Page 64 of Spyder
But these guys are like a cult and they’ll fight to the death because they know if they don’t, if they break ranks and run, Zavala will have them killed himself—and probably their families too. That kind of mentality, not to mention the threats behind it, makes madmen of them all, and they could potentially blow up any plan we put together because they’ll just keep coming.
Still, I trust in Leadership and believe they can put something together that will give us the best advantage we can get. Maybe it’ll be enough to carry the day. But then, it might not be. They could overwhelm us with sheer numbers. And it’s that uncertainty, that possibility that we could be wiped out, that’s had me feeling so on edge ever since things between Bellamy and I got serious.
It’s not that I’m scared to die. If you die fighting for a good cause, doing the right thing, then it’s a good death and one you should be proud of. And to me, there’s no better cause than protecting this town and all the people in it from a monster like Zavala. What’s giving me pause, though, is Bellamy. The thought of not getting to spend my days with her, of not getting to see her again… it breaks my heart, and it makes me sick all at the same time.
She’s everything I’ve ever wanted. She’s all I really wanted. And to finally get a chance to be with her, to love her, and to have her love me back… it’s been the greatest joy of my life. It’s made me happier than I ever knew I could be. And I’m not ready to give that up yet. I want to hang onto it for as long as I possibly can. For the rest of what I’d like to be an unusually long life.
But I know that I’ll never abandon my brothers when there’s a fight coming. I’ll stand shoulder to shoulder with them and keep fighting until we’ve won the day—or there’s none of us left standing. One way or the other, this war with Zavala will come to an end. And I will fight like hell, do whatever I have to do to get back to Bellamy.
“You think we can beat him?” I ask.
Nitro shrugs his broad shoulders, not even needing to ask who the “he” is in this situation. Zavala has become a sort of bogeyman to us all, and we all just seem to know who it is we’re talking about without ever mentioning his name.
“I like to think we can. I like to think our training and tactical advantage gives us an edge. But the odds are stacked way against us, so who can say?” he replies.
“Remind me to not ask you to give us a pep talk before the fight,” I say.
My phone rings, so I pull it out of my pocket and connect the call, figuring it’s Bellamy. But then, I hear a voice I don’t recognize.
“Derek? This is Ruby Miller and I’m sorry to call you like this, but it’s about Bellamy.”
***
I burst through the doors of the emergency room, looking around frantically. The smell of the antiseptic is strong and cloying. It’s one of the reasons I’ve always hated hospitals. The biggest reason is that hospitals are filled with nothing but misery and suffering. Nothing but pain and death.
It’s not very busy at this time of night, so I run over to the nurse’s station. The older, severe-looking woman behind the desk looks startled when I approach, the look on her face telling me she’s contemplating whether or not to call the cops.
“Bellamy Young,” I say, not patient enough for the niceties. “Car accident. She was brought in—”
“Derek?”
I turn to see a tall, willowy platinum blonde standing there. Her blue eyes are rimmed red and her cheeks are flushed. She’s obviously been crying. I can still see the traces of the girl she was back in high school in the smooth, refined, beautiful face of the woman before me.
“Ruby?”
She nods and gives me an awkward smile and looks like she’s trying to decide whether or not she should give me a hug. She ultimately opts against it which is probably good. It’s not like we were friends back in the day. She’s Bellamy’s best friend, and this might be the only conversation we’ve ever had.
“It’s been a while.”
“It has.”
The nurse at the desk turns away, apparently glad she doesn’t have to deal with me after all. I follow Ruby to a waiting room where, judging by the number of empty coffee cups and used tissues, she’s obviously been camped out for a while. I sit down in the chair next to her. She grabs a new tissue from her bag and wipes her eyes then her nose. Even though I want answers and want to press her, I give her a moment to gather herself.
“So what happened?” I finally ask when she’s straight.
Ruby shakes her head. “All I know is she was in a car accident. I’ve been raising hell around here trying to get answers, but all they’ll tell me is she doesn’t appear to have any life-threatening injuries, but she’s in surgery right now.”
“Surgery for what?”
A look of absolute misery crosses her face. “I don’t know. They aren’t being specific. They’re not giving me much information at all.”
We both fall silent for a moment as I process everything that she’s telling me. My heart has been in the pit of my stomach since I got the call, and this isn’t making things any better. The idea of Bellamy lying in there, under the knife, having God knows what done to her is eating me up inside.
“Hell of a way for us to finally meet, huh?” Ruby sniffs.
A wry smile touches my lips. “Yeah. I suppose so.”
“She loves you, you know,” Ruby says. “I’ve known her all her life and I’ve never seen her as taken with anybody as she is with you.”
