Rivals 🌈 ✔

71 - A Loaded Conscience

"Go ahead," Juice replied indifferently. He turned and walked back into the waiting room. Alvarez followed him and called a few men together, giving orders in a hushed tone. Juice slumped down on an empty chair next to Skye.

"What are they going to do?" she asked.

He shrugged. "Make sure Chibs doesn't tell anyone that Raine is still alive."

His friend's face went pale. "What do you mean? They're not going to... Juice, I understand you feel horrible for what your brothers did, but surely you don't want them to end Chibs' life? He has always been there for you."

"He betrayed me," he growled.

Juice got up and started pacing around the room. He wasn't in the mood for Skye's objections; he had no room for them in his head. He didn't care what became of Chibs or his other brothers, not even if their skin was ripped off their bones little by little. His surroundings faded, the others waiting in the room vanishing.

Only when the door towards the surgery rooms opened, he stood still. A skinny young man with an ashen face looked around nervously.

He is dead. The expression of the co-assistant or nurse or whatever he was said enough. Otherwise, he wouldn't have looked so devastated, right?

Juice gave him no opportunity to seek contact. He moved towards the guy and grabbed him by the collar of his white coat. "Is he dead?"

The man tried to lean back, but Juice didn't give him room. Lips parted, stammering.

"Juice..." He heard Skye's voice beside him and felt her grab his arm. He jerked free and drilled his gaze into the young man's. "Well? Is he dead or not?"

"N-no," the man stammered. "He's... he's in a coma. The internal and external bleedings are stopped, some broken bones have been set..."

The man spoke about other injuries, something with his lungs, possible brain damage... it made Juice's head spin and all he could think about was his boyfriend who had lost consciousness, who was stuck in the dark and might never see the light again.

His legs were shaking, he fell to his knees. Suddenly that suffocating darkness also dived on top of him, clawing its way inside him and tearing him apart. Juice too lost sight of the light—and the last thing going through his mind before he was swallowed by a dark spiral of fear, was that he would never see that light again if Raine wouldn't do so either. 

. . .

Juice had resisted the impossible stress incredibly well, but as soon as the news was brought that Raine was in a coma, he collapsed. Skye rushed to him. He was sitting on the floor, had made himself small, his arms protectively wrapped around his head. He was not crying. His breathing, however, was quick and light. Someone crouched down beside her and put a hand on her arm.

"We'll take care of him," a female nurse said.

Skye took a deep breath. She didn't want to leave her friend. At the same time, there were more people counting on her. Sammy. Chibs.

The first was huddled on a chair, next to her father, who had put an arm around her and was speaking softly to her. At least he is still alive, that's what their faces were expressing.

Knowing Sammy would manage without her for a while, she grabbed her phone. Whether she was doing the right thing or not she didn't know, but she couldn't just leave Chibs to die. Suppose everything worked out for Raine, but Juice had Chibs's death on his conscience... Now he was filled with rage, with fear... but that would wear off eventually. Chibs' death, on the other hand, would be irreversible.

And not only Juice would struggle with that guilt, but she would do so too. She liked the man, perhaps more than the other Sons.

She walked out of the waiting room and scrolled through her phone until she found Jax's number. How she had gotten that, she couldn't remember. Probably after an attempt to hook up, a century ago. She pressed the green icon and waited tensely. It may be in the middle of the night, but she couldn't imagine the VP had gone to bed after whatever had happened today. And if he had, he probably kept his phone close.

Thankfully, there was an answer. "Skye?"

"Jax." Her voice trembled and she tried her best to pull herself together. "I..." She closed her eyes for a moment. She needed to think about this carefully. "Raine is dead," she whispered. She would probably get in trouble for this lie later, but she didn't want to give the Sons a reason to come to the hospital. And as far as she knew, they didn't kill innocent women. Unlike Juice, she had never sworn any oath. "He died in the hospital. Someone found him at the dump and brought him here... but to no avail." She looked over her shoulder, afraid someone might hear her. Apart from Phantom—who was no longer inside the building—she did not know any of Raine's brothers, so she definitely didn't trust them. However, no one was paying attention to her.

"I'm sorry, Skye."

Jax sounded sincere, and that very thing stung. He probably meant it too. Violence was so ingrained in these guys that they truly believed they had no choice but to do this.

But there really was. She was proving that now.

"Juice shot Chibs in the leg and then went to Raine. The Mayans picked him up—along with Raine's body—but they are now on their way to the dump to take revenge on Chibs. I... I had to warn someone."

"Of course, darling. I understand. We'll make sure nothing else happens to Chibs."

Skye bit her lip, still not knowing whether she had done the right thing. What if this turned into a bloodbath right now? What if she would have not only Chibs' death on her conscience but that of many more men?

She mumbled a thank you, then she disconnected with trembling fingers.

What a mess. This time, she couldn't manage to blink away the tears.

. . .

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