Chapter 24
PERIS
My fucking ankle is on fire.
I’m not sure if it’s broken or what I did to it, but I sure as shit can’t walk on it, and all I feel are flames licking their way up my leg with every beat of my heart.
“It’s most likely broken, Peris. And you know what that means…” the team medic says as he wraps up the rest of his stuff after laying an ice pack on my ankle.
“Yeah, I know.” It means I’m out for the rest of the season.
Probably fucking up my chance of making it to the NBA.
Not that I was ever gonna make it that far anyway.
This was the best it was gonna get for me—and I’m okay with that.
But it still fucking sucks to know that it’s gone. Even just a little.
“You gonna be okay?”
“Yeah. I’m gonna have my mom come get me and take me. I wanna stay until after the game though, see how we do.”
“Are you sure? You know we—”
“Yeah, I know.”
“All right. Just call me if you need anything.” And then, John is walking out and leaving me alone with a bottle of water and some ice on my ankle, and I feel cold and alone, but that’s fine.
I pull out my phone, and I’m about to text Abel and Ma to let them know I’m okay because they’re worried sick when I hear footsteps sounding down the hall.
I don’t bother glancing up as I type. “John, I told you, I’m fine—”
“Peris…” My name is breathed reverently, and I choke.
My head jerks up at the sound of my name coming from my father’s lips.
“Luke,” I croak, looking him in the eyes for the first time in well over a decade. Bile works its way up my throat and settles at the base as he steps into the small room, and my heart is thundering.
I thought… I thought maybe I was seeing shit earlier. That it wasn’t really him because he looks different. Of course, he does. It’s been nearly fifteen years but fuck. He looks almost the same, only now his dark hair is mostly gray, and his face has aged considerably. But it’s still him.
The face that has haunted me for so long.
Looking back at me with a fucking smile.
He takes a step closer, and I get a whiff of spearmint and nearly throw up right then and there.
“I’ve missed you,” he says, and I can’t breathe.
“What do you want?” I choke out, holding my breath so I can’t smell him. Flashes beat through my mind. The polyester tent, the rustle of the wind and leaves. Alone with him for a week. So much painpainpain.
“I wanted to see you.” He takes another step toward me, and when I try to move, that’s when I realize I’m fucking stuck. My ankle is trapped by ice and throbbing, and I know I can’t walk on it because the fucking bone is probably snapped in two.
Goddamnit, this isn’t happening right now…
“You need to leave,” I croak, hating how weak I sound.
“No, I don’t.”
“Luke.”
“Peris,” he drawls, sounding smug. I fucking hate him.
I pull in a breath through my mouth, hoping I can’t taste the fucking mint. I push it out as slowly and as steadily as I can, though I’m shaking and I can hear my breath stuttering. “There is a no-contact order. Leave now and I won’t call the cops.”
“But, Peris, my son…” He takes a step closer and sticks his hand out to touch me, and my vision whites out.
I’m not really sure what happens after that.
My heart is thundering in my ears as Luke drags his hand up my arm and over the side of my neck.
I’m pretty sure the bile in my throat enters my mouth, and I have to choke it back down, but everything is a blur of white-hot agony.
“You’ve grown into such a beautiful boy. I’ve loved watching you these last few months. I wish I could’ve been there more. I’ve been waiting…”
“Oh, God,” I choke. I can feel the tears streaming down my face, but I can’t do anything about them because I’m frozen. I want to hit him. To get him the fuck away from me. I feel disgusting and used and taken advantage of, but I can’t fucking move.
My heart is chugging away in my throat, and tears sting my eyes, rushing down my face and blinding me with every blink. I choke on them and so much more as Luke continues his assault over my body. And he’s done worse—so, so much worse—but for some reason, it feels like this really takes it all.
I feel completely and utterly violated.
“Who the fuck are you?” The voice of my very own angel sounds throughout the small room, and I relish in the reprieve as much as I fear it.
No.
Nonono.
Abel.
I reach for him, but Luke grabs my arm and holds me back.
“Hey! What the fuck do you think you’re doing?
!” I blink rapidly to clear my vision to see Abel stomping toward us.
My heart kicks up speed all over again the closer Abel gets to Luke.
His eyes dart to mine for a split second, and then, I watch his little fists tighten into balls. I already know what’s about to happen.
“Abel, no—”
I gasp when he lunges and swings his arm toward Luke. His fist makes contact with his face in a resounding crack, and Luke’s head snaps to the side with surprising force. I jerk back on the table I’m lying on because it’s pushed across the floor as Luke stumbles into it.
“What the hell?” he says, grabbing his face before turning his whole body onto Abel.
Luke’s never been a very big guy. But he’s been in prison for the last fifteen years without anything better to do than work out.
So, when he faces my runt, I kind of freak out, but Abel doesn’t look deterred in the slightest.
“Bring it on, motherfucker,” Abel spits and widens his legs as he gets ready to swing again.
“Peris, are you okay?” Ma comes rushing into the room, and there’s so much going on, I don’t know where to look or who to pay attention to.
Luke’s attention snaps to Ma, and when they make eye contact, Abel takes advantage and starts wailing on him.
He starts spewing words I can’t really understand because they’re more of a litany of growls and jumbled words, but Luke seems to understand well enough because he grips Abel by the sides and tosses him off, then swipes his hand under his bleeding nose.
Abel hits the ground with a thud. He releases a small groan, and when he rolls onto his back and I see his grimace of pain, I don’t feel my own.
I just need to protect him. I jump off the table and hobble toward my father, feeling heat burning in my veins because he hurt my fucking runt, and no one does that but me.
“You need to fucking leave,” I growl, trying to give him one last chance, but the truth is, I’m scared to get any closer. I see Ma on the ground, helping Abel to his feet. She’s shaking and worried, and I can’t blame her. Voices are filling the tunnel. People will be here soon, and I want him gone.
Please just go away.
“I’m not leaving without you, Peris,” he says, face snatched tight into a frown, and I want to growl. Why doesn’t he fucking get it?
So, I ask him.
“What don’t you fucking get? I don’t want to see you. I want nothing to do with you. I want you to go the fuck away!” I scream, feeling the burn in my throat from how harshly I yell.
Luke takes a step toward me, and Abel lunges for him with his own scream.
“Abel, no!” I shout, but it’s too late. Abel has jumped onto Luke and is wailing on him again, screams ripping from his throat as he throws his arms in every direction, hitting him however and wherever he can. Luke’s best defense is throwing his hands up to protect his face as Abel beats on him.
I can’t help but watch my runt with pride as he beats on Luke hysterically, pants and growls filling the air along with the smack of skin on skin.
Abel clambers onto his back and starts beating onto the back of his head, causing Luke to drop to his knees.
And that’s when Ma rushes forward and swings her leg out and kicks him right in the balls.
He grunts loudly and falls to the floor, which makes Abel fall on top of him—and that’s when people rush into the room, including security. I blow out a breath of relief. “Thank God,” I mutter.
But then, they pull both Luke and Abel to their feet, and I stare at them wide-eyed as Mom holds onto me, helping me stay balanced on one foot. “Hey, what the fuck are you doing?” I ask as they pull both their arms behind their backs.
Abel’s chest is heaving, but he’s not looking at anyone but me. And when our eyes meet, he gives me a small smile before they turn him around and escort him out of the room.
“Where the hell are you taking him?” I shout and try to follow, only to cry out when my foot makes contact with the floor.
“Honey, come on. Sit down. You’re no good to anyone when you can’t even walk.”
“Where the hell are they taking Abel?”
“I don’t know.”
“Can you—”
“You want me to figure it out?” she asks with a soft smile, and I nod.
“Please.”
“Okay, baby.” She wraps her arm around me and squeezes before pushing off the table and walking over to one of the security guards. They’ve taken both Abel and Luke out of the room, and now, it’s just Ma and me with a few of the arena staff.
After a minute, she walks back over with a sad smile. “What.” It’s not a question but a demand.
“They’re being reprimanded and taken into custody. The cops have already arrested—”
“Arrested?! Abel?! For what?”
“Assault. Luke has claimed that he didn’t do anything—”
“He fucking broke a no-contact order and was threating me!”
“I know, honey. We’ll get this straightened out, I promise.”
“But Abel…”
“He’ll be okay.”
I drop my head into my hands, feeling defeated. “This is so fucked.”
“I know.”
The hospital visit takes forever, but Ma insisted we go and get my ankle taken care of because there’s nothing we can do until Abel is arraigned anyway.
I sit restlessly after getting my x-rays, staring at the clock on the wall like it’ll move any faster if I look at it hard enough.
“Patience, honey.”
“I want to go fucking get him out.”
“I know, but we have to wait.”
“Why?” I ask again, knowing the answer.
“Because it takes time for him to be brought in and ran through the system. He has to see a judge and given bail and all of that.”
“What if these charges stick?” I ask warily.
“They won’t, Peris. Not with who Luke is. And I'll get Abel a damn good lawyer in case anything does happen, but don't worry because I don't think it will.” I pull in a breath and let it out slowly. The pain killers they gave me are working great, and I can barely feel the throbbing in my ankle.
“First game with your little boyfriend and all this happens. Do you believe in bad omens?” Gabe says as he slides open the door to my room in the emergency room, and I roll my eyes.
“Fuck yourself.”
“That’s the spirt,” he chirps and saunters over to the free chair on the other side of Ma.
“What a fucking day.”
“Tell me about it,” I mutter.
“How’re you feeling, buddy? How’s the ankle?” Gabe inquires.
“Like shit, dude. And it’s broken. In half. Just waiting for them to come in and put me in a cast.”
“Shit,” he mutters, and I nod. “So, that means…” he trails off, looking up at me through his curls warily.
“Yep.”
“I’m sorry, Peris.”
“It is what it is. I just want to get out of here.”
“Yeah, speaking of… Where the fuck is Abel?” Gabe stares between us, brows drawn.
I glance at Ma, and she looks back at me.
“He’s in jail,” I mutter.
“He’s what? What the fuck happened?”
So, I explain to him everything that happened with Luke and how Abel being in jail came to fruition and how we’re just waiting to bail him out.
By the time I’ve finished, Gabe is staring at me and is trying—and failing—to hide his smirk.
“You’ve got yourself a little jail birdie boyfriend who defended your honor.”
I roll my eyes so hard. “Oh, please go fuck yourself.”
He throws his head back with a cackle, and for a minute, I think things just might be all right.
But first, I need to get my runt back.