Marked By The Devil (Devil's Riders 5)

People on the way in, and people on the way out.

Thankfully, Tommy was on his way out.

It was heartbreaking to see a kid in a facility like this. The residential wing was really nice, and Bonnie loved it, but Tommy belonged in school. Out playing. Having fun. And very soon, he would be.

He was coming home in a few short weeks. Hopefully, we’d be ready for him. I was working a lot of hours at the dance studio. Basically, anything open on the schedule, I wrote my name in. Callaway had said he would cover my balance at the nursing home, but I wanted to contribute as much as I could.

He was my brother, after all.

My heart swelled with pride as I looked around the room.

Family. I finally have my family.

That’s what this felt like. Callaway and I on the faded green vinyl chairs, Bonnie beside Tommy’s bed in her wheelchair. Not that she needed it all the time, but it was about a hundred-yard walk from her room, so Callaway insisted on wheeling her over in it. He was such a good man, I mused to myself. He took care of everyone around him. His heart was so big, it had room for all of us. I’d never have thought it the first time I saw him, but he was born for this.

Callaway is the ultimate family man.

“So, what happened in PT today?”

Callaway took a bite of his food and waited expectantly. Tommy was always making us laugh with his stories from physical therapy and around the home. He had a distinctly . . . teenage perspective on how things went around here.

“Oh, I did a new trick!”

“Yeah? What’s that?”

“Well, they have these bars.”

“Bars?”

“You put your weight on them to help your legs get stronger.”

I nodded. “I see.” Tommy had a twinkle in his eye, so I knew this was going to be good.

“I’ve been doing it for a while. Sometimes, I even take my hands off and stand without them.”

“Wow, that’s amazing! You’ll be walking in no time!”

He grinned.

“Walking? Dude, I’m almost ready for the Olympics! Oh, so today, I figured out it was the perfect place to do dips.” He pulled up his sleeve and flexed for us. “I’m getting so buff!”

I chortled, nearly snorting out the French fry I’d been snacking on. Callaway gave me a look and Bonnie broke into giggles. Tommy was being funny, of course, but the thing was, he did look better.

Tommy was no longer the waif-like kid he’d been all these years. I’d overheard a nurse calling him Snow White at one point. I didn’t get mad, even if it did make me cry. He was so pale and still.

Now, he had pink in his cheeks and some meat on his bones. And while he wasn’t buff, he wasn’t scrawny anymore either. He was gaining strength and it showed.

“So buff,” I agreed, throwing at French fry at him.

He caught the French fry in midair. Tommy winked as he popped it into his mouth.

“Mmm, grease! Just what this growing boy needs!”

I was laughing again, holding my belly and trying not to upchuck. I was full and happy. I was safe. I had a roof over my head and so did my brother. I even had a job I liked. I had friends.

And most of all, I had Callaway.

I laid my head on his shoulder and listened to the three of them talk, feeling like the luckiest girl in the world.

Chapter Thirty-One

Callaway

“Catch!”

I tossed Mac and Lucky each a cold beer. Mac saluted me and popped the top, taking a long pull. It was hot and the guys were all sweaty. I owed them beer at the very least. Lots and lots of beer.

Not that I wouldn’t have hauled ass for any one of them. Even Mac, that fucker. We’d nearly come to blows a couple of weeks before. Or I’d tried to beat the crap out of him but failed, mostly due to being shithoused.

He’d tried to keep me from drinking myself into oblivion during the almost-breakup with Mols. Not surprisingly, my drunk ass had taken offense. I reminded myself not to blame him. He’d been tending bar and just following orders. Dev had said to cut me off, so he did, like a good little soldier. Now he was here with the others in my time of need. And I really fucking needed every last one of them.

Today was moving day.

Mac, his cousin Donnie, Dev, Jack, and Whiskey were here. Even Lucky had showed, even though the guy had been riding me mercilessly about Molly. He kept asking me if she had a twin sister for him to bone. I knew he was doing it to irritate me and it worked. I did not find it even slightly amusing. I shook my head. Dev had told me I couldn’t murder him. Dev was the club Prez and since he was also carrying my shit, just like the rest of us, I decided to do as he asked. Mac was the only real grunt here, still in the probationary stage of membership. But as Donnie’s cousin and the new club bartender, he had a lot more pull than your average recruit. Hell, even as extended family, he was already in the family even before he set foot in the clubhouse.