Lyon's Heart (12 page)

“We’ll keep our ears and
eyes open boss, it’s the holidays somebody’s bound to come forward
looking for their missing family member soon.” Zack chimed in next,
I had damn near the whole team looking into this. It might be
overkill but that’s the way we did things, if one was involved we
were all involved.

“Thanks guys.”

“So what are you thinking?”
Jared finished shining the chrome on the last bike we’d just
finished as the rest of the guys gathered around admiring our handy
work.

“I don’t know yet but I do
know I don’t want my wife around this shit. Her hardheaded ass gets
into more shit than a little bit but now we have Caitlin to think
about and there’s no fucking way…fuck hang on a minute.”

I pulled my phone and called
her, I’d told her not to leave the house but I hadn’t told her not
to let anyone in.

“Kat, do not let anyone in
the house unless it’s family.” She knew family meant the crew and
their women as well so I didn’t need to explain farther.

“Who would I let in the
house Colton?”

“Fuck if I know, you
expecting any packages or shit like that?”

“Not today no, I think in
two days they said.”

“What are my beautiful girls
doing? I think I’m coming home early for lunch the guys have shit
pretty much under control here and your boy Cy took care of the
books already.”

“We’re good Colt, Caitlin
keeps destroying the gift wrap, and I think she’s teething because
she’s getting cranky and she has a bit of a fever.”

“What the fuck?” I waved at
the guys as I walked out of the shop and back to my office to get
my keys.

“Did you call the
doctor?”

“Colt we can’t call the
doctor for every little thing she’s supposed to teethe you crazy
person. I have everything we need mom already got me hip to what
was coming. Plus one of your million and one books covers this
stuff so no worries.”

“You need me to pick up
anything on my way in?”

“No we’re fine you coming
home now? You just left like two hours ago.”

“Your point?” I hadn’t
wanted to leave in the first place and now with Caitie having a
fever there’s no way I was staying here.

I hung up the phone so I
could get home to them faster. I don’t know how the fuck people
deal with this shit; the last time my little girl got sick I was a
wreck. I stayed up all night pacing the floor in the nursery. What
if she stopped breathing while I was in the next room fucking
sleeping? I think there ought to be a law against babies getting
sick that shit was just off.

I got home to a living room
covered in gift wrap paper and unwrapped boxes and shit all over
the place, a very frazzled wife and a screaming baby girl. I threw
my keys on the table and went to do what I do best.

“Give her here.” I took my
little princess from her mother and held her close the way she
likes, she was burning up and miserable. I’m so not down with that
fuckery. She was trying to bite into my shirt but at least she was
down to whimpers instead of wails. Her little head was bobbing
which meant she was tired. My baby was sick, fuck.

“Call the doctor
Katarina.”

“I just gave her her
medicine just give it time to work she’s fine I promise.” I sat on
the couch and laid her on my chest where she fussed and gnawed on
my shirt until she finally calmed down and sniffled herself to
sleep, guess she just needed her daddy to come hold her.

“She was fine when I left
what happened?”

“She’s teething Colt it’s no
big deal please don’t go crazy on me. The medicine is supposed to
make her sleep and take down the fever and I put her teething ring
in the freezer, that’s all we can do.”

“I don’t know about this
fuckery, when I have a toothache that shit hurts like a bastard
how’s she supposed to deal with that shit at her age?”

“It’s not the same thing
Colton, babies teethe it’s normal her little teeth are just
bursting through her gums that’s all.”

“That shit sounds painful
there has to be something that quack can do to make this easier on
her.”

She rolled her eyes and went
back to her gift wrapping. I guess it’s different for moms they
have like an extra something that us men are lacking because the
shit that makes me freak she just takes in stride. Either that or
like as with her mom I can’t stand to see my little girl in pain or
miserable.

I sat there watching Kat do
her thing and holding my princess close checking her temperature
with a cool hand to her forehead every so often. I guess she was
right because within a half an hour or so she was considerably
cooler.

“I should probably go put
her down her fever broke.”

“See I told you so, you want
me to take her up?”

“Nah just let me hold her a
little longer then I’ll do it.” I smelled my little girl’s neck and
held her closer. I hope she never loses that little baby smell and
innocence. Danger zone come back. There are some places I refuse to
let my mind wander and Caitlin growing up is one of
them.

The phone rang and jumped
the shit out of me; Kat jumped up and grabbed it and from her end
of the conversation I gathered it was the hospital.

“Yes this is Mrs. Lyon.” I
love that shit.

“Uh huh. What?” She started
biting her nails, which was a sure sign of distress for her. I
started to get up and take the phone from her but she shooed me
away.

“Other than that she’s okay,
nothing’s broken?”

“Well…okay I understand you
can’t really tell me more I just want to make sure that she’s okay.
Thank you for calling ma’am.”

She hung up with a strange
look on her face.

“What is it
baby?”

“She has
amnesia.”

“Who does?”

“The lady that I hit, she
has amnesia I didn’t think I hit her that hard.” Her eyes were wide
with distress and I could sense the panic setting in.

“My ass, I don’t like
anything about this shit, let the cops handle it. Why are they
calling you anyway we’re not her family and shit?”

“Apparently there’s no one
else, she didn’t have any ID on her and now she doesn’t know who
she is.” Of course she started crying so now I have a hot miserable
sleeping baby on my chest and a wife who was about to fall apart.
She was obviously wracked with guilt, which I was going to have to
deal with. First thing I had to do was get dad on the ball I didn’t
want the hospital calling here again fucking with her head, don’t
know why they called us in the first place.

“I’ll deal with it Kat stop
crying, I can’t deal with your shit and the baby’s shit at the same
time. Settle your little ass down she’s not dead.” Probably some
fucking nut job come to fuck with my life. I didn’t say that shit
out loud because Kat would probably light into me if I
did.

“Here put Caitie bear down
and let me call the hospital back.”

“You have to go down
there…”

“No I don’t.”

“Well then I’ll
go.”

“You’ve lost your damn mind,
now go put the baby down and let me deal with this
shit.”

She tried giving me shit but
she knew better unless she wanted me to go upside her damn head
days before Xmas. I glared at the phone before picking it up.
Everything inside me screamed that there was something fucked about
this whole situation. What are the odds that some total stranger
comes to my town and ends up under my woman’s car on my driveway? I
decided not to call after all, she wanted my attention she’s got it
but it might not be what she expects. If it turns out she’s some
bitch here to make trouble I’ll bury her ass, fuck this. I told my
annoying ass wife she’d won and that I’d go to the hospital and
check shit out. Of course she was all smiles now so I played along
and pretended like I’d caught the Xmas spirit too; yeah I give a
fuck.

At the hospital I had to
jump through hoops to get into her room. The fact that they’d been
the ones to call my house with this shit didn’t seem to matter. I
had to use the pothead’s name to get pass the dragon at the desk,
she was going on my shit list too. In the room I don’t know what I
was expecting to find. I had built this person up in my head as
some sort of monster, but in the bed all I saw was a young woman
who looked harmless enough. She didn’t look like she was out to
harm anyone and the empty look she turned my way didn’t give me
anything. Too bad for her whoever she was that my gut was sending
off warning bells like a son of a bitch. I put on my ‘I give a fuck
face’ and went farther into the room. Please don’t let me strangle
this woman in this bed. That’s my natural reaction to any danger I
sense where my wife is concerned.

“Hello there I’m Colt, they
tell me that you don’t remember anything?”

“Are you my
husband?”

“Fu…um no. No, my wife
supposedly ran you over on my driveway yesterday.”

She furrowed her brow and
pulled at the sheet but I saw something there. What? I can’t be
sure but something about what I’d said didn’t sit too well with her
and it flashed in her eyes a split second before she lowered her
head again.

“Supposedly?”

“Yeah well she said she
didn’t see you there and no one can figure out what the fu…what you
were doing on my driveway. You don’t seem to be from around here
and you weren’t carrying any ID on you so we’re kind of stuck.” I
kept my eyes trained on her face for any sign that she was fucking
with me but she didn’t give anything away, huh. I didn’t trust her
for shit. Whoever she is I know she’s up to some fuck, but I don’t
know her angle yet, had to find out some shit first.

“So you don’t remember
anything at all?” I folded my arms and stood in the middle of the
room. I wasn’t exactly trying to intimidate her but I wanted her to
know she wasn’t dealing with some jerk she could get one over
on.

She shook her head slightly
and then clutched it as if in pain. Too bad she remembered to do
that shit too late. This chick was sending up more red flags than a
matador in the ring. I’m sure if Kat were here she’d tell me I’m
being cynical or some fuck but my gut never lies. I took a deep
breath because I didn’t know where to start to piece this shit
together, she wasn’t giving me anything here. Not verbally anyway,
and the amnesia stunt meant she couldn’t really answer any
questions, slick.

“I’m not quite sure what to
say to you since I don’t know you. I’m not sure how I can be of any
help to you. You don’t remember anything at all from your
past?”

“No it’s all a blank. I just
remember waking up here and when I try to remember anything else I
get these blinding headaches, so I don’t try too hard to I’m
sorry.”

“Huh, well they said you
weren’t hurt in the accident. There’re no bruises or anything,
nothing internal. I wonder if you had amnesia before you ended up
on my driveway.” If I hadn’t been watching her so closely, I
would’ve missed the way she pinched her mouth at my statement. That
shit had my gut doing cartwheels.

“So there’s no point in me
asking you if you know anyone in this town because you have no
memory.” I kept repeating myself to see if I could trip her up but
she was good.

“I’m so sorry.”

I bet. “Listen, they’re
probably going to cut you loose from here soon because there’s
nothing physically wrong with you. I guess they can’t keep you much
longer.”

“Am I going home with
you?”

What the fuck?

“Uh, not exactly. I might
have a place for you to stay though.”

“But the nurses said that
it’s Xmas and it’s supposed to be important. I’m not sure I want to
be alone.”

Bitch, if you can’t remember
what the fuck difference does it make?

“Look, I’ll be straight with
you. I don’t know you, and you don’t know me. I’m not the type of
guy to invite a total stranger into my house no matter who she is.
So you either take the offer or you can make other arrangements,
but that’s the best I can do. I’ll give you some cash to get
by…”

“What does your wife think
about this?”

What the fuck?

“She thinks what I think.” I
really don’t like this girl. “So what’s it gonna be?”

“I guess whatever you think
is best.” She didn’t look too happy about that but there was no
give in me on this. I wonder what she meant by that crack about
what my wife thinks? If I find out Kat’s been talking to this chick
behind my back there’s going to be hell to pay. I don’t want her
involved until I get to the bottom of this shit so she better not
be or I’ll blow my fucking top. I don’t know what the hell I’m
supposed to do but I have to do something. I had a plan when I left
the house to come here, but I have to be as slick as I was coming
to believe she is if I wanted to pull it off.

“Would you like something to
drink or something? I don’t know how they feed people around
here.”