Total pages in book: 154
Estimated words: 148220 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 741(@200wpm)___ 593(@250wpm)___ 494(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 148220 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 741(@200wpm)___ 593(@250wpm)___ 494(@300wpm)
“You coming wouldn’t stop a damn thing.” Wouldn’t matter if he could, either. I don’t care if I’m hurt. Don’t care a bit. She’s all that matters now. “And I owe her.”
Gunner’s eyebrows shoot upwards. “How do you figure that?”
“Because there was a big fucking hole in me, and Maxine got me through to the other side.” Or maybe she just filled it up. Either way, the only hurt left in me is knowing that she’s hurting, too. “Now it’s my turn to help her get through.”
They exchange a look. Daisy scratches on the door, so I get up to let her in while they carry on their eyeball conversation. Tail whipping everything in her path, Daisy careens her way to the table, sniffs up Gunner and Anna before returning to me.
And they’ve apparently finished their silent talk and come to an agreement.
“All right, brother,” Gunner says. “Anything you need—”
“I know.”
With a heavy sigh, Anna gets up and hugs me tight. “And be careful?”
“I will.” Because Maxine will be with me. Being careful is just another way of keeping her safe. “I’ll make those video calls for Daisy as often as I can.”
“Okay.” She tilts her head back. Her eyes are filled up with tears, but with a smile there, too. “It’s good to have my brother back.”
The man I was before the Cage. Not all the same. But closer than I was.
Not dead. Just wearing more scars.
Gunner claps me on the back, saying what Anna did without the words. “You heading out right away?”
“Depends on Maxine. Might be she’ll need a day or two before she’s ready to do anything. For now, I’ll let her sleep.”
“Sleep sounds good.” Gunner takes Anna’s hand, begins pulling her toward the hallway. “So we’ll just head back to bed, too, and be real quiet down here.”
Yeah, I think I’ll be getting my own place soon. I reach down to scratch Daisy’s ears, then she’s on my heels all the way up the stairs. My apartment upstairs isn’t much to look at. Anna’s put some stuff up here to make it nicer but I just don’t care beyond having what’s necessary. Pretty sure Daisy’s got more up here than I do. There’s a couch and television in the living room; in the bedroom, there’s the bed, a chair to pile up with my clean clothes and a basket for the dirty ones.
Last night, I took the pile of clean clothes and threw them in the empty basket, then settled into the chair while Maxine and Daisy curled up on the bed. About two seconds after we got here, my girl was all over my dog, petting her and kissing her furry face and crying again. Then she cried herself to sleep.
No signs of stirring yet. She’s on her belly with her cheek turned against the pillow, her face and eyes puffy from all the tears. My throat’s real tight as I adjust the blanket a little higher over her shoulders.
Daisy tries to snuffle around her, probably searching for all the loving that Maxine lavished on her while crying.
“C’mon, girl.” Quietly, I pull Daisy back from the bed, then snag a few things out of the basket. Under my breath, I ask her, “Wanna go for a run? We’re gonna stay real strong so we can take care of her, yeah?”
Daisy is all for that idea. In the living room, I change my clothes and lace up my shoes, and then my dog nearly rips my heart out when we’re about to head down the stairs, and she looks back toward the bedroom, wagging her tail.
Waiting for our new friend.
I sit on the top stair, get her in close, scratching her ears. “We’re going to let her sleep, okay? She’s real hurt. The kind of hurt that I can’t fix. And I’m so fucking sorry, girl, but I have to leave you with Anna again for a little while. But then I’ll be back.”
And this damn dog. Wagging her tail and loving me through all of this.
“But our girl ain’t going to come back,” I say through the raw ache in my throat. “And you oughta blame me for that. She’s real angry at Papa now and grateful I can help, but pretty soon…pretty soon…she’ll start thinking about all the shit I said to her. All the shit I did to her. And then— And then…I don’t figure she’ll ever let me see her again.”
Whining softly, Daisy licks my face.
“You ain’t gotta worry, though,” I tell her hoarsely. “She loves you. She’ll give you all the kisses while she’s here. Because you’re a good girl. Such a good girl.”
Her favorite thing to hear. She grins up at me, tongue lolling.
“So you ready to go? Let’s go, girl. We gotta be real strong for her.”
Real fucking strong.