Married a Stripper

  His wrist, I realized. Kaleb had broken the man’s wrist. That horrendous crack I’d heard was the sound of a bone breaking, not a bullet.

  Stefano was shouting, voice ragged and hoarse, now on his knees in front of Kaleb.

  I had no idea how Kaleb had done that. I’d taken several courses in self-defense, and the fluidity of his movements bespoke of the ease some of the martial arts instructors had used.

  “Wow. I think you really are Superman,” I said, completely aware that I sounded like an idiot, but my brain was struggling to keep up too much for me to care.

  Suddenly, Stefano roared and surged back to his feet, fumbling at his back with his one good hand. A moment later, there was another gun, but instead of trying to disarm Stefano again, Kaleb lunged for me.

  “TIME!” Kaleb shouted.

  It was a huge bellow and within a split second I was pinned under him.

  Feet pounded.

  Wood crashed.

  Voices raged.

  Through it all, Kaleb held me pinned to the floor, protecting me with his body. He murmured reassuringly, “Be still, baby. Just…be still.”

  At least that’s what I thought he said through the cacophony that followed.

  There was more crashing, shouting, and above it all, authoritative voices bellowing out, “Drop the gun!”

  That command came from multiple directions, and I could hear more than one speaker.

  As I shivered and shook, Kaleb murmured to me, “Be still. Don’t move…you’ll be alright.”

  I didn’t have any choice. I was so stunned, I don’t think I could’ve moved if my life depended on it.

  “Be still…you’re safe, baby. You’re safe.”

  “Your blood pressure is fine. Your pulse is strong and steady. Unfortunately, there’s nothing I can do to check on the baby, but if you’re just barely pregnant, everything should be fine. But it would be a good idea to go to the hospital and get checked out.” The paramedic gave me a solemn smile and held out a lollipop. “Want some candy? Always helped my wife when she was upset while she was carrying our first.” He looked thoughtful for a moment and then added, “And our second. And our third.”

  “How many kids do you have?” I asked, shooting out a hand to take the sucker. It didn’t matter that it was just a cherry flavored lollipop.

  “Three.” He grinned at me and added, “I’m trying to talk her into a fourth, but she says this third one will be the ruler of the universe, so I’m not sure if I can do it.”

  Kaleb sat next to me, rubbing my back. He was listening, sort of. But his eyes were on his sister, and so was most of his attention.

  I understood.

  Once the paramedic had assured him I was okay, he had focused on her, and to be honest, so had I.

  She was still just as pale, just as still as she had been in the house. She hadn’t moved once, hadn’t made a sound.

  I’d heard talk that was a little too familiar. The antidote to the overdose they suspected she’d been given wasn’t working.

  Her heartbeat was too slow, her blood pressure as well.

  The paramedics were worried about her, and they were loading her into the back of an ambulance. They were already prepping a second treatment, and I closed my eyes, resting my head against Kaleb’s shoulder.

  Don’t let it end like this, I thought. Not now that Stefano was out of the picture.

  I hadn’t told anybody what Stefano had threatened. Not yet. I would, but the cops hadn’t even gotten around to taking my statement yet. They were too busy focusing on Stefano and Camry and gathering precious evidence, but I knew they’d get to me.

  He was wailing for a lawyer from the back of a squad car, but the detectives were ignoring him. One told him he could get his phone call once they got to the station.

  I had a feeling he wasn’t going to get out of this quite so easy.

  Kaleb and the cops had actually been outside for over an hour, he told me, waiting for the right movement. They’d had microwaves up, the kind you’d think would exist in spy movies, and they’d caught the better part of the conversation from the past hour.

  The cops probably already knew about his threat to kill me and frame Camry for it. Since he’d decided to go and kidnap somebody this time, it seemed to me he’d have a harder time sidestepping things. And I knew my dad would throw his weight into prosecuting the man too.

  For once, I didn’t mind at all knowing that being his daughter was going to make a big difference here. Stefano needed to be taken off the streets for decades, no matter what it took.

  “Are you okay?” Kaleb murmured against my temple after the paramedic left.

  I laughed weakly. “Okay?”

  “Shit. What a stupid question. How can you be okay?” He hugged me tighter and whispered, “I’m so sorry, so fucking sorry you got caught up in this.”

  “Don’t.” I turned my face into his neck. “You’re not responsible for this, so don’t apologize.” Then I tipped my head back and smiled at him. “And it could have been so much worse.”

  I shook my head, still baffled by everything he told me. I had no idea how he’d done all of this. Saving me. Shifting around, I wrapped my arms around his neck and cuddled close. The tears wanted to come out, but I didn’t want to cry right now. Not here.

  Later, maybe. When we were alone.

  He nuzzled me, murmuring nonsensical words under his breath. None of them made sense, but they did their job, soothing me when nothing should have been able to. I took a deep breath, and for the first time in hours, let some of the fear inside me drain away.

  “Hey, Kaleb?” A watery laugh escaped me. “I think I’m pregnant.”

  He laughed too. The sound was strangled and raw. “Really? Huh. Maybe we should have a talk.”

  “Yeah, but not yet. I want to stay like this.”

  Sixteen

  Kaleb

  “She’s awake.”

  The doctor’s words hit me like a leaden fist, heavy and bruising, and I stumbled back against the wall.

  “What?” I asked.

  “She’s awake,” he said again, gently smiling at me as if he understood. He came further into the waiting room where the nurse had asked me to wait. Camry was being examined when I came to check on her, so they hadn’t let me in. I’d been about to leave and go back to Piety’s side when the doctor appeared around the corner.

  I'd been here before, waiting in a hospital to hear news about my family, and I’d prepared myself for the worst. And now he was telling me…

  “She’s awake.” I swallowed, the words foreign and strange in my mouth. “Are there…?”

  She had another treatment in the ambulance, and they’d told me her heart was dangerously slow. I hadn’t understood any of the medical mumbo jumbo, save for that – dangerously slow.

  I made myself finish the question. “Are there complications?”

  “I think, after a few days of observation, she’ll be fine. She’s very malnourished, which isn’t uncommon for addicts, so I’d like to keep her here and monitor her for a few days while we push fluids and try to stabilize her on that front.” He glanced around and then nodded to one of the chairs. “Why don’t we sit?”

  I all but collapsed into the chair, the fear and adrenaline draining out of me, leaving me weak.

  “Your sister…” He offered me a kind smile. “Camry has struggled with her addiction for some time, hasn’t she?”

  “I don’t know if struggle is the right word. She’s had quite a bit of fun with it lately, seems like.” I felt bad saying it, but I was so tired of making excuses for her. I loved her, but she could have cost me something precious tonight – today. Fuck, I didn’t even know what time it was. Anger tried to take root in me once more, but I didn't have the energy for it. Not right now.

  “Well, I doubt we could call it fun. Your sister is quite depressed.” The doctor settled back in the chair, studying me. “I understand you lost your parents young, and you had to raise her.”


  I could already feel the defensiveness rising, but I struggled to keep it at bay. “Yes. I know I wasn’t able to give her everything–”

  “This isn’t your fault.” He raised a hand. “I didn't mean to imply that. Your sister was old enough to understand what she was doing when she first started using. I’ve talked with her to some degree. She said you explained to her growing up, about drugs, sex…you had to be a brother and a parent. That couldn’t have been easy.”

  I could feel the blood staining my cheeks, but I didn’t look away. “Who else was going to?”

  “And that’s just the thing. You did everything you could, and she made the wrong choices. She chose. And you’ve tried to be there for her as much as you could. She understands that. She’s…angry with herself more than anything, and that’s the root of much of her depression, more than likely.”

  I narrowed my eyes. “Are you an ER doc or a shrink?”

  He chuckled. “I started out in psych before I realized it was a lot easier to fix the body than the mind.” His pale eyes became intense. “I think she wants help. Every addict hits rock bottom, Kaleb. And every loved one of an addict eventually hits a point when they don’t want to reach out anymore. Sometimes that needs to happen before a person's ready to change, but I don't believe that's the case with your sister. This isn’t the time to walk away from her.”

  Something tangled and twisted welled up in me. It was guilt, a feeling I knew too well. Throat tight and burning, I said, “Is it that obvious?”

  “Well, I overheard the police talking. I can’t imagine how angry you must be – and rightfully so.” He inclined his head. “If you were to walk away from her now, you’d be completely entitled. Nobody could blame you at all.”

  “I would blame myself.” I got up and moved to the door, staring out the block of glass toward her room. “I can do it…one more time.”

  But that was it. If she messed up again…

  “I think one more time is all she needs.”

  A trim Asian woman was walking out of Camry’s room just as I approached the door.

  She paused and met my eyes. “You must be Kaleb.”

  “Ah, yeah.” I racked my brain, trying to figure out who she was, but I came up empty.

  “I’m Liushi Testudo, a friend of Samuel Westmore’s.” She smiled. “I’ve been trying to help him work on a way to keep you and your sister stateside. Assuming that's what you want, of course.”

  It was what I wanted...wasn't it?

  A hard breath exploded out of me, and I shot a look at the room, where I could see Camry lying in her bed. She was curled up on her side, facing away from me. “What were you…ah…she needs an attorney, doesn’t she?”

  Medical bills. Lawyer bills.

  How was I going to pay for any of this? Forget staying in the US. I'd be lucky not to be run out of the country.

  “Yes,” Liushi said. “She does. But that’s not the kind of lawyer I am. I was testing the waters, so to speak, on behalf of a friend at the district attorney’s office. Samuel gave me a head’s up on what's been going on, and I called the DA and asked if he’d mind if I spoke with Camry. I had a feeling she might be willing to help us.”

  “And just what were you testing the waters for?” I had to fight not to throw in the word sharks.

  This woman looked kind enough, but this was my baby sister. My fucked-up baby sister who could have gotten herself and Piety – and our baby – killed. She and I might have issues that needed to be dealt with, but I'd be damned if I threw her to the wolves.

  “To see if Camry be willing to make a deal with the DA and testify against Stefano Fuentas. I don’t think you realize just how hard the police here in Vegas have been trying to put him away.” She smiled again. “Her testimony could corroborate nearly every other piece of evidence the DA has against Fuentas, and her knowledge of his activities could lead them to even more. They want to make sure they have enough to put a nail in that snake's coffin, and she's agreed to help them do that.” Liushi rested a hand on my arm for a moment. “Be gentle with her. She’s fragile.”

  I stared at the narrow back of my sister and wanted to laugh, wanted to punch something.

  Fragile.

  She looked damn fragile, alright. Like she needed someone to take care of her. Except I’d been trying to help her for years, and had gotten shit for it.

  But, I reminded myself, I'd told the doctor I’d give it one more try.

  Thinking of my parents, they would’ve wanted that too.

  One more try and if I didn't see a real effort, I'd wash my hands of her.

  Slowly, I entered the room. Camry flinched at the sound of my footsteps, quiet as they were, but she turned toward me, her head down, face hidden.

  “Hey,” I said and stopped at the foot of the bed, feeling out of place and awkward. I hated it.

  When had the two of us gone from being family to near strangers? The first few years after our parents had died, we'd been good together. I couldn’t put my finger on when things had changed, but they had, and it made me sick. “Camry.”

  “What do you want?” she asked in a small, tired voice.

  “What do I…?” I lashed down the anger that tried to come spiraling out. I had to make this last effort a valid one. “Camry, I was scared sick you wouldn’t wake up. What do you think I want? I wanted to make sure you were okay. I needed to see you.”

  Finally, her eyes flicked my way through the heavy tangle of her hair.

  It was dull and lank, and I remembered how it had once been her pride and joy. Was it the drugs? The malnutrition? I didn’t know.

  Somehow, the sight of her lying in the bed looking so broken managed to crack the hard shell of apathy and I sat on the edge of the bed.

  Camry squeezed her eyes closed. “Why do you even want to be around me?”

  “Because you’re my baby sister,” I said, brushing her hair back. “And I love you.”

  “Why? After everything I’ve done? After what could have happened?”

  “Cam–”

  Abruptly, she sat up, flinging my hand away. Color flooded into her cheeks, washing away some of the pallor and her eyes glistened. “You don’t get it! Stefano made it all seem like it would be a big joke, and I let him talk me into it, but I knew it wasn't. I knew that he did horrible, awful things, and that he'd do them to her. But it didn’t matter because he promised to give me money, and money meant drugs. Nothing else mattered. Not your cute girlfriend, not you. Not even…”

  Her voice cracked.

  “Not even the baby,” I finished for her.

  “Yeah.” She lifted a fist to her mouth, gnawing on her reddened knuckles, worrying skin that was already sore and cracked. “Now I keep thinking about what might have happened, and I feel sick. But what’s worse…I’m coming down off a high, and it’s…”

  She held out her hands and showed me how they were shaking. I took one of them in mine.

  “And you’re scared.”

  She nodded and her tears spilled over. “I was willing to do anything to get a fix, and I'm almost there again. So…yeah…why are you here, Kaleb? I’m a pathetic, weak mess. I can't do this. Not on my own.”

  I put an arm around her. “I guess that’s why I’m here. You’ve never admitted any of that before, and I think that means you’re ready to accept help. Let me be strong for you, Camry. Let me help you.”

  I left her sleeping, moving as quickly as I could through the hospital to the floor where Piety was being held for overnight observation.

  They had Camry on a suicide watch. I didn't know if it was something she’d said or done, or if it was typical because of the drug abuse, but she was on the far side of the hospital from Piety, and I felt pulled in two, wanting to be there for them both.

  Piety was lying on her side, a mirror of the way I’d found Camry, but instead of facing away and locking the world out, she was facing the door, eyes wide and expectant.

  Waiting for me.


  A smile curved her lips as I approached, and the ragged, aching mess in my chest faded away.

  Just like that.

  I snagged a chair as I went to her side, dropped it by the head of the bed, and sat down. I wanted to sit next to her, hold her, but I wasn't taking any chances. Not with her, not with our baby.

  “I thought I might lose you,” I said bluntly. “I’ve never been so scared in my life.”

  She reached up, cupping my face, and I turned my head to kiss her palm.

  “I thought the same about you.” She tugged me closer.

  I never needed encouragement to kiss her, so I went gladly.

  But she didn’t kiss me.

  She bit my lower lip – hard.

  And fuck if it didn't send blood rushing straight to my dick.

  “If you ever stand in front of a man with a loaded weapon like that again, I’ll kill you myself,” she said, her fingers tangling in my hair as she held me in place. “You understand?”

  “I…yeah.” My lip throbbed, but I didn’t care. “I understand completely.”

  I leaned down and bit her lower lip, not as hard, just a slow, light pressure of my teeth on the plump curve, tugging it out before releasing it all together. I rested my forehead against hers.

  “And don’t you ever…hell. Don’t ever leave my sight again. Okay?”

  She laughed weakly. “That might be hard. And awkward. Like now. I have to pee. You don’t need to come in.”

  “I should inspect the loo, just to make sure it's safe.” I nuzzled her neck then stood, watching as she eased upright.

  A fist grabbed me by the throat, and I wanted to pull her into my arms, hold her while promising that nothing bad would ever happen to her again.

  Instead, I helped her stand, and then stood guard while she went to the toilet. We were in a hospital and a ton of cops were still roaming the halls, but I didn't care. Nothing was going to get to her again.

  When she came out, I caught her in my arms and tucked her head against my shoulder. The only time I could breathe was when I was with her, and I didn't know if I could ever let her go.