Lethal Game (GhostWalkers 16)

“What about if she had to have a hysterectomy or she gets breast cancer? She had to have her breasts removed. Does that make her less than a woman in your eyes?”

“Hell no.” He had a visceral reaction to that. He would never want Amaryllis to think he wouldn’t want her because she had to have a breast removed or she had to have a hysterectomy and couldn’t have children. “Amaryllis is important to me, not because of all those things, but because of who she is.” And he meant it. She wasn’t her breasts or her womb. He got Nonny’s point. He couldn’t help how he felt, no matter how sexist it was or how ridiculous, and he knew it was. It was a gut reaction. Maybe others didn’t have it, but he did.

“Malichai, you’re going to have times when you’ll be depressed and you’re going to want to send Amaryllis away, but you have to fight those inclinations. This can tear your relationship apart or strengthen the two of you until you’re unbeatable. She’ll stand with you. I can guarantee you that she will. You have to let her because if you do, the two of you will have something so special all the way to the end of your days.”

He believed her because Nonny would know. She had a gift. If she said Amaryllis would give that to him, and he to her, it would be so. He just had to overcome this problem he had, this idea that he was inferior because he didn’t have a leg. He tried again to look and he just couldn’t quite make himself do it, but his hand slid from his hip to his thigh. Down just a little farther. His heart went crazy. There wasn’t much there. Even enough left for a prosthesis? How much of a stub did one need? Because they needed something.

“Take a breath, Malichai,” Ezekiel’s voice came out of the shadows. Steady. Reasonable. Not in the least upset. He was breathing in and out. Malichai followed because he always followed his brother wherever he led.

The sound of the machine he was hooked to stabilized. Went back to a regular rhythm. He glanced at Nonny, a little ashamed. She gave him her familiar grin. That helped to steady him as well.

“Are you ready to see your girl? She’s been very anxious to see you. She has something she wants to talk to you about and she says it’s very important.”

Malichai knew he couldn’t continue to put Amaryllis off. He didn’t want her hurt. The doctors would be coming in soon and he needed to see her alone. He had to “read” her. To make certain for himself that she wanted to stay with him and go through the long process he knew it was going to be for recovery.

“I’m ready.” He wasn’t. He looked at his brother and saw Ezekiel’s quick look at him. If anyone knew him, it was Zeke. Ezekiel knew he’d just lied to Nonny. That probably earned him a place in hell.

Nonny took him at his word and went to the door to call Amaryllis in. Then she was there, his woman, smelling the way she always did, a breath of fresh air in the midst of the hospital smells. She looked beautiful, but again, he could see that she’d been in tears. She smiled at him, and came straight to him, leaning down to brush several kisses across his lips.

“You scared me, Malichai. You really did,” she said softly.

“Not any more than you scared me, going after Callendine, Amaryllis,” he said. “Were you able to get him?”

“Absolutely. He died right there in the parking garage. Every one of them was taken down. Including Tania and Tommy Leven. They were in on it too. Bellisia caught up with them making out in the parking garage after coming out of the convention center with Salsberry. Apparently Tania is Tommy’s wife, not his sister. She contacted Linda online because Linda and her sisters volunteer for nearly all the various conventions and she figured they would know just about everything about the buildings, including how to get in and out of them fast.”

“And Linda’s gay,” Ezekiel said. “And fell for it.”

Amaryllis nodded. “Yes. She’s very upset that she did. The military police were able to collect tons of evidence. I think they were happy as well, other than they couldn’t really explain the strange poisons in the men who died.”

“Wouldn’t worry about it,” Ezekiel said. “Someone higher up will bury the entire thing.”

“I hope they’ll at least get to the aide who sanctioned them,” Amaryllis said. “And the vice president.”

“That’s not going to happen,” Ezekiel said. “We all know that, but the president’s been warned.”

“Do you think he knew about this?” Malichai asked.

“No, I don’t believe he did. I think he was honestly outraged,” Ezekiel said. “Joe flew to Washington along with Major General to speak with him, and Joe has a way of knowing who is lying and who’s telling the truth. He believed the president, and that’s good enough for me.”