"Hey, he fucking trusts me and Firecracker too," Wrath statesincredulously, and I backhand his arm.
"He does, but Nova needs to learn she can trust people too. Fine, if you're good with keeping the kid distracted, can you ask Marissa if she can stick with Nova and her build up her trust?"
"Yeah, I can do that. I'll give her a call and we'll pack some shit and move back in here for a bit," VP tells him as he pulls out his phone.
I'm pissed, and I'm not sure why. "So, what? I'm not good enough to take care of her now?"
Nitro's gaze flicks to mine and then to Wrath’s and back again, confusion filling his face. "Erm, you didn't seem like you wanted the gig back at the hospital, I'm just giving you an out."
I nod, not really sure what else to say. He's right, I didn't want to babysit her, but it doesn't mean I won't do it. "Okay, thanks."
"Look, Ice, you're too damn suspicious right now, and that was the reason I was going to put you on her. But after reading that, I think what she needs is a friend. I know she has a friend where she works, but she needs one in here that’s on our side first. One that she can trust but that can get us the information we need."
"You're right, she does need a friend." I nod. This is about her, not about my insecurities. "I'm going to go catch up with some of our contacts, see if they have any more news for us. You guys need anything else before I go?"
"Are you okay?" Nitro asks me.
"I'm good. Really. Having Marissa with her will be better for her than me annoying the fuck out of her," I tell them, and I mean it.
"Ha, at least you know you're an annoying shithead," Wrath tells me. I give them both the finger before downing the last of my glass and heading out.
Chapter Sixteen
It feels strange being in the clubhouse. I don't know any of these people, I don't know why they would let us stay here and it makes me nervous. I'm on edge all of the time, like I'm waiting for something to happen, someone to realise who we are, who my uncle is. Like I'm waiting for them to hand us over to him.Every time the door goes, I jump, half expecting it to be him.
Wrath's girlfriend has been spending a lot of time here, a lot of time with me. I like her, but they think I'm stupid. While she might not have asked me any questions, I know that she's just trying get me to trust her to tell her what they want to know.
I like her, but I'll never trust her or anyone enough to tell them. I won't risk Mason's safety. I watch him as he sits at the table in the corner. There aren't any other kids around here, or none that I've seen anyway, so he's alone most of the time. Although, Wrath does spend quite a bit of time with him, drawing.
From the minute Mase found out that Wrath was a tattoo artist in his spare time, he's been drawing trying to impress him, telling anyone who will listen that he wants to be one when he's older. I may be on edge here, but Mase isn't. He's taken an instant like to almost everyone here.
He told me last night as he was falling asleep that he trusts everyone here and that he wishes he could stay here forever. I wish I could give him that, I really want him to be happy, but my main priority is to make sure he's safe, and I don't know that we are. It's not just about not trusting the men and women here, if my uncle gets so much as a whiff of where we might be, he'll be here kicking the door down in a heartbeat.Us being here would cause trouble for the club.
I haven't seen much of Ice since he brought me here a few days ago. I did ask Marissa where he was, but she said that he's working on some club business that only certain brothers are privy too.
I think she thought there might have been more to my question, but I had asked about Doc a few minutes later. Those were the only people that I knew, or at least knew the names of, and had spent more than sixty seconds with, other than Nitro, but that man was intimidating.
"Hey, are you okay?" Marissa asks me as she hands me a hot cup of tea then curls her legs under her on the sofa next to me.
I nod, taking a sip and promptly burning my lips. "Ouch. Yeah, I'm good."
"You sure? Because you look a little pale, and you seem a little, I don't know… off?" she tells me.
I curl my hands around the cup, letting the heat seep into my hands. "I just have a bit of a headache, that’s all."
She tilts her head to the side a little and considers me, her eyes flicking back and forth between mine. "Headache from the concussion, or headache from the lack of sleep and nightmares?"
Panic sets in and I slowly lift my head to face her. "I... wait… how do you know?" I ask.
"Your room is three doors down from mine, the walls aren't made of steel, babe. We can hear you cry out every night, then we hear you get up and go downstairs." She places a hand on my leg, giving it a gentle squeeze.
My hands shake as I grip my cup tighter. I didn't think anyone knew about the nightmares; I hadn't even realised I cry out. "I'm sorry, Marissa, I hadn't realised I was so vocal, I hadn't realised that I was keeping people awake."
"Hey, you don't need to apologise, I know better than anyone what it's like to have nightmares that you can't control, nightmares that consume you and make you afraid to close your eyes. Maybe one day I'll tell you about them, but right now I will tell you that the men and women in this club, they are what got me through it, they are what make the nights bearable. And Wrath, his patience and love are what saved me from the darkness." She takes the cup from my hands and places it on the table, then pulls me into a hug.
"I'm here when you're ready to talk, anytime. Even if that’s the middleof the night. Okay?" she asks, and I nod, because I don't think I can say anything without crying. I'm soembarrassed, I'm so afraid.
We both jump as the door slams, and I scramble to my feet, knocking the table, causing the cup to fall and shatter on the floor.
