Savage Little Lies: Chapter 23

Sloane

My brother tossed a Funyun at me.

He was obviously feeling better.

Dr. Richardson had said something similar about an hour ago. He’d checked in on Bruno several times throughout the day. After the final check, the doctor said he had felt good about leaving him for the evening but advised the hospital (or Bru and me) to call him if anything changed. My brother was up and wiry, joking with me, and though he couldn’t possibly eat any Funyuns, that didn’t stop him from tossing mine at me.

“You worry too much,” he said, like I hadn’t seen his ass collapse last night. Dr. Richardson had confirmed what Callum had told me when I’d arrived. My brother had collapsed due to dehydration and lack of fluids. His throwing up had only made it worse. This had ultimately caused him to pass out, and though his fever had broken, he was still weak. A Funyun was about the only thing he could pick up.

I’d taken Dr. Richardson aside at multiple points in the day. I wanted the hard facts about what was going on, but Bru’s ailments seemed to be a mystery to him. My brother gave symptoms as if he had the flu, his fever coming and going.

“We’re going to get to the bottom of this,” he said before he left for the evening. I’d come back into Bru’s room after that, and Bru definitely knew what had been talked about.

Hence him tossing Funyuns at me now.

“I just don’t know why they can’t figure this out,” I said, tossing a Funyun back. “I mean, they’re supposed to be doctors.”

I’d been informed by Dr. Richardson that he’d consulted with a couple of doctors here at the hospital before I’d arrived. He’d wanted a second opinion, I guess. He’d had the doctors here do bloodwork, and even after analyzing it, he and the other doctors still couldn’t discover a diagnosis for my brother’s symptoms.

Bru shrugged. Sitting up, he was in a hospital gown, and it was hard not to notice the dark circles under his eyes. He’d also lost a ton of weight.

Mere weeks ago, he’d been a teenage boy tossing footballs across the field. Now, it was touch and go whether he could pick one up depending on the day. His head tilted. “They may be doctors, but they’re practicing medicine.”

“Well, they need to practice better.”

“And you should know because of your degree. Right, Dr. Sloane?” He smirked. “I’m feeling a lot better.”

“Who knows for how long.” Whatever was going on with him seemed to be tremendously better or worse depending on what breath he took. I cuffed my arms. “I just want you to be okay.”

He said nothing, but I noticed him shift in my direction. My brother and I had never been the touchy-feely types, but we did care about each other. We both loved and worried about each other.

We were all we had.

Bru took my hand over the sheet, and I let him because I was vulnerable. Hell, I should have been the one taking his hand.

“I’m going to be okay.”

“You don’t know that.”

He smiled a little. “I am because I have you.” His head cocked. “You won’t let me die. I know you.”

He said that with a laugh, but it was a little dry, and I wondered if he was just as scared as I was. If he was worried about dying.

I squeezed his hand. “You’re right. I won’t let you die.” I frowned. “I still have to kick your ass for trying to get into the Court in the first place.”

Whatever was happening with him now seemed to have come right after he’d jumped into that lake. Who knew what the fuck he’d caught? He could have been stung or bitten. Who knew?

Bru pressed his lips together, huffing. “I don’t think any of that matters anyway.” He studied me. “You were right about those guys. Not one of them has come to see me while I’ve been gone.” His back touched his elevated bed. “I can’t even get any of them to text me back. Friends don’t do that.”

If it meant anything, I didn’t want to be right.

Honestly, I believed Legacy had been pushing Bru away because of me, but I just hadn’t wanted to stress Bruno out.

I still didn’t, squeezing his hand.

“Knock, knock. Anyone home?”

I let go of my brother’s hand when Ares Mallick entered the doorframe. Basically, I was surprised as fuck.

I wasn’t the only one.

Bruno’s jaw dropped, mine even lower.

Ares had brought… flowers.

He had like a huge fucking display of them, in a pot and everything. He balanced that on one hand, his hood up and all his curly hair pushing out. He laughed. “You seeing visitors, bro?”

Pure shock stiffened me as I watched my brother brighten up, then sit up. Bru attempted, but he struggled, so I elevated his bed more.

“I got it,” he growled, still trying to be strong. Bru waved Ares over. “Of course, man. Come on in, and good to see you.”

“Good to see you, kid,” Ares returned. He came into the room with his plant, and my expression dropped.

The side of his face was a completely different color.

Like legit, his face had transformed. Red and purple marred his usually golden skin, and he’d healed pretty well since his run-in with my brother, and Dorian after that. Dorian had actually hit him over that haze at the lake.

And again this morning.

Dorian had hit him earlier today, but I didn’t recall Ares’s face looking like that. I definitely would have noticed.

Ares had obviously tried to hide it as he gave my brother the pot he brought. He had his hood up and his hair around his face, but there was no hiding that bruise. Ares lifted the pot. “Sorry I wasn’t around sooner. I, um…”

“Nah, you’re fine.” Bru visibly brightened. Ares looked like he didn’t know what to do with the pot, and Bru advised to place it on the table near the door. Ares had to double back to do this, and when he did, I got up.

I told Bru I’d be back, then asked Ares if we could talk out of the room for a second. He was hesitant, but he followed me out. We made it into the hallway, and I propped my hands on my hips. “I want to see it.”

“What?”

I eyed him like it was obvious, his face. His gaze caught the ceiling, and I took it upon myself to tug his hood down.

I covered my mouth. He looked like someone had assaulted him, over and over someone had kicked his ass, and growling, he tugged the hood back up.

“Who did that to you?”

His attention reached the lights again. “What’s it to you?”

It wasn’t, but this was fucked up. I shifted on my high-tops. “Was it Dorian?” They’d fought before.

Had they fought again?

The way that Ares avoided my eye contact told me this appeared to be the case, and I was floored by this. This didn’t make sense. Dorian getting all territorial and shit. He hadn’t cared about me at all.

“What’s his problem?” I gritted, trying to keep my voice down because my brother was basically behind us. We’d gone into the hall, but I hadn’t closed the door. “Why is he acting like he fucking cares?”

“Probably because he does.”

I blinked, ramrod straight in that fucking hallway. “He doesn’t. He thinks I lied to him.”

“But that obviously hasn’t stopped him from acting the way he’s acting.” He was being so candid with me, real. He braced his arms. “Why did you call me a friend, little? You did, and that fucking set him off.” He leaned in. “We’re not friends.”

I didn’t know why, but my chest tightened a little when he said that. Stupid, I knew. We weren’t friends. My jaw shifted. “Then why have you been acting like one?”

The question of the hour, right? He was and continued to roll through my life like someone who actually cared too.

“Maybe I have my reasons.”

I smirked. “Meaning you need me for that project.” He was using me, and it was obvious. I laughed. “Okay, now that we got that settled.”

His hand cut across the way. This kept me from leaving. He eased his hands into his pockets. “Maybe I want to believe you.” His shoulders rose. “About the not ratting out D and shit. Maybe I want to believe that, and it’s fucking with my head.”

Again, he was being so candid, but it was the first time anyone had given me an indicator of that. Bow had said the same thing, but I had messed with her before. I’d given her no reason to trust me now.

This obviously wasn’t the same case with Ares, and when he chuckled, my lips parted.

“You know, it was a lot easier to hate you when I had no fucking reason.” His head shook. “When the only reason was because you were coming between me and my boy.”

“Wait. What?”

“I was jealous, little.” The very admission had him rolling his eyes. Probably at himself. He wet his lips. “You put this mind-fucking voodoo on him. Thatch? Wells? And let’s not even talk about Bow.”

I raised a hand. “You were jealous of me?”

His sight grappled the ceiling tiles once more. “Maybe a little bit of you getting close to my friend. You were getting up in my clique. Pissed me off.” He shrugged. “People like you. You get attention, and attention on you takes attention away from me.”

Oh, what a complete and arrogant fucker this guy was.

But he was smiling.

He actually smiled at me, and this whole conversation was crazy. I hugged my arms. “So what does all this mean?”

“It means the jury is still out on you.” His lips pinched together. “I stand by Dorian and will always stand by Dorian.”

“But?”

His jaw shifted. “But I personally feel like things are complicated with you. I do, and I’m acknowledging that.”

I didn’t know what to feel about that. And all of this was so screwed up. His boy was a complete idiot.

“Why is he like this?” I asked, an idiot myself for saying it. “I didn’t lie to him.”

Of course, there was no point in saying this. Ares knew my position. I could preach it from the rafters.

“Guys, everything okay?”

My brother’s voice came from the other room, and giving up, I headed that way.

Ares raised his hand again, stopping me. “You’re not the only one who’s complicated,” he said, then pointed to his face. “This happened for a reason, little. We don’t fight over shit like this. We don’t fight. We’re brothers, but this is the second time my buddy came at me since you came around.”

My mouth dried, and Ares’s chin lifted.

He adjusted his hood. “I guess I’m not the only one who feels you’re complicated.”

He lowered his arm after that and went into my brother’s room, and I stood there for a second. I stood there for too long.

Don’t.

I refused to let my mind go anywhere with what he said, and if Ares wasn’t trying to be a friend, he was doing a sucky job at it. He was definitely acing like one.

It seemed the complications didn’t lie with just Dorian and me.