10.
Juice
I stumble then I crawl
"You can barely breathe and walking just looks like you have a stick up your ass. Go back to bed." Bobby said as I came around the corner, he wasn't wrong – breathing was quite the workout. My feet had turned into cinder blocks and just walking downstairs was a chore. I felt okay the first few days, but that must've been from the medicine I had in the hospital because I cannot move without searing pain in my abdomen.
I take the pills to help myself sleep, but I have weird dreams. I had a dream that Skylar got into my bed and we kissed, then she just lay beside me tracing my tattoos as I went to sleep. I have nightmares too, where I killed her or she died that night from the accident. Those are the nights the pills are accompanied with alcohol.
"I have a lead."
Within moments everyone was in the discussion room, the doors slamming shut. I threw down the stack of papers, sitting down in the chair as if I was an old man.
"Do you really thing it was the Mad Dogs?" Sack asked rubbing his head. "We had an alliance with them, what would they be mad at us about?"
"It makes sense." Clay cussed. "God damn it, why didn't I think of that! The president of MDMC lost his son."
"Okay, what does that have to do with us?" Chibs interjected.
"It was on a run with us, that he died." Clay sighed. "That fucker is blaming us. Eye for an eye."
"Shit." Jax said. "So what is the plan then?"
"I'll set up a meeting with Bulldog, but I want you guys to have my back – I'll insist on one on one, but I'm not stupid."
"I want to go." I said sternly.
"No." Jax, Chibs, Tig and Bobby all said in unison.
"You're too hurt." Bobby continued. "Stay here."
"I'm not a wounded animal." I said getting up.
"But, you are." Jax said. "Listen, I know you want revenge. We all do, and I promise you I will find out who did it and I will bring them here. You will have your chance at vengeance."
I nodded, I would be happy with that.
"I want a close eye on MDMC, I don't want them to wipe their asses without me knowing about it." Clay said inhaling his cigar.
"Already on it." Happy nodded.
"Tig, call Kozik."
"No." Tig said immediately.
"I wasn't asking, I'm telling you." Clay glared and Tig's head hung. "Call Kozik, I want security upped on Skylar until this is over. MDMC is someone we thought were our friends, we've been holding hands with the enemy."
"Should a few of us go up?" I asked.
"No, I don't want them to follow us." Clay sighed. "Right now I don't think they know where she is, or even that we took her somewhere... I want it to stay that way."
I nodded in agreeance, this entire situation had me so irritated. I haven't spoken to Skylar in weeks, I know only roughly where she is. She's in a cabin alone with Kozik, which I know they wouldn't fall in love but I was jealous. I wanted to be alone with her in a cabin, it was my job to protect her.
I was forced to sit around and wait, the most painful thing in the world. And trust me, I know pain. I think I smoked a carton of cigarettes waiting for any news, I know Clay immediately called MDMC and requested to speak to Bulldog. He acted as if it was about our running, as if he was chipper... it made a chill go down my spine to see him with a smile on the phone, a laugh as he said goodbye to the man on the phone.
Another hour I sat there waiting for my phone to ring, for a text message... for someone to come through that door.
Then, finally at 2am my phone finally rang.
Per usual, I was not expecting who was on the other end.
