Chapter 29
Chapter
Twenty-Nine
R am returned to the house before Kade had woken from his nap. “Did he sleep the whole time?” he asked Sanem quietly as he moved closer to Kade.
She nodded from her seat on the opposite couch where she was busy crocheting. “Yeah, he tossed and turned a bit but seemed to settle pretty quickly when Valk came to lay beside him.”
Ram rubbed on Valk and hugged him tight. “Because you’re such a good boy.” Even hurt Valk was doing his job to help his master live his life. He gently lifted Kade’s head and sat down letting his boy relax and use his lap as a pillow. He looked up to see Sanem grinning at him. “What?”
She shook her head and pursed her lips. “You two are just so fucking cute together.”
Ram chuckled. “Thanks.”
“I mean it. You both have been the best things to happen to each other. I see you more now than I have in the past couple years. All you did was work and be alone. While I can understand wanting to be away from the chaos that is this household it bothered Bram, and to see you happy has made my husband happy and that’s all I want. I just want everyone to be happy, and I am so happy you and Kade have found each other.”
Ram smiled down at his boy as he played with his hair. “I am too, I already love him so much.”
“I know,” Sanem said, knowingly. “You two crack me up. Whenever you’re in the same room you search each other out and gravitate closer.”
Ram snorted. “That’s mostly because we like each other but not most other people.”
Sanem laughed. “I can see that.” She paused for a second. “How did meeting his parents go?”
He sighed. “I’m not even sure how to explain it. His mother seemed like she would do whatever it took to be a part of Kade’s life, his father not so much. His father didn’t really say much but he seemed to have an issue with me and Kade being together. I don’t know if that was shock or if it was disgust but his mother shut it down real quick. She was devastated to learn that her daughter was gone, Savage was nowhere to be found and that Carnage is still missing.” He paused to make sure Kade was really asleep. “I found them,” he said softly.
Sanem’s eyes widened. “You found…”
He nodded. “Yeah, I was going to ask you if we could have a little get together so I can bring them by.”
“Have you seen them?” she demanded.
He nodded. “Yeah, that’s where I went earlier. I’ve met them a couple of times to see how they are. I don’t want to put Kade through more shit if I can help it. They seem really excited to see him.”
She smiled happily. “Then yes of course. I’ll put together a little cook out for us.”
“Make sure you make them both to-go plates when you do. I’m not sure of the whole situation but they are living at the shelter and I’m sure they don’t get to eat very often,” Ram said quietly.
Sanem nodded. “I’ll run out and get some new Tupperware and make sure they each get a few meals out of it.”
He nodded and smiled at her. “I have a feeling you’ll be adopting them anyway.”
She snorted. “If they’re anything like him, yes I will.”
He snickered. “You just like taking in all the strays.”
She shrugged. “ You know me and Bram wanted more kids after Indy, we both have so much love to give so yes until we can’t anymore our home will always be open to those who need it.”
He smiled softly at her. “And they all adore you. I know both of them will need your specific brand of love. They’ve never had a mother’s love from what I can understand.”
“Then I’ll be ready for them when they get here.” She assured him.
“Ram.” Bram greeted when he came in and kissed Sanem before he headed off to take a shower.
Sanem made a noise in the back of her throat. “God I wanna have that man’s babies.”
Ram’s snort turned into laughter at her antics. “I think you got your wish.”
She hummed salaciously. “We can always practice for more.”
Ram wrinkled his nose. “Gross.”
Sanem gasped and threw a pillow at him, which he blocked easily. “Don’t be mean.”
“I meant gross for you. You’re hot, Bram’s a fucking Sasquatch.”
Sanem had made the mistake of taking a sip of her drink and ended up wearing it as she laughed. “That’s so mean,” she wheezed.
Ram chuckled. “But true.”
Sanem slapped her thigh as she continued to laugh. “I know!” she wailed.
Ram kind of felt bad when his laughter woke Kade.
“What’s so funny?” Kade groused, sleepily.
“Just making fun of Bram,” Ram told him.
Kade blinked and kept his eyes narrowed as they focused on Ram’s face. “You do know you’re identical twins right?”
Ram chuckled. “I’m the better looking twin.”
Kade scoffed. “You’re both gorgeous.”
“Thank you Kade, you’re hot as fuck yourself,” Bram said when he joined them, sitting beside Sanem who was still giggling.
Ram narrowed his eyes at his brother as Kade choked on a gasp. He grabbed Kade and basically rolled onto him, still staring at his brother.
“He’s mine damnit, you can’t have him. Do you know how long it took me to wear him down!” Ram screeched, making Kade shake with laughter.
“Get off me you big baby,” Kade said breathlessly as he tried to shove Ram off of him, but his Daddy was clinging to him like a baby koala.
Ram licked a stripe up Kade’s cheek. “I licked it, it’s mine!”
Sanem couldn’t contain herself anymore and fell to the side as she laughed loudly.
Both brothers smirked at each other.
Ram rolled off Kade and pulled him into a sitting position as they waited on Sanem to stop cackling like a crazy woman.
“What is going on in here?” Saint asked, grinning as he walked through the front door.
“Ram got a little jealous because I called Kade hot,” Bram told his son.
Saint snorted. “He is hot.”
“Ew!” Kade made a gagging noise.
“Hey just because you’re my brother doesn’t mean I can’t objectively think your hot, hell I wanted to fuck you before we became friends.” Saint stuck his tongue out at Ram as Kade groaned in disgust.
“Gross dude. So fucking gross.” Kade shook his head.
Saint snickered. “We’re definitely better off as friends.”
Kade nodded passionately. “Oh fuck yeah. Nice shirt by the way.” His brother was wearing a nice light blue shirt that made his blue eyes pop.
“Thanks man,” Saint answered before he froze and looked down at his own shirt in contemplation.
Ram grinned at Sanem and Bram when they looked at him questioningly.
They all looked towards the door as Levi and Doc came through. Levi had been fitted for some prosthetics and they weren’t doing very well.
Doc was holding Levi up with the man’s arm over his shoulder as they moved slowly into the house. “Hey Sanem can you get me some ice packs please? Saint, can you grab his chair?” When they jumped up to grab what was needed Doc tried to lead Levi over to the couch.
“Stop, stop,” Levi said, panting. Moving at all made fire lick up what was left of his legs to his spine. It was an agony he’d never known existed.
“Go ahead and take the legs off,” Bram ordered as he moved closer to Levi and grabbed him from under the arms. “Doc get ‘em off.” He held Levi up while Doc detached Levi’s fake legs and pulled the sleeves off.
“Shit,” Doc hissed. Both of Levi’s stumps were very inflamed and bleeding in some spots.
Bram swung Levi into his arms and moved him to the couch. He grabbed the ice packs Sanem handed him and gently rolled his pant legs down before placing them gently over the worst sections.
“Thanks,” Levi said through gritted teeth. Sheriff butted his way in and jumped on the couch to lay his head in Levi’s lap.
“I’ll leave the chair over here just in case,” Saint said as he moved the wheelchair closer to the hallway and out of the way.
Levi nodded in thanks, breathing a sigh of relief as the throbbing in his legs lessened.
As Bram attended to Levi, Saint turned to Kade. “Now I believe you said something about my shirt.”
Doc raised a brow. “Do I even want to know what’s got him in a tizzy?” he asked Kade.
Kade shrugged. “All I was saying was the blue shirt makes his eyes pop.”
Ram snorted when dead silence fell over the room.
Doc cocked his head. “I’m sorry, what now?”
Kade pursed his lips. “Damn you give a guy a compliment and all the sudden you’re getting the third degree.”
Ram made a choking noise as he tried to smother his laughter at Kade’s put upon tone.
Doc grinned as he moved closer, while Kade’s eyes were still that milky white they seemed to follow him as he moved. “How does it feel?”
Kade shrugged. “Kinda stings if I’m being honest.”
Doc pursed his lips as he thought. “Want me to take a look?”
Kade shrugged. “Knock yourself out.” He sat back on the couch and waited as Doc went to grab his go bag. He ignored all the stares and just looked around taking in the rustic farm-like decor that he knew came more from Sanem than Bram.
“Alright I know this is probably gonna hurt but try not to blink for a second okay?” Doc asked as he started up his light.
Kade bared his teeth. “Sure.”
“I know you hate it but I’ll try and make it quick.”
Ram settled his hands on Kade’s shoulders when he jerked at the first shine in his eyes.
“Ow, ow, ow, ow,” Kade said in a monotone as he forced himself not to blink.
Doc snorted as he lowered the light. “They look fine, well as fine as they ever could. I don’t see any more damage but I can keep monitoring them for you.”
Kade opened his mouth to decline but Ram butted in.
“We’d love that, Doc. Wouldn't we?” he asked Kade.
Kade hummed. “Like a fucking kick to the balls.”
Doc laughed as he hugged Kade. “Love you, man.”
“Can someone please explain to me what’s going on?” Saint demanded, crossing his arms over his chest like a petulant toddler.
If there was one thing Ram knew about his nephew it was that he did not like being left out of the loop on things. “Kade’s vision came back.”
Saint’s mouth opened in shock.
Kade held up a hand before Saint could celebrate. “Don’t get your hopes up, it’ll fade.”
Doc nodded. “Probably faster than last time,” he warned Kade softly.
Kade slumped into himself. “Yeah, I had a feeling you were going to say that.”
Doc patted Kade’s shoulder. “It’ll be alright brother, we’ll get you through it.”
“Damn straight, you’ve gotten us through hell and back, man. We’ve got you until death comes knocking,” Levi stated.
Kade smiled at him. “Thanks man. I can imagine you look better than the last time I saw you.”
Levi flipped him off. “Shut the fuck up, did you see how many fucking spiders there were.”
Saint cackled as Doc snorted.
“What happened?” Ram asked, pleased they were able to get Kade’s thoughts on something brighter.
Levi rolled his eyes. “The last time me and Kade saw each other before he lost his vision was in the armory on base.”
Kade chuckled. “It was more of a shed type deal. We were stationed overseas and there were camel spiders everywhere. They say they only get up to about six inches but I’ve seen bigger.” He pointed at Saint before he could speak. “That’s what he said.” They all laughed at Saint’s sound of shock at Kade stealing his words. “They have two huge pincher type things as their mouths and they can open them pretty far. The bite won’t kill you but it hurts like a bitch and they are quite aggressive.”
Sanem shivered just thinking about it. “They sound horrifying.”
Kade nodded. “Oh yeah. Definitely a thing of nightmares.” He assured her gleefully.
She narrowed her eyes at him. “I will withhold making you food ever again,” she threatened.
Kade’s eyes widened in shock as he held his hands up in supplication. “Touché.”
Sanem walked over and hugged Kade tight. “I’m both happy and sad for you. But just know it changes nothing for us. We will love and adore you no matter what.”
Kade hugged her back just as tight. “Thank you.”
Sanem pulled back and gave him a watery smile. “Now who wants some food?”
Every male in the room raised their hand.
She snorted and rolled her eyes on the way to the kitchen.
“How did the work go today?” Ram asked Bram.
Bram sighed heavily as he leaned back into the couch. “Good, I helped Amos raise three barns and he’s getting some more supplies to start a few more.”
“Do they know what happened?” Ram asked, as they all sat back down to talk.
“He wouldn’t tell me, it’s either vandalism or a fire. They had already cleared the shambles by the time I had gotten there. Parts of the ground looked charred so I think it’s because of fires, but I don’t know how they’re being started. He did want me to ask if you were still interested in letting Caleb stay with us during his Rumspringa.”
“Yeah, but I need to have a serious talk with Amos before I do. Because if Caleb gets the taste of freedom and unconditional love out here, I don’t think he’ll want to go back,” Ram stated, running his fingers through the hair on the back of Kade’s neck.
“I think he has already thought about that. I don’t think he’s accepted it but we’ll see,” Bram said. “He wants what’s best for Caleb, but the boy adores him and would probably put up with a lot of shit if it meant he could stay with him. I think Amos is the one pushing Caleb to come here for his Rumspringa. Caleb doesn’t seem too thrilled about the notion.”
Ram nodded as he took in what his brother was telling him. “I’ll have a talk with Amos, I’m not sure how much experience he wants the boy to get and I need to make sure he knows what Caleb could get into here.”
“Caleb’s nineteen,” Bram warned him. “So you could in all reality take him to the club and see how he does, but that might be a little too much all at once.”
“Really… he’s nineteen?” Ram asked shocked, he would have thought the boy was around fourteen or fifteen with his stature.
“Yeah, he was premature, remember? But he’s always been mature for his age so I don’t see it being a problem from the maturity standpoint, but I do think taking him to the club on like the calmer nights would be good for him. It’ll give him insight into what a loving consensual relationship between two men is supposed to look like,” Bram said through a yawn.
Ram nodded as he thought. He immediately thought of Ronin but if he was still helping out Ali he didn’t want to step on any toes. So he’d have to think of someone he would trust with his fragile nephew. “I’ll see what I can do, and when the easier nights are. I haven’t worked in a while so I’m kind of behind on the events.”
Bram nodded. “Amos is aware you’d want to talk to him first and he’s ready whenever you are.”
“Alright, I’ll make some plans to head out there and talk to both him and Caleb and see what we can come up with. I don’t want to force the boy to come here if that’s not what he wants.” Ram sighed happily as Kade leaned further into him.
Bram grunted his agreement. “I don’t either. We all know how attached he is to Amos ever since his mom died. It’s going to be hard on both of them no matter what Amos thinks. He’ll be lost without his little boy and Caleb will be worrying about Amos the whole time.”
Ram raked a hand through his hair. “I know. I’ll make sure to get Amos and Caleb a phone so they can keep in contact. I know Amos won’t really like it but we both know he’d jump on the chance to stay in touch with his boy.”
Bram cocked his head as he thought of something. “I don’t want to sound like an ass when I say this…” he started.
Ram raised a brow. “I know that. You’ve always been accepting of me and your kids so I’m not worried. You may not say the politically correct thing but I know where your heart is. Go ahead and say it.”
Bram leaned forward. “Do you think there’s something between Caleb and Amos? You know Amos isn’t his real father, he just took him in when his momma died because no one else in the community wanted him. Amos has always been a part of his life because his cousin was the mother’s best friend. He’s only been living with Caleb for about three years.”
Ram narrowed his eyes as he considered it. “Do you think that’s why Amos is pushing for him to leave?”
Bram shrugged. “I don’t know, it’s a possibility. Maybe something happened or Caleb told him how he felt and now Amos wants him to experience the freedom of his sexuality before he gets stuck in the Amish way of life.”
Ram hummed in acknowledgment. “I’ll ask Amos when I talk to him. I want the whole picture before I take Caleb anywhere.”
“Probably a good idea.”