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CHAPTER ELEVEN

“A crown is merely a hat that lets the rain in.”

~ Frederick the Great

Saros

I almost didn’t want to wake Em up once we reached the house, but I also didn’t want him to freak out if he woke up while I was carrying him. I shook his shoulder gently.

“Em.”

He jolted awake, his eyes frantically searching the car. Cosmo and Benny were outside. I’d asked them to give me a minute; I’d had a feeling he’d react like this.

“Em, you’re safe. You’re with me, Saros Tancredi, at my home. Remember, I was bringing you here?”

He met my eyes. It took a few seconds, but his lids closed and he took a deep breath.

“Right. Sorry.”

“No need to apologize.”

I wanted to break every bone in Ramsey Brookes’s body, put him back together, and do it again.

“Why don’t we get you in the house and fed? And my doctor would like to check you out.”

He didn’t argue. Something told me Em didn’t have much of a voice in his life, so vocalizing anything wasn’t easy or even something he did, ever.

I helped him inside. Benny held the door, and I walked him toward my library since it was the closest place to the door.

“Wow,” Em breathed. “This is even nicer than Ramsey’s library.”

“Would it be childish of me to say ha ha ha?”

Em chuckled as he got comfortable on the couch. Cosmo brought over a pillow so we could elevate his foot.

“It would be, but you’re allowed.”

“Paulo is here whenever you’re ready,” Benny said, and I motioned for him to let him in.

“Let’s get this part done with. I’ll have food made while he’s doing his thing—any allergies?”

“You don’t have to go to all the trouble. I can?—”

“I want to. Now, allergies?”

“No.”

The door opened, and Paulo came through with his black medical bag and a bright smile.

“Hello, Em. My name is Paulo. Do you mind if I check you out?”

“Uh, sure.”

“Cosmo is going to stay here; I’m just going to go see about food for you.”

Em nodded and winced when Paulo started removing the poorly made splint on Em’s hand.

“Be right back.”

Benny was outside the door. “Can you run to the kitchen and ask them to make a plate for Em?”

“Anything in particular?”

“Something light. Something tells me he doesn’t eat a whole lot. I don’t want to make him sick.”

Benny’s eyes glittered with the same hate I was feeling. “On it, Boss.”

I moved toward my study and called Mike.

“Hey, Boss.”

“Mike, listen to me.”

“Always do.”

“You need to focus all your attention on Ramsey Brookes. I want to know all his movements. Everything from what toilet paper he’s buying to every phone call he’s making.”

“You got it, anything else?”

“Yeah, watch Dre Hopper.”

“The governor’s son? Didn’t you just have me pull info on him for someone?”

“I did.”

“Ooookay, whatever you need.”

“Thanks, Mike.” I hung up and went back to the library.

Paulo had rewrapped Em’s hand—it looked a lot better—and was focusing on Em’s ankle.

“How’d this happen?” he asked Em.

“I fell down the stairs.”

When Paulo snapped his head up Em giggled. “No, seriously, I did. It’s not some excuse.”

“You weren’t pushed?”

He shook his head and softly said, “Not this time, no.”

Ramsey Brookes was going to die a thousand times before I was done with him. That motherfucker.

“It appears to just be a bad sprain, fortunately. Treatment for that is RICE.”

Em quirked a brow. “Like the food?”

Paulo chuckled. “No. R for rest, I for ice, C for compression, and E for elevation. I have compression wraps you’ll need to use. Keep this foot up to your heart level, ice twenty minutes on and twenty minutes off, and ibuprofen for the pain. For the next forty-eight hours, that’s what you have to do for this sprain. Likely longer, but we need to get the swelling under control.”

I inched closer and sat on the chair closest to the couch. “What about the hand?” I inquired.

“Right.” Paulo sighed. “Ideally, I’d need an X-ray, and I could do that but the machine is on the lower level, and I don’t want to move him right now.”

“I’ll have someone bring it up to his room. I’d like to get him settled and fed. What are you searching for on the X-ray?” I could see Em’s eyes pinging back and forth between me and Paulo.

“I’m hopeful that it doesn’t need to be reset, but I need to see the bone and joint position, fracture stability, and any other damage the naked eye can’t diagnose.”

I looked at Em. “Is it okay if I carry you to your room, get you situated? Paulo will follow behind, and all essential things I will bring to you.”

“Uh…it seems like an awful lot. I mean the last time I broke a finger, I reset it, wrapped it, and took pain meds.”

I didn’t need to meet Paulo’s gaze to know there was rage there; my whole body was shaking with it.

“Well, not this time, Em.” I shot him a tight smile. “May I please carry you?”

He lifted one shoulder. “I guess.”

Gently, I scooped Em up into my arms, and he wrapped his arms around my neck, careful not to hit his hand.

“I’ll follow behind; I just need to gather my stuff.” Paulo was tossing things into his bag.

“He’ll be on the second floor, bedroom next to mine.”

Em gasped but didn’t say anything more.

Cosmo opened the door, and Benny was right outside. “Can you get a couple of the guys to bring the X-ray machine to the bedroom next to mine?”

“The portable one is in the left corner downstairs,” Paulo said as he joined us.

“No problem. The food is almost done, and I’ll have it brought up.” Benny left to go to organize the X-ray machine situation, and Paulo, Em, and I went upstairs. Cosmo didn’t follow, but I was sure he was finding shit out.

Paulo opened the bedroom door and hit the light. It was slightly smaller than mine, but not by much. It was light and dark grays, with black accents or whatever. I wasn’t a designer. Point was, the bed was big and comfortable. He had his own bathroom, and most of all, no one was fucking getting near him.

“We’ll get you comfortable clothes as well.” I placed him on the bed.

“You don’t have to do that. I have stuff at Ramsey’s.”

I didn’t want him to wear another thing that fucking dickbag had given him, but maybe he had sentimental things.

“Is there anything from Ramsey’s house you want?”

His brows furrowed. “Like his couch?”

I chuckled and Paulo snorted. “No—I mean if you want it…but I meant anything of yours, sentimental things?”

Em bit his lip. “No. I don’t have much I care about. My phone charger would be nice. I had some books.”

“I’ll get a charger for you and if you know the titles of the books, I’ll make sure you have those as well.”

“Mr. Tancredi, I?—”

“Call me Saros.”

“Okay, Saros. I don’t know why you’re doing all of this. I helped you out, but I am sure you could have handled it on your own.”

I sat on his bed, close but not too close. “That’s the thing—no, I couldn’t. I’ve watched the footage at least fifty times, and there’s no scenario that I’d have made it out of there without your intervention.”

“Oh, well, then how about we call ourselves even?”

I smiled—the man was adorable. “Em, I’m not going to force you to tell me about your life, who you really are, or what you’ve been through. I hope in time you do, but I won’t push you. What I do know is, the life you were living wasn’t good. I’m a bad man, Em, but I’d never treat anyone who worked for me the way Ramsey has you. I won’t tolerate it.”

“He won’t let me go, Saros. It’s weird. You know, like he hates me but at the same time refuses to leave me be until he is ready.”

I took a deep breath, trying so hard to keep my temper at bay. “He doesn’t have a choice now. You’re not going back there, and if he wants to play, I’ll fucking play. He will lose every goddamn time.”

There was a knock on the door, and the X-ray machine was rolled in.

“Can Em and I have some time alone please?” Paulo asked. “I’d like to do the X-ray and if he’s comfortable do a full examination to make sure there are no other issues.”

I regarded Em, who merely nodded.

“Very well. Food will be here soon, so don’t take too long.”

I had to leave that room anyway. I was going to punch something, and I didn’t want to scare Em any more than he already had been.

“See you soon.” I left the room and went straight to my gym. I needed to release this anger.