Quinton, my younger brother, brushed up against my side. "She didn't show?"

  I glanced back toward the entrance. "No. Wes said she was on her way. I don't think she's coming."

  "Sorry brother, but I'm happy she didn't show." Quinton held up his hand. "I know we might have an issue. But I saw the way you observed her last time she was here. She's too hard and guarded. You need someone who will curl up and read with you."

  "It's an operation. At no point did Brock and I discuss Mia and me as a couple."

  Quinton huffed. "You wouldn't be able to separate your feelings. When you fall for someone, it's all over your face. I'm not saying that's bad, but she can break you."

  I hated how easy my brother could read me. He might be the youngest of the brothers, but he tried to act like the protector. He and Cara seemed to fight over who was more protective. When the Ellison family adopted us, they both became almost unbearable. "I'm in my late thirties. I don't need you to keep telling me how to live my life. I stay the fuck out of yours."

  "I would be lying if I said I planned to sit back and not say anything." Quinton uncrossed his arms and lowered his voice. "You plan to go tomorrow night?"

  I'd hoped to use the operation as an excuse, but I had nothing. "Yeah. You know, this is like picking at a scab. Right when I start to block out our past, this anniversary comes around, and it's like a cold bucket of water. On Monday, I think the four of us need to sit down and discuss how to put this behind us."

  "Kaeden isn't going to stop going. I'm worried if the rest of us decided to stop visiting on the anniversary of her death, he would continue alone. He blames himself for what happened."

  Kaeden wasn't home the night our lives changed. If anyone was to blame, it was me. I'd gotten sick and my temp had hit one hundred and four. All my siblings except Tara were at our grandmother’s helping pack her things up before she moved to the assisted living facility. Mom took Tara with her to get my medicine. A car speeding down the road T-boned them. The car was reported stolen, and nobody could find the driver. To this day we still don't know who killed our mom and baby sister. The year prior we lost our father to a heart attack.

  After that night the four of us went into foster care. Our grandmother was our last living relative, but she couldn't take care of four kids. We accepted nobody would want to adopt us because of our age and being four siblings. I shook my head to not think about foster care.

  Kaeden had finished the scene and was untying his sub from her bindings. He cradled her close to his chest while he navigated toward the sitting area. It had been a long time since I'd seen my brother gaze at someone the way he was looking at Samantha, the nurse from the hospital he worked at.

  "I'm heading to my office. The damn alarm went off again. We need to get that shit fixed," I grumbled. "I'll see you tomorrow night, but I'm serious, it's time we have a long talk about Mom's death."

  Quinton's jaw clenched, and he shook his head. I had no time to deal with this.

  The green light illuminated the card scanner outside my office as I swiped my card. A six-foot-four man stood in front of my desk, but my eyes were on the woman lying on the floor and a boy next to her. The man pulled his gun, and I held up my hands.

  "Can you help my mom?" the boy asked.

  "Yes, but he needs to lower his gun if anyone wants me to help Mia." I paused. "Or did you do this to her?"

  The man ran his free hand through his short hair and placed his gun in his holster. "Sorry, I’m on edge. She didn't say who to ask for or who the hell this office belongs to. She told me to take her to the address in her GPS, use the key to the back door, and drop her off. My sister might think I'm an ass, but no way did I plan to let her bleed out in some office. She said no 911 and no Brock, but I don't know who Brock is."

  The front of her white shirt was covered in blood, and her lower right side had a projectile sticking out of her skin. I was glad nobody had pulled the dart-looking thing out. Still, I wasn't an ER doctor and had none of the items needed in my office…but the club had doctors, a nurse, and an exam room. "It's not ideal. Let me call a couple of people, and we can see what we are working with." I paused. "What are your names?"

  "Lucas," the boy said as he straightened his spine. He didn't look anything like Mia. Blood wasn't what made family. I'd lost my mother and father and the Ellison family stepped in. I called Nora my mother even though we had no blood relation.

  The other gentleman who I recognized, but couldn't place, spoke. "I'm Sebastian Clark, Mia's twin brother."

  The second he said his name I realized I'd seen his face splashed across CNBC and other money shows. The Clark family were businessmen, but many times their companies were under investigation for fraud or money laundering. He claimed he was Mia's brother, but she didn't resemble him at all either.

  I pulled my phone out of my pocket and Mia's eyes fluttered open. "No, Brock," she whispered. I typed on my phone.

  Family: Meet me in room 3. EMERGENCY. Grab nurses.

  Cara: On my way.

  I groaned realizing I'd sent the text to the family group chat.

  Family: Medical needed. No lawyer.

  Cara: I'm the family's attorney. If medical is needed at the club and you do anything outside of your offices, you sure as hell bet I'm coming.

  Family: Not needed Cara. I'll explain later.

  Kaeden: I have Samantha with me.

  I knelt next to Mia and glanced at her shirt. A portion of the blood was dried and old, but the wound in her side was fresh. Lucas had his fingers twined with Mia's. "I'm going to need you to drop her hand and stay in my office."

  He dropped her hand but stood the second I scooped her into my arms.

  "Fuck, no! I don't know you and I’m not letting her out of my sight."

  "Mr. Clark, I'm going to need you to keep him in here with you," I said as I reached for the door.

  "Like hell. I don't know you, and that's my sister." He reached for his gun.

  I had no time to stand around and argue with him. "Fine, but you need to keep Lucas's eyes covered as we walk down the hall. I don't have time to explain, but Mia will be pissed if Lucas sees parts of this club."

  Luckily the swish of the whips and thud of the paddles in the club were drowned out by the thumping of the music. Sebastian nodded, looking down at Lucas. "Hold my hand and I’ll lead the way."

  I didn't bother to see if Lucas closed his eyes. I threw the door to my office open, and two naked women were in the hall on their knees with a collar and leash around their necks. Tyler Simmon, a US senator, was in his leathers. He raised a brow at me when I rushed by, and he mumbled something about a kid.

  When I turned the corner, Quinton was at the door with Kaeden and Samantha from the hospital. In the center of the room was an exam table. I laid Mia down softly. Quinton touched the dart sticking out from her side.

  "Mom!”

  "Really?" Kaeden asked.

  "Not now."

  Samantha grabbed a T-shirt from the drawer and slid the fabric over her head. "Someone want to explain how Mia got shot?"

  Sebastian rushed to the exam table. Lucas grabbed hold of his mom's hand. "Mia went to rescue Lucas. But when she disarmed the bomb strapped to his chest, we heard a slight pop and then she started to bleed. She passed out so fast."

  "And who the hell are you?" Quinton asked as he slid on a pair of gloves. Kaeden’s hand pressed down on Mia's stomach.

  "Sebastian Clark, her brother."

  "The dart is in the side. It's good you didn't try to remove the projectile, but we should do this at the hospital. No way this dart would make her pass out," Quinton replied.

  Kaeden nodded. "Unless there’s a drug in the dart."

  Samantha rolled an IV stand over and grabbed a bag of fluids from the other room. We kept them in the building not in case someone was shot, but if someone was in a scene and they passed out or needed medical attention from dehydration.

  Sebastian shifted to the side. "We should take her to a medical facility where they won't ask questions and cops won't be called."

  I didn't know anything about Mia or her siblings, but when a person mentions off-the-book medical facilities, the mob comes to mind. My practice had none of the needed equipment.

  Samantha placed her hands on her hips. "I've already heard the craziest story about how she got hurt. As for your clinic, is the place you’re thinking about for human or animals, Mr. Clark? I recognize your family from the news. Not once did I ever see Mia in the stories."

  He scrubbed a hand over his face. "It's a veterinary clinic. And my relationship with Mia is complicated."

  I'd thought they were criminals for years when I saw the family across the news, but now my thoughts were confirmed. No way a millionaire family would use a veterinarian for humans unless they were corrupt.

  "Okay, doctors. I know I have three of you in the room, but we all know you can't do your job without the million nurses who tell you what to do." Samantha was all business.

  "I take offense to that," Quinton grumbled.

  Samantha rolled her eyes and continued. "We have a sonogram machine, and I think I saw Gabe here tonight. How about I grab him, and we can see if she needs a hospital? I think we should take her, but let's check to see what we find first. There are ways we can bring her into the hospital under the radar. Rachelle would need to help us though, because it wouldn't be legal."

  "Get Gabe."

  She nodded and jogged out of the room. "She's right. We have no pain meds or any numbing agent to be able to stitch up her wounds.” The dart was an inch thick.

  "I have my kit in the truck.”

  I pulled up a stool and sat next to Mia, holding her hand. Her fingers were freezing, but her pulse was still strong. Her head moved for a second, but her eyes didn't open.

  Samantha returned to the room with Gabe. He was naked. His master followed only a few steps behind him with a scowl across his face. "She interrupted a scene."

  "And we need Gabe to do his job."

  Marcus nodded but stood at the back of the room.

  "What the hell is this place?" Mia's brother asked.

  Marcus answered before I could. "A BDSM club. Not a place for kids."

  Sebastian ushered Lucas to the back of the room and had him sit on the black leather chair.

  Gabe moved to the other side and placed gel on her stomach. "I need you guys to step back. Everyone doesn't need to hover."

  I didn't move, but my brother stepped back as Quinton hurried in with two of the medical cases he carried when he would go down to the homeless areas and treat patients. Many wouldn't come to his free clinic.

  Quinton glanced to Mia's brother. "Is she allergic to anything?"

  "Not sure."

  I gripped her hand harder when my brother put a shot in her arm. I trusted him and didn't bother asking what he gave her. He pulled out a second syringe and a vial and did the same.

  Gabe wiped her stomach off and placed the ultrasound wand to her side. "From what I can see, no internal bleeding. You can take the dart out and close her up. I would still recommend another scan. This isn't the best piece of equipment. I'm sure when you guys purchased the sonogram you didn't expect me to use it on an actual patient."

  Kaeden wrapped his gloved hand around the dart and slowly pulled. The metal object was about three inches long. Quinton had gauze in his hand to place over the wound the second Kaeden removed the dart.

  "Can you hand me your numbing agent, and I'll stitch up her wounds?" Quinton nodded toward the bag. I grabbed the bottle and a needle.

  Kaeden leaned over and pointed to the wound. "You sure you know how to do that? I am the chief of surgery at a hospital."

  Quinton spent his days helping anyone who couldn't afford health care. His clinic was funded through a foundation we'd set up. My brother glared at him. "Yes, but when was the last time you stepped into an OR?"

  At times Kaeden complained he didn't get to do surgeries as much as he would like. When he spent time in the operating room, he was there to teach so he had to stand back and instruct.

  "I performed an emergency cholecystectomy last week," Kaeden grumbled.

  "Jesus, you two need to come to spend some time at the clinic." Quinton grabbed the needle and got to work on her wound. When he was done, he smiled down at his work. "I bet the wound won't even scar."

  "Speaking of scars." Kaeden ran his hand over the side of her stomach and across the top of her chest. "They have to be over ten years old. I'm guessing they're from a knife."

  Mia and I had come to the club once before, but never played together. Her corset covered the scars on her body, but now, having seen them, we would need to discuss them. No way I would take her into a scene and jeopardize her having a panic attack or something because I hit a trigger. We would also need to talk about the fact that her family was part of the mafia. Not that I cared, but I worried about her.

  "If you are done with my sub, I'm going to go reward him for helping," Marcus said as he wrapped his hand around the back of Gabe's neck. "It's been a while since I broke out the whip. You ready to play?" Gabe nodded, and he left the room.

  Mia's brother stepped forward. "Is she going to be okay?"

  "Why isn't she waking up?" Lucas asked.

  "I'm wondering the same thing." Quinton reached over and grabbed a needle from his bag and took a sample of her blood. "I'll have the clinic run this. I'm guessing a sedative was in the dart.”

  Sebastian rested his hand on Lucas's shoulder. "I'm taking Lucas to my house. Let me know when she wakes up or if you need anything." He handed me a card with a gold C on the front and a number on the back.

  For a second, I thought about telling him to leave Lucas, but Sebastian claimed to be her brother. I nodded, and he stalked out the door.

  My brother left with Samantha in his arms, and I was alone with Mia. I had so damn many questions for her. Why she didn't want Brock to know and who the hell hurt her so bad?

  I'd fallen asleep in the chair next to her bed when a text woke me.

  Quinton: Lab confirmed she had a sedative in her system.

  Me: Thanks!

  Quinton: She's dangerous brother. You need to walk away.

  I pushed the power button on my phone. I wasn't in the mood to deal with his demands. Mia needed someone in her corner, and I planned to be her person even if she didn't want me to be. She needed someone to have her six.

  CHAPTER 3

  Mia

  Pain sliced through my side as I shifted on the uncomfortable bed. A soft hand pressed against my forearm. I swung with my free arm and punched solid muscle. When I opened my eyes, my contacts were hazy from sleeping in them. For years, I’d made it a mission never to let my team or anybody close to me see my real eye color. One glance at my blue eyes and people on my team would ask questions. I blinked a couple of times, and Dr. Paxton Renolds came into view. I ignored the sexy doctor and scanned the room, relieved when I didn't spot any of my team members. We were alone at Club Rose in one of the playrooms, the medical one.

  "My son?" I tried to sit up, and agony caused me to lie back down. This wasn't the first time I'd woken up in pain, but I couldn't remember what went wrong. The last thing I could recall was walking down the stairs to rescue my son. I took a deep breath and tried to sit up again, but Paxton put his hand in the center of my bare chest.

  "You need to take one of these." Paxton handed me a white pill and a glass of water. "Your son is with your brother. After we go to the hospital and have you checked over, we will go see him, but you need to stay off your feet for a couple of days."

  I popped the pill in my mouth and took a swig of the water. The IV line snagged, and I flinched before I pulled the needle out of my arm. "No hospital. All I need is a shirt and the keys to my car."

  He narrowed his piercing blue eyes. "Seriously? You disarmed a bomb and were shot with a dart filled with a sedative. Quinton tested your blood, but you need to go to the hospital for more tests. Last night we used equipment we bought for medical play to check for internal bleeding. We're lucky Quinton had his medical bag in the car so we could stitch you back up."

  A logical person would agree with him, but I was a momma bear who gave up everything to make sure my son was safe. God, I failed him. He was never supposed to see this world. My precious boy was supposed to think the mob was only something that existed in movies.

  The pills hadn't done much to stop the pain as I swung my legs over the side of the medical exam table. "You don't understand. Lucas isn't safe with my family. The longer I sit here, the more time they have to hide him from me."

  Paxton grinned as he tugged his phone out of his pocket. The damn man was way too sexy for his own good. "Your brother has texted me every hour with a picture and asking for an update on you."

  I grabbed the phone from his hand and thumbed through the photos. Lucas was lying on the bed in my old room. I should stop and analyze that my cold-hearted mom hadn't changed my room since I left, but all I could see was my sleeping boy.

  "Now that you know your son is okay, we need to talk with Brock for a second before I take you to the hospital." He held out his hand for me. "Your damn boss commandeered my conference room along with other members of your team."

  I'd reviewed the floor plan of Club Rose and I didn't remember seeing a conference room, only the four offices that lined the back of the club.

  "You have a BDSM conference room. Is this for boss-employee role play?" I winced as I stood up and narrowed my eyes at Paxton. "We will get to the fact I remember asking you not to call my boss once you answer the first question and help me to the back door."

  "Upstairs, we have a few apartments for guests who want to stay and offices for staff along with a conference table. Now for why your boss came. Club Rose is like any other club. Word traveled fast. Three doctors, an ER nurse, and an ultrasound tech were pulled into this room. Then Quinton grabbed his medical bag from his car. It's not like he tried to hide what he was doing. You had a dart sticking out of your abdomen, Mia." Paxton threw his hands up. "As for Wes, he was in the club. When he overheard someone talking about a woman being worked on in one of the rooms, he came."

 

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