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Legal stuff still counts.
Chapter 35: Bugs
Bobby stood in the kitchen doorway, watching the paramedics ease Jack onto a gurney and strap him down securely. They had managed to stop the bleeding. Apparently one the ass holes who had busted in had grabbed hold of Jack, grabbing the drainage tube and jerking it out of his chest. He was going to need surgery. Bobby worried more about the way Jack kept apologizing to him, telling him he was sorry, he'd tried to get Craig out of there, tried to get him to somewhere safe. Hell, it wasn't Jack's job to keep Craig safe. It had been Bobby's job to keep them both safe, and he had failed miserably. There was a pressure building in his chest that he didn't want t acknowledge, it was the same pressure he'd felt when found out his mother was dead.
Angel sat on the couch, another medic examining his left arm which was starting to swell and turn a sickly looking blue; it looked as if it might be broken. Sofi was standing next to him, with her hand resting on his shoulder, trying to give some comfort, but tears were streaking her own face, and Bobby felt for her. He didn't like seeing her hurting because he'd made the mistake of bringing his brothers to her mother's home.
Jerry was behind him in the kitchen, sitting in a chair, letting a medic check him as well, Bobby had insisted on that though Jerry had said that he was okay. A bruise was forming on his forehead, and Bobby had pushed him down into the chair and yelled for one of the medics to take a look at him. He didn't want Jerry walking around with an injury to his head and not know about it. That was all he needed, to have to explain to Camille about a brain injury her husband had suffered under his watch. Okay, he may have been exaggerating, but he was concerned about his brother. He hadn't grabbed for his cell phone to call his wife, and that just wasn't like Jerry.
The police were filtering in and out of the apartment, though most of the attention seemed to be concentrated on the dead teenager lying next to crashed Mercer vehicle in the parking lot. Sofi's mother was hot on Green's heels the whole time, following him around everywhere he went, asking what the hell the cops were going to do about her home. Green tactfully handed her off to a woman in uniform, and told the officer to get in touch with a county department that should be able to help her out, for the night at least.
Bobby was lost in his thoughts, watching the activity playing out in front of him. They would all have to give their statements, and he was sure Green would be the officer to take them, he just hoped to God it happened quickly. He needed to get his brothers taken care of, make sure that Jack was alright in the hospital, and then he had to find Craig.
Jerry's presence was made known when he placed his hand on Bobby's shoulder from behind. "Your turn," He spoke quietly.
Bobby turned and looked at Jerry. "What?" He didn't understand his brother's words.
Jerry nodded towards the paramedic standing next to the chair he had just vacated. "Your turn, sit your ass down and let him check you over." He wasn't asking; his voice had a demanding tone to it.
"I'm fine." Bobby shrugged out from under Jerry's hand and looked back to Jack. They were getting ready to wheel him out of the apartment. He quickly stepped over just before they started to move. "Jack, we'll see you at the hospital." He grabbed hold of Jack's hand.
Jack had been lying under the oxygen mask with his eyes closed. He opened them up and looked at Bobby. "You need to find the kid." He spoke weakly. "You need to tell him that I'm not pissed at him."
"I will. Don't worry, I will. Right now you do what these guys tell you to and I'll see you at the hospital." Bobby gave Jack's hand a quick squeeze. "I love you man." He spoke just loud enough for Jack to hear him.
"Yeah, me too," Jack smiled a thin smile and looked past Bobby.
Bobby turned slightly to see Angel standing there with his arm in a sling. "You okay man?"
"I'm riding with 'Jackie Poo', gonna get my arm x-rayed and probably a cool looking cast." He forced a grin.
"You were bustin' off shots with a broken arm?" Bobby managed to grin at the man.
"Well hell, someone had to hit something, you were too busy screaming your fucking head off, and Jerry never could shoot worth shit." Angel spoke with a mocking tone. He gave Bobby a sideways glance, but managed a smile of his own. "I get to ride with Jack; I'll keep an eye on him." He sighed.
"Thanks brother." Bobby nodded his head. He and Angel traded a quick hug.
"And you let them check you out, man, you don't look so good." Angel spoke as they pulled apart.
Bobby looked a little surprised by the statement. "I'm fine. Don't worry about me, you just take care of yourself, and watch out for Jack.
"Man, there is one more thing." Angel glanced over to where Sofi now stood with her mother.
Bobby sighed heavily. "Yeah, man, bring them home." He nodded his head. It was the least he could do, since Maria's home had been shot up, her possessions smashed and destroyed, all on account of him not seeing the trap that had been set up. He deserved the torture of having the two lunatic ladies living under his roof, at least for a few days. He watched as Sofi and Maria followed Angel out of the apartment, and could hear Angel telling Sofi to pack up some things and take her mother to their house. Sofi turned back and gave Bobby what appeared to be a grateful smile, but she didn't say anything.
Bobby turned back to Jerry, who was standing just inside the kitchen door, with both medics flanking him on each side.
"You are gonna be checked out man, ain't gonna take no for an answer." Jerry crossed his arms at his chest as if he were fully in control of the situation.
Bobby cringed inside. Shit, he'd had to get Angel straight on who the hell was in charge, now it seemed he was going to have to do the same with Jerry. Why couldn't they all just let him run the family the way he knew was best? He was getting tired of going through all of the crap just to get his brothers to cave in and admit that he was the oldest, and he was the head of the family, and that he knew what the hell he was doing. Although, at that moment he wasn't feeling as confident as he had earlier that day. Things had changed drastically in the past twenty four hours, and he was really getting tired of the bullshit that seemed to be thrown at his family continuously.
He sat down on the couch and let the medics give him a quick once over. One of them treated his hand, and wrapped it up tight, but it was determined that he was fine, just like he'd insisted. He noticed Jerry was on his cell phone while the medics did their job. Now that was more like it.
Green walked back into the apartment, and looked at Bobby. "Well, you look like you're still in one piece." He forced a smile.
Bobby stood and walked up to the detective. "Well? Has your little investigation here told you anything about where the hell my brother might be?" He asked, cynicism dripping from his words. Of course they hadn't found anything out, and they wouldn't. This was a waste of time. "We need to find Adam Macks, and we need to find him now. He has Craig, and there's no telling what the hell he's gonna do to him!" He nearly yelled the words.
Jerry moved to Bobby's side. "Just calm down and let him talk Bobby." Jerry looked at Green. "Well? Have you found anything here that might help?"" He asked.
Green looked at Jerry and then back to Bobby. "That car you crashed into out there." He half turned and pointed towards the parking lot outside of the door.
Bobby felt his head turning slightly in order for his gaze to follow the direction Green was pointing. "What about it?"
"They weren't able to drive it away from here Bobby, and there are tags on the vehicle." Green almost smiled.
Bobby's gaze shot back to Green, "And?" He asked quickly.
"And it's registered to a corporation right here in Detroit." Green's eyes narrowed, but he kept them fixed on Bobby for a long moment before he spoke. "Winston Industries," He finally announced.
"Jessup Winston," Jerry spoke the name quietly. "Wait a minute, this ain't his style, you said so yourself."
Green looked a Jerry and nodded his head just slightly. "I said that. But it's Adam Macks' style." He looked back at Bobby. "I have some men knocking on the judge's front door right now to get a warrant." He drew in a deep breath. "We need to ask Winston some questions. I think he has ties to Macks. It wouldn't be surprising. They both did jobs for Sweet; they've probably worked with each other before."
Bobby felt his heart starting to hammer hard in his chest. "Fuck a warrant; I don't need no warrant to question him." He started to move past Green, but the man grabbed him by the shoulders, stopping him.
"Bobby, let me do this my way. You're gonna have your chance, but some things have to happen first. I need both you and Jerry at the station to get your statements. We need to get you a car too, you can't drive Evelyn's."Green pointed out quickly.
"You don't understand Green, my brother is gonna be home by morning, I don't care if I have to burn up half of Detroit to do it, but I'm getting to him before the sun rises." Bobby nearly growled the words, the pressure in his chest intensifying. Damn, it hurt to breathe. He moved to push the hands away from him and the pain turned sharp, driving him forward. He doubled over and held onto his chest, "Son of a bitch!" He tried to yell out, but the pain in his chest choked the words down to a sickly sounding groan.
"Bobby?" Jerry grabbed hold of him, and the paramedics seemed to be on him instantly, like vultures moving in for a meal.
"I'm fine." Bobby tried again to push the hands away, but to no avail. Moments later he was back on the couch and the medics were pulling at his shirt. Bobby couldn't help but understand at that moment how Craig had felt just a few weeks earlier when he'd been in the hands of medics very much like these. After what Sweet had done to him, he'd had to endure people pulling at him and removing clothes. The kid had already felt vulnerable, and then strangers had forced him to let them do whatever the hell they wanted. Sure, they'd been trying to help, but he hadn't wanted it, not right then. Just like Bobby didn't want it at that moment. He had to find that kid and he didn't have a lot of time, he didn't have time for the bullshit.
Craig could feel his brain pounding hard against the inside of his skull, as if it were trying to escape the confines it was trapped in. He tried to turn his body, but it wouldn't respond to him. He was lying on cold concrete, and he didn't feel very well at all. He was sure he could roll onto his side and throw up at that very moment, if only he could get his body to move in that direction.
Muffled voices reached him, but they sounded as if they were coming from somewhere deep inside a tunnel, and he couldn't make them out. He tried to force his eyes open, but the dark remained in front of him. He tried to call out for Bobby, to ask him if he could turn on the light, he couldn't see anything. His voice responded, but it sounded slurred, detached, and faint. He tried again to get part of his body to move for him, and was almost surprised when he managed to get his hand to move a fraction of an inch. He moaned involuntarily as his arm finally relented and rose up towards his throbbing head. His hand rested on the left side of his head, and he felt the sticky substance that seemed to be caking around the area where his head hurt most. He felt the bump just behind his temple, and the gash that accompanied it. He blinked his eyes hard, but the dark stayed the same, suffocating him, and making him feel as if he were drowning. He reached both arms up and felt to each side of him. Rough feeling concrete block met the palms of his hands. He realized his legs were bent, his knees pointing upwards, and when he felt with his feet, his bare toes felt the same rough surface under them and to the sides. His first thought was that he was in a closet, but it seemed almost too small for a closet, and who had ever heard of a concrete block closet?
Confusion swept over him in a swift wave. He used his hands and feet to sit himself up, and immediately wished he'd stayed down on the floor. He hated closed in spaces, and he hated the dark. He tried again to call out for Bobby, his rattled brain reasoning that Bobby had locked him in a closet for some reason. He didn't understand it. Bobby had never locked him up anywhere before. The only person who had ever done that was…
His mind screamed out at him to stop thinking. Stop thinking and get back down. If he was caught sitting up he'd be in trouble. His body started shivering hard, and he hugged at himself trying to keep warm. His fingers found the seam of the shirt he was wearing and he started to play with it, all the while fighting off the fear that his dark confinement was driving into him. His head felt as if it were swimming around in that cold black void spread out in front of him, and a few times he was sure he felt himself tipping to one side, though he didn't think it was real. His stomach still felt as if it was about to empty out on him. He rested his face against the cement and was amazed at how cool it felt to him, almost as if his cheek was hot, but he was shivering.
He let his eyes close, and his perplexed brain started to flash pictures of his father dragging him to the closet and throwing him in. He hated the closet. There were spiders and bugs crawling around in that closet, and it terrified him. That thought brought on the feeling that something was crawling on his arms, causing them to itch hard. He started scratching at the the sensation, following it when it moved, and then it seemed to move to his legs. He was sure there were bugs and spiders swarming his whole body, and he couldn't get rid of them. He wanted to go home. That thought seemed to bring him back to a half coherent state. He remembered he hadn't been at home. He'd been at Sofi's mother's apartment, though the reason was just out of reach of his memory. He'd had his hair cut. His right hand reached up and felt at the short hair, as if to validate the memory that was revealing it's self slowly. He remembered butterflies floating around in a sea of pink, drowning and fluttering all at the same time.
He remembered Jack was angry with him. He wasn't sure why, but Jack had been angry, and he'd felt awful. What had he done? He couldn't remember. Then Jack was yelling at him. He remembered Jack's voice yelling at him, but it hadn't been anger fueling the yells, it had been fear. Craig had heard fear in his brother's voice. He continued to scratch the whole time his mind was twisting around the puzzling path of his memories, but the sensation of bugs crawling across his skin seemed to strengthen.
The voices on the other side of the wall seemed to be back now. He wasn't sure if they had ever really left, but he was hearing them again. Maybe it was the angry tones they possessed; he wasn't sure what had drawn his attention back to them. He couldn't make out the words, and one voice was unknown to him. It was the second voice that sent a cold chill down his back and caused his stomach to heave uncontrollably, but it stopped after the first gut twisting haul at his stomach, and nothing came up. He knew that voice all too well. He felt his left thumb inch to his mouth, and he started chewing on the nail as the five year old inside of him took over. It was his dad. "Bobby!" His mind screamed out, but he was sure he hadn't actually verbalized it, had he?
The door next to him opened, and Adam Macks looked down at him, an angry smile creased on his mouth. "Well hello, son," His teeth seemed to be grinding together. "Welcome home." The voice was unpleasant, and seemed to hold a silent threat.
Bobby walked out of the emergency room exit with Jerry and Angel both right on his heels. As soon as the three of them had been treated they had checked on Jack, and he was sleeping. He would be out for the night, and he was doing fine, nothing that another day or two in the hospital wouldn't take care of. Bobby had been sure to tell Jack what was going on, in a quiet whisper so that the nosey nurse that kept walking into the room couldn't hear. Now he was on his way to get Craig, despite the protests of his brothers. "You heard what the doctor said Bobby." Angel warned.
"I'm fine." Bobby stopped at the edge of the sidewalk, and looked around. "Shit. We don't have no fucking car." He cried out.
"You've got three busted ribs Bobby. You can't do this shit, not in the condition you're in." Jerry spoke up.
Bobby turned and looked at the vinyl splint Angel's arm had been put into, and the bandage to the left side of Jerry's forehead. He felt at his own chest, his ribs wrapped up so tight he could barely breathe, "You guys okay?" He asked; his voice a little calmer than before.
"Yeah, man I'm good." Jerry shrugged his shoulders.
Angel nodded his head. "It's just a cracked bone." He held his arm up.
"Green wants us down at the station." Jerry commented. "He needs our statements."
"Well, we ain't got no car Jerr'." Bobby pointed out. "Besides, I'm going after Jessup Winston. I'm gonna find out where the fuck they have Craig and then I'm going after him. You both go home, and take care of yourselves; I'll be home in the morning." He turned as if he were going to walk off curb of the sidewalk. "Make sure you call and check on Jack a few times tonight. If he wakes up one of you need to get your ass back down here."
Angel and Jerry both grabbed the man, each taking an arm and pulling him back. Bobby turned back to them, ready to argue with them if he needed to. They weren't going to stop him.
"You just pointed out that you ain't got a car." Angel spoke calmly.
"I'll get one. We don't need to discuss how, but I will get one." Bobby turned back towards the parking lot and started inspecting the cars parked there for one that looked as if it had some speed to it.
"You really think we're gonna let you take off and do dumb shit without us?" Jerry asked the question loud enough for Bobby to hear.
Bobby looked back at his brothers. "You two don't need to be in on this. I'm going against Green; he won't back us up on this." He shook his head. "There's no reason for all three of us to go down for this one."
"Bobby, if we can get information from Winston, and we give to Green, he'll back us up." Jerry shook his head. "You think he didn't know you would take off after that man once you knew there was a definite connection to what the hell went down? Come on man, give him a little credit. If he didn't want you to go, he never would have told you shit."
Bobby let the meaning of Jerry's words absorb into his brain. It took a few moments, and he was more than willing to blame the pain killers the doctor had pumped into him while he'd been laying there in the hospital wasting valuable time.
At that moment a car pulled up behind Bobby. He half turned to look, expecting to see someone being dropped off at the curb, but was surprised to see Sofi climbing out of a black Cutlass Supreme, the body shiny and looking practically like new. He spun back around to look at Angel, surprised by what was taking place.
"Hell, you blew up your car to save my ass, I figured you were gonna need something. Sofi's brother scouted it out for me today. What do you think? You think you can make it through the rest of the night without crashing it?" Angel's stare seemed to hold a threat.
Bobby grinned at his brother. "You know, I doubt that." He shook his head and walked around to the driver's door. "Let's go, we got shit to do." He called back as he got in behind the wheel. "I need to go buy some gas."
"You have to drop me off at the house Bobby." Sofi ordered.
Bobby looked up at her and smile. "Sofi, I'll take you anywhere you want to go, just hurry the hell up, I ain't got all fucking night."He meant that in the nicest way. After what that woman had been through, the least he could do was take her home. Besides, he was starting to feel a little rush of adrenaline at the thought of what he was going to be doing once he got her out of the car. He just prayed he could get to his brother before Adam Macks caused too much damage. Craig had already been put through hell, and hadn't gotten close to recovering completely. This shit was only going to make it worse, and drive him right back to where he had been just weeks before.