Coming to Colorado (12 page)

“Fuck. Mike, where are you?”

Mike dropped to the pavement, leaning against a brick building. “I’m sitting.”

“Stay put.”

The line went dead and the phone slipped from his hands. He blinked, trying to focus but everything was fuzzy. Damn, he must have lost more blood than he’d thought. The fight to keep his eyes open was lost. Exhaustion pulled him under, and though his phone buzzed in his lap, he couldn’t answer.

*~*~*

“He’s not picking up. Damn it. Hell, how bad is he?” Anger rushed through Roger. Craig had done it again. The bastard was going to keep coming at them until he died.

“Mass General isn’t too far from here,” Ryan said.

“Hospitals are messy. They’ll want to know why he was shot. But I don’t think we have much choice. I can’t get him blood, unless either one of you two are B or O.”

“Nope, I’m A positive,” Davis said.

“Same here,” Ryan added.

“Shit, we’re going to have to hit a hospital. Tell me if you see him. I know you don’t know what he looks like, but he’ll probably—”

“Is that him?” Ryan asked, pointing to his left and down a street.

A person was on the ground, leaning against a building, their arms dropped to their sides. It looked like it could have been Mike, but in the pre-dawn lighting it was hard to tell. He circled back around and pulled up to the curb by the guy. It was Mike, and he looked like shit.

“Help me get him into the car.” Roger left the engine running as he hopped out and rushed to Mike. The man looked like shit. He grabbed Mike’s phone from his lap and shoved it in his pocket before taking hold of Mike’s feet and picking him up with Davis’s assistance. The moan from Mike sent chills down his spine. They didn’t have a choice. He wasn’t going to recover if he didn’t get medical attention soon.

“I’ve lived here long enough to know which way to go. Let me drive and you can take care of your friend,” Ryan said.

Roger nodded. “Just get us there quick.”

Once Mike was settled in the car, Roger pulled up an application to search the area for hotels. They weren’t going to be heading home today and they needed a spot to park while the doctors patched up Mike. He found a hotel next to the hospital and placed a call.

“It’s a great day at The Liberty Hotel, how can I help you?”

“I need a room for four people, but I need to check in now and have the room available now. Do you have one?”

“Let me check, sir.”

Roger stroked Mike’s forehead, hoping that his buddy could hold on for a few more minutes.

“Yes, sir, we have one room open.”

“I’ll take it.” Roger pulled out a credit card that went with the fake identity he was using for this trip. He gave the woman a name and the number then gave her Ryan’s name before he hung up.

“Here’s the deal,” Roger said. “You’re going to drop me at the hospital then you two are going to check into the hotel. Do room service and get some fuel into your bodies, you both look exhausted. Davis, do you have fake identification on you?”

“Yes, sir. I don’t know if the guy shooting at me knows my fake names.”

“We’ll have to hope he doesn’t. Ryan, check in, the room has already been paid for.”

“Once you get to the room, we need to have a chat,” Davis said.

“You ain’t kidding.”

Ryan pulled the car to the emergency entrance. There were people, too many for him to feel comfortable with, but he had no other options.

“Here’s what we’re going to do,” Roger said. “Davis, help me get him inside. Once there, come out and go check in with Ryan. Don’t leave the room. I’ll be over as soon as I can. I’ll call Duff and tell him what’s going on.” Roger fished into his pocket and pulled out Mike’s cell phone. “Take this.” He handed the device to Davis before he looked through Mike’s pockets, making sure they were empty. He removed Mike’s gun, stowing it under the seat in front of him. “Ryan, I need that bag beside your feet, just pass it back.”

Davis stepped out of the car and he grabbed Mike’s hands, pulling him up as Roger pushed from behind. It was awkward, and Mike did moan a few times when they stumbled, but they had him up and heading into the emergency room when someone ran out with a wheelchair.

Chaos erupted as questions were flung at him. Davis slipped away. There wasn’t any way this was going to go smoothly. Mike had been shot. There was no way around the issue. Doctors got antsy when people showed up in the emergency room with a gunshot wound.

“Wasn’t there another man with you?” the nurse asked.

“No, just me. My friend needs medical attention,” Roger said.

“You, fill out this paperwork. I’ll take him back.”

Roger sat down and started filling out the forms, putting Mike’s fake name down and a fake address. After he filled everything out he placed a call to the ranch, hoping he’d get Duff.

“Hello, it’s Grant.”

Peace spread through him and he sighed, wishing he could stay on the line with Grant longer. “Hey, it’s good hearing your voice, but I need to talk to Duff.”

“He’s passed out. He tried to stay awake, but your last call gave him enough relief that he fell asleep in his chair—oh wait, he’s rousing. Duff, it’s Roger.” The sound of Grant handing the device to Duff came over the line.

Then he heard Duff’s voice, the strain evident. “Roger, is Davis okay?”

“Yes, sir. But Mike isn’t. I have him in the ER at Mass General. I need you to grease some wheels.”

“Shit, tell me everything.”

Roger glanced around, realizing that he was too close to other people to speak openly. He moved away from the seats and stood close to a corner, away from most of the people. Mike had been back with the doctors for about eight minutes and no cops had come to talk to him, but it was only a matter of time.

“Mike was shot. He’s lost a lot of blood. I imagine they’ll want to keep him overnight. Craig is missing. I don’t know if he was shot or not, Mike said he had hit him but I don’t know. Davis and Ryan are staying at the Liberty next door. Fuck, Duff, this is messed up.”

“Are you sure Craig is there?”

“Fairly. I haven’t seen him, but Mike sent me a one-word text. Craig. That was all. I think that meant Craig was the one he was chasing. From what I gathered before he passed out, he was chasing after Craig then got shot. But Craig didn’t finish him off. The wound is in his leg—on the outside, not the inside—and it looks like he was hit on his arm. I can’t help but think Craig would have tried to end Mike’s life if he’d had the chance.”

“Yeah, I can’t imagine him not killing Mike. Something must have happened. Any chance you can talk to Mike.”

“Duff, he has a gunshot wound and is passed out. He lost too much blood. They’re going to be suspicious of me, and they aren’t going to let me anywhere near him. I gave them the name Michael Williams. It’s close enough, and I have the ID’s for that one. I didn’t want Mike waking up and giving them his real name and it not being close to what I wrote down.”

“Okay, I’ll call someone and see if they can intervene. Hang tight. I’ll make sure Mike gets treated and the cops don’t interfere.”

“Thanks, Duff. I’ll make sure Davis is safe.”

“I can’t tell you how much this means. I don’t think Davis is equipped for something like this.” Duff’s voice trembled as he spoke.

“He’ll be fine.” Roger hung up and shook his head. Davis was more equipped to deal with something like this than his dad knew, but it wasn’t his place to tell Duff about his suspicions.

He took the paperwork over to the administrative desk and turned it in, waiting for the questions to start. It didn’t take long. The woman sitting behind the desk narrowed her eyes and frowned.

“We’re you with Mr. Williams when he was shot?”

“No.” Roger didn’t feel like handing out more information than he had to. Spilling his guts before Duff had a chance to call in some favors wouldn’t do anyone any good.

“Do you know what happened?” the lady asked.

“No, ma’am.” Again, he said as little as possible. The woman gave him an annoyed glance as she typed information into the computer. It was tedious watching her enter the information. He needed to talk to Mike. Craig was out there, and no one was safe with him on the loose.

“Go take a seat. Someone will come talk to you later.”

Dismissed, Roger moved to one of the seats near a wall and slid low, leaning his head back. He closed his eyes, succumbing to the need to rest. Soon, they’d be moving, trying to get Davis away from Craig.

The area was less than perfect for a nap, but he tried. Sirens bleated just outside the doors, and people rushed in while others walked out, some angry, others happy. Then there were those who were crying. He hated the emergency room. He disliked the emotions and chaos. When Hayden had died, there had been no ambulances, no doctors to rush around, just death. Panic settled in Roger’s gut. Mike couldn’t die, he wouldn’t let him.

Agitation twisted through him, and he jumped up, moving to the nurses’ station then away because the line was too long. He needed to see Mike and couldn’t stand waiting. It had only been about forty minutes, but still, he wanted to see his friend.

His phone buzzed and he glanced down, happy to see that it was Duff. “Hey, what’s up?”

“You’re in the clear, but don’t stick around. Once Mike is out of surgery and awake, get out of there.”

“Okay.”

“They’re not going to ask questions, the cops will leave it be for now, but I can’t get to the doctor.”

“Once he’s awake, we’ll book. Have you talked to Davis again?”

“No, I’m a little afraid to call. He may not want to talk to me.”

“He’ll be fine with it. I think you should call him. I gave him Mike’s phone.”

“We’re not very close. We had a huge argument the last time we saw each other. He probably won’t be too happy to see me. Now this, it might prove to be too much.”

“Duff, he’s your son.”

“That is the scary part. Craig hunting him down is going to make it difficult to keep the ranch from him.”

“You don’t have to tell him everything, but he’s a part of your life and he loves you.”

“Roger, I’m glad you think that’s how it is. I only wish it were true.”

“We’ll see.”

Roger hung up, his head spinning. How the hell was he going to get Mike out of here? They were fucked over. He wondered what Davis and Ryan were doing. If Craig found Davis, would he be able to fight him off? Roger felt Davis could handle himself. Duff had no clue what Davis did for a living. He certainly wasn’t an antique dealer, that much was for clear.

*~*~*

Davis put his hand on Ryan’s arm before they pulled away from the hospital. “We shouldn’t use the hotel valet.”

“Sure. Let’s circle around and find a parking lot that’s close.”

They drove in silence as Ryan navigated the streets. Davis was keeping up with where they were going, but it was obvious Ryan knew the area.

“That place we were at last night, it’s around here, right?” Davis asked.

“Yes, just past the train tracks.”

“So we could have spent the night at this place instead?”

Ryan laughed. “This is going to be a bit more comfortable, but a lot less anonymous.”

Davis shook his head. “Probably best we didn’t come by.”

Ryan turned down a street they’d driven down before. “I think this garage would be good.”

Davis looked around, judging how far away they were from the hotel and hospital. “Looks good to me.”

“How long has it been since we dropped them off?” Ryan asked.

Davis glanced at the clock on the dashboard. “Almost twenty minutes.”

“Do you think he’ll live?”

“No clue. He didn’t look good and he lost a lot of blood.”

“Yeah, that’s not good at all.”

They got out of the car and started to walk away. Davis stopped and placed his hand on Ryan’s arm.

“We should check the trunk for bags. They might appreciate having some clothes.”

Ryan popped the trunk and Davis looked in, surprised he didn’t find any guns. He guessed they carried their pieces on their body.

“Two bags, both over the shoulder.”

“I’ll take one, you take the other,” Ryan said.

They stepped out on to the street, dodging people who were bustling about like nothing had happened the night before. Bostonians rushed past, running down the sidewalks hurrying to work or wherever they went at this time of the morning. It was a normal day for them. Horns honked, people yelled, the screech of the train coming to rest at the station above sounded, and the world went on. He caught Ryan’s gaze, and then felt the brush of Ryan’s hand over his. The problems from the night before made him feel closer than he should to this man. They’d shared a night that was full of danger and emotions. It was the type of thing that cemented relationships, breaking down walls, and destroying normal social reservations.

Ryan approached the front desk of the hotel, and Davis slipped into the bathroom and waited until he was sure Ryan was done checking in. He stepped out of the bathroom and joined Ryan on his way to the elevators. Neither of them spoke. What could they say?
Wow, I’m glad you’re not dead
. That type of talk would draw attention.

The full impact of the events were starting to sink in. Duff wasn’t a rancher, that much was obvious. He needed to talk to his father, but that would have to wait until they were face to face.

“Looks like we’re here.” Ryan pulled a keycard from his pocket and opened the door. They stepped in and waited in the entryway until the door was closed.

He turned to face Ryan and shivered. No words were spoken as Ryan dropped his bag to the floor and then took the one on Davis’s shoulder, placing it beside them. Ryan wrapped his arms around Davis’s shoulders and held him. He didn’t know how long they stayed like that, but when he checked the clock on Mike’s phone, it had been an hour since they’d dropped the men at the hospital.

Ryan stepped into the bathroom and used the facilities, leaving him alone with his thoughts. Nothing about coming to Boston had been right. Maybe he’d get a chance to make things right with his dad, at least he hoped he could. He stared at the wall, exhaustion hitting him harder than it ever had in the past after a mission. The door opened and Ryan stepped out of the bathroom.