Page 6 of Won't Let Go
And I miss it.
I miss our playful banter.
I miss sitting on the couch with Hunter, watching cartoons. Not that he does that much anymore. Unless it’s anime, and even then, it’s not the same. We were buddies once. Now he’s grown. Sure, we’re still buddies, but it’s not the same. Not when you’re cleaning crusty tissues out of his trash in his bedroom. At least they make it into the bin.
Fuck.
I’m stalling.
Saying goodbye to my brothers is easy. Kissing my mom’s cheek and promising I’ll call them with any updates leaves a hollowness in my chest.
When I make it into the hospital, alone, they’ve already moved Jade to a room for overnight observation. A nurse meets me at her door.
“She doesn’t want any visitors,” she whispers, resting her hand on mine to keep me from pushing the handle and going inside.
I nod. Just once.
Tears well in my eyes, and my nose burns. The nurse, knowin’ I’m about to lose it, escorts me down the hall and into an empty room for families. That’s where she leaves me to fall apart.
And I do.
Collapsing onto my knees, hands covering my face, tremors rack my body as I sob.
For Jade.
For Hunter.
For not protecting her.
For letting this happen in the first place.
Fuck.
Fuck.
Fuck.
That night, I remember it well. We had just saved a bunch of trafficked kids from Remy and his trafficking enterprise. We were at a farmhouse in the middle of nowhere when we couldn’t get ahold of Mom or Jade. Gunz got a call that Kit had been taken and lost his shit.
We spent what felt like years trying to find them.
One dead end turned into another dead end until we found the warehouse, where we then lost Runner, one of our brothers. Our women were tied to chairs after being raped for weeks because we couldn’t reach them soon enough.
A choked sob lurches out of my throat as I hang my head and let the truth tear me to shreds.
I’ll fix this.
I don’t know how, but I will.
One day, she’ll smile again—a genuine smile. One day, Jade will stop hating me, and she’ll be okay.
One day.
Fuck.
3
WHITE BOY
