Page 53 of There Once was a Dancer
I nodded and turned away from them both, looking out the side window. I didn’t want to talk to either of them ever again, and if—God forbid—Rex died, I’d never forgive them…either of them.
When we got to the hospital, I hung back with Marcello as the captain went to the nurse’s station at the ER to speak to someone about Rex. He came back looking grim faced as he stared right at me.
“Rex has been taken into surgery, Mr. Adams,” he said bleakly. “When he was brought in, they got him stabilized here in the trauma room and then rushed him right into the operating room. The rest of my men are in the surgical waiting room, so we’ll go there.”
“Thank you,” I said. “But, Rex, he is alive?”
The captain looked at our driver, the man called Mars. He was tall but not as tall as Rex. He spoke with a British accent. The way he was returning the captain’s look was telling. His expression showed the worry he was feeling but that would make sense if he worked with Rex. Both of these men were probably like family to him. The captain glanced back at me.
“It was touch and go when the ambulance brought him in, Mr. Adams,” the captain said. “I don’t have any of the details, but my men are upstairs, so let’s go talk to them.”
I nodded. I didn’t know exactly what touch and go meant, but I could guess. It meant Rex had almost died on the way to thehospital. I followed the captain to the elevator and took it to the second floor. We followed the signs to the surgical waiting room and several big guys dressed in the same black tactical uniforms the captain and Mars were wearing, sat on chairs just inside the room. They all got up at once as we walked in. The shortest man in the group walked over, looking just as grim as the rest. He stuck out a hand, and the captain shook it.
“What happened, Patsy?”
“When we got to the club, Rex was down. A paramedic was working on him,” he said with a thick accent. He wasn’t British like Mars, but from somewhere else I couldn’t place. “He’d been bloody well shot in the back, Candy,” he said, sounding miserable. I could read the emotions all over his face as his blue eyes glistened. I must have let out a gasp because the men all looked over at me.
“Sorry,” the captain said, turning to me. “This is Mr. Adams, Rex’s friend.”
All the men came over, holding out hands to shake mine as they formed a circle around us. They introduced themselves one by one, but I missed all the names because all I could think about was Rex being shot in the back.
“We almost lost him right there in the car park, boss,” the shorter man continued. “What kind of bloody coward shoots a man in the back?”
“A cartel shithead,” one of the other men said. He had hazel eyes and I noticed that another man stood close to him. He wasn’t dressed like all the others, but in regular clothes like me. He was young and very pretty and when I looked at him, he offered a small smile, holding out his hand.
“Hi. I’m Joshua,” he said.
I shook his hand. “Cachi.”
“Nice to meet you.” He nodded before turning to the man beside him. He was one of Rex’s teammates. When the man met his gaze, it was easy to read the love that passed between them. When he slipped his hand into Joshua’s, I was surprised. They were quite obviously a couple, and none of the others seemed to have a problem with that.
“They’re operating?” the captain asked.
“Yes, the surgeon stabilized him and went in to extract the bullet, but they say it’s very close to his spine,” another man said. He also had a British accent, but it was different than Mars’. “They’ve brought in a neurosurgeon, Candy. It’s a very delicate business, so we’ll be here quite some time I’m afraid.”
Another man walked over holding out a cup. “Here, boss. The coffee is shit, but it’s all they have.” He also had an accent which was easy to recognize. New York. He glanced at me. “There’s a coffee machine. Would you like a cup?”
I shook my head feeling completely numb. “No, thank you. I just wait.”
“Thanks, Mickey.” The captain took the cup. He glanced at me. “Why don’t you have a seat, Mr. Adams? It sounds like we’re going to be here a while.”
“Come on, Cachi. Help me get a coffee,” Joshua said. He let go of his partner’s hand and put his arm around my shoulders, leading me away from the others. “These guys are all big and intimidating, but I promise you, they love Rex like a brother. We all do.”
“Thank you.” I walked with him over to the coffee machine and I waited as he got a cup of coffee out, then handed it to me.
“At least warm your hands with it,” said Joshua.
I nodded. It was kind.
I heard a noise and a huge man walked through the door. He was also dressed in normal clothing, and he glanced around the room before he spotted who he must have come there for. The short man the captain had called Patsy, met the man halfway across the room. When the big bear opened his arms, Patsy walked right into them. Again, no one reacted to the way the two men clung to each other as the large man bent to speak into Patsy’s ear.
“That’s Wes. He’s Patsy’s boyfriend,” Joshua explained. I nodded at him, feeling shell shocked. “Come on. Let’s sit down. We’ll be here a while.”
I let Joshua steer me to a row of chairs and sank down into one as Joshua sat beside me. All the men stood around speaking to each other while Patsy explained what was happening to Wes. After a few minutes, everyone settled into chairs to wait. Marcello came over and sat on the other side of me, taking hold of my hand and saying nothing. I clung to my old friend like I was holding onto a lifeline. After a while, I dug into my pocket and pulled out the rosary to start my prayers for Rex all over again.
It was hours and hours with no word. I stayed quiet, only mouthing my prayers as I went through the Rosary several times. The feeling of the glass beads under my fingers was comforting as I waited. Several times, I got the urge to call my mamá, but I knew she would be in good hands at the FBI office, so I concentrated instead on asking God to protect Rex.
Eventually, I rested my eyes, leaning my head back against the wall. At some point, I must have fallen asleep because I came awake with a start when someone shook my shoulder. When I looked up, I saw a doctor talking to the captain while theother men stood around them. Marcello leaned down and spoke quietly to me, “Cachi. Rex is out of surgery.”
