Rock Chick Reckoning (Rock Chick #6)(106)

She looked a little bit angry and that anger was directed at me.

I didn’t have time for Al y’s anger.

“Her hand?” I breathed, finding I was fighting for air.

They al looked at each other.

“You don’t know everything,” Tex’s boom was low and he was looking pale.

“What about Caitlin’s hand?” I went on.

“Stel a –” Duke started.

I twisted to Duke and grabbed his forearm, my voice sounding strained and desperate (exactly how I felt) when I said, “Tel me about her effing hand.”

Duke’s eyes lifted to Tex, my fingers squeezed his arm; he looked back to me and sighed.

Then he said quietly, “After the commandos botched the rescue job, in retaliation, her kidnappers cut off her hand and sent it to her father in a –”

He didn’t finish.

I jumped from the couch, eyes on Indy, and whispered,

“Bathroom.”

I didn’t wait for her to answer, I ran from the room. I got into the hal and Indy was there, hands on me, guiding me. I was making gagging noises, hand over my mouth, I barely made it into and through Lee’s office to his bathroom when I hit my knees, tagged the bowl with my arms and hurled eggs benedict into the toilet.

Indy held back my hair as my body lurched through vomiting and then the dry heaves.

When I’d finished, I sat on my ass, back to the wal . Indy gave me a wet washcloth to wipe my mouth as she flushed the toilet.

Then she sat down, close by my side.

I put my hands over my face, the washcloth clenched in one of them. My stomach hurt, I tasted the sour vomit in my mouth but al I could think about was how Mace was that morning.

“Honey,” Indy whispered.

“He loved her hands,” I whispered back. “He told me they were exquisite.”

Al of a sudden I was in Indy’s arms and her voice broke when she muttered, “Oh, honey.”

My chest was moving. I felt it, like it was working for air and not getting any. I was breathing through my nose, the breath coming hard. I could feel the exhalations against my lips but al that work and nothing was getting to my lungs.

My eyebal s felt like they’d grown ten times their normal size and wanted to force their way out of my head.

Mace’s words sounded in my brain.

Jesus, I’ll never forget the way she moved her hands.

“Oh my God,” I whispered.

“Sh, honey, quiet,” Indy mumbled.

I reared back, looked in her face which was blurry with my tears but I could see she was shedding her own. I’d never known Indy to cry, she wasn’t a crying type of girl.

Even if this surprised and touched me, I needed to move on, and fast.

“Get Duke,” I demanded.

“I’m here, darlin’.” Duke was standing in the door, al the Rock Chicks and Tex behind him, Ava was holding my cup of coffee.

“Let’s go, everyone out,” Tex herded the Rock Chicks away as Indy left me and Duke came in.

He sat down next to me, one leg bent, one straight out, his wrist resting on his bent knee.

Tex shut the door and we were alone.

I turned to Duke and since he wasn’t a Rock Chick, I figured Mace wouldn’t get mad at me when I blurted, “We’re back together. Mace and me. He came home to me last night and we worked it out.” I watched the blurry surprise hit Duke’s face and continued, “We have to pretend we’re not back together because his Dad is playing some kind of game. So we have to keep it a secret.”

“Al right, love,” he replied, his gravel y voice deeper and I knew it was with emotion which I had to ignore because I was holding on by a thread.

“He started to tel me about his sister but it’s hard on him. I have to let him tel me his own way,” I said.

Duke reached out and slid his fingers through my hair at my forehead, pul ing it back away from my face. “You’re bein’ smart.”

“The Rock Chicks can’t know about us being back together. And they can’t tel me anymore about what happened to Caitlin.”

“I’l talk to the girls.”

“But you have to tel me.”

Silence then a gentle, “Stel a, I’m not sure –” I leaned into him. “Duke, I just hurled because I couldn’t take it. If it gets worse, I can’t let him see that. I have to be strong for him. He’s being strong for me. You have to tel me. I have to be prepared.”

“You’re al owed to have an honest reaction –” Duke began but I shook my head.

“No, you don’t understand. He loved her. They were close. This is eating at him. I have to be strong. I have to let him give this to me. I’ve got to be able to take it from him.” Duke’s eyes searched mine for a few beats, I watched him come to a conclusion and he nodded. He got closer and his arm moved around me, his big hand coming to the side of my head, pressing against it so my cheek rested on his shoulder.

“Okay, darlin’. Hate to say it but it gets worse,” he said softly and I sucked breath in through my nose, not at al certain what could be worse than a girl being kidnapped and having her hand cut off but, since it ended in murder, I figured it definitely got worse.

Duke went on, “You need me to stop so you can get yourself together, you just say so.”