Page 109 of Property of Bones

Patch is just pulling up on a bike…not his usual one.

“Hey, brother,” he says as he parks. “Your woman is one tough ray of sunshine.”

“Is she alright?” I ask, trying to see past him. “This isn’t your bike.”

“Nope,” Patch says, swinging off. “It’s Max’s. They’re in my car.”

I scan the road, heart pounding.

Patch’s expression sobers. “I can’t give you a real answer without an X-ray. But Icantell you I pumped her full of some damn good pain meds. She might not be awake when she gets here.”

“As long as she fucking gets here, I don’t care,” I admit.

“I can have an X-ray brought to the compound,” Maverick says, calm as ever. “It’s portable, but it’ll give you the results you need. That work?”

“Absolutely,” Patch replies without hesitation. Then he squints at Maverick. “Who the fuckareyou, Maverick?”

The man just shakes his head, the hint of a smirk tugging at his mouth. Fucker’s always full of secrets.

“You know,” Maverick adds casually, “if you’d reopen your practice, you wouldn’t have these kinds of problems.”

“You know,” Patch shoots back, “you could mind your own fucking business,Outlaw.”

Maverick chuckles and nods. “Too pushy. Got it.”

“Here they come,” Spike says, eyes locked on the approaching vehicle. “Get them in and get that car hidden before Muerte shows.”

I’m already moving, rushing forward before the car fully stops.

“Front seat,” Patch calls out, grabbing gear from the back.

The second I open the door and see her…my beautiful woman…rage tightens in my chest at the sight of her. Her hair is a mess. Her face is etched in pain. But underneath the fury, there’s calm.

She’shome.

“She’s out,” Max says, climbing out and shutting the door behind him. “Get her settled before she wakes. She’s in rough shape, but she fought hard.”

I nod and reach in, gently unbuckling her seatbelt before lifting her into my arms.

“I’ve got you, baby,” I whisper, pressing my face to her hair.

“How soon can you get that X-ray here?” Patch asks behind me as I start toward the house.

“Not for at least an hour,” Maverick replies.

“Hey, brother,” Spike says, nodding toward Patch. “Haven’t seen you in a while.”

“You know me, Prez,” Patch replies. “I like to keep to myself. I’ll head down with the little lady. Keep things locked down.”

But when I reach the hatch in Spike’s house and look down at the long ladder, I stop short.

“How the fuck am I supposed to get her down there?” I ask, shifting Sunny slightly to ease her weight.

“You can’t jostle her, Bones,” Patch warns. “We don’t know what internal damage she’s got. It’s not worth the risk.”

“Then we settle her in my bed,” Spike says. “It’s the best we can do for now.”

“This is a problem we’re going to have to fix later,” Skip mutters. “No way that ladder should be the only way in.”

---