“Alright. I’ll be right back.”
He found his way back outside and tried to breathe evenly. Then he called Arthur.
“Quinn, what’s the situation?” Ian’s best friend asked, his voice serious as ever.
“It’s…it’s not good. He got through surgery, but the cancer has spread and…and they seem to think he won’t make it.” Quinn slumped against the wall as the implications of his own words hit him.
He hadn’t heard Arthur curse many times in his life, and the barrage the man let out now made Quinn blink.
“Alright. I’m not going to make it there. I’m going to make sure everything stays calm here for the time being, spread the news, that sort of thing.” Arthur paused and cleared his throat, then said, more quietly, “Tell Ian I wish him peace.”
That almost broke Quinn. The men had been friends for all their lives and now Arthur couldn’t come to say goodbye. “I’ll tell him that, and that you love him.”
Arthur let out what might’ve been a huff. “Alright.”
“And you make sure if it all comes to a head, you and the wife are ready to leave town,” Quinn said, getting back to business for Arthur’s comfort.
“She’s already packing, just in case.”
“Good. I’ll let you know if the situation changes.”
“Talk to you later.”
“Bye.”
Quinn stood there in the Las Vegas early afternoon sunshine and breathed for a while.
Then he called his mom.
“Hello, sweetheart,” she said, her tone wary.
“Hi Mom. I’m just calling to let you know that Ian is in the hospital. They don’t think he’ll make it.”
“Oh no. What happened?” He could see her in his mind’s eye, holding her hand to her mouth as she paced. She always paced during serious calls.
“He was shot. They medevacked him to Vegas and I drove Karen here.”
She gasped. “And Jimmy is not with you?” They both knew what she was really asking.
“No, he’s not.” He let his head drop, locking his knees so he could slump a little more while staying upright. “I don’t know where this is going, Mom.”
Since she knew he was there on a job, she had a vague idea of what exactly he meant. “What happens if there isn’t a MacGregor running the business in Spruce Creek?” She voiced what he’d been thinking about, too.
“I have no idea.” He just hoped it wouldn’t turn into some sort of a turf war between smaller groups and what might be left of Ian and Jimmy’s crews who wouldn’t get jail time over whatever this would turn into.
“Stay safe. Tell Karen to come to me if she has nowhere else to go. Keep me informed, you hear?”
“If…if something happens, Day will call you.”
“I know. That’s not who I want to hear from, though.” Her tone was firm, snappy, as if she was commanding him to stay alive so she wouldn’t have to ever get that call from Day.
“I love you, Mom,” he whispered.
“Love you too, baby. Go be there for Karen and Ian, now.”
He said bye, then stared at his phone. He texted Aaron and Charlie in their group chat.
Ian made it through surgery but probably not for much longer. Keep your eyes open, guys. If anything seems sketchy, you get the hell out of town.
