He nods.
“What’s the situation with Uncle Cass?” I brace for bad news.
My other uncle, Endo’s brother, Cassian Macarley a.k.a. Cass, made a shipping deal with a man named Daniel Pembroke, who double-crossed him and enlisted my dad to finish off Uncle Cass forever. My dad was all too happy to try to off either of my uncles, but he didn’t account for Uncle Endo kidnapping Pembroke’s daughter and forcing an exchange. The man’s daughter for Cass.
My dad scrambled to remain in control and, at the last minute, set up a luncheon where all parties were to meet. But we knew he and Endo couldn’t possibly eat at the same table, not when my dad kept poking at Scarlett Pembroke, a woman Endo respected and maybe liked more than he was willing to admit.
“Cass is resting in his room,” Endo says.
“Great news.”
Endo arranges the pillows behind my back so I can lean against the headboard.
“And what happened to Doc?” I ask. Scarlett Pembroke is a doctor. The town enjoyed her services while she stayed with us. I didn’t mind her. She was sharp, if a little cold.
On my left, Connor shakes his head.
“I take it Scarlett is a sore subject?” I’m treading carefully. Endo is particularly sensitive when it comes to Scarlett Permbroke, the woman he kidnapped and held here as collateraluntil Cass was returned. Cass is here. Scarlett is not. Mission accomplished.
But Endo grew to like her and probably hated her for making him care about her. Not that I think Scarlett forced him to feel anything. We own our feelings, good or bad.
Dina sparked some feelings inside me. I own them. They’re mostly good feelings that, if acted upon, would end badly for her, so I stop thinking about her.
I forget her.
Her normalcy has no place in my world.
There, forgotten. See how easy that was?
Endo points to my ankle. “Can you stand?”
“Let’s see.” I swing my feet over the bed and touch the cold floor. When I stand up, the room spins, but Icanstand, and so I remain upright for a while to get used to being vertical again. Slowly, I take a few steps and tilt a little, but regain my balance quickly.
“What’s going on with my head?” I ask.
“Besides the concussion that hit your center of gravity, the sprained ankle on which you can barely stand, your cuts, bruises, and the massive scratch on your back, nothing. You’re fine. Want to go for a run?”
My uncle Endo is a sarcastic asshole. I love him. But he’s an asshole.
“Glad to see you’re in one piece,” he says, then lets me use his shoulder for support as I walk to the bathroom to do my business. One wobbly step at a time, I walk back to the bed and sit on it.
Connor left, so I use the opportunity to ask about him. “How’s he been?” I ask Endo.
Endo shakes his head. “Worried sick that you wouldn’t wake up.”
“Is he taking his meds?”
“He says he is, but…” Endo shrugs. “He’ll be fine now that you’re up and about.”
Connor returns with a walker. “Ta-da. Look what I found. It’s Grandpa’s walker.”
“Bro, I’m not using that thing.”
“Oh, but you are, Decky.” Connor gives me a deranged smile.
I know better than to argue when Connor is trying to express how much he wants me to get better. “Okay, brother.”
He thrusts the walker toward me, and I rest my hands on it and walk a little. “This thing is actually helpful.” I walk back and forth until my ankle starts throbbing. “I think the meds are wearing off.” I climb back into bed. “How long before I’m up and about?”
