Malachi’s humerus was broken. It had already begun to knit so they’d had to put him under, rebreak it and set it. They’d also lucked out that Deck’s unpracticed eye saw nothing but mess. Malachi had apparently cleaned his wounds as best he could with what they were guessing from what they could smell on his sweater, the shampoo Faye had given him. He also had antibiotic ointment on the worst of them, Faye’s Neosporin. It was good he’d cleaned his wounds and used the ointment but treatment had been delayed, infection was still a concern so they were pushing strong IV antibiotics.

He was in the critical care unit because they still had some concerns that infection had set in and they reported they had minor worries that he might lose his f**king leg and his f**king hands.

The hospital had a policy that only family members could attend patients in critical care and therefore, at first, they were denied a visit. Chace explained the circumstances including the fact that it was jacked, but Faye was the closest thing the kid had to family and the only person who they knew who had spoken directly to him in weeks. The doctor relented instantly knowing, even if nurture came from someone he hardly knew, nurture was nurture.

Chace and Faye were let in to see him and at first sight of his small body with tubes stuck in him, his hands wrapped, his face bruised and still swollen, his arm in a sling, the covers taller around his dressed leg, Chace thought Faye would fall apart. Many people would, men or women. Fuck, Chace had to suck in breath to hold it together.

But she didn’t. She moved directly to him, ran her fingers lightly through his hair and bent right to his ear.

“It’s Faye. Chace and I are here, Malachi. We’re here. We found you. You’re safe now,” she whispered. “You’re safe, honey. You just need to get better. We’re here and you’re safe.”

Chace found a chair and moved it to the bed before he put his hand to the small of her back. She was still bent over Malachi running her fingers through his hair but when she felt his touch, her neck twisted and she caught his eyes.

“Sit, baby,” he whispered.

She nodded and sat then pulled the chair closer, stretched out an arm and wrapped her fingers around his bicep.

Chace gave her a moment then slid the hair off her shoulder and bent close.

“Gonna see to business.”

Her head twisted so she could catch his eyes again and she immediately nodded without uttering a question.

But she whispered, “Come back.”

“I will,” he promised. “I’ll send your Mom in.”

She nodded again and turned back to Malachi. “Chace has to go, Malachi. But he’s coming back,” she whispered.

“Give me some room, darlin’,” Chace muttered, Faye’s head jerked to look at him then she moved back in her chair and Chace moved in, leaning over Malachi.

He curled his fingers around his bony shoulder and bent close to his ear. “Stay strong, buddy. You’re good. You got folks lookin’ out for you now.”

He gave him a gentle squeeze, pulled back and looked to Faye to see now, she had wet in her eyes.

He wanted to comfort her but he sensed if he did, the hold she had would unravel.

So he moved in to kiss her nose, pulled back half an inch, locked eyes with her and whispered, “Be back soon.”

“Okay, Chace.”

He shifted away, cupped her jaw in his hand, slid the pad of his thumb over her bubblegum lips then he let her go and walked away.

He gave a brief report to Deck, Silas and Sondra, sent Sondra in and told Silas what he and Deck would be doing. They exchanged phone numbers. Then Chace followed Deck to Sioux Street and into the wood.

Long moments after Deck muttered the first word either of them spoke during their trek, Chace asked, “What?”

“Your woman,” Deck answered. “Sweet.”

He was not in the mood to be given shit about Faye.

“Deck –” he started in a warning tone.

“No shit, Chace. Not what I meant. She’s sweet. Pretty. Great hair. Great ass. Great f**kin’ boots. This shit f**kin’ sucks, that kid, the state of him, what you’re gonna see when you get to that shed, brother, nothin’ good about it. So bad, it’s beyond bad straight to disturbing. So now, you think of what you left back at that hospital. Because, seriously, man, when we get up there, you’re gonna need good thoughts the like of your girl.”

Chace was already preparing himself for what he’d see.

Now he knew it was worse.

Fuck.

Deck wasn’t done.

“Lined up two hundred women, told me to choose the one for you, I’d choose the one back there. Settin’ myself up for what I’m gonna see again, gonna hold onto the knowledge that a year ago, my boy had one serious, f**kin’ bitch sleepin’ in his bed and he was sleepin’ in his guest room. Now, when he’s done with this shit, tonight, tomorrow, until he does the smart thing and makes it legal and then until he dies, he’s got that sweet in his bed. Don’t flip out, I know it’s new between you two. I also know you are no dumb f**k. You got that kinda sweet, you’re gonna make it legal. Since I don’t have sweet to go home to, I’ll hang onto the fact that my brother, who’s always deserved it, finally does.”

Deck and Chace had shared vows of brotherly love over Deck’s Dad’s stolen beer they consumed in Deck’s basement when they were freshmen in high school the first time they got drunk off their asses.

Since then, through a lot of good times and bad, that love grew.

These kinds of words from Deck were rare but they were as real as the feeling behind them. Deck detested Misty, f**king hated Chace’s father and not just recently and he knew the whole story. So they were also not surprising.

They also gave fair warning of what he was going to see.

They walked in silence for a few more minutes before men’s voices could be heard and the beams of high powered flashlights like the ones Deck and Chace were using to light the way could be seen.

“Keaton and Decker,” Chace called to inform them of who was approaching.

They got a “Yo,” and a “Hey,” back from two of the four uniforms on duty, Dave and Terry. Both were new recruits. Dave, a three-year veteran who moved to Carnal from Idaho to be closer to his nearly new wife’s family in Gnaw Bone seeing as she was pregnant and had three sisters and thus they had four built-in babysitters, including her Mom. And Terry, a fresh recruit out of the Academy, hailing from Fort Collins.