Draw (Gentry Boys #1)(73)

“Good.” I stared at the floor. “Cord in the room?”

“No. He went down to the cafeteria. Chase decided he might be hungry again.”

“So what did you guys do last night?”

“Nothing.” Creed looked away. “Played video games and took a nap.”

“Right.” I couldn’t keep the sarcasm out of my voice. “See you, Creed.”

Chase’s roommate, the man who’d been shot in a hunting accident, was in the process of being discharged. His loving wife unleashed a rainbow of colorfully affectionate vulgarities as he shuffled around, trying to pack up. He looked as if he would much rather stay where he was.

Chase had his eyes closed. I pulled the curtain around his bed and sat in the nearby chair.

“Hi Saylor,” he said without opening his eyes.

I squeezed his arm briefly. “You scared us yesterday, tough guy.”

The swelling had gone down in his face but the skin was still mottled with severe bruising and the cut on his cheek was looking pretty raw.

“Do me favor?” he asked. “Hand me that bedpan over there.”

I made a face. “Are you serious?”

He opened his eyes. “No.”

“Good, because there are limits to the terms of my friendship.”

He studied me. “You look nice.”

“I’ve got to put in an appearance at my mom’s wedding.”

“Black is a good look for a wedding. Taking Cord with you?”

“I wish,” I said softly. “I tried, Chase. I tried to talk to him. Fact is I don’t know which way he’s going.”

The saddest look in the world crossed Chase Gentry’s face. “I know. Neither do I.”

Beyond the curtain the irritable couple were arguing about who was responsible for breaking an heirloom ceramic plate last Easter. At one point it sounded as if the lady was beating her husband over the head with a shopping bag.

Cord walked in carrying a tray of food. He paused when he saw me and then broke into a grin which made me curse him all the more for holding my heart so desperately captive. His arms went around me and our mouths met.

“Missed you last night,” he whispered in my ear and I thought how if I could only keep him safe and whole then I would never need to make another wish again.

Chase cleared his throat obnoxiously and after a minute Cord pulled back. He looked me over. “You leaving soon?”

I took his hands and stared into his eyes with as much pleading as I could muster. “Come with me.”

Chase bit into an apple and began chewing loudly. “You should go, dude. You’ve got a pretty girl and a sunny day. What the hell else do you need?”

“Yeah,” I challenged him. “What else do you need?”

Cord only scowled and looked annoyed. He backed away from me and skirted around to the far side of the bed. “No can do, Saylor.” The defiant resolve was written all over his face. He’d already chosen something which didn’t include me.

I wasn’t going to cry again. But I was going to get the hell out of there. I touched Chase on the shoulder. “Bye, kid. I’ll come by tonight if I’m not back too late.”

After nearly crashing into Creed in the doorway, I hurried out of the room without saying anything to Cord. He followed me.

“Wait,” he took my arm. “I’ll walk you to your car.”

I shook him off. “Don’t f*cking bother.”

“Saylor.”

I ignored him.

“Saylor!”

Cord grabbed me around both arms and tried to hold me in place.

“Just let me go, Cord,” I whispered, unable to do a thing to stem the flow of tears. “Just let me f*cking go.”

He pushed his forehead against mine and breathed heavily for a minute. But ultimately he released me without a word, just as I had demanded.

The drive to Emblem was horrible. I got out past Queen Creek and then began to feel a little sick. I pulled onto a dirt road surrounding a cotton farm and got out of the car. Miserably I collapsed in the dust and sobbed until my chest hurt.

After a half hour I’d worn myself out but hadn’t found any answers to the ache inside. Cord evidently needed to submit to the dark nature of violence more than he needed me. He didn’t say those words but he didn’t need to.

When I got to my feet again I felt as if I’d aged twenty years. Then, when I remembered that I had failed to get my mother’s wedding bouquet, I felt worse.

Luckily there was a Walmart along the way. Unluckily, they possessed a meager floral assortment. With a flash of brilliance I found the craft section and picked out something which I thought would do. There was still about a half hour of travel ahead but it was early. I made up my mind to drop in on my dad.

Emblem is an ugly town. As you’re driving down the two lane road you see the state prison at the edge before you see anything else. It was a sprawling collection of low buildings surrounded by high fences which were topped with sharp wire. As I turned past the behemoth compound which hosted a light gathering of sign-waving protestors, I saw several men in orange jumpsuits standing on the other side of the fences. The men were too far away to distinguish their faces but I wondered about them. Presumably they had families and friends somewhere, people who cared for them. What had they done to get where they were now and did they regret it?