Chapter 33 #2
I hit pause again and raise it over my shoulder. Someone, most likely Python, grabs it from me and I straighten, crossing my arms over my chest. The blood in Brandy’s face drains when she sees the rage in my eyes.
“Devil and Punisher, take Brandy to my office. Python, go with them. You know what to do.”
I step aside so they can come in, and as soon as Lark lets Brandy go, I pull her into my arms. Devil and Punisher grab a hold of Brandy’s upper arms and march her out of the bathroom and down the hall.
My chest rumbles with a growl when she holds her head high like she isn’t the problem here.
Doc turns toward me and tilts his head in the direction of his medical room, silently telling me to meet him there before he turns and walks down the hall.
As soon as they leave, the door closes behind them. I hear his voice a moment later from further down the hall demanding that Brandy hand over the ring that she’s wearing. He’s most likely going to take samples to make sure she didn’t coat her ring with anything.
I turn Lark in my arms and gently grasp her chin.
I gently tilt her head as I carefully brush her hair back behind her ear.
Rage boils in me when I see eight bloody fingernail marks.
There are also four smaller cuts, also bloody, that I’m assuming came from Brandy’s ring judging off the placement of them.
With there being eight fingernail marks, I wonder if she only hit Lark once or if she got in a second hit.
“I’m okay, Anthony,” she says softly before reaching up and cupping my face in both her hands, but I can’t take my eyes off the blood on her face or the red handprint.
“She only got in the one hit to my face, but she was able to scratch my face twice as you can see. I don’t know if she recently filed her nails or what, but those fuckers were sharp.”
I finally tear my gaze from the blood and look her over more closely. “You said she only got in the one to your face, did she hit you anywhere else?”
“She poked my chest hard a couple of times during her rant before I’d had enough and grabbed her arm. She got in a glancing hit to my left arm, but it doesn’t hurt.”
Exhaling I pull her into my arms and she rests her head against my chest. Leaning down, I kiss the top of her head. “Let’s get you in by Doc so he can clean you up.”
Lark chuckles softly. “To do that, you kind of need to let me go, Hercules,” she teases as she looks up at me, her eyes sparkling.
Exhaling again, I force my arms to loosen my grip around her. She snags my hand in hers and opens the bathroom door. I lead her down the hallway to Doc’s medical room and walk in without knocking. He looks up from his spot at the counter and tilts his head toward the medical bed in here.
“Have a seat, Lark. I’ll just be a moment.”
“What are you doing?” she asks as she settles into place.
I lean against the wall by the door and cross my arms against my chest. My fingers itch to touch her, but I know I’d just get in Doc’s way.
“Taking a sample of her ring to make sure it wasn’t coated in something. I’ll need to take some blood, too.”
Lark sighs. “That’s not a bad idea. Her nails easily dug into my skin and they were sharp. I wouldn’t put it past her to have filed them sharp.”
I frown at that. Did Brandy see Lark following after me this morning when I brought her here? Or did she sharpen her nails after she saw Lark on my lap in the main room. If she put anything on her ring or her nails that would harm Lark, this might be the first time that I’d hit a woman.
“I’m okay, Hercules.”
I look up at Lark’s soft voice. She holds out a hand and I cross the room, taking it as I lower my head and bury it in the crook of her neck, breathing in her rose body wash and hair products. Her other hand rises to my chest and I feel her holding the edge of my cut.
Taking a few deep breaths, I feel myself calming down.
“Are you okay enough now that Doc can take a look at me?”
Embarrassed, I step back. “Sorry, Darlin’.”
She gives me a small smile. “You have nothing to be sorry about, Hercules.”
“Pres, you can still hold her, but can you switch to the other side so I can examine her scratches better?”
Even though he phrased it as a question, I know he’s not asking. I may be the President of the club, but in this room, Doc rules.
After I switch sides, Lark slips her hand in mine.
“Okay, Lark, just to be on the safe side, I’m going to start with a blood sample and then also take a sample from the areas that she drew blood before cleaning you up.”
Lark nods and pulls her hand out of mine. “Ever since the fire, my right arm is the best one to draw blood from because of the scarring on my left arm.”
Doc nods and makes a note on his computer. “After we get you cleaned up, is it okay if we talk a little about your medical records? I’d like to have some notes in case I ever need to patch you up again.”
“Of course, Doc. Do you want me to sign something so my regular doctor can send you my files? I’d rather you knew everything before something big happens rather than having to find out while you’re working on me.”
Doc sends me a proud look and I can’t stop the corners of my lips from twitching. That’s my girl.
“Or Python can get them. It’s really up to you, Lark, for how much you want to share. Who’s your regular doctor?”
“Dr. Richardson.”
Doc nods. “If you want me to have your files, I can reach out to him. He’s an old friend of mine. You’ll need to fill out a form though giving me consent to them if you want to take that route.”
“I’ll sign it after you’re done, Doc. I’d rather not have any hiccups if something happens in the future.”
Once again, Doc gives me that proud look before he ties a stretchy band around Lark’s arm and a few moments later, draws a couple of vials of blood before labeling them. Then he takes a look at Lark’s face again and grabs a handful of long tubes out of a drawer.
“What are those?” I ask.
“Sealed swabs that I’ll use to take samples of each wound. Since they are only showing the normal redness you’d see after getting such a wound, I don’t think Brandy had anything on her nails, but I’d rather be safe than sorry.”
I grunt in agreement and Lark shifts so that she’s leaning against me and tilts her head so that Doc can get a better angle to look at her wounds.
She flinches slightly with the first swab, but neither Doc nor I acknowledge it.
After he’s taken samples from each of the wounds, he grabs a couple packets of alcohol wipes and disinfects each one.
“I’ll text you the results of your bloodwork and each of the samples when I get them back,” Doc says as he throws away the trash and tosses his gloves in the trash bin before he glances up at me. “Have you given her all of our numbers yet?”
I wince. “Not all of them, but she’ll have them after we deal with Brandy.”
Doc nods and goes back to his seat before he opens up a drawer and searches until he finds what he wants. “Lark, this is the consent form I mentioned if you still want me to have a copy of your records. Though, Python can do his thing and get them for me if you’d rather take that route.”
Lark captures her bottom lip between her teeth and thinks for a moment before she shakes her head. “I’ll sign the form so that there’s no risk of him getting caught doing that.”
She lets go of my hand, steps down from the bed, and walks toward Doc. He gets up, letting her have his seat while she fills out the form.
He leans against the opposite counter, his gaze going to the samples laying on the counter near Lark.
“What?” I ask.
He frowns. “There was something on her ring, but I don’t know what it was.
I don’t know if it’s just everyday buildup, or something else.
To be on the safe side, I recommend not consuming alcohol until we get the test results back as a precaution.
If you notice any side effects, dizziness, nauseousness, the skin around the wounds getting irritated and red or if it starts to ooze, come see me immediately if you are here.
If you’re in town, see if you can get in with Dr. Richardson right away, or come find me.
I can also come to you if you aren’t able to drive. ”
Lark’s muscles stiffen as she looks over at us and when our gazes lock, I’m sure the fire in her eyes matches mine.
“If that bitch poisoned me, there will be hell to pay. That bitch is mine.”
I bite back a growl. “Yours. She’ll pay if she was stupid enough to poison you, Darlin’. You have my word.”
She nods when she realizes I’m not just placating her and goes back to filling out the rest of the form. A few minutes later, she hands it to Doc as she stands.
“Is there anything you need to know right away?”
“Do you have any allergies?”
“Penicillin.”
“Blood type?”
“O negative.”
Doc’s eyebrows rise and I stiffen, knowing what he’s going to ask next. None of us in the club have an O negative blood type.
“Lark,” he starts, his voice softer than before. “If there’s an emergency…” his voice trails off as he clears his throat.
“Yes,” Lark replies before he can finish.
Both of our gazes snap to each other before going back to her.
“Are you sure, Lark?”
She turns and walks toward me, wrapping her arms around my waist. “As I said before when we were standing outside your house, this is my family. If someone’s lost enough blood to put them at risk, I will jump in and give them blood.
” She hesitates and then continues. “I hope they didn’t overstep, but a few of the guys gave me Levi’s number and we’ve been chatting for the last few weeks.
I know you guys try to take care of each other as much as possible rather than going to a hospital, unless it’s absolutely necessary that is, and I get why you guys prefer that.
” She pauses again as she continues to stare at me, almost as if she’s making sure I’m paying attention.
“If me donating blood keeps someone out of the hospital, I’ll do it in a heartbeat and I’ll donate as much as is safely possible.
Now, is that something you’re going to be okay with?
I know how protective you are, so if there’s going to be a problem, I’d rather know about it now. ”
My lips are on hers as soon as she’s done talking. I pour everything into the kiss, hoping she can feel what I’m struggling to put into words at the moment.
I vaguely hear the door shut and I lessen the intensity of the kiss before I pull back, breathing heavily as I rest my forehead against hers.
“Lark…” I pause as I try to find the words I need to say, still breathing heavily. “I can’t tell you how much that means to me. To us. That you’d be willing to do that for my brothers. I can’t…”
Her eyes and face soften as she pulls me back down for another kiss, this time it’s softer.
Instantly, I know she knows what I was trying to put into words.
A few moments later, we break apart and she looks up at me with a sassy look, but I can still see the anger in her eyes.
“Now, let’s go deal with the bitch. I’d like to see how she tries to worm her way out of this one.”