Chapter 1, Waste a Moment // Kings of Leon

Jackson

"Well, well, well, how the tables have turned." Brax saunters into Grinder's hospital room with a satisfied look in his eyes and an even more satisfied smile. He ceremoniously drags the bedside chair to the middle of the room and plops into it, putting his boots up on Grinder's bed, legs crossed at the ankles and arms behind his head.

"I hear it's just a flesh wound but you're so old they're keeping you overnight."

"He was knocked unconscious," my dad says.

"From a flesh wound," Brax says flatly.

"I fell on my fucking tailbone. Broke it. That's why I blacked out." Grinder narrows his gaze. "Not 'cause I'm old, son."

"Still not your son. You got a nasty scrape on your leg and broke your butt. Did I get it all?" Brax stifles a smirk but I see it ready to burst from his mouth.

"Get the eff outa here." Grinder waves him off.

Brax leans forward, resting his hand on Grinder's forearm.

"Consider this payback from when you visited me. My boots aren't as muddy as yours and I came through the main entrance not the back. Guess I don't have the same effect on security guards as you." He leans back into the chair, returning to his previously smug posture.

"Leave my dirty boots outa this." Grinder narrows his eyes directly at Brax. "And real Reapers never use the main entrance."

"Thank fuck I'm not a real Reaper. You're only in here overnight, by the way. I didn't really need to visit but I couldn't resist."

"I shouldn't have wasted my time visiting you, but Maria had that damn burner phone she wanted me to get to you. Turned out alright in the end, I guess." Grinder's tone softens just a little.

"I was laid up for over two weeks, Grind. Remember that? I had physical therapy for months. I was way more messed up than you are now."

"You wiped out on your motorcycle traveling at unsafe speeds in bumper to bumper traffic. That's basically self-inflicted. I was shot."

"You were grazed."

"Anyway," I say, hoping to pause the weird pissing match. "We need a plan. Judge isn't going to slink into the night never to be seen again. He's roped my mother into his family neglect. He's already threatened Holly with some kind of scam involving money. I don't trust him to leave her alone."

I have the urge to take Holly into hiding, but I know that's a mistake. A false sense of security. We need to take Judge down one way or another. I don't care if it's vigilante crap that the Reapers pull or by calling in more law enforcement. Whatever it takes to keep him away from Holly permanently, I'll do.

Brax wipes the hint of a smirk from his face, all seriousness taking over his features.

"I haven't interacted with him much over the years, so I'll take your lead, Grinder."

"Finally, you defer to my expertise."

"Yes, I'm willing to listen to your vast knowledge of criminal exploits."

I can't tell if they're messing around or serious. I decide not to care.

"What do we know that could help figure out where he is and how to take him out." I say the words as images of him being arrested fill my mind. That needs to happen, and it needs to stick.

"Brax, I hate to say this, but Judge did get along well with your old man and your ma." My dad offers his quiet observation from the corner of the room.

From the silence between the three of them—Brax, Grinder and my dad—I take it that this is important information. But I don't understand it.

"Why does that matter?" All three sets of eyes turn my way, weary with whatever story is playing in their minds.

"My ma took me and her back to her brothers after my dad passed." Brax begins. "Her brothers were the leaders of a street gang in the city. Over the years, the gang's reach stretched beyond local crimes and into organized shit. Smuggling and trafficking drugs, stolen cars...you name it. Most of them are in jail now, a couple of them on the run."

"Shit." I knew some of this but not the full story.

"I wonder if he's right," Grinder says, pointing to my dad. "Judge did have an unusual connection with Maria." His eyes darken in thoughts or memories as he speaks. "He'd seek her out at gatherings, especially after your dad died. They'd get in heated conversations she never wanted me participating in. What if they stayed in contact."

"Judge stayed in contact with my mom, too." I say. "It wouldn't be crazy if he also talked to Brax's."

The men grow quiet, each contemplating the possibilities.

"I think I need to call Frank," Brax says, standing up and reaching for his keys. "Don't strain yourself, old man."

"Fuck you." Grinder grumbles.

Brax leaves with promises to let us know what Frank says. I start to get the itch to check in with Holly as I've done for the last twenty-four hours. She's probably getting sick of my calls and texts, but I need to know she's okay. At least until we know what Judge is up to.

I decide to step out to the hospital garden walk in the center of the building that Grinder told me about. I get off the elevator on the ground floor, following the signs to the garden walk. A hallway leads to a glass door that opens up to an atrium type setting. The building surrounds the area on four sides but there's a path winding through the middle with trees and flowers on either side, a very parklike feeling. Benches are scattered throughout. I find one, take a seat and look up to see a glass ceiling several stories above me, letting in the natural light but keeping the weather out.

I pull out my phone and call Holly. It rings three times before her voicemail pops on. I'm in the middle of leaving her a message when I get an incoming call. It's from her.

"Hey," I say. I'm relieved she called back right away otherwise I would have started to panic. "What have you been up to. How's your mom?"

"She's doing good today. So good that I'm headed into work. I didn't want to have to call out again."

"It's good to hear she's doing good. But be careful, okay? Let me know when you get there. And when you leave. And when you get to Grinder and Julia's."

"Jackson, this is starting to get old. You've had me checking in with you like this for weeks. Everything's fine. I'm just going to work, not the other side of the world."

I take a deep breath and lean back on the bench, running a hand through my hair. "I know. I'm just freaking out over here, is all. I don't trust your dad."

"Yeah, me neither. Never have. But I can handle myself around him if I need to."

"Are you forgetting the bruise that's still on your cheek? And the fact that Grinder's in the hospital because your dad shot him?"

Silence. Holly doesn't say anything for a good thirty seconds. I know I'm starting to smoother her with my protectiveness, but I honestly can't help it. She can't deny that her dad is a loose cannon.

"I can't focus on that right now. I have to move forward. I have to help my mom. And I have to go to work."

I close my eyes. "I know, baby. And I want to support you in all of that. I also want you alive. With me. I'll try to back off, but I can't promise I'll stop altogether. Not until your dad is out of the picture."

"You sound like the mob."

"Well, they do know how to get things done." I lighten the tone of my voice. Holly laughs softly so I think she senses my attempt.

"Alright, Al Capone. I need to get going if I'm going to be on time."

"I'll check in with Julia and your mom to see if they need anything. I'm no good to get any work done today anyway."

"Thank you. That really helps ease my mind knowing you're there for her."

"Call me as soon-" I cut myself off, remembering my promise to try to back away and let her breathe. "Just, call me later."

"I will. I love you."

"I love you, too."

We end the call as I gaze around the garden. It's pretty but I still feel like I'm in a hospital. I rise and head back in to let Grinder and my dad know that I'm taking off. When I get back to the room, I find Grinder on the phone nodding his head at whatever he's hearing on the other end.

"Right," he mutters.

My dad puts a finger to his lips to keep me quiet. I nod in understanding but remain standing by the bed, watching Grinder's facial expressions which are all over the place.

His eyebrows shoot up as his eyes pop. He shakes his head, eyes closed and a hand on his forehead. Then his eyes squeeze shut when he throws his head back onto his pillow.

"Are you fucking serious? Since when?"

I look at my dad for a hint of something, any clue into the conversation. All he does is shrug.

"It would have been nice if someone, oh I don't know, TOLD us about this. A warning. A heads up. A fucking telegram. Damn."

Grinder's fist punches the mattress.

"I know it's just a flesh wound! It could have been worse." He grinds his teeth together. "Fine. Follow up and let me fucking know the second you do." Grinder jams his thumb on the end call button and tosses the phone at the end of the bed.

"Fuck."

"I'm sensing that call pissed you off."

"Yeah, pretty much. Seems like our old buddy on the force, Frank, already had the intel on Judge."

"What does that mean?" Every nerve in my body is on high alert now.

"It means he's a known offender of the illegal substance transport variety. He's been pulled over in several states. This is bigger than us, bigger than Frank, but he wants our help to nail him."

"I have a feeling I'm not going to like this."

"You're feeling is accurate. And I'm sorry to be the one to tell you but it looks like your ma is involved, too."

I let his words sink in. I mull them over, waiting for some kind of feeling to rise to the top. I'm not surprised in the least. It's something I'd started to wonder over the past few days. Nope. Nothing. Not even disappointment. I've been long over letting her disappoint me and even though this is a new low for her, is it really? I think the rest of the crap I did know about is so much worse.

"Okay. Now what?" I look up to find Grinder and my dad watching me. Dad's been mostly quiet throughout this exchange. Right now he looks broken.

"Dad, you can't be shocked by this. I think it's probably written in her DNA to be a shitty person."

"Maybe. But I feel like I helped her along the path in some way."

I cross the room to where he is. The woman broke him, there's no other word for it. And I think it's going to take a long time for him to move past feeling like he's failed. I won't let him drown in those thoughts.

"Dad, the only thing you did was agree to be with her. She did the rest all on her own."

"Butch, ya gotta stop taking all this on your shoulders. Verna does what the hell she wants to. Always has, always will. Jackson's right. It's in her DNA. And thank fuck he has some of yours because he's turned out to be a damn good person. It sure ain't cause of her."

My dad sits up straighter. "Alrighty then. What's to be done to keep Holly and Jackson safe from all this?"

"Holly and Jackson? What about me?" Grinder points at his leg, stitched up and wrapped in a bandage.

"I think you'll live. But Dad's right. We need a plan. Some way to get to Judge and my mom."

"You got her number, right?" Grinder raises a brow. "Call the woman. Ask to meet with her. I have a feeling she's got the inside information you want."

Shit. I pull out my phone and look up her contact. Staring at it, my stomach starts to hurt. I don't want to talk to her. But if it gets Judge away from Holly and her mom, I'll do it.

I hope my mom knows something. And I hope I can convince her to let it slip.

YEET!! I loved writing this one (finally) I got the inspo very late in the week but once I did the words flowed. For any of you who've read both Inevitable and Unexpected, I hope you like the little nod to the hospital scenes in those books! If you haven't read them, what are you waiting for??

Next week we'll pivot back to Holly but the chapter may end with Jackson. We shall see...

Song-wise, this one is a pick not because it fits the scene but the mood of the song is pure Jackson. Plus, Kings of Leon IS Jackson, so...

[There should be a GIF or video here. Update the app now to see it.]

Hang tight for a fun Charmer announcement! If you've read my folktale/fantasy mashup about a bitter baker's daughter and an irritating Lord who swoops into her town - plus hints of magic and steampunk - here's your hint to give it a try! (full disclosure, very unedited!)