Page 6 of Sins of the Fathers
I don’t think she’s telling us just how bad it was—or how close we came to losing him. Shit. I’m glad it doesn’t look like an overdose, but that raises a big question. If Knox didn’t do this, who did—and why?
“Do you have any idea when he’ll come around?” Grady asked.
Dr. Fairchild gave a sad smile. “I’m sorry—I wish I could answer that, but it’s going to be up to Mr. King’s body to decide when he’s ready. We’re monitoring him to make sure he doesn’t have any unexpected side effects, but he’ll wake up when it’s time. I wouldn’t advise trying to hurry that.”
After she left, Grady squeezed Dawson’s hand and then let go, approaching his brother on the opposite side of the bed from where Colt had returned to his seat. Grady put a hand on Knox’s shoulder. “Just be okay, Knox,” he said quietly, tearing up. “We know this wasn’t your fault. You don’t have to hide. So come back when you’re ready. I need you; Colt needs you—we all do.”
He stepped back, stifling a sob, and reached for Dawson, who wrapped an arm around him. “Knox is tough. He’ll fight this. He just needs more time.”
Grady nodded. “I know. Doesn’t make it any easier.”
Denny turned to Colt. “Can you tell us anything more? Where was he? Who found him?”
“I’ll tell you what I know,” Colt said, with a worried glance at Knox. Dawson recalled reading that unconscious people could often hear what was said around them, and he wondered if Colt thought recounting the incident might further stress Knox.
“By the time I got the call, they already had Knox here at the Emergency Room,” Colt said. “Denny and I are his emergency contacts, but they called me first. I read the preliminary report. Someone reported a man passed out in the alley behind the hardware store to the cops. Thought it might be a vagrant. When they found him, Knox was agitated but out of it. He couldn’t respond to questions, and he tried to fight off anyone who got near. Then apparently he collapsed and was completely unresponsive. He’s been this way since then.”
Colt looked up at them. “But the thing is—Knox wasn’t supposed to be at the store longer than to make sure paychecks went through. The process is automated, but he likes to check, just in case. He was off today. We were supposed to run errands and go to the farmer’s market.”
Dawson frowned. “But it was payday. Anyone who had been watching for a while would have picked up on his habit of going in. So it was one time they could count on him being there.”
Colt looked frightened. “You’re right.”
“To know that, someone had to be watching for at least a month—or know someone in the store,” Grady said, sounding suspicious and angry.
“I’d like to think we can cross off the employees,” Denny put in. “They’ve stuck with Knox through thick and thin. He’s stressed them out—and has also done each of them some really good turns. I know anything’s possible, but I would sure hate to find out they had anything to do with it. That’s quite a betrayal.”
“I don’t think it was the hardware staff,” Grady said, shaking his head. “The last thing they’d want is Knox in relapse. Things go much better when he’s sober. He’s a good manager when he has his wits about him. Hurting him hurts the store.”
Dawson looked to Colt. “Has anyone from Knox’s past been around lately?” He didn’t wait for an answer. “Has he seemed nervous? Was he hiding something he didn’t want you to worry about?”
“No.” Colt sounded sure of his answer. “Learning not to keep secrets was a big part of his recovery therapy. There’s nothing for him to be ashamed of, and I do my very best not to judge. We’ve put a lot of time and money into those counseling sessions.”
He paused, then gritted his teeth as if having a silent internal conversation. “If someone from his past had come around, Knox would have told me. He’s protective, and he wouldn’t want them near me. He’d be an absolute tiger about it.”
“Maybe someone turned up and took pains not to be noticed,” Grady suggested. “But why? Knox doesn’t owe money to anyone. We helped him clear those debts years ago. Even at his worst, he didn’t use enough that stopping would put a dealer out of business.”
“Maybe it doesn’t have anything to do with Knox’s past or his addiction,” Dawson said slowly as an idea formed. “Not if someone hurt him to send a message to the Kings. Knox might not be hunting now, but he did for a long time. Long enough to piss off plenty of folks who were profiting by something we shut down.”
Denny’s expression darkened. “You’re thinking this is more about the family than Knox?”
Dawson shrugged. “Maybe. We don’t know enough for a good theory, but I agree with Colt that it doesn’t sound like a relapse. And I know for a fact that the family has more than a few enemies. Maybe Knox was picked to send a message.”
“Anyone who hurt that boy to ‘send a message’ deserves a special place in hell,” Denny growled. “But if you’re right, then we need to make sure someone’s with Knox all the time—we can’t give that person an opportunity to do more harm.”
Dawson pulled Grady close and felt the tremors of anger and fear that ran through him. “We’ll figure it out, Gray,” Dawson said. “And then we’ll take care of the mofos who did this to him.”
2
GRADY
Denny offeredto come back after dinner to give Colt a break to eat, shower, and get a few hours’ sleep. Grady and Dawson promised to take turns sitting with Knox as well, and they worked out a schedule, all of them hoping that Knox would wake up and the vigil would end.
Dawson parked in front of the house they now shared, and Grady got out and grabbed his duffel bag, feeling like he was sleepwalking.
“Come on,” Dawson coaxed. “Let’s go in and get cleaned up. You’ll feel better. I’ll make coffee. It’s been quite a day.”
Usually, Grady found comfort in the familiar old house that had been the childhood home he shared with his father and Knox. Aaron had left the house to Grady, afraid Knox might lose it on one of his downturns. Aaron made provision for Knox, setting aside money equal to the value of the house in protected accounts. Even though Grady knew the inheritance was technically fair, he still sometimes felt guilty, although Knox hadn’t seemed to care.
