Sin City Baby

I turned down an even narrower back road. Wilson's Creek Road, it was called. The boys and I used to come out here and go swimming in the creek, against the owner's wishes. Wilson was a crotchety old shit, and just thinking about the old man cursing at us made me laugh. The laughter was followed by tears, however, as I drove across the bridge that led to the private property and the creek.

Gabe and I would often go skinny dipping in the creek late at night when Wilson was asleep. I wondered what happened to old Wilson? As I drove up the road to his house, it became increasingly obvious that the house was abandoned.

I sighed. What a shame. It also meant that I had the place to myself.

I turned around, parked near the bridge, and got out of my car. I walked over to the bridge. The creek was high this year, and rough. Too rough to swim in, which was a shame, but at least I could still stand up on the bridge and watch the water flowing forward. Like my life, the water would continue on until it reached its destination, no matter what obstructions got in the way.

The air was sweet and filled with the scent of the local flora. I breathed in the familiar, clean air and closed my eyes. In the distance, I heard birds singing. There was something else as well. I opened my eyes and looked around, trying to find the source of the humming. I saw nothing, so I pushed it out of my head and went back to relaxing. I closed my eyes again and felt connected to the earth, to Castle Creek, to everything around me.

I may not know what I was going to do with my life, but it would work out. It had to. One thing I was certain was that I wanted to stay.

The sound got louder until it stopped. I turned and looked, and then I sighed.

The sound had been a car, which was now parked on the other side of the bridge.

Evan and Jared climbed out, and I shouted, “Guys, seriously, I just needed some time alone,” I said.

“We were worried about you,” Jared said.

The first sign that anything was wrong was the way Evan's eyes suddenly grew wide. He pointed, but I didn't hear the words that came next because it was too late. The board underneath my feet collapsed and before I knew what was happening, I was in the water. I was being dragged along by it, taken under and pulled underneath the bridge. I didn't even get a chance to scream for help before I was unable to catch a breath.

I didn't remember the next thing that happened. A sense of peace, of serenity, enveloped me. I wasn't yet done living, I didn't want to die, but somehow, none of that mattered anymore. The only thing that mattered was holding on to that sense of peace and tranquility that filled me.

My world went black.

CHAPTER NINETEEN

GABE

My phone rang. It was Evan, and I almost didn't answer. I stared at it for a long time, but just before it went to voicemail, I picked up. After all, he hadn't been the one fucking Hadley. At least, not when I'd walked in, anyway.

“Y

es?” I mumbled into the phone.

I was still in my car, sitting outside my house. I hadn't gone inside yet, mainly because I couldn't bring myself to. My business partners had offered to move me to Paris, but what would that mean for me? It meant leaving my family, of course. It meant leaving Hadley, which hurt far more than it should. It would mean leaving Grayson, who I considered to be a nephew, if not something more.

“Hadley is in the hospital,” his voice said. “I thought you'd like to know.”

A shot of adrenaline ricocheted through me, I sat up straight, everything in me suddenly awake. My heart raced, my pulse right behind it. When I'd left her, she'd been fine.

“What happened?” I asked, feeling my gut clenching.

I started the car and backed out of my driveway while still on the phone.

“There's been an accident,” he said. “She hasn't woken up yet. Gabe, she could die on us, man. We could lose her.”

“I'll be right there.”

I hung up and drove straight to the hospital, my mind spinning fast and hard. We could lose her. Those words echoed through my mind over and over again, driving me mad with worry. My insides were empty at the mere thought of a world without her.

For years, we'd been on bad terms, but she was always there. She had always been out there, in the world, living and hopefully happy. That's what I wanted for her. Even if I couldn't have her, that was what I wanted.

“Fuck!” I screamed, gripping the steering wheel tightly.

She'd offered herself to me. On one condition. A condition I wasn't sure I could meet. I could have had the love of my life back, once and for all. I'd just have to share her. That seemed like too big of a price to pay at first. But now, at the thought of never seeing Hadley again? At the idea of losing her completely? I'd give anything to have her back. Anything at all.

The drive to the hospital seemed to take forever, but in reality it was only fifteen minutes. I parked and rushed inside, nearly running into Jared who was standing in the doorway. He held onto my shoulders, stopping me in my tracks. He had tears streaming down his cheeks. My heart dropped into my stomach, already trying to brace myself for the worst.