Page 12 of Bound By Ruin

“Could you come with me for a moment? I’d like to show you the contents of each medical kit and how to use them. Our patients don’t always follow instructions once they leave, especially when it comes to their after-care—” There’s a flinty edge to her voice, like she’s speaking from experience. “And these boys in particular like to skip steps.”

Ah, so she is.

I don’t remember her name, but she must remember ours to keep up with our charts and medical history. Briefly, I wonder what they say about us. Negligent with wound care, orders too many refills, misses his checkups—the possibilities are endless, really, when you consider how anal Rage is about protocol and how lax Rebel is with procedure. It’s almost enough to make me smile.

But whatreallyworks is the feel of Celia’s lips gently pressing a kiss to my scarred cheek. My chapped lips quirk up into a crooked smile. She spares me a quick glance and smile of her own before slipping away to follow the nurse across the room, and all three of us watch her go. I press my fingertips to my cheek, expecting the tingle from her touch to disappear. I’m grateful when it doesn’t.

“You’re blushing,” Rebel teases, pointing what’s left of the blunt at my face. “Damn, bro, she’s got yougood.” He snickers and stubs the roach against his cargo pants. Both of my brothers have dressed, neither of them in their usual attire, leaving me the odd man out wrapped in little else than gauze and tape.

Rage stares intently at me. “How are you feeling?”

It takes me a moment to piece together the right words. “Like I’m floating.” I stare at Celia as she sifts through the contents of each of our medical packs. I’m not sure if it’s the medicine or the pot or the woman standing in front of me, but for at least this one moment, I’m okay.

Maybe better than okay.

I take a deep breath, awaiting the tightness inside my lungs, for the moment the pain burrows deep and latches onto my organs, but whatever feeling persists is a dull ache rather than a roar. I can live with that.

“Are you sure?” Rage narrows his eyes as he scans my body. I know he’s not looking for injuries on the outside—he’s trying to glimpse what could be hidden within. Trauma exists in more than the physical plane—its scars the brain, too.

But as long as I don’tthinkabout?—

I cut off the violent crackle of flames inside my head with the sound of Celia’s voice, listening intently as she asks the medic questions. “I’m fine,” I tell Rage, knowing that he won’t believe me but saying it anyway. I have to be fine, or he won’t let me leave The Box. Thankfully, however, Rage’s need to win against our father makes quick work of any hesitation he has.

Admitting that I’m hurt means that Dad won. Pretending that I’m fine—thatall of usare fine—is how we take our next steps… away from the flames… and toward the woman holding the brightest possible future for our family in her hands.

Chapter6

Celia

The car rideback to the club is quiet. Rebel drums his fingertips on his knees, then the armrest, then the back of the driver’s seat, and everywhere else he touches, while Thanatos drives us home on back roads. The club is in full swing when we arrive, so he pulls the car around to the back and cuts the engine. None of us move.

I squeeze Ruin’s hand until he squeezes back. “Ready?”

He grunts noncommittally, and one by one, we peel ourselves off the leather seats to help him up the stairs and through the back door. While Thanatos scans the area and nods toward the two armed guards standing watch, I follow the remaining three brothers inside. Rather than take the grand staircase to the second floor, Rebel leads us to a hidden service elevator in the back hallway. Once inside, Rebel loops his arm over my shoulders and presses a kiss to the top of my head.

As I take a deep breath in, I smell the remnants of smoke in our hair and clothes. It fills the elevator like the start of a bad dream, and when I close my eyes, flames flicker into the night sky.

Ruin takes a sharp breath, his body stiffening in front of me.

“Almost there.” Rage keeps his arm wrapped around his younger brother’s waist, holding him steady as the elevator comes to a stop.

“I’m fine,” Ruin mutters, stepping into the hallway as soon as the doors slide open. “Let’s go.”

Before I can follow them into the apartment, Thanatos grabs my wrist and pulls me to a stop. “We need to take a detour.”

My heart skips a beat. He couldn’t possibly want to trainnow, could he? One glance at my pajamas makes me wince. They’re silky but skimpy, leaving little room for strenuous movement without showing off the curve of my ass or an ample eyeful of cleavage.

If Thanatos gets me alone, I’m not sure what to expect. Will he be the kind man who breaks me free from handcuffs and apologizes for dropping a vase at my feet, or will he be the force of nature throwing me to the mat and panting in my ear?

Rebel pulls a face as I slip from beneath his arm. “Man, what now? Can’t it wait?” He scratches the top of his head, ruffling his dirty locks. “We’ve all had a shit night and an even shittier day. Let it rest, man.”

Thanatos narrows his eyes. “You know who isn’t resting?” A muscle in his jaw tics as he tightens his grip on my wrist. “Our psychopath father. I need her for a minute. Go take your fucking shower.”

I place my hand on Rebel’s chest and pop up onto my tiptoes to press a quick kiss to his lips. “Go on. I’ll meet you inside in a minute.”

He glowers at Thanatos before stealing a deeper kiss, cupping my face in his hands as he sighs against my lips. “I want you naked the minute you step inside the house, okay? I want to wash your hair.”

Rolling my eyes, I pat his chest. “Okay, tough guy.” I bite my lip as I meet Ruin’s gaze, then Rage’s beside him. “Will you guys be okay?”

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