OUTLAW KING(53)

Then there was silence.

“Fucking rat,” Uncle Jakey yelled.

He approached me.

I was breathing. But the room was spinning. And it was starting to spin faster and faster. I felt hot. I felt cold. My hands were covered in blood.

“What… what…”

Uncle Jakey crouched down and grabbed my shirt. “Just keep f*cking breathing, King. That’s all you can do.”

“Here, let me help him,” the man in the suit said. He took off his suit jacket and rolled it up. “I’ll call for the ambulance. You shot him in the f*cking gut.”

“I didn’t have great aim,” Uncle Jakey said.

I put my head back and looked up at the ceiling of the empty warehouse. My lips kept moving even though I couldn’t speak.

I just wanted one last message known from me in this goddamn world.

And it was pretty simple.

I love you, Linds… I’ve always loved you… I’ll always love you…





41


(King) *THEN*

SHE SAID they went out for dinner. We had one chance to meet up. We chose the tracks because it was quiet and it was right behind her house. That way if something went wrong, she was only a few minutes from home.

Mom was home for the night, a rare night off. She was on the couch with a bowl of popcorn, a pack of cigarettes, and cruising through the channels on the TV. Tito was out for the night, probably getting his ass in trouble. So I had to sneak out my bedroom window. The drop from my window was pretty steep, but I would jump off a f*cking building if it meant I could get to Linds.

I dropped off the roof from my house, landed on my feet, and started to f*cking run. I didn’t stop running until I was about a mile away, on the tracks, and caught sight of Linds under the moonlight. It was like I was in a damn movie. I ran right up to her, scooped her up, and kissed her. We kissed for a good five minutes, devouring each other.

Goddamn, it had been too long since I last kissed her.

I hated our situation but I would never complain about it to her. It wouldn’t do any good.

We sat down on the tracks and I held her for a long time.

We kissed on and off, over and over, knowing that time was counting down to when she had to leave. We talked about our feelings, our lives, school, the future, all that normal bullshit. For me, it was just about hearing her voice. Seeing the happiness in her eyes when she talked about the future. The only thing we knew… we wanted each other in our future.

“And that’s what we’ll have,” I whispered to her. I touched her chin and kissed her. “No matter what. It’s always about us.”

I got an hour that night with her on the tracks. So much running through my mind and heart. So much I wanted to do to her but couldn’t. I took what I could though. And that was her time, her smile, the sound of her voice, and as many of her kisses as I could.

It was a perfect goddamn night.

When we stood up and she had to leave, I grabbed her and hugged her tight.

“It’s going to work,” I whispered. “I will never leave you.”

“I believe you, King.”

“No matter what happens, I’ll always be back. You just say my name, Linds, and I’ll do everything I can to be back.”

I kissed her again and let her go.

I waited until she was out of sight.

I put my head back and looked up to the moon.

I felt like I was going to cry.

I finally understood what love meant.





42


(Lindsey) *NOW*

“IT’S up to him now,” Knox said as he handed me a cup of hospital coffee. “I’m sorry.”

“I don’t understand any of this,” I said.

“It’s better than being in prison,” Slam said.

“So the guy who helped him shot him?” I asked.

Knox nodded. “We were outside securing the building. Uncle Jakey was finishing up the deal. That Anderson guy came out of nowhere. He shot right at King. Before Uncle Jakey could react, his lawyer, Ted, pulled out a gun and shot Anderson. What a f*cking mess.”

“A real f*cking mess,” Slam said.

They both wouldn’t look at me when they spoke. Something told me that wasn’t the real story. Instead, it was the story they wanted the world to see.

I put the crappy cup of coffee down on the floor and stood up. “I have to see him.”

“Take it easy, Lindsey,” Knox said. “I don’t want anything to happen to the baby.”

“Stay out of my way, Knox,” I said. “You’ve been there, right? You know the whole story. Me and King. If I’m going to lose him for good I want to be there.”

Knox begged me to give him a minute and I did. He returned with a doctor who I easily tore apart with words and tears, demanding I see King. I made it clear that if I didn’t get to King I would start going into every room until I found him.

“He’s slowly coming out of this,” the doctor said. “The surgery went well but there can still be complications.”

I looked at the doctor, a tear running down my cheek. “All we’ve had is complications, Doctor. What’s a few more?”

I was escorted into a hospital room.

It was a big room with a lifeless King on the bed. The only sounds were the machines beeping, proving that he was still alive. I fought back the tears as I walked to the bed. I grabbed for his hand and lowered myself down to his chest.