Double Crossed

I'm a Tangerine

[Zack’s POV]

I’ve been awake for a couple hours now. Volant and Jacky were both in the hospital room when I woke up around eleven thirty. They explained to me what happened while I was out and the injuries the team sustained. They told me that I was one of the worst hurt by the attack, with my brother being the worst. Not that we’re keeping score.

I can’t help but feel responsible for Zane’s injuries. My little brother was stabbed and I didn’t do anything! Given there wasn’t much I could do by the time it happened but I’m still his older brother. I’m supposed to protect him. When we were growing up our mom used to make us hold hands when walked to the bus stop down the road. Of course I was in grade three, but we still let go of the others hand as soon as we were out of sight of the house. Even though I let go of his hand, I never stopped looking out for him, even after we got to the age where holding hands wasn’t necessary anymore. And now I’ve let him get stabbed, my own brother. What will I say to him when he wakes up?

After Volant and Jacky finish explaining the basic things to me, Jacky calls out to someone in the hall, who turns out to be Erin and Kim. I was told about her injuries before but when I see her head and her arm wrapped, I am instantly filled with rage and then an overwhelming urge to pull her into my arms and make her injuries my own.

Now, Jacky, Kim, Erin and Volant have pulled up chairs by my hospital bed and we are just talking randomly. The nurse wouldn’t let me leave yet because of my injuries, so until farther notice I’m bed ridden. Which means the debriefing is happening in here when Zane wakes up.

“If you want to hear about stories, Volant, you should hear about the tubing incident that happened at Zack and Zane’s cottage one weekend!” Jacky says bringing me out of my thoughts at the mention of my name. I don’t know how we got onto this topic of conversation, but I instantly laugh along with the others, remembering it from last year.

Volant shakes his head, laughing. “You know, this doesn’t surprise me.”

“Oh man, you should have been there!” Kim says, still laughing.

I look over at Erin to see her laughing as well. I can’t help but notice the way her natural smile lights up her face and I quickly find myself smiling back. The only issue? She isn’t smiling at me; she’s smiling at Volant. As he smiles back I repress the compulsion to violently wipe the smile off his face. I glace back at Erin and see that there is something in her eyes. Did something happen between her and Volant?

“Zack, tell the story!” Erin says to me, and when we make eye contact she automatically shoots me a confused look, obviously using her super person sensing skill, or whatever it’s called.

I laugh, it is a funny story. “Just don’t let your parents go tubing with beer, Volant. Although it is quite a sight to see. A broken tube and the remnants of beer swimming in the water with you is just not worth it.” At that everyone laughs, we continue sharing stories for a while after that and everything was good. The horror of the night before momentarily forgotten, until, that is, we hear a moan coming from behind a curtain. 

“Zack?” A voice calls out.

My pulse speeds up.

Zane.

He’s awake.

In a flash the curtain separating us is pulled back by Jacky and I get a view of my little brother. I look over and I’m at a loss for words. Zane’s face is black, blue and swollen in a lot of places, he has bruises, cuts and bullet grazes that go down his neck and arms and disappear beneath his shirt. One of his pant legs is cut off in the style of shorts to reveal the white bandage around his thigh, it has a spot of blood on it from where he was stabbed.