Nowhere To Go

Chapter Nineteen

“Hey, I’m going to go and get some coffee. You want to come with?” Howie asked after a while of silence. Brian sighed, rubbing his eyes. He could definitely use some caffeine but didn’t want to leave Nick. He knew what it was like to wake up in a hospital bed alone.

“No, I’d better stay in case he wakes up or something. I don’t want him to wake up and be alone here.”

“Do you want me to bring you back something? You really need to have something to eat at least.” Howie suggested. Brian eventually agreed to let Howie get him something just so he would stop badgering him and watched him leave the room, listening to his footsteps in the hallway.

“Now I know how you feel when I won’t stop asking you if you’re okay or need anything.” Brian chuckled as he gave Nick’s hand a squeeze. This wasn’t the first time he had spent a hospital stay with Nick. The one that stuck out in Brian’s mind was one time Nick had a very bad case of the flu and ended up spending the night in a European hospital because he was dehydrated and running a fever of 103. His parents were not there, and since Brian was his legal guardian at the time…he stayed the night. Nick never knew about the guardianship but Brian hadn’t forgotten.

“Brian, can I ask you something?”

“Sure, Mrs. Carter. What do you need?” Brian asked when Nick’s mother Jane had cornered him during rehearsals.

“Call me Jane, dear.”

Brian knew she was going to ask him for something important because she was being overly friendly, something she usually wasn’t. The only one she usually talked to was Lou. She didn’t talk with AJ’s mother or anyone else. AJ often said that his mom disliked Jane Carter and wanted nothing to do with her. Brian couldn’t blame her, knowing stories Nick told him of his family.

“I’ll just get right to the point. Nick’s father and I are going to be managing Aaron’s career as well as Nick’s and I was wondering if you would help us keep an eye on Nick when we cannot be there for him on tour. I’ve already discussed it with Lou and he thinks that you’re the best person to watch over him.” Jane said softly so that Nick did not hear them.

“Me? Why me? Surely you wouldn’t want Kevin or Howie, they’re older than I am.?” Brian asked skeptically. He was barely 21. He didn’t feel like he was ready for the responsibility yet.

“You seem like you get along with my son the best and understand him. He doesn’t stop talking about you. He trusts you.”

“I mean we are friends, and I would love to help…but I don’t-” Brian started but Jane started talking over him and didn’t let him finish.

“All right, it’s settled then. I’ll tell Lou.” Jane said before rushing off to tell their manager before Brian could even think about it any more.

Just like that, he was in charge of Nick.

Brian squeezed Nick’s hand again, letting him know he hadn’t left and he smiled. It was then that he realized Nick’s eyes were open and looking back at him. Brian was so stunned he didn’t know what to do at first but he ran out of the room yelling for the doctors, almost knocking Howie over in the hallway who’d come back with coffees.

“What the hell is going on?” Howie shouted, nearly dropping the coffees when Brian ran past. Brian disappeared around the corner and out of sight but he could still be heard yelling down the hallway.

“So do you have anything to say for yourself, Russ?” Jason asked his brother when they were in the interrogation room. Russell looked like he hadn’t slept in a few days and his hair was wild, his face dirty with dried blood. He was still chuckling to himself.

“I guess you can call me a man now that I shot something.” Russell said, grinning.

“Goddamn it, Russell. Is this still about the camping trip with Dad? Is that why you went after that kid?”

“He hurt Chloe….and Maria….I wanted to teach him a lesson. He’s a scumbag. The bastard doesn’t deserve to live.” Russell whispered. He felt no remorse for shooting Nick Carter at all. As far as he was concerned, he’d done what he set out to do and he was content with himself.

“Are you really blaming him for Chloe’s death? She killed herself. He didn’t kill her. Who’s Maria?” Jason asked. Russel shrugged and leaned back in the chair, bored of the interrogation. He just wanted to be put in his prison cell and be done with the whole thing, he had won so there was nothing else he wanted. He’d avenged Chloe like he set out to do and proved his father wrong.

“It doesn’t matter, it’s still his fault. Just lock me up. You want me there anyway.” Russell muttered.

“Is that what you think, Russ? I never wanted to see you in jail. You killed Jamie in cold blood and you went after this kid too. Clearly you have no remorse for anything you did. I’m gonna make sure you are put away and can’t get out this time.” Jason said, before leaving the room to put through the paperwork and make some phone calls. He loved Russell but he hated seeing how things had turned out this way because of his position being a detective.

Stopping to get a cup of water on the way to his office, he truly wished it was different because he and his brother had their differences growing up. Even before all of the stuff with Russell being an overprotective big brother to their sister, Russell seemed like the problem child in the family. Russell was always getting into some kind of mischief at school, bullying other students and causing fights to the point where he was thrown out. Their parents had talked about sending him to military school to straighten him out, but they could never afford something like that and gave up on the idea. As a result, Russell went unchecked and unhinged with his anger issues.

Hopefully this time his prison sentence would stick.

“I’ll come back to check on him in a little while but he certainly seems to be doing much better.”

Brian nodded as the doctor left the room, sighing. Thankfully, Nick was going to be okay and was just severely dehydrated with a sprained ankle in addition to the gunshot wound that didn’t turn out to be as severe as the hospital first thought. Thankfully the bullet missed any major organs and he only needed minor surgery to remove it. His injuries were not as bad as the others.

“How’s everyone doing?” AJ’s voice came from the doorway, as he knocked softly on the side of the doorframe.  Howie and Brian went to greet him, hugging him and thanking him for saving their lives.

“Look, any of you would have done the same for me. It’s nothing. I’m just glad we all made it out of this. Especially Nick.”

“I’m really sorry about all of this….” Nick whispered as he started to cry. Howie sat next to the bed in the chair beside Brian, taking Nick’s hand.

“What on earth do you have to be sorry for, Nick? We are just happy to see you are okay. Please don’t blame yourself.” Howie protested.

“You don’t understand, Howie. This is my fault. All of this is. I hurt Russel’s sister. She killed herself because I ghosted her and that’s why he came after me. He wanted me dead and you all became part of it. What if he finds out that I’m not dead and he comes after me again? I don’t want any of you to get hurt because of me.” Nick sniffed. The guys looked at each other and nobody spoke for a while because while they didn’t blame Nick whatsoever for what happened, Nick was right. Russell coming after them again was certainly a threat.

“Well, isn’t he behind bars now? I’m sure they won’t take the chance of him escaping prison a second time. He thinks that you’re dead. Don’t worry, Nick, we have security outside your room. We won’t let him hurt you.” Brian reassured him. Nick nodded but he still didn’t feel safe. Even with extra security at the hospital and him being away from other patients for privacy, it still felt like something bad was going to happen.

Nick hoped to God he was wrong.