Over the next few hours, Nicky proved just how quick-thinking he really was. Tucker and Nicky both had been taken to the hospital in the same ambulance, with a separate one taking Jeremy Tate, who was suffering from a crushed windpipe. While Tucker was still unconscious the cops questioned Nicky, who told them an elaborate story about Tate picking them up while they were walking on a road near their home and then taking them back to his place and giving them drugs so he could rape them.

Their luck had held even more by virtue of the fact that the house they were being held in was right downtown, and a police car had been on patrol near the area when the call came over the radio. He’d been able to respond right away.

By the time they ’d arrived at the hospital in Brevard, Nicky had asked for a doctor named Dr. Cornsilk to meet them at the Emergency Room. Tucker was later reminded that this doctor was Werekin, on staff at the hospital. Cornsilk met the ambulance, his mouth a round o of surprise at the situation and their condition, not to mention finding out that his chief of staff was behind it all. Tucker was awake at that point and being treated by the EMTs for his injuries. Once inside the ER, the doctor found that he had a concussion from the blow given to him by the police officer who tried to pull him off Tate. It was fairly mild,and they didn’t think he would suffer any long-term effects, but wanted to keep him overnight. Other than high blood pressure, a side effect of the Taser, and contusions and bruises, hedidn’t have any other serious injuries. Blood work was pending, of course, to see just what that son of a bitch Tate had injected in his veins before Tucker woke up.

By this time Nicky, who insisted on staying in the same treatment room with Tucker had already tried to explain to Tucker what had been happening after Tate got him with the Taser.

“Thank goodness Tate left Adam there on the floor. I convinced him that the two of us were enough, so he left him.” His brow furrowed for a moment. “I hope someone found him pretty soon.”

“I’m sure they did,” Tucker mumbled. He had a terrible headache and he was dizzy and felt cold. The reaction to all they’d been through was setting in with a vengeance.

Nicky, on the other hand, probably because of the drugs in his system, was still high and a little manic. “Well, he took you and put you in the back of his car and took me with him, of course. I tried to make him think it was what I wanted anyway, but I don’t think he really believed me. He shot me up with drugs almost as soon as we got to that house.”

“About that, Nicky. He told me he used Valium, ecstasy and Oxycontin. How in the world are you even functioning with all that in your system?”

Nicky shrugged with a little smile. “When I left Marco a while ago, I was gone for about three months, mostly camping out in the woods above Gabe and Zack’s lodge in North Georgia. Anyway, I was doing a lot of drugs the whole time. Valium, oxy, meth…anything I could get my hands on. I used to walk down the trail a couple miles and then hitchhike to the nearest bar. I was drinking pretty heavy too. It’s a wonder I didn’t kill myself, really, but at the time, I didn’t much care, you know? Anyway, by the time I finally ran out of money to buy drugs, I was taking some pretty huge doses. After I came home, Dr. Cornsilk started weaning me off sort of gradually, because he wasn’t sure what would happen with my changed metabolism if I went cold turkey. The drugs Tate gave me made me high—the E was some kind of home-grown stuff, he told me. Really potent!” He laughed, rubbing his still-hard dick throughthe hospital scrubs he’d been given. “Damn, that shit was intense! The rest of it, though,really didn’t do much for me. I played it off, and got him thinking I was pretty high. He sent me down to set up the chair while he was shooting you up, and I managed to slip a knife out of the drawer in the kitchen. The rest was easy.”

Tucker shook his head admiringly. “Easy, huh? Well, thank God, Nicky. Pretty sure I wouldn’t have made it out without you.”

Nicky flashed him a big smile as loud voices filtered in from the waiting room outside the ER. They got louder as some kind of loud argument raged outside in the hallway. Nicky turned to Tucker with a grin. “Oh, Lord, sounds like the big-and-bads have arrived. Hang on tight! It’s gonna be a bumpy ride for a while.”

Within minutes, the curtain was flung back and both Gavin and Marco shouldered past the nurses who were ineffectually trying to stop them. Gavin rushed immediately to Tucker’s side and gathered him up in his arms, hugging him so tightly Tucker couldn’t breathe. Tucker nuzzled his nose in the hollow between Gavin’s shoulder and neck, and he was pretty sure a little sob stuttered out of his throat. He’d never been so happy and relieved to see anyone in his life. Vaguely, he was aware that a similar reunion was going on next to him with Nicky and Marco.

Two burly security guards burst onto the scene then, trying to get Gavin and Marco to leave. One of them made the mistake of taking hold of Marco’s arm to pull him away. It was only because of Nicky, who was perched on Marco’s lap holding him down that Marco didn’t do some serious damage to the room, not to mention the security guy. Dr. Cornsilk arrived breathlessly on the scene and managed to calm everyone down, but things were uncertain for a while. Throughout it all, still suffering from shock and whatever had been in the injection, Tucker clung to Gavin’s shoulders like a squirrel monkey, not wanting to let go of him for a moment. Gavin hunched protectively over him, not moving away until the guards left. When Tucker raised his head, he saw that Richard had come in too and was standing quietly by the gurney with his hands stuck in his pockets. Tucker held out a hand to him and was rewarded by a huge smile as he tightly gripped it.

Dr. Cornsilk insisted both patients spend the night in the hospital, so the next little while was taken up with transfers to a semi-private room upstairs, which they insisted on sharing.

During the transfer, Tucker was pulled away from Gavin. He still felt like hell, and didn’t want Gavin to know just how sluggishly his brain was working. They told him they were afraid to give him painkillers until they had all the results of the blood work, so his head was throbbing, and he ached all over. Once they were settled in the new room, Gavin sat beside him, his arms crossed as if holding himself together. His father stood by the window, his gaze never leaving Tucker’s face.

There was something important he needed to ask, but he couldn’t quite focus on what it was. Gavin scooted his chair closer, pushingTucker’s hair off his forehead. Tucker was so tired. His eyelids began to droop, the surroundings fading. He felt a soft kiss on his cheek. One bleary look around the room showed him his father had come to stand by the end of the bed and had his hand on his foot, while Gavin stroked his hair. It was the last thing he remembered before sleep swallowed him whole.

He awoke sometime in the middle of the night when a nurse came in to check his vitals. The room was dim, with the only light coming from the bathroom. When he opened his eyes, Gavin leaned forward, squeezing his hand. “You awake, baby?” he said softly, close to Tucker’s ear.

“Yeah,” he said, or tried to . His voice came out rusty, likehe hadn’t used it in a long time. Gavin kissed his hand. “You’re going to be fine, sweetheart. Dr. Cornsilk came in a while ago and told me the drugs that bastard shot you up with were nothing to be too concerned about, or at least not at the levels he injected you with. If he’d been able to give you more…” His voice trailed off, and Tucker sensed his body stiffening in anger and outrage again.

“Hey, it’s okay . He didn’t, right? Thanks to Nicky.” Tucker glanced over at the bed next to him and saw that Marco had somehow managed to climb into the small bed with Nicky and was spooning him. Nicky’s lips were parted and soft snoring sounds came from his throat. Both he and Marco were sound asleep.

Tucker turned back to Gavin. “Tell me what happened to Tate. Where is he? Did I…” Gavin’s face changed just a littl e, but Tucker was becoming familiar with all his expressions, and caught the subtle difference. “What is it? Is he dead?”

Gavin laughed shortly. “I wish. No, baby, the son of a bitch is gone. Somehow in the confusion when you all arrived at the hospital, he managed to walk out, right under everybody’s noses. We suspect he’s pretty well connected here in the hospital. Then too, maybe when Marco and I, uh…”

“When you pitched your little tantrum?” Tucker smiled, noting that even his face hurt when he did. “Yeah, probably.”

Gavin flushed and tightened his grip on Tucker’s hand. “I’m sorry, honey, but we were frantic. I left Marissa to watch you, and when you and Nicky never came back outside, she went inside to investigate and found Adam unconscious.”

“Marissa? Why Marissa? I know she hates me.”

“She doesn’t hate you, baby. She’s just very aggressive and protective of me. We’ve been friends for a long time. She kept out of sight in the trees because she knows how you feel about her.”

“Hmm,” Tucker said, trying to sound noncommittal. That she was protective of Gavin, he believed. But he’d seen her eyes when she looked at Gavin, and she didn’t feel only friendship for him. Of that, Tucker was positive.

“Anyway, in all the confusion, it took a few minutes for them to realize you and Nicky were missing. By the time Adam came around and filled us in, it was almost too late. We took off for Tate’s house as quickly as we could, but there was no one there. We know now that he had you in some kind of secret safe house for him and his men, right in the middle of town.”

“Those Hunters he was talking about?”

“That’s right. From what Nicky told us he’s reactivated the Hunters. Some of the shit he said was just incredible.”

“Like the fact that he’s Elias Winters’ son?”

“Yes—his illegitimate son. That would makehim Logan’s half-brother, if he’s telling the truth. Did you know that Logan was the son of Elias Winters?”

“I don’t know. Not really.A lot of relationships to keep up with.”