A Solitary Man by Shira Anthony & Aisling Mancy

Author:Shira Anthony & Aisling Mancy [Anthony, Shira & Mancy, Aisling]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Gay Romance
ISBN: 9781623807276
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Published: 2015-11-06T08:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE

WEAK FLORESCENT lights cast a pallid glow overhead as Evan continued down the corridor. Xav followed, glancing in each room they passed. The few kids he saw looked numb, merely going through the motions required by the facility. He hated places like this. Pink’s “Family Portrait” filled his mind, an inconsonant strain to complement his cynicism. They were nothing more than flesh cartel game shows. I’ll take 430B for $1,000 and a chance to fuck a kid, he thought bitterly.

They came to Quinn’s room, and Evan knocked softly on the doorjamb.

Quinn was barely a bump beneath the thin institutional blanket and didn’t move.

“Quinn?” Evan asked softly.

No response.

“Quinn, it’s Evan. I spoke with you at the hospital, remember? May I come in?”

No response.

Xav moved past Evan into the room. He squatted approximately eighteen inches from the bed and rested an arm on his knee. “Quinn? It’s Xav. I came with Evan so I could see how you’re doing.”

Quinn’s head slowly emerged from beneath the blanket. He looked at Xav with half-dead eyes, his pallor gray, his lips parched.

“I bet you’re thirsty,” Xav said gently.

No response.

“Bet your head hurts too.”

Quinn continued to eye him but said nothing.

Xav checked the paper cup on the small pullout table next to the bed. It was empty, and he went to the stainless toilet-sink combination and refilled the cup. He brought it back to the table and squatted again. “I’m going to get some snacks. I’ll be back in a minute.”

He stood and guided Evan into the hallway, out of Quinn’s earshot. “He’s heavily medicated and probably hasn’t eaten or had much to drink since he arrived. Let’s get him some food and juice and coax him out into an open space. Do they have a social room here?”

“Yes, they do. Why would they medicate him?”

“Because he lost his brother and they wanted to head any potential anger off with medication.”

Evan looked pained. “I’ll ask the staff to bring a meal.”

“Don’t. Go to the vending machines in the lobby and get some crackers, chips, and juice. He’ll be cold because his blood pressure is low, so when we get to the social room, let’s sit by the windows so he has some sunshine.”

Evan winced.

“Here.” Xav searched his pockets and came up with about two dollars in change.

“I’ll take care of it,” Evan said. “They’ll have change out front.”

Xav watched Evan walk down the hall. Even with the stick up his ass, Evan was sexy as hell. Xav sighed as he returned to Quinn’s room and leaned against the wall near the doorway.

Quinn looked at him and a quiet, hoarse word emerged. “Thanks.”

“You’re welcome.”

Quinn continued to look at him in silence.

“How are your stitches doing?” Xav asked.

“Busted.”

“Hate when that happens. You’d think they’d make ’em strong enough to last through at least one fight. Did they give you new ones?”

Quinn shook his head almost imperceptibly. “Glued ’em.”

“That sucks.”

“You have stitches?”

“Nope. Some nice big raspberry bruises where the bullets impacted my vest.”

Evan returned with his hands full of bags of chips and crackers and a couple of bottles of juice tucked beneath an arm.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.