Page 94 of Caged

The breath I’d been holding rushed out.She’ll be okay.

“When can I see her?” I asked.

“Maybe tomorrow.”

That wasn’t good enough. I needed to see her. I sat up, ignoring the protest from my ribs.

“Jay, you shouldn’t get out of bed,” my mom said, gently pushing me back against the pillows.

I didn’t care if she was awake or not. I couldn’t relax until I verified she was okay. “I need to see Cate.” I barked.

“Jaden.” My father corrected my behavior with nothing more than my name.

I apologized for being rude to my mother, “Sorry, Ma, but I need to see her.” Desperation filled my voice.

“You can’t see her in a hospital gown that barely closes, and the clothes you had on when we found you are, to beperfectly blunt, offensive,” Jack said, half joking to lighten the mood.

He’s right.There was no way in hell I could put on what I’d been wearing. The clothes I’d worn for four days stank of blood, sweat, pain, and fear. The only thing I’d be doing was burning them.

“Do either of you have any extra clothes?” I asked. I was taller than Jamie and broader than both, so their clothes wouldn’t fit well, but I was too desperate to care.

My father shared a look with Jamie before saying, “Jamie will bring clothes when he comes back tomorrow.”

A knock on the door prevented me from arguing.

“Dinner,” the nurse said, carrying in a tray.

My stomach growled at the mention of food. “You know you’re hungry when hospital food sounds good,” I said.

“You say that,” the nurse joked, “but the doctor has you on a bland diet for your first few meals.” He set up the table over my bed.

“Dude, that sucks,” Jack said, grinning.

“Not helping, asshole,” I said, causing the nurse to laugh.

“Boys.” Dad corrected us.

“Oh for Christ’s sake, John. Just let them swear.” She sounded exhausted. “It’s not like I haven’t heard it before.” She pointed at Jack before turning to me. “But don’t get used to it.”

“Yes, Ma,” we answered together. I shouldn’t have looked at Jack, but I did. He made a stupid face, making me laugh. Not wanting to upset my mother, I tried holding in mylaughter, which made me cough. Reminding me of the abuse my ribs had suffered.

I groaned as I looked at the small chicken breast and side of mashed potatoes. “Thanks.”

“Sorry, man, doctor’s orders.”

I read his name tag so I could appeal to him, dude to dude.

“Paul, could you do me a solid and at least get me some more salt and pepper?” I practically begged.

“I’ll see what I can do.” He laughed as he left the room.

“Thanks, man.”

As soon as he was out the door, I turned to Jack, interrupting his text conversation. “Any chance you can get me a steak?”

He chuckled, “On it.” A few seconds later he said, “AJ said he’ll run to the cafeteria.” I don’t think I’d ever loved my brother more than I did in that moment.

“You’re the best,” I said.

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