Chapter 24 – I Hate Him!

As Liam Hardy sat trembling in the cold plastic chair at the hospital, he couldn't decided if he was happy AR was dead or mad that he didn't get to kill him himself.

Joe had been rushed up to surgery to have the bullet removed and the damage, hopefully, repaired. The doctors warned the family that Joe was in pretty bad shape and that even if the surgery was successful, they were not too sure of Joe's chances. There was a lot of Joe's blood that spilled on that dirty cement floor…maybe too much.

Fenton sat on one side of Liam and his mother sat on the other. Laura, Callie, and Kayley had been called as soon as the men were en route to the hospital. The women met the rest of the family in the waiting room of the ER where Liam and Sam were getting checked out.

That was hours ago. The boys had been released and now formerly hot bowls of soup sat cold and congealed on the waiting room tables. To their mother's dismay, neither boy could stomach more than a few spoonfuls. A blanket surrounded each boy and in both cases, their mother's arms surrounded the blanket. Little Katie Hardy sat on the other side of Fenton, both enthralled with her new grandfather and very very scared because her daddy was so sick. Laura cuddled young James on her lap as little Sophie sat next to her and watched.

Natalie sat next to her twin and held his hand. She held that hand so long it cramped, but she had no intention of letting it go. Jenni sat on the other side of Callie with her head on her mom's lap. Frank waffled between pacing, checking on Sam, and kneeling in front of Liam and Kayley to give them what little strength he had. Somewhere in the middle of all of his pain, anger, and fear, Liam Hardy decided he really liked his Uncle Frank.

It would have been a rather warm family reunion scene – if not for the reason they were all gathered there.

Liam sighed as he sat in the waiting room. Whatever he could smell of the room past all of the bandaging on his nose smelled sterile and antiseptic. It didn't matter how sterile his surroundings smelled or how hard his mom and the nurses tried to clean him up, Liam still felt disgusting. As the hours ticked by, Liam grew more and more angry. The man who shot his father was not around for Liam to unleash his anger on, so in his mind, he unleashed on the only other person he could think of. His father.

Liam knew that his dad, uncle and granddad could have just left it to the police to find them, but they had done it themselves, knowing the danger and accepting it. And his dad...Joe had taken the biggest risk of all. He had taken a bullet for his son, and now that move could end in Joe's death. Liam knew his dad loved him and knew it was that love that resulted in Joe fighting for his life right now. The boy couldn't help it. As the hours ticked by, the rage inside of him pulled at his insides until he was stretched so tight he was destined to snap.

Sam sat snuggled against his mother. Boy, he'd missed his mom's hugs! He appreciated Natalie's hand in his also, although he wasn't too sure he would admit that to anyone. The events of the last days played over in Sam's mind. He was so very grateful to be rescued and to be surrounded by his family. And he felt so guilty. He couldn't imagine the pain Liam was in right now. Sam was afraid of the possibility that he would never get to know his Uncle Joe, but he knew that paled in comparison to the fear that Sam held in his heart…that he would never see his father again. What if it was his dad and not Liam's? It just as easily could have gone that way. He knew his father would protect him with his life just as his uncle did for Liam. Sam's lip quivered and his eyes burned as he looked across at his cousin.

Sometimes just the smallest sound can start an avalanche. In this case, it was the tiny sweet voice of little Katie as she softly muttered "I want to see Daddy. When is Daddy gonna be okay?"

Liam was white hot with rage and fear and…guilt. He jumped up from the chair and from his mother's embrace and rounded on his little sister. "Daddy's NOT going to be okay, Katie! Daddy is dying, Katie! Daddy was stupid, Katie, STUPID! He was stupid and it's all my fault and I HATE HIM! I HATE HIM!"