Chapter 44
Ollie smiled hesitantly, handing over the signed form to the man behind the counter. After grabbing the baggie full of all the things that had been in his pockets when the police had taken him in, he turned to Detective Jamison. “Okay, I'm ready to get my release paperwork signed.”
Jamison sighed heavily, but said nothing.
Then again, the man had gotten to lecture him for a good three hours before they caved to his lawyer, so there wasn’t much else to be said.
He wasn’t involved in the shooting—aside from being present for it, and possibly causing it since the seller hadn’t liked what he said—and he hadn’t been doing anything illegal.
Not to mention, thankfully, no one had died, even if there had been a few injuries.
There was nothing they could charge him with that his very expensive and well-trained lawyer wouldn’t be able to get cleared up. But he couldn’t say he didn’t feel bad that they’d likely be able to succeed if he weren’t so well financed.
Following Detective Jamison to the front of the station, he’d just finished signing his paperwork, after several more warnings that he could be called in for further questioning, when his lawyer, Brittney Darrow, appeared from the back of the station.
Jamison sighed as he eyed her before silently walking away, clearly feeling grumpy about the whole situation.
The tall brunette smiled as she reached him. “We're all set here. Your boyfriend should be out in just a moment.”
Ollie smiled back sheepishly. “Heading out?”
“I am, until next time.” She nodded and left.
“Ollie.”
Looking back at the sound of his name, he spotted Raymond approaching, with what he knew to be a very expensive lawyer by his side. “Managed to get out quickly this time, I see.”
The older man shrugged, his face a bit grim.
“Always good to have cameras, and to never shoot first. I do apologize for this. As I have done previously, there will be a hefty fee for the inconvenience. Not to mention, I’ll cover whatever legal fees or medical charges have occurred due to this unfortunate incident.
So, please, send me whatever bills come in.
“To note, I have already had your boyfriend’s vehicle brought here from the warehouse. I’m just sorry that I once again put you in danger. I hope you’ll forgive me.”
Ollie hesitated, and although he knew Raymond never intended for things to go sideways, there was always a chance they could.
At the same time, it wasn’t like this always happened.
He had done countless jobs for the man without incident.
It was just that when things went wrong, they really went wrong.
After a moment, he sighed and said, “I forgive you, but this definitely can’t keep happening.
And my boyfriend was injured this time, so it really can’t happen again, because it’s pretty much my fault he was in danger at all.
So, while I’m not saying I won’t work with you again, I’m going to have to ask you to put more safety precautions in place before I do. ”
Raymond eyed him for a moment silently before nodding. “I understand, and I agree, it is far past time I make sure you can work for me without risking being shot. I’ll consider what must be done and get back to you. Do apologize to your boyfriend for me, won’t you?”
“I will.”
“Then, until next time, my Little Librarian.” With that, the man left with his lawyer trailing behind him.
Ollie sighed, and was about to sit in one of the chairs against the wall to wait for Noble—despite it being where they likely sat perps—when he noticed all the staring, and decided that sitting out in the lobby would be a better idea.
Hurrying past the desks, out of the bullpen, he took a seat by the windows, ignoring the receptionist. Sitting there, he did his best to not think, because thinking was bad. There was just too much that he shouldn’t, and didn’t want to think about.
Noble walked out of the back of the station, sighing when he spotted Ollie sitting in the lobby, looking a little bit down and very tired.
“Ollie?” he called out.
His head perked up on hearing his name, and the witch rushed over when he spotted him, blurting, “How are you feeling? Does it hurt? Did they give you medicine? Are there any care instructions? Do—”
He held up his hand for Ollie to stop, and the man snapped his mouth shut. Even so, the slight whimper he let out as he stood inches away, wringing his hands together, hurt his heart. It appeared the man was also trying to see the bandage Noble had on.
Not that he’d be able to, as Noble had been given a new long-sleeved top by the police, after his trip to the hospital. The bullet hadn’t gone through, but it also hadn’t caused any major damage. Mainly, as his bones, tissue, and muscle were a bit harder to destroy than your average human’s.
The doctor, thankfully, didn’t question how shallow the bullet wound had been, and just removed it, cleaned it, and stitched him up, followed by bandaging and antibiotics.
He had tried to refuse the pain pills, but ended up taking some very strong Tylenol when both the officer with him and the doctor became adamant he take something.
While the doctor had legitimately seemed concerned, he was pretty sure the officer just wanted him to take something strong so he’d either slip up in questioning, or maybe to make sure he didn’t try to use the pain to get out of the interview.
He would have preferred to just dig the bullet out and stitch himself up, but that definitely hadn’t been a possibility once the police knew.
Hugging Ollie briefly, he pulled back to look down at him. “Baby, I feel fine. I’m bullet-free and stitched up. They gave me antibiotics, and some pain pills.”
Pain pills that he had no intention of using. Noble would much rather deal with the pain than have a fuzzy head. His pain tolerance was rather high anyway, and this was by far not the worst injury he’d put up without narcotics.
“Only instructions are to keep it covered, watch for infection, and hold off on getting it wet for at least twenty-four hours. Followed by, coming back in a week or so to get the stitches removed.”
Stitches that he planned to remove himself in a few days, as that was about how long it would take for the wound to heal, though he’d have to keep it covered for longer to hide his fast healing.
To be honest, the only reason he wasn’t lying about the stitches was that Ollie would eventually see the healed wound, and the location, with how far in it was, meant he couldn't really brush it off as just a scratch.
Ollie looked up at him with big, watery eyes as he sniffled and softly murmured, “I’m so sorry, Noble.”
“Please, stop apologizing, Baby. I’d rather it was me than you. Besides, you weren’t wrong, they didn’t exactly shoot at us. I was hit by a ricochet as I rushed us behind the crate.”
“A ricochet?”
“Yep, I’m assuming someone accidentally fired while dropping to the ground, and yeah…”
Ollie took a deep breath in and slowly let it out, clearly thinking over the matter, before huffing, “Still!? It should be neither of us.” Looping his arm through Noble’s left, Ollie said, “Come on, let’s head back to your house. I can help you bathe and get you settled in bed.”
“Ollie, I don’t need—”
“Oh! Your keys, I need your keys. You definitely shouldn’t be driving with whatever pain meds they gave you. By the way, Raymond had your truck brought to the station, so that’s why it’s here.”
Yeah, he didn’t know how he felt about some random person with mob ties driving his vehicle. Wait, no, that was a lie. He very much did. Noble did not like it one bit. In fact, it pissed him off, and made him want to deep clean it and check it for bugs…but he didn’t say that.
“Baby, I don’t need you to—”
“Be good and let me take care of you!” the witch said stubbornly.
Noble just sighed in response and let Ollie tug him along, having a feeling it was going to be a long night.