“What the fuck is going on?” Nero turns and looks at us. None of us answer, because none of us can. “They’re going after our people. Not the club, not the ones that can protect themselves. Innocent people.”
Rebel comes into the room and sees what we’re all looking at. “Fucking knife is ceramic. That’s how he got it past the metal wands. Who is he?”
“A Kivisto. Working for Storm.”
“Fucking hell,” he snarls. “We need to get a handle on this shit.”
“You think I don’t know that?” Nero turns on Rebel. “You think I’m happy about this shit? That Storm is coming at us from every direction and angle and we can’t figure out where the fuck he is?”
Rebel doesn’t answer him. That is the most animated I’ve seen Nero since the night we stormed his house to protect his family. He doesn’t usually get rattled easily, but he’s right. There are too many variables. It’s like Storm has contacted every bad person he can find to send after us. It makes no sense.
“We find this guy and we bring him in. Blaze keep looking into these guys I want to know everything about them. Beast, Elegance is shut down for now until we know what we’re dealing with. Make sure the girls get home and reassure them they’re still getting paid. Once we’re done, we go the hospital.”
“Everyone?” Rebel asks.
“Ellie is one of us,” Nero says. “Anyone not doing something to track down these assholes goes to the hospital. Until we know she is out of the woods, we stand by her.”
“I’ll stay here, keep working on this,” Blaze says.
We leave him and head outside. I go with Beast to talk with the dancers. Some of the brothers, Walker and Leo will see them all home. Except Lily, I call her over.
“Is Ellie okay?” she asks straight away.
“Not sure. I need Charley’s things.”
“I’m coming with you.”
“Not happening.”
She looks like she is about to lose her shit, her fists clenching.
“Charley might be with you, and you may think you’re the only thing she needs right now, but Nashville, she is my friend and so is Ellie. I want to be there for them, both of them. Please.” She adds on.
Maybe she’s right. “Fine, get her things, you have a car?” She nods. “I’ll follow you.”
Lily runs off to the dressing room to get Charley’s clothes and I let Beast know what’s going on. For a brief moment I think about asking how he is but his expression tells me not to even try. He doesn’t know I saw him and Ellie together.
Once Lily is back Beast goes out front to let them know I’ll be escorting Lily and we all set off to the hospital. People watch us, staring open-mouthed or backing up as we enter the hospital but that is nothing new, it happens wherever we go. None of us give a shit about it as we get on the elevator.
Lily stands right at the front by the doors, not in least perturbed about being surrounded by bikers. When the elevator doors open, we step straight out into a waiting area. Rebel goes ahead to talk to the nurse at the station who looked up as we all walked out. Lily is heading for the people sitting in the small alcove but I move faster.
My vision has tunneled onto the one person I needed to see more than anything. The relief that floods me at seeing she is safe almost makes my knees buckle. I knew she was, everyone said she was fine, I've even watched the replay of the videos on the security cameras at Elegance but nothing compares to having her in my arms, seeing for myself that she is safe and unhurt.
I don’t give a shit about anything else, or what people are going to say or even think, I scoop her up and Charley wraps her legs around me as I walk away from everyone into the first empty room I see, and kick the door closed behind me.
“Callum, I’m okay,” she says, stroking her fingers through the back of my hair.
I stop her from saying anything more by covering her mouth with mine. After a few seconds of hesitation, probably thinking this is not the time or place for this, she kisses me back, lifting up by pushing her hips against me and gripping the back of my neck tighter.
Until this very moment, I haven’t been able to relax. The rest of the shit can be worried about later, all that matters now is the woman in my arms.
I set her down on a counter by the window but don’t back up. She’s wearing a big red coat that looks as if it belongs to a firefighter which pisses me off, and I open it to get her out of it, thinking I should have brought the bag off Lily but I pause when I look down.
She is wearing the tiny little apron and shorts that she wears at Elegance and my blood boils at the thought of her being out there like that in front of my brothers and all those strangers.
All of that rage dampens when I see the blood. Ellie’s blood. She has sat here this whole time with blood drying on her. Most of it is on the clothes but her hands have crusts of dried blood on them.
There is a bathroom beside me, so I grab what I need, then come back and help her out of the coat and clean her off, the whole time Charley is silent watching me. Once I’ve done the best I can with the paper towels, I take off my cut and unbutton the shirt I’m wearing over a T-shirt.
