Page 120 of Second Sets Omnibus

Although, I don't blame her for wanting to take my sister and run for the hills. My father is less than desirable. She has an ass-backward way of doing things. I sigh, rub the headache away from my forehead, and pull out my phone. My plate fills higher and higher with bullshit, but I know the remedy to alleviate it.

As I step into my bathroom and set my phone on the counter, I take a long look in the mirror. My tired, hazel eyes stare back at me, bloodshot and guilt-ridden. My messy blond hair sticks on end as the room fills with steam, slowly erasing the face in front of me.

Every choice I've made has been for the band—my family. The boys who have grown to be my brothers in the shit storm called life. Whatever I do with this information will affect us, even River. She won't go unscathed. It may break her heart for a week or two, but she's resilient and one tough chick. She'll move on to some other poor schmuck, and then, we'll be a distant, painful memory. That's all the motivation I need to contact the last person I ever thought I'd want to speak with.

Me

We need to talk.

Staring at the blank screen, I shake my head and jump into the shower. Memories of our weekend flash through my mind as my fingers work through my hair, massaging my roots. My eyes squeeze shut, and I groan at the images sitting behind my eyes. River’s naked form sprawled out and ready for the taking. River panting and moaning as we fuck her against the dining room table. The taste of her flesh as I licked the salt off and forced my tongue down her throat. My fingers tightly wrapped around her throat, squeezing until she silently begged for breath. My dick impaling her over and over until she screamed my name. Fuck. My dick gets hard as the heat pounds against my back and neck, washing away the world pressing down on me. I stare at my traitorous dick. It was one weekend of fun, and that's it. I made myself a promise and let go, embracing what I had wanted since the Ferris wheel. Her. The whole package. And now that I had her, I had to let go and let her essence wash down the drain with every ounce of guilt pressing down on me.

Once I'm out of the shower and running the soft towel across my skin, clarity hits me smack in the head. I know exactly what I have to do to get us through this and onto California without the distraction. Now, all I have to do is set it all up.

Me

How's Little Brat?

Walking into my room, I get dressed in jeans, a shirt, and a sweatshirt.

Kieran

…. Meet us in the ER.

Rad

Can't say it through text, bro. But it isn't good and…

My heart sinks. They said her mom was taken by ambulance and sick, but did she succumb to whatever was ailing her? Jesus. That would complicate everything times ten. But whatever the issue, I'll push forward with all my might and get what we need. It's for the better of the band… my family.

The smell of cheap, burned coffee fills my nose when I round the corner, greeting the solemn faces of Callum and Rad, resting in the uncomfortable-looking ER waiting room. Tears stain their cheeks, and a deep-red tint fills their glazed eyes.

The whole drive to the hospital had my thoughts in a tailspin of worry, guilt, and trying to convince myself I was doing the right thing. I am, right? Am I doing the best thing I can for the guys? For the fucking band? I’m the one looking out for them. They don’t know what the fuck they want right now. Well, except for a win at the Battle of the Bands. One day, I'll be able to reflect on this and not drown in the misery I've created for myself.

“What's going on?” I ask, coming to a halt right in front of them.

My brows furrow when Rad shakes his head with tears streaming down his cheeks, and his bottom lip quivers with anguish resting in the depths of his dark eyes. Instantly my heart drops, and the worst possible outcome runs through my mind. What the fuck happened? My gaze drifts to Callum, burrowing into the stiff seat with white earbuds resting in his ears as he drowns out the rest of the world, covering his eyes with his hands. The old Callum, the one so stuck inside his head with the awful memories of his past, slowly emerges, taking away the blossoming butterfly Callum had become. My jaw clenches. She may have brought him out of his shell, breathing life into his lungs with her wild ways, but she's the cause of all the heartache on his fallen face. If it weren’t for her, then we’d all be peachy. But she’s come in and fucked us all up. This is just the cherry on fucking top.

“It's bad, bro,” Rad whispers through an array of emotions clogging his throat.

“What is it?” I ask through the tension rising in my chest, beating down on me.

“They tried so fucking hard,” Rad says, wiping away the tears. “Her mom is gone,” he mumbles, gripping his hair tightly. “She fucking… she fucking died because we took River away from here. They said something about an infection in her blood.”

“No,” I bark, plopping down next to him and gripping his shoulder. “This is no one's fault. If she was sick, this was meant to happen.” I give him a sharp nod when he slumps in the seat with a twisting expression. More tears escape down his cheeks, and he sniffles.

“Where is River?”

Rad's lips roll together, and his brows furrow. “Talking to the funeral home people. Some pastor came by and prayed withus, but uh, they needed to know where to take the body in the morning.” He shakes his head in disbelief. “How did this happen, man? I don't understand. Stella was a good woman she…” he chokes on his words, bringing a fist to his mouth, stopping his words.

Knots form in my gut, memories of death smothering me. Stella, River's mom, is no longer with us. Unlike my mother, it wasn't by her own hands. It was something her body did to her and let her suffer. My heart mourns with River, who's probably so distraught she doesn't know what to do with herself. And I feel for her. I’ve been through it before at a younger age. No one prepares you for life without the woman who brought you into this world. She’s supposed to live for an eternity by your side, helping you as all mothers should. But now, River won’t have that opportunity.

“It happens to the best of people,” I murmur, eyeing Callum as he heaves a shuddering breath. The storm hiding in the back of his blank eyes startles me into putting my hand on his shoulder and gently squeezing. Looking at me, he shakes his head, breaking our eye contact. Slowly, the old closed-off Callum takes the reins and refuses to meet my eye, staring at the floor instead.

“Where was her nurse?” Rad sniffles. “Where was anyone?”

“Her symptoms were like the flu,” Kieran says, stumbling into the seat beside me. “They said she would have been feverish, puking, and feeling sick. The neighbor checked in on her and gave her Tylenol but didn't recognize the symptoms for what they were.” Grabbing his long, dark locks, misery takes over his twisted expression.

“How's Pretty Girl?” Rad asks, jumping to his feet. “We need to be with her.”