Page 166 of Bones
I didn’t move.
“Bones,” Madame ordered.
“No.” The word came out hoarse, but it came out.
The temperature of the room seemed to plummet. Everyone stared at me, Nemo included. I met his pained eyes for a second.
“What did you just say?” Madame asked, her voice dangerous.
“I said no,” I said louder.
Madame stared hard at me for a moment before looking at her men. “Looks like Bones needs another reminder.”
Lem stepped forward, grinning. His first blow knocked me flat on my back. I didn’t even bother trying to get up. Lem hauled me up anyway so he could put a fist in my gut. I doubled over wheezing.
“You ready to heal him now, Bones?” Madame asked, her voice sharp as broken glass.
“No,” I rasped out.
After the third time I refused, a part of me seemed to snap. I was on my hands and knees in the dirty hay, watching a string of blood drip from my mouth to the floor, when I startedlaughing. The entire room went still. I pushed myself up onto my knees, grinning around a mouthful of blood.
“Something funny, Bones?” Madame asked, her voice almost shrill.
"Fuck you," I said, still grinning like a maniac. "I'm not doing shit for you anymore." I pointed a finger at her, my hand steady despite the pain. "You better fuckin' pray you never get hurt or sick ever again, ’cause if you do, I'm watchin' you die."
Fury and maybe a little bit of fear flashed in her eyes, and she gave Sax a sharp order to take over from Lem. Sax looked unnerved as I knelt there grinning up at him with blood dribbling down my chin. Maybe it was his idea of mercy or maybe he just didn’t like it when people weren’t scared of him, but his first blow hit me hard in the temple and knocked me right out.
27
Eight days after Trey's death, Griz walked into the clinic, his arm wrapped in a bloody bandage. When I looked up and saw his face, my stomach flipped with a brief nauseating mix of surprise, hope, desperation, and guilt. But his expression didn't change, staying blank and flat, and my emotions died as quickly as they'd come. Vulture didn't move to stop him, so Mac's crew must not have been forbidden from seeing me. They hadn't comeon purpose.
I moved forward, the chain around my ankle clanking along behind me. I still sported a dark purple black eye, but the swelling had gone down enough for me to open it. More bruises ranging from purple to green in color were littered across my face and the rest of my body. I knew I looked rough since most people who walked in gasped out loud at the sight of me. I braced for Griz’s reaction, but he just walked straight up to me and held his bandaged arm out without a word. I focused on that to avoid meeting his gaze. I reached for the bandage so I could unwrap it and see the wound, but his good hand snaked out and caught my wrist.
“Wait,” he said, low.
I looked up at him, taken aback. His eyebrows creased and his eyes gleamed with pain, making worry burst in my head like a flare. I tried to reach for the bandage again, but his fingers tightened on my wrist, halting me for the second time.
“Bones,wait,”he growled.
I gave up and tried to pull my arm back, but he didn’t let go of my wrist. My gaze shot back to his face, a familiar fear tightening in my gut. Griz shifted sideways so that his bulky body blocked Vulture’s view.
“It’s ok, Bones,” he breathed as his thumb stroked my arm, “just hold on a sec.”
Gunshots erupted outside, and screams filled the air. I jumped with a gasp, but Griz just spun, shoving me behind him and putting three bullets in Vulture before I even realized he had a gun in his hand. He turned and trained his gun up at the loft.
“Anyone up there?” he asked. “Bones, is anyone up there?” he repeated sharply when I didn’t answer.
“No,” I finally managed to answer from where I stood frozen, staring at Vulture sliding to the floor and leaving a large bloody streak on the wall behind him.
He stared back at me, gasping wetly. “Angel, he got…I’m not…please…” he choked out, his face lined in panic and pain.
If I ran forward, I could heal him and save his life, but for the second time, I just stood there staring at him as he bled out. Griz locked the door and then shoved the exam chair in front of it, propping it to make it harder to enter. Vulture's choked pleas trailed off. His blue eyes locked on me, swirling with a multitude of emotions. Griz finished blockading the door and moved back to where I stood. He knocked the metal exam table onto its side and got behind it, looking up at me.
“Bones, c’mere,” he snapped.
Outside the screams and gunshots grew louder. I glanced at my mattress and strongly considered just lying down again. Griz swore and leapt up, grabbing my arm and yanking me down behind the table.
“I need you to focus. This is it. We’re gonna stop Madame for good.”
