Page 82 of Indie

Indie nodded, reaching for the hand that lay at my side and squeezing it gently. He took a breath, composed himself and turned round, sitting down on the corner of his father’s bed. I moved out into the hallway, leaving them alone, watching Tori climb back up the stairs.

Chapter Thirty Six

“Emmie said to give him these,” Tori distracted me from my father’s breaths.

For once, I was thankful for the sound of her voice. Normally, it was enough to make my ears bleed. Not today. Today she masked the crackling rattle coming from my father. Every time he breathed in or out, there was a gurgling, like he was constantly drawing on a crack pipe. Yet each breath came differently. Shallow and gasping, then for what seemed like minutes he didn’t seem to breathe at all.

And his eyes. They would spring open every so often, like he was suddenly shocked or jolted awake, but they barely seemed to focus on anything. This time when they opened, he stared straight ahead, his brown eyes dull, looking more like glass.

“You’re here,” he muttered, his voice faint.

“Yes, Ste,” Tori spoke. “We’re right here.”

“I didn’t know whether I would see you again. You look different.”

“No. Just the same, babe. Same old me.”

“And you. You’re here too.”

But he looked straight ahead, and I didn’t think it was me he was talking to.

“Indie’s right here, baby. Right here,” Tori reached for his hand.

“Not you, you stupid bint,” my father’s head snapped towards Tori. “I’m talking to them.”

Tori’s lip wobbled, her eyes filling up, and she dropped his hand, getting to her feet and rushing out.

“I know she’s a waste of space. But she’s been a bit of fun.” His face moved back to the spot in front of him, talking to the people only he could see. “Can you give me a few minutes? I need to talk to Indie first.”

Then he turned, looking at me, a faint smile coming to his lips. His chest rose and fell, like he was heaving after a long run, every breath more and more laboured.

“You take good care of our club, son,” the last word left him gasping, a horrendous wet gurgling, like he was drowning.“I know you don’t want to be president, but, trust me, you are the best man for the job.”

“I don’t want it, though. I don’t think I could ever make the decisions you could. I don’t want to make those calls.”

“Now look here,” he sat forward momentarily before falling back against the pillow. “There is a war coming. Whatever you think you can do to avoid it, it won’t be enough. If the Hand gets a foothold on English soil, they’ll wipe the Kings out, our families with them. They tried that the last time. We only won because we formed the coalition. But not everyone of those clubs wanted that.”

He paused, breathless, his fist pulling on the duvet as he closed his eyes. “Keep a close eye on the Vandals. If anyone will stab you in the back, they will.”

“Because of Flat Pack?”

“Partly that. But Tomahawk wants control of the north east and the stupid fucker is as paranoid as they come. His own distrust will make him take a stupid decision. Keep the women close. The Hand will go after them.”

And that cemented that decision in my mind, the one I’d thought about some nights ago. The one that stabbed me in the heart the moment it had slipped into my consciousness.

“Indie, if you’re thinking of cutting her loose, don’t.”

I opened my mouth, partly in surprise, partly to argue.

“She’s too good for you, son, but it’s too late to let her go now. You took her to the rally. You paraded her as yours in front of all those other clubs. You’ve marked her now. Anyone who wants to get to you will target her to do that. You owe it to her to keep her safe.”

“You let mam go. Where were you on that?” I shouldn’t get angry with a man on his deathbed. I really shouldn’t.

“I didn’t just let her go. I was a fool to treat her the way I did. It’s the biggest regret of my life. We could have just stayed together. She would have forgiven me, but she never would have forgotten. I moved on. Taking another ol’ lady meant your mam was free of the club. I bought her that cottage on Holy Island. Her favourite place.”

“I never knew that,” I whispered.

“Why would you? I never told you. It was the safest place for her. I freed her from the club. The only real way there was. And it wouldn’t have been that easy for people to target her. It worked Indie. In my own way, I kept your mam, my Grace, safe.”