Chapter Thirty-Three
CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE
DRAVEN
K ins and I are cuddled with one another on the couch in the living room of the clubhouse.
She’s been staying here with round the clock care from myself as well as the rest of my—our—family. Activity in the house is calmer than it usually is, quieter than it usually is.
“I hate this.” McKinsey lifts her head from my chest and whispers softly so Harleigh can’t hear her as she refills her water.
“Can I get you anything else right now, McK?” The girls have all taken to calling her by the nickname they hear Olivia use with her.
No more doctor. No more formality. We’re family now. Though the guys still affectionately refer to her as Doc Caraway.
“No, thank you, Harleigh.” Kins smiles, but I know she’d much prefer telling her to go do something more useful with her time.
“I have to take care of a few things, but text me if there is anything else I can do for you.” Harleigh returns her smile before placing the water back in the fridge and exiting the kitchen through the French doors.
“Draven, please make them stop.” The whine coming from McKinsey is pitiful. “I can’t stand people waiting on or fussing over me.”
“They wouldn’t do it if they didn’t want to, Kins.” I catch the tear that falls from her eye before it coats her cheek. “Hey, come on now…”
Her warm eyes well up with more tears.
“I’m so sorry, Draven. I never wanted this. I hate that you’re having to take care of me. That I’m yet another burden you’re forced to endure.”
“Kins… You are none of those things.” Taking her face gently in my hands, I force her to look at me. “I’ll take care of you for however long we’re able to walk this earth, no matter how long that is. And not because I feel like I have to, but because I genuinely want to.”
Squeezing her eyes shut, she places her head back on my chest and takes a deep breath.
It’s only been two days since she got out of the hospital. Tomorrow, she’ll start her chemo and radiation treatments.
She’s already tired, and I know she’s beyond stressed.
I’m trying to appear as easy-going as I can on the surface. But inside, I’m fucking dying. I’m terrified. I’m doing anything and everything I can to keep my mind off what’s coming so I don’t think about our future and all of the plans I’ve dreamed about going up in flames.
I do my best not to think about myself, too.
This time is about McKinsey.
All that matters is her.
I’ve been keeping as busy as possible when I’m not next to her—which isn’t often. It’s been anything but easy to quit, so I’ve been jonesing for a smoke for days now. But the moment I found out Kins has cancer, there was no fucking question about it. The cigarettes had to go.
In an effort to keep her as worry-free as possible, I’ve been secretly texting with several people without her knowing about it.
She’s concerned for her patients, but I’ve assured her they will continue to receive care. Marissa has opened up her schedule for a couple of them. For those she isn’t able to get on her own schedule, she found places for them with other therapists she networks with.
My phone vibrates with a text from Olivia.
Olivia:
We’re out front.
She and I have been working together to figure out the best way to tell McK’s mother and Alexander about what’s been going on. Kins has been putting off telling her. I know she will probably give us the silent treatment once she finds out what we did, but both Olivia and I agreed this is the best way. We couldn’t tell her ahead of time either. The anticipation of her mother’s arrival would have only upset her more.
We’d decided we would take the brunt of the information exchange off of McKinsey’s plate for her also. Well, that Olivia would. The thought of having to do so overwhelmed Kins. Olivia had Cheryl and Alexander meet her at McKinsey’s house earlier today where she was planning to explain everything that has been going on and all the information we have regarding her diagnosis.
It took three hours before Cheryl was calm enough to get into Olivia’s car to let her drive her over here.
Me:
On my way.
“Hey, I have to go outside real quick. Are you going to be okay?”
“What’s going on?” McKinsey narrows her gaze on me, but I won’t tell her anything until I have the reassurance that this visit won’t affect her in a negative way. “You’re not going for a smoke are you? I know it’s been hard, but you’ve been doing a great job.”
“No, no. Nothing like that. I just have to go take care of something. I’ll be right back.” Standing, I reach for the remote on the table. Sometimes, the brightness of the television screen hurts her eyes, so we darkened it as much as possible, enabling her to watch for short periods of time. “Take this, and find something relaxing to watch. No crime shows, got it?”
She flips me off. It’s the new way she’s adopted to tell all of us to fuck off since rolling her eyes causes her too much pain.
“That’s my girl.” I shoot her a wink and a smile before walking to the front door.
I nod to Olivia who is standing next to her car with a reluctant expression on her face and her hands tucked into her back pockets. Taking the steps down to the gravel drive two at a time, I lock eyes on Cheryl and Alexander Sanders.
Despite the skeptical look on her face, I immediately see McKinsey’s features in her mother’s.
“I’m Draven.” I approach Cheryl with my hand outstretched.
This may be the most off-the-wall meet the parents moment, but I’ll still try to be as respectful as possible. Until it comes to laying down the law, then all bets are off. She can be a bitch to me all she wants, but I won’t tolerate her being nasty to Kins.
“Where’s my daughter?” Cheryl ignores both my introduction and my hand.
Respect may be a challenge with this one. It clearly won’t be returned.
“Hi, that’s Cheryl. I’m Alexander. It’s … nice to meet you.” Taking my hand in his, at least her stepdad tries to appear diplomatic.
Even if he does look like he’s sweating bullets in his expensive, button up shirt.
“Same to you. I understand how important the bond between a parent and a child can be. I want you both to continue to have that with McKinsey.”
“Who the hell do you think you are?” Hands on her hips, Cheryl ignores my attempt to make this moment go as smoothly as possible. “You’ve been the one keeping her from us. We should have been told what’s going on from the start. She should be home with her real family, not in this…” She looks at the house scathingly. “What is this? A log cabin out in the middle of nowhere?”
McKinsey has mentioned Alexander’s money before. I have no idea what their house looks like—I’m sure it’s larger than this one—but the clubhouse certainly isn’t squalor.
“You don’t know anything about me,” I challenge her.
The urge to smoke has never been as strong as it is right fucking now. Pulling the nicotine gum out of my back pocket, I pop one into my mouth.
“I don’t need to know you in order to form an opinion. You don’t know what my daughter needs. And one look at you is enough for me to know you’re not good enough for her?—”
“Cheryl, enough.” Olivia interrupts her.
“No, it’s okay.” I put my hand up, acknowledging Olivia but keeping my eyes on Cheryl. “You’re absolutely right. I’m not good enough for her. She deserves the fucking moon and every goddamn star in the night sky, and I’ll never be able to give her that.”
I take a slow, dangerous step closer to Cheryl and Alexander.
“And you’re entitled to form whatever opinion you’d like to. It won’t matter one bit to me whether it’s good or bad. The only opinion I care about is your daughter’s. But what matters more to me than her opinion is her health and wellbeing.”
Standing almost on top of Cheryl, I look down my nose at her.
“And if your presence here is a danger to either of those things, I will personally and gladly escort you from the premises. You can choose to be here for her at this time, to stay in her house at my request, so you can be closer to her.”
I look briefly from Cheryl to Alexander then back.
“Or you can go home and worry about whether or not you’ll ever see your daughter alive again. She could have months left or days. You can either spend her remaining time here with her or you can say your final goodbyes today. It’s your choice.”
Cheryl balks, underestimating the ease at which I will drag her from my property.
“I can assure you, there won’t be an issue with the terms you’ve set.” Alexander places a hand on Cheryl’s shoulder as she lets out an exasperated sigh.
She looks between us with indignation, like she knows she’s now under our watch and hates the very idea of it.
Yes, I see a lot of McKinsey in her mother.
“Then welcome to our home. I’ll show you in.”
My eyes meet Olivia’s as I turn back toward the house. She’s squeezing her lips together as though trying to keep them from breaking into a smile.
I hold the door open for Kins’s parents and watch as Cheryl steps over the far edge of the threshold, keeping her body as far away from me as possible.
The group of us is quiet as we enter, the only sound coming from an old episode of Friends on the TV.
As I turn the corner, McKinsey’s eyes find mine. They’re relaxed until she sees her mother and Alexander enter the room. Then they grow wide, and her jaw clenches as she takes in the sight of her parents. She looks like she’s about to argue, but whatever emotion she’s feeling is cut off by her mother as she scoots quickly past me and drops onto the sofa.
Cheryl hugs McKinsey tightly to her chest, causing her to wince at the contact. Fury rolls through me, but I force my feet to remain in place instead of leading me over to the two of them and ripping her mother off of her.
“Cheryl, I know your daughter is a badass, but you need to be more delicate with her.” Kins looks between me and Olivia over her mother’s shoulder.
For a second, she appears angry. But her hard features quickly soften a little, revealing relief before tears spring in her eyes.
“Oh, McKinsey…” Cheryl sobs. “I’m so sorry.”
I walk into the kitchen to give them a little privacy, and Olivia follows me. I pop another piece of gum into my mouth, craving the hit of nicotine it will give me.
“I think Mck’s glad her mom is here. I know she was stressed over figuring out how to tell her.” Olivia leans against the counter next to me as we keep an eye on McKinsey.
Her mother has pulled away from her, and the two of them are talking quietly while Alexander stands behind the couch taking it all in.
“You explained it all to them?” Crossing my arms, I briefly glance at Olivia.
“Everything.”
Alexander leaves Kins and her mother to join me and Olivia in the kitchen.
“I want to thank you again for contacting us. And for taking care of our girl. I’ve noticed an excitement in her voice recently when we’ve spoken. I know you’re the cause of it.”
Nodding my head, I appreciate his honesty. “My only goal in life is to make sure that girl in there is happy.”
We’re quiet for a few more minutes before Royce enters the kitchen through the French doors that lead to the deck.
“Draven, I was just-Oh…” Halting, he startles when he sees Alexander.
“This is McKinsey’s stepfather, Alexander. Alexander, this is Royce.”
“Uh-nice to meet you.” Royce nods from across the kitchen. “Draven, can I see you in my office?”
“Sure. I’ll be right back, Liv.” Pushing off of the counter, I follow Royce down the hallway and into the foyer.
He closes the door behind us when we enter his office.
“What’s up?” I take a seat in the chair in front of Royce’s desk as he sits in the one beside it.
“I asked around a little, throughout the club, to see if anyone could help the doc at all.”
His admission shocks me, but I’m beyond grateful. Confused, I wonder where he’s headed.
“There’s a … member in the Helena, Montana chapter with a medical background; Morwyn. She said she’d be willing to look at the doc’s records and give a second opinion.”
Conflict erupts in me. I’m scared to let any amount of hope in, yet I’m willing to try anything to get Kins the help she needs.
“Wow, okay. That’s good news. I’ll talk to Firewall to see what he can get from the hospital’s servers.”
Royce shakes his head, confusing me.
“No, we already did that and sent everything over to her a couple days ago.”
I eye Royce questioningly.
“I didn’t want to say anything to you until we had more information. I just got off the phone with her.”
Holy shit.
My breath catches in my throat as I wait for Royce to continue.
“She said there looks to be something off with the scan from the MRI. She explained that this can happen if the patient moves during the exam, or if there‘s something wrong with the machine itself. A broken coil or something, I don’t really understand the specifics she mentioned, just that it could skew the image.”
Rage soars through me. Kins is smart enough to stay still, so I know she didn’t have anything to do with it. How can a hospital fuck around with someone’s life like this? Don’t they have people to maintain the machines?
“She has a contact at Hudson in Baltimore. She said they would be the best chance the doc has at deciding how to fight this thing. I told her to give them your information, so if you get a call from a random Maryland number, you may want to answer it.”