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“We know, hun,” Cece says, reaching for my hand and giving it a quick squeeze. “Mark didn’t mean anything by it, and before any of the other cavemen start talking…” She glares at each man in the room. “... They don’t mean any of the dumb shit that’ll likely come outta their mouths either.”
Despite the seriousness of the situation, I can’t stop the laugh that escapes. Like a dam being detonated, the pent-up stress from the past week releases, and I can’t quit laughing. I snort when I inhale through my nose, so I slap a hand over my mouth. Everyone looks at me like I’ve gone insane.
Maybe I have.
Malice chuckles. “Did you just snort?”
I bury my face in my hands and mumble, “Oh my God.”
A large hand falls onto my shoulder, and I peek up. Grim’s standing there, the corners of his mouth twitching.
“Who told him?” I demand half-heartedly, swinging my gaze from one face to the other.
Soul shrugs, giving himself away.
Grim taps me on the shoulder to regain my attention before lifting his hands.
“I can still help you bury the body,” Soul translates.
We all laugh, the mood lightened for a brief moment, but then Soul clears his throat.
“We’re glad you’re okay.” He nods in Malice’s direction. “Especially that one. But we still need to figure out who poisoned you, and why?”
The lightheartedness dissolves quickly as the reality that someone poisoned me, possibly wanting tokillme, looms over us all.
“So, what happened?” I ask no one in particular, but it’s Malice who responds.
“Mark texted me ‘911’, saying you were acting funny before your plane took off from LA, so Abyss and I were waiting for you in Vegas when you landed.” Malice’s posture is rigid, so I grab his hand and intertwine my fingers with his.
“We loaded you up in Stella,” Abyss continues when Malice gets quiet. “Your heart rate dropped, and your breathing was labored.” As he talks, Abyss replaces the IV bag with another. “You were in and out of consciousness, and by the time we made it back to the clubhouse, you barely had a pulse.”
My eyes widen as it sinks in that I was that close to death. And once again, the club came through and took care of me like I’m one of their own.
I reach out to take Abyss’s hand. “Thank you for saving me.”
“Anytime, darlin’. But let’s not make it a habit.”
Abyss smirks and leans in for a hug which is awkward because Malice doesn’t budge.
“Get your own woman,” Malice growls, pulling me closer.
I try to give him a dirty look, but I fail when he peers into my eyes. Malice kisses my forehead, and then his mouth finds mine. For a brief second, we’re the only two in the room.
God, I love this man.
I pull back as realization dawns. I’m afraid to speak the words out loud, but my heart erupts in joy and sighs in relief.
My brain finally caught up with my heart.
“We know what happened.” Soul interrupts my internal epiphany. “We need to know who and why.”
“Do we know what I was poisoned with?” I ask.
“Xylazine,” Abyss responds. When I stare at him in confusion, he explains. “It’s a veterinary tranquilizer commonly used with horses.”
“Who the hell would poison me with that?”
No one responds, but the door to the room slides open, and Jez barrels through with her laptop resting on her forearm.
