Page 96 of The Fighter

My eyes stung. My throat tightened. She didn’t have to say more, her assurance that she saw me,really me, like Con did, was enough.

“It’ll be okay now, Mar.” My voice was thick, and I swallowed around the lump in my throat as tears threatened at the corner of my eyes. “We’ll start over. We’ll be the family we were always meant to be.”

Her one hand slipped down to grip mine, while the other touched Holden’s delicate ankle bone where his foot stuck out from the blanket. “Family,” she whispered.

Conrad

“Why are you out of bed?” Ben frowned as I walked toward my office.

“I don’t need to be in bed,” I snapped as I whirled on him. The movement tugged at my ribs, and I bit back a gasp of pain. That pissed me off, so I focused on my best friend. “What are you doing here?” I glared at Nik. “You brought himagain?”

Ben crossed his arms over his chest as his eyes sharpened, and not in a good way. “I just spent two days scouring this city for your ass. I didn’t sleep. I didn’t eat, and I probably gave myself an ulcer. I normally let you be a dick, because it amuses me and deep down I know you love me. But today, I’m going to be real with you say, fuck you, Conrad.Fuck. You.” His chest heaved, and his blue eyes glistened. “I know you’re beat to shit, but don’t act like we didn’t go through hell with you.”

I sucked in a breath as his words stung worse than the pain in my ribs. I forced myself to look into Ben’s eyes and see the pain there. I sank down onto the couch, wincing as my ribs protested. “I’m sorry.”

Ben’s hands dropped loosely to his sides. “Okay.”

“I didn’t think from your perspective. I’ve been?—”

“Feeling sorry for yourself?” Ben raised an eyebrow.

“Maybe.” I dropped my head in my hands. “Fuck, I hate feeling like this. And you don’t deserve my anger.”

Ben sat on the couch with me. Nik joined us on a chair. Ben propped his arm on the armrest. “I know I don’t. It’s not for the weak, being your friend.”

“Amen,” Nik muttered.

“Tav tapped out by the way,” Ben dug in. “In case you didn’t notice.”

I turned my head toward the gym. I had assumed he was there, but now I realized no sound came from the room. I went rigid, which sent my muscles into painful spasms. “What? Where the hell is he?”

“At his sister’s,” Nik said. “Because you’re insufferable.”

“Shit,” I fumbled for my phone, but Ben snatched it from me.

“He’s fine. He’s coming back. He needs a break. So leave him alone.”

I winced. “Is he mad at me?”

“Tav? Mad at you?” Ben scoffed. “No.”

It made sense, actually, for him to go see Amara. He had told me that she’d been kept in the dark about the events of the last few days. Speaking of…

“What’s the latest on Devlin?” I asked Nik.

“Cameron took him east. Somewhere in Jersey. Dropped him off with some money. He’s a mess—broken jaw and shit. He’ll need surgery. He’s not going to be doing much of anything for a while.”

I nodded, feeling an ache in my own jaw. “Make sure his medical bills are paid for.”

“On it.”

Devlin’s entire stronghold in Detroit was nothing but a power vacuum. Soto would step in, for now, until we could sort out all the different players. It would be messy, and I was sure that there would be someone chomping at the bit to take Devlin’s place. I’d deal with them when the time came.

“We have it all taken care of,” Nik said, as if he knew where my mind was heading. “Just heal.”

I hadn’t really spoken to Ben and Nik since I’d been back at my apartment. They’d stopped by here and there, but I’d been half out of it most of the time. But now, I was fully conscious and alert. “And Lary?”

“He’s free and clear. Gave him some money that he tried to refuse, but then Tav had a word with him. They’ll keep in touch.”