Chapter 18
Teddy
I’d never been more tired in my life and less likely to sleep.
Sitting next to Jesse’s bed, I ran my thumb back and forth over the back of their hand while they slept.
The drugs they were on meant that they’d barely been awake since they came out of recovery after surgery, but the doctor said that was good, and they’d start being awake for longer stretches soon.
I wanted them awake for my benefit, but it was probably better for Jess if they slept through the worst of it. When they woke up fully and realized how bad things were, they’d probably wish that they could go back to sleep.
Three broken ribs. A shattered jaw that they’d placed metal plates in to stabilize and then wired shut. Sprained wrist. Broken nose. Two missing teeth. A spleen that had caused all the bleeding and they’d had to remove during surgery.
After every argument I’d had with Jess about riding in cars with teenagers because I was terrified they’d get in an accident, and now they’d been injured just as badly in our living room.
I was numb with fear.
Jesse would be okay eventually. Their wounds would heal.
We were still waiting to talk to Dylan’s doctor. He was out of surgery but still in recovery, and no one had come to speak with Curtis yet.
He was alive. The charming boy who’d taken my kids under his wing and teased them and hung with them and had designated himself as their protector was alive. I held on to that with both hands as we waited.
Turning my head, I looked over to where Curtis held Finn in his lap.
One of the nurses had brought in a pair of sweatpants and grippy socks for him.
I wasn’t sure where she’d gotten them, but I was grateful that he was no longer in his underwear.
On the floor next to them, Draco sat with his knees bent, his head tipped back against the wall.
He’d stuck close to Curtis’s side since they’d arrived.
The rest of the club was around, but beyond Curtis’s parents, Kara, and Charlie, none of them had come into Jesse’s room. They congregated in the waiting room down the hall in case they were needed, but gave us space otherwise.
“Curt, the doctor came to the waiting room,” Charlie said, poking her head in the door.
“Shit,” Curtis said, rising to his feet. He looked around frantically with Finn still in his arms.
“I’ll take him,” Charlie said quickly as I got up. “Hey, Finn. You wanna sit with me for a couple minutes?”
I stood awkwardly, my hand still gripping Jesse’s as Curtis disappeared.
“Well?” Draco said, gesturing at me. “What are you waiting for?”
“I—”
“Go,” Charlie advised me. “I’ll stay here until you get back.”
With one last look at Jess, I hurried after Curtis with Draco on my heels.
When we got to the waiting room, Curtis was already talking to a tall man in scrubs with his back to us.
I slowed, watching Curt’s face for any clue about what the doctor was saying.
Eventually, I reached them and stepped up next to Curt. Immediately, his arm slid around me.
“You’re sayin’ he’s gonna be okay?” Curtis asked.
“He’s in the ICU right now,” the doctor replied. “But we were able to repair all of his wounds. Now, we just need to watch and wait because infection is still a factor.”
“But you’re givin’ him somethin’ for that, right?”
“Yes, we are. Your son was very lucky. He got help quickly, and they brought him to me, and I’m very good. It’s just going to take time now. Try to be patient.”
Curtis nodded, even though I knew he wanted to ask more questions.
“Thanks, doc,” Cam said from a few feet behind us.
“My pleasure,” the doctor replied. “Giving good news is the best part of this job. Doesn’t happen often enough.”
He accepted Curtis’s silent handshake, looking down at me with a nod.
“You know where the ICU is?”
“We’ll find it,” I replied quietly.
“I understand you have another child in the hospital?” the doctor asked.
“Down the hall,” I confirmed.
“Let the nurses know,” he said kindly. “So when your son gets out of the ICU, they’ll make sure to move him to this wing if they can. Easier for you guys that way.”
“Thank you,” Draco said when the words were caught in my throat.
With another nod, the doctor turned and walked away.
“I’m gonna head up to see Dyl,” Curtis said. “You coming?”
I glanced down the hallway we’d come from, my stomach twisting.
“Go with Curt,” Farrah said from across the room, rising from her seat. “I’ll go in with the kids.”
“Charlie’s in there,” Draco told her.
“Good, I’ll have company,” she replied. She rubbed my back briskly as she passed me.
“Come get me if they wake up?” I called after her.
“Absolutely,” she replied.
“Come on,” Curtis’s mom said, urging us toward the elevators. “The ICU is on this floor. I asked when we first got here, just in case.”
“He seemed confident,” Draco said as the small group of us moved through the hospital.
“Very,” Trix replied. “Dyl’s going to be fine.”
“He said that we were lucky,” Curtis said, his hand gripping mine like a vice. “Because the ambulance got there so fast. Do we know who called?”
Cam shook his head. “I can ask Dad to look into it,” he said. “Makes no sense, since all the neighbors said they didn’t see anything.”
“You think maybe the guys who did it?” Kara asked.
“No fuckin’ way,” Curtis replied instantly. “If they were willin’ to do that kind of damage, they weren’t callin’ it in afterward.”
Trix murmured something to her husband.
“We’ll get ’em,” he replied quietly. “This is our focus now.”
The ICU waiting room only had a couple of people in it.
It was kind of shocking considering the crowd we’d left behind.
I wondered vaguely while Curtis talked to a nurse if they’d all move now that they knew where Dylan was.
He was theirs. He’d been theirs since the day he was born, even if he’d lived in a different state.
“Only two people back there at a time,” Curtis said as he walked back toward us. “I’m gonna bring Teddy in, and then she can come back out and get Mom, yeah?”
I looked at Trix in surprise. “No, your mom can go first. I can wait.”
Curtis looked at me like I’d lost my mind. “Come on,” he said, not even bothering to argue. He ushered me toward the double doors and waited for them to open. As soon as we were inside, a nurse at the desk quietly directed us to Dylan.
I hovered near the doorway, my heart in my throat as Curtis went straight to his son.
Dylan was connected to what seemed like fifteen different machines.
There was one in his mouth, two hanging from beneath his blankets, and two different IVs in his hands.
Wires came out of the neck of his gown. His face was pale in the low fluorescent lighting, and his mouth was slack around the breathing tube.
He looked bad. Really, really bad. Jesse’s face was far more mangled—Dylan only had a black eye and a swollen cheekbone—but with all the equipment in his room, it was evident that Dylan was far worse off.
“Damn, son,” Curtis said quietly, brushing Dylan’s hair back from his forehead. “They fucked you up, didn’t they?”
I moved further into the room, my hands in fists at my sides as my stomach churned with a mix of horror and relief. I’d seen Dylan at the house. I’d known already how bad his injuries were. It was different, though, seeing him so bad after the doctors had done their job.
Or maybe I’d just hit my limit.
“Jesse’s just down the hall,” Curtis said, kissing Dylan’s forehead. “And so is Finn. Both of them are gonna be fine, pal. They’re safe. You’re all safe. Dad’s here now. You just rest and get better, all right? I got things from here.”
I didn’t realize I was crying until a tear tickled my jaw and dropped onto the bedding at Dylan’s feet.
“You wanna come talk to him?” Curtis asked. “Come up here, baby.”
I nodded and moved to the opposite side of the bed, pausing for only a moment before I grasped Dylan’s hand.
“Hey, Dyl,” I said softly. “You look like shit, bud.”
Curtis chuckled under his breath.
“I know what you did,” I whispered, leaning down close to his ear. “I know you protected them.” I closed my eyes and swallowed, trying to keep my voice from wobbling. “Now get better. Jesse’s gonna give you so much shit if you’re not awake by the time they are. I love you, kid. So much.”
Curtis’s eyes were gentle on mine when I lifted my head again. The look made a sharp pain flash through my chest, and it took everything I had not to react.
“I’m going to go get your mom,” I told him. “Do you need anything before I go?”
“No,” he replied, his gaze sharpening. “I’m gonna stay with him for a while, and then I’ll come back and check on you guys. You’ll let me know if Jess wakes up?”
“I will,” I assured him, backing toward the doorway.
I hurried back to the waiting room and let Trix know it was her turn before I made my way back to Jesse and Finn.
That was where I belonged.
Finn was asleep in a small bed below the window, and I was sitting next to Jesse’s bed when they woke up early the next morning.
“You’re okay,” I said quickly when they let out a scared groan, jerking to my feet so they could see me. “You’re in the hospital, Jess. Finn’s fine. He’s asleep.”
Tears rolled down Jesse’s face as they stared at me, one hand riding to their face.
“No, don’t touch it, babydoll,” I said, catching their hand before it made contact. “You can’t open your mouth because your jaw is broken. They had to wire it shut.”
They made a desperate sound, their eyes searching mine.
“You had surgery,” I explained, sitting down at their hip. “You’re down one spleen, but the doctor said you didn’t need it anyway.”
Jesse’s eyes widened, their breathing speeding up as they squeezed my hand.
“Dylan’s going to be okay too,” I said. Their hand loosened fractionally. “He’s in the ICU, just for a little while, and then they’ll move him to a regular room.”
Jess tried to say something and then groaned in bleary frustration when it came out as gibberish.
“You’re safe,” I assured them. “Finn and Dylan are safe too.”