•Rayan's POV •
After hearing what Salem had just said my mind goes blank.
I want to tell him how much I want that too but something holds me back. Something I can't name is screaming at me to just walk away from all this and save myself the heartbreak. My conflicted feelings are cut off by the ring of my phone. I answer with a harsh grunt.
"Get home. Now. Bring Salem, Hale, Clayton, Blythe, and Olympia. Make sure Simone is nowhere near here," Navy's voice lets out in a rush. He cuts the call before I can say anything, but by his tone I know that something serious has happened.
Salem somehow hear the call and is already on this phone summoning the people that Navy asked for. With a simple nod of Salem's head I know that it means everything is covered. He grabs my hand and leads up to his car in a hurry.
We all arrive at my house at the same time. Olympia and Blythe have sick expressions on their faces as if they already know what this is about. Hale follows next to Clayton while we all head for the front door.
A harsh male scream echos from inside the house, followed by a slur of curses. My legs move at an accelerated pace as I burst through my front door.
Every one of the guys is in the living room, all of Salem's gang, and Dane's. Even Sasha, who sits on the staircases staring blankly at the floor.
The next thing I see is the worst of all. Talus. Bleeding out on our living room floor. His hands are restrained by Sawyer as Bobby tries to sow a wound on his shoulder. Luca tends to one of his thigh. His skin is a pale grey and his body is covered in the cold sweats. An angry red has taken over the skin around his shoulder, it's obvious that his thigh will be next. His face is covered in bruises and his stomach is a mix of black and blue and cuts. It looks as if he survived a world war.
"How the hell..." my words are cut short by a hiss from Dane. The worried look on his face pulls at my heart.
"Goddammit Talus! If you could just shut your mouth sometimes this would never happen." Dane walks in from the kitchen, adding a few curses after his sentences.
"I'm so-" Talus's words are drowned out by his screams as Luca begins a second layer of stitches. I feel hands move to the my waist as a sob escapes my throat. Everyone looks at me now. Some eyes filled with remorse, some are blank and empty.
"We didn't think things would go this far. Exchange the product and leave. But Talus has to run his mouth and get shot, then run his fucking mouth and get stabbed," Dane seethes. The pure anger and pain in his voice scares me. I've only seen him like this a few times. Every single time I do his pain becomes mine and it's almost unbearable.
Roman awkwardly coughs and bends down beside Luca. "Cross the stitches three times to keep more pressure on the wound."
"I know what I'm doing shit head. Back up."
Without protest Roman does, probably finding it best to not start an argument in a moment like this. I see Elijah out of the corner of my eyes make a shocked expression towards his phone. His mouth drops and his eyes go wide.
"Simone is on her way here. Someone at her job saw you all drive into town."
Before any of us can react Talus beings to scream, which causes the front door to burst open with a wild-eyed Simone in its wake. We didn't even have time to create a diversion as she's already kneeling on the floor besides her bleeding boyfriend.
"What happened to him!" She yells. Hale comes behind her an picks her up off the floor. She beings to move her limbs vigorously to try and get out of his hands, but it does nothing against his iron grip. Her anger turns to tears while she stares at Talus. His body is almost unmoving, but the short breaths shows the life still somehow manages to stick around.
"Is he going to die?" Petra asks from the far corner of the room. I hadn't even noticed her until now.
"I don't know. An infection has spread throughout his thigh, probably from a contaminated blade of some sort. And the bullet is still in his shoulder, and we can't get it out because it exploded in this arm..." Luca trails off at that. My heart sinks at those words. I already know a hospital isn't an opinion to them, and we surly don't have anything to help him here. He either bleeds out or dies of infection. No other outcome can be possible.
As if he found a way to contradict my thoughts, Salem begins to speak. "Do you have any grain alcohol?"
"Bro this is no time to be drinking," Clayton scolds. Salem rolls his eyes and walks into the kitchen. A few minutes later he comes out with the booze and two cups. He moves next to Luca an tells him to stop the stitches and loosen them. Bobby does this as well on his shoulder and they both move aside.
"You might want something to bite," Salem warns Talus as he places the handle in my brother mouth. His eyes widen as he realizes what's going to happen.
"What is this the western era?" Blythe hisses at Salem as if he's a madman. My thoughts are the same as he opens the bottle and pours it into two plastic cups. Before he starts Talus takes the bottle of alcohol with his good arm and chugs half of it straight. He doesn't even flinch as he swallows the poison.
"I've been shot twice, this was one of the only things that kept the infection from spreading," he says not even looking up. Dane seems to be the only person not protesting this. He looks on and waits for the process to happen.
"Hold him down," he barks the orders at Navy who comes to assist Bobby, the strongest out the groups.
"On three okay?" Salem says to Talus. He nods his head lightly.
"One..." without the next two numbers Salem pours the wicked liquid on my brothers thigh and shoulder. The loudest scream of all leaves my brothers mouth. It's long and painful and leaves all of us in complete shock. This even makes Sasha start to realize what has actually happened to his friend. He stands up and walks over to where most of us are.
"Jesus Christ," I whisper under my breath. This is too much for me to handle. I can't watch another person I love just die. This can't be happening again.
"We have to take him to the hospital, Dane. Please"
He turns his head up to me, his eyes cold. "A bullet wound means an automatic police report. We can't have that. And because both of these wounds are so infected it's clear that we are trying to hide something. The hospital is not an option."
His stubbornness enrages me. How can he be so selfish? His brother is on our living room floor bleeding to death, but he's too worried about being question by police. I've reached my end with his bullshit.
I turn to Navy and Sawyer, looking at them as if daring them to question me. "Take Talus to the car."
Dane steps right up to me, nose to nose. His tall frame and angry figure would normally frighten me, but right now all I can think about it keeping my brother alive.
"You don't make the rules, Rayan. I do. He's staying here. If he is to die it will be around me not in the care of strangers."
"For once stop being the such a self absorbed prick an think of your family. For once in your goddamn life focus on your brother. For once just care instead of being some dead inside zombie that only thinks of himself."
My words hit him harder than any slap I was planning to give could. His angry eyes changed to cold, hard, and vicious. He took a step back from me as if he didn't even know who I was.
"Take him," was the only word he muttered before storming his way upstairs not even looking at anybody in the room.
Navy and Sawyer don't hesitate as they carefully pick up Talus's almost unmoving body, and carry him out to the car.
I feel a warm hand on the small of my back guiding me to the door. I don't even have to look up to know who's hand it is.
§
It's been awhile guys...
Expect more updates soon:)
QOTD | how do you like my book so far? Any suggestions for what should happen next? Thoughts on Rayan telling Dane off?
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King of Spades |Book 1|
Teen Fiction*ONGOING* BOOK #1 OF THE BLACKWOOD SERIES | All she wants is her life back. She wants her mom to hold her, and her father to tell her everything's okay. She wants her sister right by her side through thick and thin. That all was taken away. Rayan...
