Page 15 of Sweet Vengeance
As soon as we get there, a Black man in a white coat is walking out of the back. His gaze takes us in. “You’re Ollie’s…”
“People,” I answer.
“He’s the boyfriend.” Rory points to me, and I have to force myself not to roll my eyes.
“I’m his brother,” Dean interrupts. “What’s wrong with him?”
“Dean, right? He was confused about that when we asked him,” the doc says.
“Must be the head injury. How is he?” Tiernan cuts to the chase.
He sighs. “I’m Dr. Perry. He took a pretty bad beating. He has numerous lacerations, bruises, and a concussion. He took a few kicks to the ribs. They’re mostly bruised, but there’s a small crack in one. We’ll keep him at least overnight. They’re working on getting him a room assignment.” He looks at Dean. “I asked about calling your parents, but your brother didn’t want to. The police are here too. They need to get a statement, but we haven’t let them in yet. I can bring two of you back with me.”
Dean is going to be one of them, that’s obvious. I have no reason to be the other, and I’m sure Dean will want Tiernan with him. My cousin will probably want to be there too so he can find out what happened. Still, I open my mouth to claim a spot in that room that I shouldn’t want, but Dean speaks first. “His boyfriend and I will go back.”
Oh…well, I didn’t expect that.
“Follow me.” Dr. Perry leads the way.
“You guys can stop calling me his boyfriend,” I say softly.
“But why, when it’s so much fun?” Dean teases.
I don’t have time to reply, both of us sobering when we turn into the room where Ollie is.
“Motherfuckers,” slips past my lips the second I lay eyes on him. He has a huge goose egg on his head, bruised cheek, one black eye swollen shut. The bed is raised, so he’s sitting up, but he looks tired and weak. There’s blood and dirt in his blond hair. My gaze snags on the bruising on his knuckles, the only thing to give me a small smile.
He fought back.
They might have gotten the better of him, but he let them know he wasn’t going down easily, and now we’ll take care of the rest for him.
“Can I have a minute alone with my brother?” Dean asks, his voice barely containing his rage.
Dr. Perry looks at Ollie. “Is that still okay? If your brother and your boyfriend are here?”
Ollie’s mouth drops open, and I’m really fucking regretting my slip of the tongue from earlier.
“I, um…yes,” he says, voice soft with confusion and maybe something more. Fear? Exhaustion? Pain? There’s a hundred things it could be.
The second the doctor is out of the room, Dean says, “Who did this to you?”
“Shhh.” I point around us. We’re not in a private space, so both of us step closer to the bed.
“I don’t know. I was walking home from work and—”
“Why the fuck were you walking home?” I interrupt.
“Because I don’t have a car. Not all of us have mob ties and can afford anything we want.”
Well, that answers the question about how much heknows about us. Still, I do what we always do and lie. “Those are rumors.”
“Yeah, and I’m an MMA fighter. It’s obvious we’re both lying with those statements.”
I have no idea why, but I smile. He’s beaten to shit, yet he hasn’t lost his sharp tongue and brave nature. “At least you’re well enough to still hate me. That’s a good sign.”
He frowns at that. Maybe because I reminded him what happened?
“Finish.” Dean uses one commanding word, sounding so much like Tiernan, it still blows my mind.
