Tarek was pale and it seemed as though he was having issues breathing. There was a cut over his left eye and a large dark spot was growing on the front of his shirt at his right side. I arched a brow and after finishing my conversation with Xman, I hung up and set the phone on the island.
“Let me see your side.” I told him.
“What did Xman say?” Tarek asked.
“He’s coming and bringing the van.” I told him while lifting the edge of his shirt. “You’re hurt.”
“I’m fine, I swear.”
“You’re not fine.” I snapped. “Sit down and let me take a look.”
He exhaled. “There’s a first aid kit in the bag upstairs.”
I took off up the stairs to find it. I grabbed towels from the bathroom on my way back. In the kitchen, we set a large platter of fruit in front of Lilo and I escorted Tarek into the living room. Lilo looked as if he’d been through enough as it was, I didn’t want him to see me patching Tarek up too.
He talked me into how to stop the blood, then stitches. Though the sight of blood was unnerving, I couldn’t pass out. Tarek was depending on me to make him better and I refused to let him down.
He winced with each stitch to go in because there was nothing to numb the pain. Still, I worked as quickly as I could then wrapped him up. When I was finished, Tarek gripped me at the back of the neck and kissed me deeply. I wish that kiss would help him with the pain—I wish it would magically heal him. I gave him my mouth, allowing him to take what he needed.
I sighed.
“Thank you.” Tarek whispered.
I managed a small smile and a nod then rose to clean up the mess. Tarek gritted his teeth while pushing his arms into a shirt. By then, Lilo had gone through almost the entire fruit platter.
“What were they doing with him?” I whispered. “He’s starving. And they hurt him…”
“We won’t know unless…” Tarek turned his attention to the headlights shining into the house through the glass at the top of the front door. After grabbing his gun from the bag, he held it under the island while speaking in rapid Spanish to Lilo.
The little boy nodded and reached for me. Happily, I picked him up and cuddled him into my chest. Tarek walked up to the front window and peered out. He shoved the gun into the back of his pants and opened the door. Xman and Bunny entered, closed the door and the next little while was a flurry of activities. Xman grabbed the black bag and darted up the stairs while Bunny led me out the door with Lilo. I set Lilo in the mini van and strapped him in with the seatbelt. When I backed up, Lilo panicked and reached for me.
“I’m not leaving,” Tarek said. “Trust me on this.”
I climbed in to sit beside him just as Xman hurried out the door with the bag and tossed it into the back of the van.
“Xman is going to drive with me in the truck.” Tarek turned to Bunny. “You going to be okay?”
“You know I got this.” Bunny smirked.
“Meet at Backwater?” Xman asked.
They all agreed and soon we were on the road.
Soon, we were pulling into the front yard of a large house—a mansion. They parked in a massive building that reminded me of a hanger for a plane and the doors were pulled shut with a loud clang. Xman and Bunny led us down some steps, through a well-lit tunnel then up again into the main house.
Bunny showed me where one of the showers were and helped me setting up a bath for Lilo. I also borrowed some shavers from Xman and while Lilo splashed around in the tub, I shaved his head to get rid of the matted hair and searched for bugs. Luckily, I found none.
While the others talked, I sat on the edge of the tub, watching over this kid who was now the only family I had left. He was the splitting image of my father, only he had dark eyes—I assumed those came from his mother.
He was a beautiful boy, but I knew he must have been through hell.
“Um—mi nombre es Ellie. Estoy—su hermana.” My Spanish wasn’t as fluent as it could have been. I had paid very little attention in school. The truth was I didn’t see the point. But now as I looked into the eyes of a scared little boy, I needed to find a way to speak to him—to comfort him.
“Mi hermana?” He asked. “Verdad?”
“Yes.”
I sat on the floor and helped him bathe, then rinsed his body. I wrapped him in a towel then washed his clothes in the soapy water. For the moment it was all we had for him until I could get a chance to pick up a few things. I held his hand and led him down to the kitchen and found pancake mix.
