12. Knight
Chapter twelve
Knight
The family has been in deep turmoil ever since the twins brought Snow home.
Hunter has gone into his shell, refusing to participate in family meetings, and Angel and Saint barely look at any of us.
Angel in particular is worse for wear.
There must be a way I can bring the morale back.
I’m the happy one after all, and my brothers have always relied on me to pick them up with a joke or two.
It gets taxing, having a positive outlook on life all the time, but I’m happy to adopt the role for my brothers.
I check in on Hunter, knocking on the door to his wing.
Angry rock music blasts from inside, and it seems he’s shutting us out.
I heard what happened. He snuck down into the prison block and laid eyes on her, and a sigh leaves me when I rub between my eyes.
Hunter just can’t resist a pretty face. I haven’t seen her myself, but I can tell by my twin brothers’ mannerisms that she’s more than pretty.
Those two barely regard the other sex. Sometimes, Saint will go off into town to blow off steam with Hunter, but Angel… he’s another story.
He’s too much of a psychopath for simple lovemaking, and I’ve heard horror stories of the girls he has been with.
What he’s done to them...
Then there’s Moth. I’m not sure what has gotten into him, but he’s grouchier than usual, often drinking alone.
It looks like I’m going to have to pull my sleeves up, and I’ve really got my hands full with these six.
Always the positive one. The doctor of the family.
I don’t just mend my brother’s ailments, but their minds, too.
Where would they all be without me?
Once again, I rap my knuckles against Hunter’s door. He can be so dramatic at times.
He's the youngest of his brothers, while Casper is the youngest of mine.
But Casper acts so much more mature. He’s even a year younger than Hunter at twenty-two, but at times, Hunter still acts like he’s in high school.
We’ve all got our hands full with him, indeed, and Prince finds him insufferable.
As hard as Prince can be on him and all of us, he does love and care about us.
I tell myself the reason why he’s imprisoning that womanis because he loves us. He’s doing it for his family.
For the fathers we lost.
“Hunter, open up. It’s Knight.”
The music grows louder, and I roll my eyes, wondering what I’m going to do with him.
He can’t keep acting like this.
Sooner or later, he needs to come out of that room. I don’t think he has eaten in days, and when I pick up the scent of cannabis, a sigh leaves my lips.
While I commend the drug for its therapeutic properties, he can’t keep regressing like this.
It’s not good for him.
“He still refusing to talk to anyone?”
I peer around to find Casper. He stretches a black eyebrow, and I shake my head, stepping away from the door.
Like me, Casper went to college, paving a life for himself outside of the family business.
While he trained in theater, I went to medical school.
It baffles me how someone as shy as Casper can act and sing in front of a live audience, but he may just be what Hunter needs.
“Thank God you’re here. Maybe you can get him out of that room.”
My little brother gazes at the door of Hunter’s wing, inhaling deeply when he picks up on the scent of cannabis.
“Smells like he’s a little preoccupied.”
“You don’t have to do much. Just sit there with him for a while. You always have a way of settling him.”
Casper is like a little therapy dog, and I don’t mean that in an insulting way. Since he barely talks, it makes him good company.
He just sits there and listens.
Sometimes, I think it takes its toll on him. I may be the happy one, but even I have darkness living inside me.
Why do you really think I went to medical school? So I could learn all the ways to fuck up a man’s body.
I’m quite the psychopath, but only when I let that part of me out the cage.
Then I’m unstoppable.
Casper sighs, stepping up to the door as he knocks. “Hunter. It’s Casper.”
The music stops. Then we hear our cousin’s footsteps as he comes to the door, opening it a sliver just so Casper can slip in.
I don’t see him. I don’t think he wants to see anyone, but as I said, Casper has a way of putting everyone at ease.
Casper glances at me, and I see it in his violet eyes when he gets a look at what’s on the other side of the door.
As I feared.
Hunter is worse than I thought.
Well, may as well leave them to it. They were good friends as kids. Perhaps Casper may even be willing to let Hunter take him to town so they can pick up girls together.
Casper hates every moment, especially when girls flirt with him upon sight.
He's too good-looking, but he has no idea how to talk to any of them.
Thank God he has the ladies’ man , Hunter, to guide him.
Casper is pretty useless with women; I don’t think he’s ever had a girlfriend.
I head to the living room, thinking that I may just pour myself a whiskey from the bar, but I run into Saint before I get my chance.
Something is wrong, and my heart clenches.
“Saint?”
My younger brother tries to hide it, but I see it inside his frosty blue eyes.
Fuck.
“Prince summoned me to find you. Your services are needed, brother.”
I feared as much.
Prince hurt her, and I reach my hand up, running my fingers through my brown hair.
“All right. Let’s go.”
The twin nods, then leads the way. I know the way myself, but since it’s only him and Angel who’ve been authorized to enter the prison block, I don’t bother arguing.
We soon arrive at the grim, concrete building.
The guard outside studies Saint’s face carefully before he lets him inside, and I get it.
He's trying to ensure that he isn’t Hunter in a blond wig.
The guard that made that mistake hasn’t been seen since, and I try not to think about it as Saint leads me down the steps.
The cells are on the subterranean level, and I always hate coming down into this place.
I come here a lot, as the family doctor.
It’s my duty to mend the prisoners so Prince can break them again and again and again until they leave in a body bag.
My hackles raise as the lights flicker above, and then the air grows thin as we descend further and further.
I’m getting lightheaded. This is ridiculous.
I’m supposed to be a doctor.
I should be the last person who trembles at the sight of blood and torture, but this place always unsettles me.
We finally arrive at the cell door at the far end of the block, and a shudder goes through me.
It's darkest this way. The light above doesn’t even switch on.
Saint inhales deeply, turning my way. “You… may want to prepare yourself.”
My heart pounds but I swallow, rolling my shoulders. “What do you think four years of medical school prepared me for, Saint?”
He shakes his head. “That’s not what I’m talking about.”
I look at him now, and I mean really look at him. I find the meaning behind his glacial blue eyes, and my heart thumps for a different reason.
The reason why Hunter has locked himself away in his room, shutting us all out like an angsty teenager.
“So, that beautiful, hey?”
His mouth quirks. “Even after Prince’s demonstration…”
A demonstration of his authority and power.
“It’s fine. I’m sure I can keep it in my pants. I’m not Hunter, and I’ve seen many bodies. I’m a doctor, Saint. Remember that.”
He snorts, opening the latch on the reinforced door, and when I step into the cramped cell after him, spying the hunched, dark-haired woman on the bed before us, I pause.
Is this how she’s been living? It’s bare.
All she has for comfort is a thin blanket. We can do better than that, surely.
We’re not complete monsters.
Saint coughs for her attention. “Snow? I would like you to meet Knight. Our family doctor.”
Finally, the woman lifts her head, and I spy her round brown eyes.
The biggest pair of eyes I have ever seen on a woman, and my head spins when I get a look at that face.
Saint was right. Even with the busted lip and split cheek, Snow White has to be the most beautiful woman I have ever seen.
Shit.
I really wasn’t prepared after all.
Now I can understand why Hunter locked himself away. Why he wants nothing to do with Prince.
When I spy the bruises on her, even I want to throttle the prick for daring to mar such perfect skin.
Even beneath the hideous fluorescent lights, she’s gorgeous, and even though her lip is swollen, I still think about sinking my teeth into it and sucking on her tongue.
My dickhardens, and I curse silently.
Some doctor I am.
Well, I'm fucked.