Total pages in book: 79
Estimated words: 76448 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 382(@200wpm)___ 306(@250wpm)___ 255(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 76448 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 382(@200wpm)___ 306(@250wpm)___ 255(@300wpm)
He went to the elevator and pressed the button to Butch’s floor.
Holding his hands in front of him, he stepped out of the elevator then followed the long corridor until he made it to the room. Butch lay alone, pointing a remote up at the screen. Whizz stayed silent as he looked at his friend. Butch looked alone, and he hated seeing that. The Skulls were a family.
He fucked up.
Butch had fucked up, but he was still a Skull. It was going to be a long road to bring the trust back, but Whizz knew it was possible. All that had happened was the wrong shit had gone down at the wrong time.
Knocking on the window, he got Butch’s attention. He noticed Butch tensed in the bed. Was he waiting for someone to take a shot at him? Had they all fucked up to the point to leave him scared?
Opening the door, Whizz stood in the doorway. “Are you in the mood for a visit, sir?”
Butch laughed. “Nah, it’s good to see someone.”
“What about Cheryl and Michael? I’m sure they’ve been paying regular visits,” Whizz said, closing the door. He walked into the room, opening the curtain to let some light into the private room.
“They’re here all the time. Michael needs to go to nursery, and Cheryl has the shop to look after.”
“None of the other Skulls stopped by?”
“No. I don’t mind. I understand.” Butch placed the remote on the bed.
“You thought I was a hit.” Whizz didn’t pose it as a question.
“I fucked up.”
“Tiny said you did enough to make sure you didn’t die.”
“Cheryl told me she had to blackmail you all.” Butch stopped talking to put a hand to his neck. He’d almost died. If it wasn’t for Cheryl, Butch would probably be dead. “I fucked up, and I deserved to be killed for my actions.”
“You keep saying that.”
“I know. I did, and now I’ve got to pay the price.”
“Tiny won’t go back on his word. You paid the price in giving us the club.”
Butch looked doubtful. “It won’t be seen like that. I didn’t care about dying that day, Whizz. I only cared about putting right what I did wrong. I fucked up. Royally fucked up.”
There wasn’t anything Whizz could say. Butch was right. It was too little too late, but he had to believe in the club.
“I heard they got the Savage Brothers. Cheryl told me you wouldn’t let them take Lacey?”
“She’s the woman I was with while the mess was going on. I couldn’t lose her.”
“I told her to stay away from you.” Butch ran a hand down his face. He looked old, withdrawn, and sad. “I didn’t want her to hurt you, and yet you got hurt anyway.”
“I’m not going to let anything happen to her. I can’t let her go.”
“Do you love her?” Butch asked.
“I don’t know. I don’t know if I love her, but I know I don’t want to lose her.” Whizz took a seat in the corner as Butch turned the television off.
“You’re not angry with what I did.”
“When it first happened I was pissed. I was so angry and hurt by what I thought of as your betrayal. It wasn’t as bad as I first thought, but people died because of it. I know what happened. Lacey told me, and Cheryl told us the rest. You should have come to us. They were idiots for keeping it a secret.”
“They’re all dead now.”
“Yeah.”
“How’s Lacey doing?”
“There are times I think she’s handling it. Then there are other times she looks like she is falling apart.” Whizz sat back in the chair, taking in Butch’s form.
“She’s been through a lot. I’m pleased she didn’t die. Out of all of them she made the most sense.”
Whizz stayed silent. Sometimes words were not necessary.
****
Lacey opened her eye to see a little boy staring at her. No, it was a baby boy. Stretching out her arms, she caught sight of a woman she knew as Prue sitting, holding the boy on her knee.
“It’s about time. I really thought I was going to have to throw a fit to wake you up. I’ve been bored out of my mind, sitting here watching you sleep,” Prue said.
“What are you doing here?” Lacey asked, seeing the door to the room open. The hustle and bustle of the house filled her senses. What was Prue doing in her room?
“Whizz has gone to the hospital to see Butch. He asked me to take you out shopping. Guess what? Angel’s coming along with us. We’re taking the kids with us though.” Prue kept talking. She turned to a baby voice as she talked to Markus. “Tell Lacey that she has got to come.”
Sitting up in bed, she held the blanket to her chest. Beneath the covers she was naked. Whizz had helped her wash her body then carried her through to the bed after drying her. She didn’t want Prue to see her naked.