Chapter Two-Hundred and Sixty-Two

Chapter Two-Hundred and Sixty-Two
London gave Boots a nod. “I will admit that before he started drinking so much, he was a different kind of man. He may have been disinterested in me because I wasn’t a boy but he wasn’t so bad back then.”

“What do you mean he was disinterested in you because you weren’t a boy?” Boots asked as he felt puzzled.

“My dad was always the type of man that only thought boys were worth it as far as kids went.” She shrugged. “He made no bones about that. It kind of ran in his family. I mean the boy cousins had it made and I was the only girl cousin so I was overlooked a lot. That never bothered me too much. I could fill the hours reading and studying where my cousins always played sports and had a lot of friends hanging around. My mom was just as happy staying home. She and I would have nights mostly to ourselves then she got pregnant with Chris and when dad found out he was a boy he was over the moon. Then the drinking started getting to him and mom pissed him off one night and he got mad and his fists started flying and he hurt my mom and the baby. Of course, he blamed my mom for Chris’s hearing being off but he knew it was all his fault.” London shook her head. “Yeah he’s my dad, but I lost any and all respect for the man a long time ago. And when that’s gone, it's gone. There is no getting that back no matter what you do and he never even tried. So now, he’s sitting in his own muck and I don’t feel a bit sorry for him.”

Boots smoothed his hand along her cheek in a bit of comfort.

Turning her head, she stared at her brother. “I feel sorry for Chris. He’s had one hell of a disappointment to look up too. Hopefully I can find someone for him to look up to. I hope that someone might be you so if that’s too much to ask, please let me know. I won’t let that kid down again.”

Boots framed her face in his hands and looked her in the eyes. “I would be happy to have that kid as a part of my life. In fact, I can think of no other honor that would please me more. This MC is good one, we work hard and we play hard. Life here is worthy of sharing. We made our share of mistakes but sticking around was never one of them.”

“We just have to get through the next few days.” London closed her eyes and shook her head. “And pray that this is over and the real bad guys get put in jail.”

“I agree, but I’ve seen the Rogues in action before, so I have faith they will prevail in this too.”

“I just hope the cartel believes Hondo and no one has to die,” she whispered.

Boots slid to her side and wrapped his arms around her then he whispered, “Try and sleep. Things will happen like they happen and we’ll deal with it then.”

London wiggled down and turned to her side.

Boots spooned her back.

Releasing a sigh, she closed her eyes and she fell asleep.

Boots laid there for a long time before he finally closed his eyes and joined her in sleep.

The next morning…
The sun was streaming into the room when Boots opened his eyes. He was still spooned around London’s back and when he moved, he found himself looking into Chris’ eyes.

Chris looked curious but not mad as he stared at his sister and Boots. They were snuggled together. Finally, Chris grinned at him.

Suddenly, someone knocked on the door.

Kota came barging into the Infirmary. He halted as he looked confused, then he stared at Boots and said, “We need you man, Jenson isn’t so good this morning.”

Boots untangled himself from London.

In the untangling, he’d woken her up. London looked puzzled as she stared at Kota then she swung her mystified gaze up at Boots.

“Your dad isn’t doing so good this morning,” Boots told her. 

“Yeah, he’s probably going through withdrawal.” She shook her head. Swinging her legs over the side of the bed, she slipped her shoes on. Then grabbing Chris’s hand, she silently left the Infirmary. 

Kota just stared at Boots and asked, “Is that wise, brother? Getting close to her like that?”

“Maybe not, but it felt right to me.” Boots glared at him.

Not used to Boots showing any kind of temper, Kota took a step back and raised his hands. “No worries, brother. You do what you gotta do. I just hope it works out for you. You do know that they come as a set right?”

Boots nodded. “Yeah, of course I know. Let's go find out what’s going on with Jenson.”

“Like she said, withdrawal,” Kota told him. “He’s pretty sick though.

When they got downstairs, they found Jenson barely breathing and his skin felt cool to the touch. His skin looked utterly grey and pale. Boots took his vitals and kept shaking his head. He knew it was too late to stop what was happening. “There’s not much I can do for him. His liver is giving up.”

Hawkins nodded. “I wonder if he knows?”

“Probably does. He’s the one who drank too much every day.” Boots didn’t feel sorry for him. “He had to know this was coming.”

“Do we call an ambulance?” Kota asked.

Boots shook his head. “Not unless you want the other players to know we know what they are planning. Then he would die soon afterward anyway.”

Hawkins nodded. “Yeah, him going into the hospital after being missing for a couple of days will alert Ronnie and his friends that someone knows.” He turned and headed for the steps. “We need to call Hondo and find out what he knows this morning. Then we need eyes on Ronnie and the farm. Everything hinges on what happens today.”

“I’ll stay with him,” Boots suggested as he closed his medical bag. 

Kota followed his dad upstairs, leaving Boots alone with Jenson. 

Hawkins and Kota went upstairs and found London with Chris sitting at the table.

London nodded back at him then reached for Chris’s hand. She wasn’t telling him about their father.

Hawkins didn’t blame her, the poor kid already had it rough. Let him enjoy the day. Reaching for his phone, he called Hondo. “Did you get through to them last night?” He put the call on speaker so everyone could hear.

“Si, I did. At first, they didn’t believe me but when I sent the pictures of  Mezla, they became enraged. They told me Ronnie has been scamming them for the last few months.Cutting back on making the product and selling inferior pills. Carlos was coming up here to find out what’s going on. Now his mission has changed and he’s coming in on an earlier flight. He needs to know how we are going to handle this.”

“And we have a plan,” Hawkins replied.