Page 22 of House of Scarlett
I didn’t know I needed her ... and now it might be too late.
I look over at Flynn, who hasn’t spoken to me since I arrived. Q dropped me off at the front of the hospital with a nod and a “let me know what happens.”
Footsteps click down the hall, and another familiar face comes into view. The black-haired one, Kelsey. Except instead of the sleek and put-together woman I’ve already had one run-in with, her hair is flying in all different directions and her chest is heaving. Her gaze locks on Flynn first.
“Oh my God. I came as soon as I heard. Is she okay? What do we—”
Her head jerks to the side and she goes silent when she sees me, her mouth hanging open. She finds her voice quick enough, though.
“What the fuck is he doing here? Seriously. How big are your balls to show up?” Her attention cuts back to Flynn. “And how is there not blood spatter on the walls? Why haven’t you killed him already?”
“I told him to come.” Flynn leans back in her chair, her arms crossed over her middle. “So far, he hasn’t said anything stupid enough for me to spend life in prison, so he gets to live another day.”
She’s small and mighty, but the hardest fights I’ve ever won were against opponents who weren’t as big as me. I don’t doubt Flynn Elliott could hold her own.
Kelsey glares in my direction, and I wonder if life in prison is enough of a deterrent to keep her from doing the job herself. Finally, she shakes her head and cuts back to Flynn.
“Any update from the docs? How is she doing? When is she going to be out?” She asks all the questions that have been on my mind since the minute I took up vigil in this purgatory-like room, mixed in with the mental beating I’ve laid on myself.
“Nothing yet.” Flynn lifts her arm to check her watch. “I’m really hoping we hear something soon. I don’t know how long this is supposed to take. I’m afraid to google it because I’ll get sucked down the rabbit hole of awful possibilities.”
Kelsey crosses the room and takes a seat on the maroon vinyl cushioned bench beside Flynn. She slings an arm around the younger girl and hugs her to her side. “I’m so sorry, kid. I’ve been praying hard. You should’ve seen the shit-ass contour I did on my client after you called. She kept asking for more and more color, and I was in too much of a hurry to blend it long enough to make her look human.”
A weak laugh escapes Flynn, and for the first time, she looks as underage as she claims to be.Ex-stepsister.I’m going to have to ask Scarlett about her.
Wait.I pause because that’s a hell of an assumption. There’s a good chance Scarlett may never speak to me again after what I did, and she’d be fucking justified.
Then why am I here?The question comes from the asshole in my brain, but the answer is a simple one—because I have to be. No matter what happens next, I need to know she’s okay.
“I hope they got to it in time,” Flynn murmurs, and Kelsey nods.
“Me too.”
Got to it in time?The phrase sends bone-chilling spears of fear into every inch of my body. I can’t stay quiet any longer. I have to ask.
“What the hell is she in surgery for? What do you mean—you hope they got to it in time?”
Kelsey jerks back, nearly whacking Flynn upside the head as she jerks her arm from around her shoulders. “You didn’t tell him?”
Flynn’s expression turns placid. “I was content to let him suffer in silence, thinking the worst. Seemed like fitting punishment for what he did to her.”
“Holy shit, you’re ruthless. I love it,” Kelsey says before rising from the bench and walking toward me. She stops three feet away and props her hands on her hips. “Do you have any idea how many rich and famous clients I’ve worked on?”
Her question catches me off guard. I have absolutely no idea why she’s asking, so I stay silent.
Her pointed chin lifts. “Hundreds. And you know what? I used to think they were all the same too. Oblivious and entitled. Unable to relate to reality. Assholes, basically.”
She pauses again, and I know she’s waiting for something from me, but I don’t have anything to give her.
“Whatever point you’re trying to make? Get on with it.” My rough tone would make grown men question whether they should keep talking, but Kelsey doesn’t miss a beat.
“My point is that I was wrong. They’re not all assholes. Some of them are just normal fucking people. And you know what? Scarlett isthe best of them.There’s no one else like her. She’s warm and genuine and kind and caring. She inspires everyone who crosses her path, because she’s so fucking thoughtful and sweet. Has she ever had to worry about money? No, not a day in her life. She probably never will either. But that doesn’t mean she’s not a class act on every level, and overall, one of the best human beings I’ve ever known. Hell, maybe even one of the best humans walking this planet.”
She’s not telling me anything I don’t already know, so I wait.
“I don’t know how you passed the Flynn test, but I’m Scarlett’s best friend, and that means right now, I can’t stand the sight of you. If you make one wrong move, I will throw you out of this hospital myself.”
I lean back in my chair and raise an eyebrow in response.
