“She told him that, but he just kept poking her. Telling her she was just trying to chump out on him.”
“What a fucking moron,” I grumble, swiping my palm down my face. “He’s lucky he didn’t break her neck, pushing her off that thing.”
Suddenly, I’m, once again, overwhelmed with the urge to punch Kai right in his overly square jaw. Maybe rattle his perfect teeth a little. Guess my overprotective streak extends beyond Brooks, straight to Morgan, too.
Our kids are happy, healthy, and in good hands…
With Colton hot on my heels, I stalk up to the medical cabin to find Brooks and Kai already at war with one another. Colt immediately goes over to hold Morgan’s hand, calming her while Sherri calls for an ambulance on the sat phone. Sherri plugs one ear, and steps out of the cabin, so she can hear over the shouting.
“How dare you blame this on me?!” Brooks yells at Kai. “Youwere the one that pushed her!”
“Yeah, well, if you hadn’t been off gallivanting with your lover boy, you’d have been paying attention to things here at camp! You know, running the actual fuckin’ thing? Yourjob?”
Brooks snorts repugnantly. “The children weren’t at fault here. The thirty-two-year-old man-child was! And why do you smell like alcohol?! Have you beendrinking?”
“What? No! We were playing! It’s not like Imeantto break her friggin’ ankle, right Mowgli?”
“She told you to stop messing around on the dock, and you took it too far,” Colt growls. “You’ve even been acting a little drunk. It’s not even noon, dude.”
Kai spins on my son and jabs an angry finger at him. “Why don’tyoushut your trap? You don’t even know what the fuck you’re talking about, kid.”
No onetalks to my fucking son like that. I’m pissed.
I yank Kai back by the neck of his shirt. Ready to finally land one on his shitty face, I bring my fist back. Like Phil Collins, I feel like I’ve been waiting for this moment all my life.
“Stop!” Morgan wails. “Please, juststop! Please!”
“Oh, Morgs,” Brooks chokes back a sob, “I’m so sorry.” He darts over to the exam bed and takes up sentry on the opposite side as Colt.
I drop my fist and fling Kai back towards the door. Discarding him like the trash that he is.
“Would it be quicker if I just took her to the hospital in my truck?” I ask.
“Might be,” Sherri confirms, coming back inside the cabin. “Apparently there’s been an accident in the next town over, both our local units are there currently. I can finish getting her splinted up, get some ice on it, and as long as you don’t drive like a madman, like you do on your Harley, you should be able to get her there in one piece,” she teases me calmly, before turning to Morgan. “It’s definitely broken, but they’ll get you cleaned up and in a better cast than I can fashion here. I hate to say it, but you might need surgery.”
“Oh god,” Morgan moans. “I think I’m gonna be sick.”
I pass her a trash can and hold her hair back, just in case. She looks a little green in the gills, but thankfully doesn’t heave.
“Colton, can you grab some of her clothes from her bunk?” I ask, since she’s still in her bathing suit, and I can see her start to shiver, now that the adrenaline is wearing off.
“Pick me out something good, so I don’t look like a bum in the ER,” Morgan jokes.
“Do my best,” he assures her, jogging off towards her cabin.
“Brooks, can I get a word with you before you go?” Kai grumbles from the corner.
Brooks peers up at me first. “You got her?”
“Of course.”
“Thank you,” he says, before reluctantly leaving her side to follow Kai out onto the little porchlette.
Sherri passes Morgan a couple of pills. “Pain killers.” She nods at them. “You’re a tough cookie, you know. That’s gotta sting a little.”
Morgan chuckles wetly. “Just a little,” she hisses, shifting her position.
I give her a hand getting comfortable, then reassure her, “I promise I’ll drive you there safely.”
