it. I needed to hear it.
“I know.” She hesitated for a moment. “You know there’s nothing you can do, right?”
There’s nothing you can do should be tattooed on her forehead. It would save her the trouble of saying it, which she did a lot when it came to Channing. But this time, it was different. This time, there was no coming back.