Sleeping in the hospital chair next to his brother last night had given him a crick in the neck. Nurse Nancy had told him that most of the other flu patients who fell into a coma didn’t wake after only four short days, that Alex was lucky. They’d departed the hospital for hopefully the last time this morning around nine. Then he’d gotten Alex home to his own bed where he could rest and recoup. He seemed weak, but he kept denying it. Elijah had insisted he sleep. Then he’d gotten in a workout at home with burpees, sit-ups, chin-ups, and push-ups followed by a three-mile run.
As he ran past homes in his neighborhood, it seemed like things were subtly starting to change in their town. More of the homes were boarded up like he’d done to a few of the windows in his house, only they were completely boarded up. He noticed the same thing when he ran through the business district. Some signs on the doors indicated they were closed due to illness. He took a wide berth and came out on the running trail near their school. It looked open for business, as usual. As far as he knew, school was still in session.
Something he couldn’t understand, however, was how her uncle had the authority to call him off school for the day. And what the heck did Wren mean when she’d mentioned someone was going to ‘clean’ the school? He assumed she meant clean up their mess, as in literally. Russo had bled like a stuck pig and left a trail down the hallway. His own blood was probably all over, too. It was a crime scene full of evidence and DNA, but the cops weren’t called. He wasn’t aware of cleaning companies that would agree to cleaning up bodily waste like that, and it made him wonder yet again what was going on with Wren and her overbearing, intimidating uncle.
By noon, he hit the shower and crashed for four hours in his bed. He woke feeling groggy and disoriented. His sleep patterns were screwed up. But he rose and made an early dinner for Alex of homemade chicken noodle soup and a sub sandwich. The aroma of the simmering pot of hearty soup must’ve awakened his brother because Elijah turned to find him in the doorway. He still couldn’t believe the hospital released him so quickly. Nurse Nancy said it was because the hospital needed the bed, and his brother was stronger than most. As he looked at him now, Elijah wasn’t so sure about her statement.
“Here, A,” he said and quickly pulled out a chair at the kitchen table. “Sit.”
Alex shuffled over and sank slowly into the chair as if he were sore and achy. Sometimes they’d hit the gym together, and he’d move like that the next day. Then, of course, being brothers they’d ride each other for being wimps, which was the cause of being sore as a result of pushing each other too hard. Showing weakness meant you were a sissy-boy.
They sat and ate together, and Alex questioned him about the current state of the country, as well as his football practices. He also wanted to know why some of their windows had plywood on them. Slowly, he let the story unfold of what had been happening between himself and Wren because Alex had a right to know. He was his guardian, his mentor, his friend, but most importantly, his brother.
“Wow. Russo,” Alex repeated the principal’s name. He also graduated from the same school. Russo had been the principal at their high school for about a decade. “Man, I always got a vibe from that prick. Sometimes I’d see him checking out girls, but I figured he was just a horny old, middle-aged limp dick, balding asshole. No wonder I got that vibe. Is she okay? Did you take her to the hospital?”
He lied and nodded and felt guilt punch him in the stomach. He tried to reason it out that she’d stayed at the hospital when Elijah had his game. Not telling his brother the truth about Wren made them even. Then he told his brother about Russo stabbing him. It was imperative. He couldn’t not tell him. He would be expected to start Friday night with the team, which was only three days away. There was no way he could do that with fresh stitches holding his stab wound closed. First, Alex was shocked. Then he was concerned. Then Alex tried to hide his disappointment that he wouldn’t be able to play.
“It’s fine. I’m sure we can spin this. Local football star saves girl from perv principal but gets stabbed in the process,” he said, sliding his hands through the air as if it were going to be a bold type headline in a newspaper.
“Um, no,” Elijah said hesitantly. “That can’t happen, man.”
“We have to. The coach will wonder why you can’t play Friday. Why wouldn’t we release that?”
“We’ll need to make something up,” he said. Elijah proceeded to explain the situation but left out the finer details like her uncle sewing him up and him leaving again to hunt down and kill Russo. He wasn’t even sure why he felt like her uncle tracking down Russo like some sort of special ops dude was a normal reaction, so he knew Alex wouldn’t understand. However, he did include the information Russo told Wren about the sheriff covering up a lot of current crimes taking place.
“We’ll need to tell them something, E,” Alex said. “This isn’t gonna stand. You are expected to start Friday.”
“Fine, I’ll call the coach. I’ll tell him I got stabbed helping someone like I did that day at the pharmacy.”
Alex nodded. “Fine, but let me do it. I’ll tell him. He trusts me. He’ll know if it’s coming from me, then it’s legit.”
Elijah nodded and lifted his shirt when his brother asked to see the wound.
“They did a good job,” he said. “Whatever nurse you got at the hospital. You won’t have much of a scar. Of course, what’s it matter? We’ve got enough of those to look like a patchwork quilt if they put us side by side.”
Elijah chuckled and then winced at the tugging stitches. “Remember the time I threw a rock at you when we lived at the other house?”
“Yeah, but in your defense, it was supposed to be a grenade.”
He smiled. “Six stitches above your eyebrow.”
“Chicks dig scars, right?”
“And when you nailed me in the knee with your bike? Twelve that time.”
Alex smiled fondly. “Yeah, but we weren’t riding bikes. Those were our joisting horses, remember?”
“And we used sticks for jousting poles,” Elijah remembered with a smile.
“Jousting lances,” his brother corrected, to which Elijah nodded with a smile. “And we made little Stevie be our squire,” Alex said with a sigh, thinking of their younger brother.
“Yeah, he was a cool kid,” he said with a lump of emotion. He tried to lock that down, those memories of his deceased family members. It was usually how he got through the day. “He never complained. He was just always happy to be hanging out with us.”
“Well, it’s ‘cuz we were so cool. Obviously,” Alex said, trying to cover his own welling emotions.
“Hey, Alex,” he said, changing the subject. “Um, Russo’s on the run. He got away.”
“Serious?”
He nodded, “Yeah, man. He’s gone. Cops are lookin’ for him.”
That was a lie, but any other way of explaining the whole thing just didn’t fit nicely.
“Wow, guess you’d better be careful then. Russo’s a loose cannon. Obviously. Watch your six, E.”
“Got it. I will,” he answered and felt terrible for so many lies. “Hey, I’m gonna run out today,” he announced, changing the subject as fast as possible. “I think I’m going to try and get some more stuff to stock up our pantry.”
“More? I noticed there’s a lot of crap in there.”
Elijah nodded. “Yeah, I’m nervous about this shit, A. You haven’t seen all the stuff me and Wren have.”
“You and Wren, huh?”
“Yeah,” he said, not denying it. Whatever ‘it’ was. Alex, although still weak and clearly fatigued, was worried about him messing up his future.
“And what’s the situation with that? First, I come home and find her here wearing just your shirt, and you’re half-naked, as well. Now, you’ve saved her life. You’ve obviously been hanging out a lot more than you let on, bro’. What’s the deal with this girl, Elijah? Are you having sex?”
“What? No!” he exclaimed vehemently. He wished they were, but the answer was still no. Where the hell did that thought come from?
“Then what’s going on?”
Elijah shrugged as he finished his third bowl of soup. Soup really wasn’t that filling, even with the extra chicken he’d added. It was mostly liquid. “I just like her. It’s hard to explain. I don’t think you’d understand.”
“I understand women a lot better than you think, little brother.”
“I don’t mean like that,” Elijah corrected him.
“Sure looked like it. Are you using condoms, at least?”
“Hey, I said it’s not like that,” he said, getting upset. Although if he was being honest, he kind of wished it was.
“Get real, E,” his brother said. “It’s always like that. She’s a girl; you’re a guy, it’s always like that. Although I must say, I figured it would be a cheerleader or an athlete, not…well, someone like Wren.”
He frowned and went on the offensive, “What the hell’s that supposed to mean?”
“Nothing. She’s just different than the girls you used to bring home.”
“So? I still like her.”
“Fine. I just pegged you for a different type is all.”
He raised his chin an inch.
“I still don’t want you getting involved with someone right now,” he reiterated. “Even if she is hot.”
“You think she’s hot?”
Alex smiled. “I’m only twenty-two, E. I’m not seventy-two. Yes, Wren’s gorgeous. I’m surprised a loser like you even nailed that down.”
He chuffed. “It’s not like that. I’m telling you. We’re mostly just friends or…I don’t know. Maybe not even that. It’s complicated.” His brother laughed at him.
“So, you haven’t quite locked it down,” Alex teased.
Elijah shot him an annoyed expression. “Not really. She’s…I don’t know. Like I said, it’s complicated. You wouldn’t understand. Hell, I don’t, either.”
“Just don’t get serious about anyone, Elijah,” Alex lectured further. “You don’t need complications like girls in your life right now.
“You sound just like her uncle,” he mumbled.
“Well, good. Sounds like he’s got her best interests at heart, too.”
“You two would get along splendidly,” he remarked crassly and stood. “Look, Alex, I know you’ve also got my best interests in mind, but I like her. I’m also eighteen. You aren’t going to step in like some Shakespearean patriarch and tell me who I can and can’t date.”
“Now, it’s dating?”
“Don’t be an ass,” he said. “You know what I mean.”
Alex stood, as well, and took his plate to the sink. “And don’t you screw up your future. Be careful. If you’re gonna have sex, use protection. You knock her up, your future’s pretty much done.”
“It’s not like that. It’s…” he stopped. It seemed pointless to argue. His feelings for Wren were more than just having sex with her. Alex had never had a serious girlfriend or relationship with a woman before. Lila was just a friends-with-benefits kind of thing. She’d made it very clear from the start that she just wanted companionship from Alex. And if that’s what worked for him, Elijah wasn’t judging. He just didn’t feel the same way about Wren.
“Look, I gotta get going,” he told his brother. “Want me to help you upstairs to lay down?”
“No, I’m gonna hit the den, watch some ball,” Alex said and walked away slowly and stiffly.
“I’ll lock up,” he called after him. “Hey, keep the shotgun with you.”
He sent a wave over his head to Elijah and turned the corner into the family room.
He changed into jeans and a flannel shirt that he topped with a black leather jacket. He didn’t want to go around advertising his football number today with his letterman’s jacket. Elijah sent a quick text to Wren but got no reply. He went to the den and told Alex he was borrowing his truck, but his brother was already asleep.
He locked up and drove toward her house. Her uncle’s car was not in the driveway. Now Elijah knew he drove a black, older model SUV. He parked on the street and went to her door and knocked.
She opened it with her hand behind her back. He figured the pistol was there. Her eyes darted around nervously.
“What are you doing here? I told you I can’t be around you anymore, Elijah.”
He smiled like an idiot. He couldn’t help it. She looked so pretty today, other than the obvious bruising. The black gunk was gone from her eyes, and Wren was wearing black skinny jeans and a matching sweater. She wore a lot of dark and usually baggy clothing. It didn’t matter. If she was trying to blend in, it wasn’t going to work. She stood out even in a crowd of a thousand teenage girls. He even liked her freckles.
“You did? I didn’t get that text,” he said, to which she frowned with confusion. Then she realized he was messing with her and frowned harder. “Listen for a minute. Hear me out.”
“Fine, come in,” she said. “You’re letting all the cold air in.”
“Cold?” he asked with a smirk. “It’s only around forty-five today. Just wait till it drops below zero.”
“I won’t be here when it does. Thank God.”
This made him scowl. “Are you still leaving?”
“Not yet. With the stuff that’s been going on, it’s been delayed until further notice.”
“Notice from your uncle?”
She sent him a glare for prodding.
“Okay, I can take a hint,” he said, holding up a hand in surrender.
“Can you? I don’t really think you can, Elijah.”
He stepped closer, which made Wren back up and bump the kitchen table.
“I’ve got a plan. Or part of one.”
Her left eyebrow shot up, “Plan for what?”
“I went for a run earlier…”
She asked with a cute expression, “You did? Geesh. I feel like a bum. I just got up.”
She did look a little like that, too. Her hair was tangled and messy and very sexy. He wouldn’t mention that part.
“Good, you needed to sleep,” he said and touched the outside of her arm. “Anyway, I noticed on my run- which ended up being more of a walk because of these damn stitches- that some of the businesses in town were boarded up. Others closed due to illness. I think people are figuring out that this isn’t just gonna go away.”
“Finally.”
“Yeah,” he agreed. “I started buying up some extra groceries the other day, dried goods, canned goods, that sort of thing. But if we end up having to ride this out for a while, then we’re gonna need a lot more.”
“We?” she asked, plunking her hand onto her hip and tipping her head to the side.
“Yes,” he confirmed, not backing down. “I want you to go with me. I could use the help.”
“No!” she protested immediately. “I can’t. My uncle could come home anytime.”
“Tell him what you’re going to be doing. Tell him you’re with me.”
She snorted, “That’s really not going to help at all.”
He nodded with a grin, “I thought he might’ve told you that he approved of me and thought I was a great guy or something last night after I left.”
“Not exactly, Elijah. He basically forbade me from seeing you again.”
“Ouch. That’s kind of harsh. No worries. I got the same lecture from my brother. I don’t care, though, Wren. I’m not getting thrown out of your life because the people in charge of us don’t want this to be.”
“I don’t want this to be.”
He immediately corrected her, “That’s not true. I know it’s not. I think we both know that’s not true.”
She took a deep breath and exhaled with obvious impatience and irritability.
“Look, I’m just as confused by all this as you…”
Wren interrupted him and said, “I’m not confused. I don’t want to be around you anymore.”
“I don’t believe you,” he said what he knew was true. She knew it, too, even if she was throwing daggers at him with those eyes of hers. “Come with me,” he pleaded. “Wren, come with me. Break the rules for once in your life.”
He could read the indecision on her face, so he pulled out the items he had stuffed into the pockets of his jacket.
“Besides, I can’t wear two of these super sexy protection face masks at once.”
She smiled. Then she hooked her thumb toward the counter where her pistol laid. “I’ve got the more important protection.”
He laughed. “See? I can’t go without you! I need my personal bodyguard, my sidekick, my ninja girl, my…”
She groaned with irritation. “You don’t need me, quarterback.”
“Sure I do,” he affirmed.
“They were just saying on the news that there’s gonna be some sort of big press conference tonight talking about it.”
Elijah considered this for a moment before saying, “If they announce something really bad, we might wish we’d taken five or six trips to stock up on stuff.”
“And if they say they’ve got a vaccine, then we’re gonna look pretty stupid and I’ll have gotten in trouble with my uncle for nothing and we’ll be eating boxed mac and cheese for six months.”
“Then I’ll eat your portion,” he teased.
She snorted and crossed her arms defensively, “Clearly. What don’t you eat?”
He chuckled, “I’ll cover for you with him if he finds out. I’ll think of something. I’ll take the heat. Don’t worry. And besides, if they do have a cure, then you won’t have to buy groceries for a while.”
Her lower jaw jutted out stubbornly. “I can’t.”
“Do you ever break his rules?” She shook her head. “Don’t you want to just be a dumb, reckless, irresponsible teenager for a day, Foster?”
This got her attention. Elijah could tell she was considering it. Her eyes flashed.
“Did he go to work?” he asked about her uncle, to which she nodded. “Good, let’s go.”
“Fine,” she said with exasperation. “But we need to get back before ten. He said he probably wouldn’t be home until then.”
“Aye-aye, captain,” he teased, as she pulled on a short, black leather jacket that looked way cooler than his, a blue, nondescript ballcap, and black ankle boots.
“You sure do like black,” he commented. Elijah didn’t really mind her attire. He did prefer her in his shirt, or even better, his jersey because it was a little shorter than the tee she’d worn that night. She had great legs.
“I don’t like standing out in crowds,” she remarked.
“I know,” he admitted and waited for her to lock the door.
She groaned when she turned around.
“What’s wrong?”
“It looks like it’s gonna snow again. Does the sun ever come out in Ohio?”
He chuckled and led her to Alex’s truck. “Yes, it’ll be back in May. Sorry, you’ll have to sit in the middle. Alex has crap all over the passenger side.” He opened the driver’s door and allowed her to get in first. Probably he should’ve taken his brother’s tool belts and toolboxes out of the truck before he took it. There was even a box of stuff on the passenger side floor. However, having her sit next to him was kind of nice, too. Friendzone was getting harder to maintain.
“I would’ve suggested taking my car, but it looks like a burnt piece of toast.”
He laughed and felt the urge to hold her hand. “It’s okay. We’ll be able to haul more with this.”
“Good idea.”
He smiled under her uncommon praise. “Can I ask you a question?”
Elijah maneuvered out of town and went north where he could connect with the road that would take them to “The Strip.” It was a shopping district in Jackson. There were two different wholesale clubs up there, which the team kept open accounts at in case the guys needed stuff like bulk protein shake mix, sports drinks, vitamins, or workout gear.
“Is it going to be about where I’m from again?” she asked warily.
“No,” he said.
“Then, yes. Go ahead.”
He took note of a few of the properties, which were much more spaced out in this area of the county and saw that some of the homes were boarded up. Most were situated on five or more acres, many of which contained horses, which he suspected were for 4-H projects. These were extremely expensive properties.
“Did you have a boyfriend where you used to live?”
She quickly looked at him and looked away even faster. “Which place?”
“Um, I don’t know. Any, I guess.”
“We move a lot, Elijah,” she said. “I’m not allowed friends and…all that.”
“Why not?”
She swallowed, and Elijah looked back at the road.
“You must get lonely.”
Wren shrugged. “It’s fine. I’ve got Jamie.”
He frowned. “That’s not the same as having friends to hang out with. No offense, but your uncle doesn’t really seem like a ball of laughs.”
She smirked. “He can be fun. It’s just…we’re under a lot of stress right now.”
“Is he really your uncle? He doesn’t look anything like you.”
“He’s my uncle. He has dark hair like me. Lots of aunts and uncles don’t look anything like their nieces or nephews. I think we look a little bit alike. Maybe our noses, too. And he was my dad’s brother anyway. I look like my mom.”
She was explaining that a little too much. It made him suspicious.
“We need to talk later,” he said with finality, trying hard not to get testy with her. It apparently didn’t work. She looked distressed, so he decided to change the subject. “Feeling any better today?”
“Sure,” she returned.
He glanced at her face and saw that the scrapes and swelling on her cheek and along her jawline weren’t as bad as they were last night. Her uncle must’ve made her ice them again. The bruises were more obvious, though. She looked like the victim of domestic violence. People were probably going to speculate about them out in public today. Their relationship status was technically zero, but this made it look like he was an abusive boyfriend. As if he’d ever treat a girl like that.
“You look really good today,” he flattered the obvious. Then he felt stupid. Of course, she looked pretty. She always looked pretty. For a friend.
She snorted, though, which was strange to Elijah.
“Yeah, right, Brannon,” she remarked as if he’d irritated her.
“What do you mean?”
She hit him with a direct stare before looking away, “Come on. Seriously?”
“Seriously what?”
“Brannon, I’m not gonna sleep with you. Last night when I hugged you was a mistake, a big one. I was just…I don’t know. Feeling vulnerable or something.”
He turned right and drove toward the shopping district. “Hey, I didn’t say you had to sleep with me. I never said I expect that. You’re wrong about me, Foster. I’m not interested in you like that anyway.” Lie.
“I doubt that.”
“Don’t pre-judge me,” he said, feeling his temper rise. “You may think I’m some dumb jock with no feelings and who likes sleeping around, but I’m not. I think you’d be surprised to know I don’t actually have that big of a list of ex-girlfriends in my past.”
“Yeah, well, you’ve probably slept around.”
“I haven’t done as much of that as you might think, either. My football career has always had to come first. Or, at least, once it took off. I haven’t got as many notches on my bedpost as you obviously assume.”
She mumbled, “More than me.”
“That’s okay, too,” he said and took her hand. She was cold to the touch. “I don’t mind. I’m not looking for just sex with you. I can get sex if I want it. Trust me. The jersey chasers are always waiting in the wings. I don’t care about them, though. I like you. Just you. I’m also breaking rules here. But, we’re never going to be more than friends, okay?” He actually hoped this one was a lie.
She gave a nervous shrug with one shoulder and ducked her head so he couldn’t see her face. Then she slid her hand free and pulled her balled fists into the cuffs of her jacket.
“Hey, this looks really congested,” he said, noticing the heavy traffic. “You’d think it was the week before Christmas or something.”
“Yeah, what’s the deal?” she asked, sitting a little straighter.
Elijah found them a parking place at the wholesale club near the back and parked the truck. When they got out, he hit the locks on the remote.
“Stay close, Wren,” he said as a helicopter, military-style, flew overhead, a lot lower than seemed normal. “This doesn’t seem right.”
Her eyes were wide. “I think everyone’s got the same idea as you.”
“Yeah, that’s what I’m afraid of,” he remarked.
A woman’s scream instantly halted them. Then gunfire erupted. It sounded like it was coming from the store. Then people flooded out of it in hoards.
“Back!” he yelled and spun with her. They ran to the truck, and Elijah hit the locks, letting her get in first. Police cars came flying into the parking lot with their lights and sirens going as Elijah hit the gas and sped out of it. He looked in the rearview mirror and watched as a police car was shot at by a group of young men causing it to wreck into a parked car. “Jesus! What the hell?”
She screamed, causing Elijah to look forward. A person just barely missed their truck as they swerved away from another vehicle in the intersection.
“Watch out!” she yelled at him in a reprimanding tone.
“I’ve got it,” he said and had to curb the truck to get away from another near accident.
“We need to get out of here,” she said, already dialing someone on her phone.
“Who are you calling?”
She didn’t answer him but began speaking to her uncle on the phone.
“Jamie, we need to make a few calls. This is bad. Yes, I know. No, I’m not home right now. Elijah and I went…”
She swore under her breath and smacked her phone against her thigh. He must’ve hung up on her.
“Take me home, Elijah,” she said. “Jamie will be there when we get there.”
“Oh, great,” he said, not really wanting to deal with her uncle. He almost just got his niece killed. Two days in a row with near-death experiences was probably not going to win him any points with the man.