“We’re not accustomed to people doing selfless acts for us.”Sad fact but true.
“There’s always been strings attached, or they’ve had ulterior motives involved.No one does something for nothing.You know?”
“Have we become so cynical we can’t see past our issues?”Apollo asked.“We’re even more fucked up than I thought.”
“We’ve been conditioned to suspect any act of kindness or assistance.It’s always ended badly for us.We either get hurt or dead.”
“Yeah, it’s been a shit show.In the face of everything we’ve been through, I don’t believe we can change that now.”
“It’s saved our skin many times over,” Griffin huffed as he ran the palm of his hand down his face.“I’m tired.I’m tired of having to fight for every inch.We’ve traveled down a shitty road full of dangers without a break for a long time.It turned us into what we are: angry, untrusting, violence-prone individuals.It was bound to happen when you can count on one hand the times you’ve received a charitable act in your lifetime.”
Apollo understood his best friend’s internal struggle.It matched his own.
“We’ve watched people we care about disappear, hunted down, and killed,” Griffin said.“I can’t bear losing one more.I’m done.”
“That’s what we fight to ensure.The place we’re creating here needs to be a refuge for those like us, too jaded to believe there’s actually any good left in the world.We have to do better, more.Let this be the catalyst for change.”
Griffin nodded as he lost himself in thought.Moments later, Rocko began moaning and mumbling in his sleep.
“Should I get Renee?”Griffin asked, immediately on alert.
“I don’t sense he’s in any increased pain,” Apollo said, touching Rocko’s arm.“He’s dreaming.”
“No more,” Rocko groaned before falling back into a deep sleep.
“Agreed,” Griffin said, even though Rocko couldn’t hear him.
“Agreed,” Apollo seconded.
CHAPTER SEVEN
Rocko
He wasn’t sure what time it was or even the damn day, but Rocko knew he wasn’t alone by the thunderous snoring echoing in the room.When he finally pried his crusty eyes open, Rocko quickly realized he wasn’t in the trailer he’d been assigned.This room was bigger, the bed softer and massive, and while he enjoyed the comfort, he knew damn well it wasn’t his.
When he looked over at the nearby chair, things became clearer.Apollo sat with his arms crossed, head tilted to the side, fast asleep, a freight train roaring every time the man breathed in.Shit.This had to be his bedroom.Why the hell would he be in Apollo’s bed?He could think of a few very valid reasons he’d like to be in the big man’s bed, but he doubted that’d ever happen.
I have to get up and out of here.The moment he attempted to move, the intense pain stole his breath, the events that had brought him to his current situation flooding back like a mountain slide.The falling shingles, the blood, pain, and grotesque gurgling he heard every time he tried to take a breath..That explained the pain, but at least he was able to breathe a whole lot easier than the last time he was conscious.Shit was looking up.He hadn’t been this severely injured since taking two rounds in his side back in that hellish jungle fifteen years ago.A lifetime, really, and all in due course of his time serving for Uncle Sam.
Rocko stretched out his fingers and toes, an automatic response to ensure everything was working properly.Except it wasn’t.His feet didn’t respond fully or nearly as quickly as expected.They hesitated, clumsy, moving slowly, and it took more concentration on his part to make the smallest of shifts.Shit.His mind raced.He was positive Renee would have tried to heal him, which was likely why he was still alive.Was there permanent damage caused by the falling shingles?Was he paralyzed?What would he do if he couldn’t walk??He was nobody’s burden.
His heart raced wildly along with his growing distress, alerting Apollo to his being awake.The other man’s dark eyes flew open as he stood in one fluid motion, arms wide, ready, scanning the room for threats before finally zeroing in on Rocko.
“You’re awake.Are you in pain?”he asked without changing his stance.
“My legs aren’t moving properly,” Rocko said tightly.The pain he could handle, but being paralyzed was another matter entirely.
Apollo nodded.“It makes sense, you had multiple broken bones and two crushed vertebrae from the accident.”
“I’m paralyzed.”Everything stopped.His brain stuttered.Fuck.
Apollo moved so fast that Rocko only registered that the man was now kneeling beside the bed when he placed his hand on Rocko’s shoulder.
“No.Shit, no.Renee has been healing you but was forced to first concentrate on the life-saving aspects.Your lungs had been punctured, you had internal bleeding, causing your lungs to fill with blood and making it impossible for you to breathe, which she healed during the first round.”
“First round?”Again, how long had he been out?
“Yes.She’s completed three sessions, but each time exhausts her, and she rests in between because it takes a lot out of her.”
