Chapter Five. #2
Mari had said I could attend the funeral, but explained that if she saw me now, she’d expect to see Tasha by my side.
I understood. Mari wasn’t being mean or blaming me for surviving; instead, she was trying to get through it as best she could.
It had only ever been her and Natasha, and Mari must feel like she’d lost her entire life.
Mari sent love and best wishes, but couldn’t face me.
That gutted me because I wanted to support Mari, but couldn’t.
Papa had been over several times, and Mari was polite but distant.
Papa still had a daughter, but Mari didn’t.
That was a deep wound which would never heal.
Naturally, Mari’s grief affected my dads, and they became the worst kind of satellite parents.
“Are you sure?” Papa demanded as he pulled up outside the apartment. Dad opened the door and climbed into the back. The day after my release, he’d gone and picked up my car from North Dakota and driven it back today.
“Yeah, it’s been nearly five days. I’ve got to go home sometime.”
“Says who? We’ve got that big house, you can come home,” Dad stated. He and Papa swapped glances. They really had empty nest syndrome.
“You two need to chase Declan. The hospital has to discharge him soon, and he’ll end up alone and frightened in care,” I rebutted.
“We’re waiting for someone to call us. We’ve been cleared and have fostered in the past. Hopefully Papa’s rank will give us some pull,” Dad mused.
“I wouldn’t mind fostering, but I don’t have the clearance yet,” I said, and my dads looked surprised.
“You? Didn’t think you wanted kids yet, munchkin,” Dad replied.
“Honestly? I didn’t, but Declan calls out to me.
There’s a bond between us.” And there was.
The day after being discharged, I’d returned and slipped in via a side entrance.
I wasn’t going to leave Declan alone. Some women from Vortex’s MC had visited to give him company, but Declan was still retreating into himself.
The nurses told me he only responded when my dads came.
“If we can get Declan fostered with us, that will give you a chance to get approved,” Papa mused.
“Do you think I can?”
“Don’t see why not. I’ll help with the paperwork and stuff,” Dad offered, and I nodded.
“Amy, shall we come up?” Papa asked, and I shook my head.
“No. It’s fine. I want everything to appear normal. My neighbours don’t know what happened, so let’s keep it that way,” I replied.
“Won’t they think that you’re back early?” Dad inquired.
“No, I told them I was visiting you. Only family and Kristal knew we’d been on the Titanic of the Skies. And Kristal has promised to keep her mouth shut. She’s devastated and is blaming herself for not tearing the tickets up,” I said.
“Poor kid. Tried to do something nice, and this horrendous nightmare occurred. Kristal’s got to be feeling terrible,” Dad responded thoughtfully.
“Yeah. She is.” I couldn’t offer Kristal comfort. We’d spoken when I was released from the hospital, and she’d sobbed down the phone. On one hand, Kristal was relieved that I’d survived, and then, like me, she was guilt-ridden and grieving that Natasha died.
“Okay, we’ll watch you go in,” Dad said as I undid my seatbelt.
“Love you,” I said, kissing both of their cheeks. I exited the car and headed inside. The front door was key-locked, and it took me a few moments to realise I didn’t have my keys. Shit.
“Here’s a set I got cut,” Dad said from behind. “Forgot to give them to you.”
“I was just about to panic,” I admitted with a rueful smile.
Both Dads had spare sets for my place. Dad kissed the top of my head and walked back down the four steps. Papa waited until I opened the door and then drove off with a honk of his horn.
Wearily, I headed upstairs and let myself into the apartment. Heading straight for the bedroom, I collapsed on the bed and curled up. Sobs tore from me as I hugged a teddy bear that Natasha had bought me for my twenty-first. It would be a long time to heal from her death.
◆◆◆
“Hello?” I asked as my buzzer sounded in my apartment, letting me know someone was requesting entry.
“Amy, it’s Vortex. This a good time to visit?” I stared at my answering machine in surprise. Vortex? Visiting me? I glanced around my immediate area to check that it was tidy.
“Amy? I can leave,” he offered.
“No. Come up. I’m on the first floor,” I said and pressed the release button to let him in.
I quickly checked my living room and spotted the time. It was half-past six in the evening. My stomach growled, reminding me I’d not eaten, and I winced. There wasn’t much to eat in the apartment as I’d run everything down for the trip.
Damn. Maybe Vortex would like takeout? There was a knock, and I answered it. Vortex grinned when I did and held out some bags.
“Hungry?” he asked, and my stomach made its complaint known.
“How embarrassing,” I muttered. “Come on in.”
“I was passing and thought I’d stop and see how you’re doing,” Vortex said.
“And you brought food on the off chance?”
“Well, if you’d said no, I’d have had leftovers for tomorrow,” Vortex replied with a grin. His eyes raked my face, settling on tear tracks before moving on. “How are you doing?”
“You don’t want to be asking that,” I muttered, leading him into the kitchen and pulling crockery and cutlery out.
“Wouldn’t have asked if I didn’t mean it,” Vortex retorted.
“One minute I’m falling apart, the next I’m trying to figure shit out.
The feds have contacted me and want to speak with me again.
Don’t know why. There’s nothing different or new from the last time I spoke to them.
The news reported tonight that there was a bomb onboard.
It was bad enough thinking it was an accident, but to know someone did this on purpose… ” I exploded and bit my lip.
“Let it out, Amy Wright, my brave girl. Everything must feel like it’s piling on top and trying to drag you down.”
“I want to scream and scream and not stop. A bomb, Vortex—I just saw it on the news. Nobody had mentioned that possibility until today. Everyone thought it was a tragic accident. My dads couldn’t have seen the report, or they’d be on the phone by now.
What do I say to them? Why do the Feds need to speak to me again? ”
I slammed my hands on the worktop as tears threatened again. For fuck’s sake, I was tired of crying. Angrily, I dashed them away, then face-planted into a broad, strong, and very muscled chest. Vortex’s hand moved on my back as his arms held me close.
“It’s okay to be angry, Amy, I’d be fuckin’ furious.
You thought you’d survived a very tragic and upsetting disaster.
Now you’re learning, somebody deliberately blew the Titanic of the Skies up, and you’ve no idea why.
You’ve every justification to be pissed off.
Someone took your best friend away from you for some petty asshole reason they justified in their head. ”
“Exactly, so many died for what? We don’t even know yet,” I spat.
Vortex remained where he was, providing a soothing presence but not putting pressure on me to calm down. After a few minutes, I moved away and took a deep breath.
“The food will get cold,” I muttered.
“That’s a crime because reheating Chinese isn’t always the best,” Vortex teased and stepped back. I immediately began missing the warmth of his body as he unpacked the bag.
“Is there anything you don’t like?”
“Not with Chinese, other cuisines, yes,” I replied.
“Where shall we eat?” Vortex asked.
“My living room is fine.”
“Go sit down, brave girl, I’ll bring your food in,” Vortex ordered.
“Are you sure?”
“Scram!”
I laughed slightly and headed for the living room. This was a surprise, not an unpleasant one either. I did wonder why Vortex was here…
Maybe he’d tell me after we’d eaten.
Vortex
I’d left the clubhouse with every intention of finding Amy and seeing how she was.
The news about the bomb had just broken, so I took a risk, bought food, and headed to her place.
Even that was a chance because she might still have been at her fathers’ home.
It was a relief to spot the apartment lights.
Then self-doubts flitted through me. Would Amy want to see me?
I’d never second-guessed myself until now, and I wondered briefly why.
Amy had clung to me at the hospital, but that was because I’d found her.
Would turning up here make her react badly?
Only one way to find out. I hit the door buzzer and was relieved when Amy let me in.
Now I was dishing up food for her and trying not to focus on how pretty she was, or how her ass was a perfect peach.
Shit, the woman was grieving, my cock needed to behave itself.
I don’t think Amy would appreciate it standing up and saying hello to her.
In an attempt to make it go down, I thought of Kyleah, and my cock instantly behaved. Damn, it seems as if that bitch had some use after all. Grabbing the two plates heaped with food, I carried them into the lounge area where Amy waited for me with a warm smile.