Chapter 11
CHAPTER ELEVEN
T ia
I slowly open my eyes and try to focus, but instantly, my head begins to ache. Then my arm begins to throb like my heart has moved from the left side of my chest to somewhere near my right shoulder. Why do I feel like this?
“You’re going to be okay,” a soft feminine voice says beside me.
When I turn to see who it is, I’m greeted with a smile by a beautiful woman with dark hair and the kindest eyes I’ve ever seen. She looks at me like I mean something to her, but I’ve never met this person before.
“Your arm is going to be fine. The bullet went clear through, which I’m told is a good thing. You were in a car accident, so you might feel sore all over too. Are you thirsty?”
As I try to take in all the information she’s giving me, I suddenly remember about Jaxon. I sit bolt upright in bed, but it’s obvious that’s a mistake when I collapse back onto the pillows, instantly exhausted.
The pretty woman rushes over to my bedside. Shaking her head, she gently pats the sheets next to me. “Oh, I’m going to need you to stay lying down for a while. No fast movements like that for a little bit, okay?”
I nod, but I need to know what happened to Jaxon. “I was with someone in the car. Is he here?”
She shakes her head, frowning. “No.”
When I try to ask her more questions, she walks out of the room, and I swear I hear her quietly sobbing. Is it that Jaxon didn’t make it?
I rack my brain trying to remember what happened, but it’s all a blur. I remember feeling something hit the side of my arm, and in an instant, my entire side felt like it was on fire. Then I remember Jaxon talking to me, but what he said is trapped somewhere in my mind.
My chest aches, but I don’t think it’s because of the accident. The thought that I won’t ever see Jaxon again or hear him tell me he loves me makes my heart hurt.
Closing my eyes, I can see him as clear as day. His dark hair and those deep brown eyes I swear could see into my soul. His tattoos all over his muscular body. His smile that always reminded me of a pirate’s.
No! I can’t think of Jaxon in the past tense. He can’t be gone. I won’t believe that.
“Tia?” a deep voice asks.
I open my eyes to see a man who resembles Jaxon. He’s older, but he definitely looks like him.
“Who are you?” I ask as another man who reminds me of Jaxon steps out from behind the first man.
“I’m Ryker,” he answers and tilts his head toward the man beside him. “And this is Cason. I’m Jaxon’s uncle.”
I may not be able to remember much of anything about the accident, but I remember Jaxon talking about his uncle. He had nothing good to say about him, and I think he said he wanted him dead. If I’m with him, then something very bad has happened.
Tears fill my eyes as he continues to explain something, but I’m not listening. All I can think is Jaxon’s gone.
“Please don’t cry. You’re safe here,” the older man says in what sounds like a kind voice.
“You’re Jaxon’s uncle,” I say as I wipe my tears. “He’s told me about you. He’d dead, isn’t he? You killed him, didn’t you?”
The two men shake their heads, and the younger one named Cason steps forward. “That’s my father you’re thinking of, not Ryker. This one’s the good uncle. It’s Victor Varens you need to be worried about.”
For the first time since I woke up in this strange place, I feel like there’s hope. But neither one of these men seem happy, which means it isn’t all good news.
All I want to know is where Jaxon is.
“Tell me what happened to him. That’s all I want. Did he survive the crash?” I ask, silently praying they’ll say he’s okay and somewhere I can see him.
Neither one answers immediately, sending my hopes crashing to the floor. “Just tell me! I’m stuck here in this place where I don’t know anyone. I’ve been shot, for God’s sake. Tell me if he’s alive or not. At least give me that.”
They stand there silently staring at me for the longest time until the older one finally says, “We don’t know. He survived the crash, but my brother had one of his men take him. I’m imagining that’s who caused the accident.”
My mind races with a hundred questions. What kind of family is this that an uncle would kill his own nephew? How can we find out if Jaxon is alive or not? What are these men doing about finding him?
The younger man steps up to the side of my bed and smiles. “Jaxon told me all about you, Tia. I know he’d want us to take care of you, and that’s what we’re going to do. For what it’s worth, I don’t think my father wants Jaxon dead. Victor Varens isn’t a good guy, by any means, but killing family isn’t something he’d normally do.”
I notice the older man named Ryker doesn’t look so sure about what this man is saying, so I look at him and ask, “Why does it seem that you don’t believe what this guy is telling me? I want the truth. That’s all. If you think Jaxon is gone, then just tell me. I need to know.”
He takes a few moments before he answers, “My brother doesn’t value family as much as I do, but I think Jaxon’s still alive.”
I wait for him to continue, but that’s all he says. God, the last thing I need right now is a man of few words. I’d give anything for someone to run off at the mouth at this moment.
“So you think he could still be alive? Why would your brother take him if he’s family? I don’t understand.”
Sighing, he nods and then responds in a very measured manner that’s making me want to shake him right now. “My brother and I are in a power struggle. He wants to head the family like he has for years, but I think business should be handled in a different way. That said, my guess is he will keep Jaxon alive.”
I get the feeling he keeps the last words of that sentence to himself. For as long as he’s useful. Or something like that.
The other man who said his name was Cason winces, which tells me I’m probably right.
“Do you know where he is?”
They both shake their heads but say nothing. I want to jump up out of this bed and try to find the man I love, and these guys don’t seem to be much help. What I don’t understand is why.
A second later, the kind woman who was with me when I woke up walks back into the room and stops beside me. “Guys, I think she’s tired. Give her a little time to get acclimated to her surroundings.”
Immediately, I notice the older one’s expression softens when she speaks. The other one doesn’t react, but I feel like he wants to say more and can’t.
Or won’t. But why?
“Kaia is right. You’re probably not up to much talking right now. We’ll continue this later,” Ryker says before leaving and taking Cason with him.
“I was hoping to find out a little more from them,” I say to the woman who I now know is called Kaia.
“Don’t worry. They’ll be back,” she says with a smile. “Would you like me to open the window more? It’s a beautiful day out today.”
When I don’t answer, she goes ahead and opens it, making the curtains billow in the breeze. I don’t mind her wanting to make it nicer here for me, but I really wanted to find out more about where Jaxon is and what’s happening to him.
“You know, Jaxon slept in that very bed last week. I woke him up and…”
She doesn’t finish her sentence, so I quickly ask, “And what? Did something happen?”
I watch as her cheek’s grow pink with a blush. Avoiding my gaze, she fusses with the comforter at the bottom of the bed and answers, “He wasn’t wearing any clothes, and when I walked in, he was naked as a jaybird. That’s what my mother used to say when my sisters and I walked around the house without clothes on. ‘You’re naked as a jaybird, Kaia! Get back in that room and get dressed this instant.’ I guess she had a problem with nudity.”
As I listen to her, I get the sense she had a problem with Jaxon’s nudity. That makes me smile because the man has never enjoyed wearing clothes if he doesn’t have to since I’ve known him. I swear he would be naked every minute of the day, if he could.
“That sounds like him. He’d get to my apartment, and I don’t think an hour went by before he was walking around without a stitch of clothing on his body. I think he does that because he knows how good he looks.”
Kaia smiles and shakes her head. “That might be, but I’m his aunt, and the last thing I needed to see was his business out there front and center.”
Typical Jaxon. He probably felt not a hint of embarrassment either, if I know him.
“Let me guess. He just sat here in all his glory until you asked him to cover up, right? I think that man should work at a nude beach or something since he loves being naked so much.”
She sits down on the bed near my feet and chuckles. “Ryker likes to tell stories about how Jaxon would always give his mother a hard time about wearing clothes when he was a little boy. He’d walk around the yard buck naked, and she always had to chase after him to put a coat on him. He tells that story much better, but it seems he’s been like this his entire life.”
After she finishes speaking, we sit in silence for a while as I think about the man I love out there God only knows where. Is he okay? Is he hurt? I know his uncle isn’t a good man, but would he actually kill his own nephew?
As if she knows what I’m thinking, Kaia says in a low voice like she doesn’t want the men in the house to hear, “I think he’s alive and fine. Jaxon is tough. Yes, Ryker and Cason are tough too, along with all the guys they have working with them, but there’s something about Jaxon that tells me he isn’t going down without a hell of a fight. Stay positive. I know it’s hard, but remember who he is. You’ll be together again.”
I take a deep breath in and let it out in a rush when my ribs send messages of utter agony to my brain. “I want to believe that. We weren’t together for a year because of his job, and now he’s gone again. I’m not sure I can deal with this if this is what life is going to be like, though.”
Kaia nods like she knows what I mean. “You know, Ryker and I got together in what most people would call an untraditional way. I’m sure Jaxon has told you all about it, but I wasn’t sure we had a future together either. Now we have our son and a life we’re building here. It’s not always easy. I had to come to terms with what he does, but I love him, so if that means I have to deal with things I might not like, that’s life. That’s what being in love is about, right?”
Even though I’m not sure I want to admit how Jaxon and I met, I say, “He held me hostage for a week when we met because he was doing a favor for one of his cousins I dated a while back. Let’s just say we didn’t have the best start to a life together.”
She gently pats my foot before saying, “Same, although Ryker kept me captive for much longer than a week.”
My mouth drops open in shock. “Is it a family thing? Is this how the Varens men meet women?”
She thinks about that for a moment before throwing her head back and laughing. “I think so. Cason, the other man you just met, got together with his girlfriend Lily the same way. They have a little boy now and are having another child in a couple months. So, I guess maybe it is a family thing. Not exactly the type of story you can tell friends and family, though, is it?”
I shake my head as I remember not telling a soul about how Jaxon and I met. “They wouldn’t understand.”
“No, they wouldn’t. It sounds insane to say you fell for a man who did such terrible things. Yet, I can tell you from firsthand experience that I fell madly in love with Ryker. Same for Lily. Maybe the circumstances of your relationship aren’t for everyone, but it can work. Don’t count you two out yet. I believe you and Jaxon are going to be together again, and if you believe you belong together, then you’ll make it happen.”
The way she talks about things makes me think we’re going to make it out of this current nightmare and be together. I’d always thought that Jaxon’s job would be a barrier to a happily ever after, but maybe if Kaia and Ryker can do it, then we can too.
Assuming he’s still alive.