Page 11 of Lawless
"Don't, please. You don't owe me anything." I sat next to her on the bed, taking her small hands between mine. "Do you want to come with me when I leave?" The question tumbled out faster than I could think about it. All I could focus on was keeping this girl safe and far away from the brutal men probably sleeping in the rooms right next to ours.
Her eyes brightened with hope. "Really? Can I?"
It was too late to go back on my word now, so I nodded. "We'll be safer together. I can teach you basic medic skills, too."
"That would be amazing, Mari!" She glanced nervously toward my open door as sounds from the other rooms floated down the hallway. It was nearly noon and sounded like the Steel Demons were just rising.
"We shouldn't say anything to Tom and Liza," she whispered. "I told them I'd be staying a lot longer and...they wouldn't understand."
"My lips are sealed," I told her, making a zipping motion over my mouth. "And hey, if any of those bikers try to mess with you, yell for me. I'm pretty handy with a scalpel."
"I will," she nodded. "But they probably want nothing to do with me now, looking like this."
"Let's hope they leave both of us alone, but still," I gave her shoulder a gentle squeeze. "Just be careful."
* * *
Gretchen wantedto go down to the kitchen with me, but I insisted she rest in her room until at least it was time to cook dinner.
"Doctor's orders," I told her sternly, fluffing her pillows up behind her head.
"You're not a doctor," she teased back with a smile. How she could still bring herself to joke around was beyond me.
"Medic's orders, then," I tapped her nose. "I'll bring you some lunch."
"Fine," she sighed, relaxing back at last.
Perhaps it was naive of me to think the Steel Demons wouldn't be milling about the place like they owned it, but the last thing I expected to see was one of them reading a book in the lobby.
And not just any book. The Bible.
The blonde one with hair to his collarbone, his falcon perched on his shoulder as it preened its feathers, studied the thin pages in front of him like the surrounding world didn't exist.
His long legs stretched out in front of him, leather boots propped up on the coffee table as his blue eyes moved, entranced by ancient prophecies transcribed hundreds if not thousands of times.
Like with the big scarred guy last night, I was so fixed on staring at him that my clumsy ass walked right into the kitchen doors with a hardthunkto my forehead.
"Fuck!" I slapped my palms to my head, knowing getting through unnoticed was impossible now.
"Take it easy," the blonde biker grinned at me. "There are better ways to cure a hangover."
"Not hungover," I grumbled, pushing my way through the door. My cheeks burned and I wanted to forget what had just happened. So when Blonde Biker and his falcon followed me into the kitchen, I wished to sink into the floor from embarrassment and fear.
"Can I help you?" I asked apprehensively, moving to put the counter between me and him.
"Coffee would be great. There's none in my room and not a soul down here ’til you headbutted the door." He shot me a cocky grin.
"Uh, okay." I turned slowly toward the cabinets, keeping my eyes on him. "I'll make some."
"Thanks,Marrriposa." He said my name with an exaggerated rolling r and Spanish accent. "My boy Jandro couldn't stop saying your name last night. I'm Gunner, by the way. This is Horus." He pointed to the bird on his shoulder.
I couldn't think of what to say.Pleased to meet youwould have been an obvious lie.Your hair is prettywould give him the wrong idea. So I opted for an awkward joke.
"Does Horus want coffee, too?” I started cringing before the words ever left my mouth.
Gunner threw his head back and laughed, clutching his flat stomach like it was the funniest thing he heard all day. A smile peeked at the corner of my mouth before I could stop myself.
"Nah, he's a fancy bastard and likes his tea," Gunner winked when he could breathe. "But seriously, he caught a big breakfast this morning. A nice fat gopher, didn't you, boy?"
