Gray's Blade (No More Maybes #2) Read online

  Gray’s Blade

  ALSO BY ELIZABETH STEVENS

  unvamped

  Netherfield Prep

  the Trouble with Hate is…

  Accidentally Perfect

  Keeping Up Appearances

  No More Maybes books

  No More Maybes

  Gray’s Blade

  a No More Maybes novel

  Elizabeth Stevens

  Sleeping Dragon Books

  Gray’s Blade

  by Elizabeth Stevens

  Print ISBN: 978-0648264835

  Digital ISBN: 978-0648264828

  Cover art by: Izzie Duffield

  Copyright 2018 Elizabeth Stevens

  Worldwide Electronic & Digital Rights

  Worldwide English Language Print Rights

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned or distributed in any form, including digital and electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without the prior written consent of the Publisher, except for brief quotes for use in reviews. This book is a work of fiction. Characters, names, places and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to any actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental

  For Charny, Lauren and Josie,

  you waited (sort of) patiently for him and now he’s here.

  Contents

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  One

  O

  pening my eyes was an exercise in futility as everything was fuzzy. I sighed and made to move, but pain lanced through me and I grunted. Closing eyes was better.

  There was movement beside me and I felt a hand take hold of mine, not that it really felt like my hand. I tried wiggling my fingers and the other hand clenched reflexively.

  “Cole?”

  That was a voice I recognised. But why?

  “Cole, honey. Can you hear me?”

  I knew, whoever she was, she represented all things light and warm and calm in my life. But, I couldn’t pull my mind out of the slush long enough to work out anything else.

  “Nurse! Doctor!”

  She sounded posh and she sounded worried.

  But, why the fuck would she be worried?

  There was more movement and I might have made a noise.

  “I think he’s awake, I’m not sure.”

  “We’ll take a look at him, Lady Jones,” an older man’s voice said.

  I felt fingers on my face and tried to shy away. They lifted my eyelid and pointed light in it. I blinked and groaned, my throat feeling like it was on fire. Dry fire.

  “Cole, can you hear me?” the voice asked.

  I nodded slowly, but pain still shot through my head. I swallowed a couple of times, which dulled the fire somewhat, and tried opening my eyes again. A few blinks and I could see a little better. I looked around. The room was stark and bright, and I smelled the hauntingly familiar scent of hospital. There was a vaguely recognisable blur of an older woman in a cream skirt suit with a string of pearls around her neck. Her light grey hair was styled like something you might see on the Queen. A middle-aged man in a white coat stood by my bedside and a younger man in scrubs stood behind him.

  “Okay, good. Can you tell me your name?” the guy in the white coat asked. I assumed he was my doctor.

  I couldn’t remember why, but this was a routine I was used to.

  I blinked. “Uh… Fie–” My throat caught and the doctor helped me take a sip of water. “Fielding. Cole Fielding.” I tried again, sounding raspy.

  “Good, Cole. And, do you know what day it is?”

  I looked around. “Uh…depends… How long have I…?” I swallowed again. Talking felt like glass shards fucking dancing in my throat. Sticking to smaller sentences seemed like a great plan. “Hospital?” I asked and the doctor nodded. “How long?”

  He looked at a file in his hands. “You were brought into emergency…about two weeks ago.”

  I nodded, despite the throbbing in my head. “Okay. What day of the week is it?”

  The doctor looked to the woman before looking back to me. “Thursday.”

  “Uh, so… It’s the tenth of March?” I asked, looking at them for confirmation.

  The doctor looked to the woman. His brows furrowed and he was looking somewhat sceptical. “Did you tell him?”

  She shook her head, looking at me fondly, but I thought there were tears in her eyes. “No, he’s always been incredibly intelligent. Shame he doesn’t do more with it,” she finished with a teasing admonishment like it would stave off the tears.

  “Grandma…” I started, then stopped. “Grandma.” I looked at her, pieces falling into place. “Why am I here?” God, my throat felt like I’d swallowed nails and my head felt like I had the worst hangover ever.

  Which I’d know all about.

  Plus, that Offspring song was stuck in my head now.

  “What do you remember, Cole?” the doctor asked.

  I looked down and saw I had a cast on one leg and another on one elbow. “Uh…nothing. Sorry. I… I was going to pick Matty up from school–”

  “We’ll talk about that later, Cole,” Grandma said, succeeding in sounding a little more authoritative with her disappointment this time.

  Something in my chest twinged and I felt bad that I had so bitterly disappointed her. I couldn’t quite remember why yet, but I knew I had. And I knew it wasn’t the first time. It probably wouldn’t be the last either.

  “There’s a Sergeant Lewis outside who wants to ask you a few questions, if you feel up to it?” the doctor asked, looking to Grandma again.

  “He’s eighteen, it’s up to him,” she replied with a shrug.

  “I… I’ll do what I can,” I answered, trying to remember anything.

  The doctor stuck his head out of the door and called to Sergeant Lewis, who must have been the guy who walked in behind the tiny blur that launched itself onto the bed and made everything fucking hurt. Everything. Except my heart. This was someone I could never forget, even for a moment or with an awful head injury. Some kind of concussion.

  Should have just played rugby and hung the consequences. Not like I don’t get my share of concussions anyway…

  The small blur threw its arms around my neck, focussing my brain somewhat.

  “Matty, careful, huh, bud?” I breathed a chuckle, but my arms went around him instinctually, despite the pain.

  He pulled back and looked at me with those wounded blue eyes. But, his wounds weren’t visible and I didn’t even think he knew he had them. The innocence in them made him look much younger than his twelve years. As he looked at me, the fear in them dissipated and he grinned widely.

  “I was worried, Cole,” he said.

  I nodded and ignored all the pain in my body to hug him tighter. “I know, bud, I’m sorry.”

  Grandma cleared her throat and reached for Matt. “Let’s go and get Cole something to eat, shall we, Matty?” she asked, giving me a shaky smile.

  I smiled
at her over the top of Matt’s head and let go of him, nudging him towards her. “Go on, yeah?”

  Matt bounced off the bed and let Grandma take his hand before dragging her out. I flopped back on the bed and looked to Sergeant Lewis, all semblance of good mood vanishing.

  “I don’t know how much help I’ll be…” I said slowly.

  “That’s okay. What can you tell me, Cole?” he asked.

  My memory was coming back. There was nothing about what landed me in hospital this time yet, but everything else was clear as anything.

  “Not a lot, Lewis. I was going to pick Matty up from school–”

  “You want to tell me why you weren’t in school, too?”

  I sighed and frowned at him. “Seriously? Why don’t you fucking marry her already and then you can order me around all you like.”

  Sergeant Lewis scowled. “We’re all just trying to help you, son. What else do you remember?”

  “Why don’t you tell me what you know?” I snapped, annoyed and sore and sick of all the bullshit. “Was it him? Or have I taken up day drinking?”

  Lewis’ face was a mash up of sympathy and displeasure. “There was no alcohol in your system. For once. You getting into many fights on the way to pick up Matt?”

  “What are you insinuating, Lewis?” I sneered.

  Lewis shrugged. “Just that I’ve got to know you these last few months, Cole. I can’t imagine even your attitude and predilection for – what does Lady Jones call it? – degeneracy would get in the way of you being there for your brother. So, I’m going to go out on a limb here and suggest that, yeah, it was him. Can you tell me anything?”

  “I’ve got nothing to say.”

  Lewis sighed again, exasperation evident. “Cole, come on. We can put him away.”

  “Yeah, how long for this time? A week? A month? He’ll get out, Lewis, he always does and you fucking know it.”

  “But, we can give you some reprieve, Cole.”

  I snorted and immediately regretted it as my throat heartily complained. I shook my head as I took a sip of water. “And, as soon as he’s out again, he’ll come for Matty as punishment. Thanks, but no thanks.”

  Lewis scowled, his pen ready to take notes. “Did he tell you that?”

  I gave him a withering glare. “I’m a degenerate, not an idiot. He doesn’t have to tell me. I know him, Lewis. I put him in prison and he’ll just come out angrier. It’s not worth putting Matty through that again.”

  “Cole, we can protect you and Matt–”

  “Like you protected me two weeks ago?” I spat. I wasn’t really pissed at Lewis; the police were doing all they could to protect us and me not helping them with their case wasn’t helping any. I sighed. “Just, leave it Lewis, please? Maybe if I remembered something… Without that, it’s just speculation and hearsay. You know that.”

  Lewis gave me a sad smile. “All right, Cole. Well, let me know if you change your mind.”

  “I won’t.”

  “I know,” he said, almost sadly. He turned and left me to myself.

  I took a deep breath, heedless of how painful it was. If it had been him, it was no wonder I was still alive. The man would much prefer to keep me alive and tormented than put me out of all our fucking misery. I took another deep breath, knowing it would do Matty no good if I was pissed off when he came back. He didn’t understand it all; all he knew was that I was hurt. Again.

  “Fuck, why do I do this to him?” I mumbled, my good arm over my eyes and not for the first time wondering if Matty wouldn’t be better off without me.

  “Cole?”

  I opened my eyes and saw Matty and Grandma standing in the doorway, a tray of food in Matt’s arms. He looked so damned small, so young, so unsure. I knew he looked up to me. God only knew why, but he did, and I did everything I could to be worthy of that love and respect. But, like most of the rest of our family, I failed him constantly. Even knowing that fact didn’t seem to change anything.

  It really would have been better for Matt that the monster just killed me as well and be done with it. But, I was more amusing alive.

  “I’m fine, bud. Just a little tired,” I answered his un-asked question.

  Matty frowned, but a smile played at his lips. “You’ve been asleep forever, Cole. You can’t still be tired!”

  I chuckled. “Yeah, I know, bud.”

  “If you don’t feel up to it, I could eat your pudding?” Matty whispered as though he hoped Grandma wouldn’t hear and gave me a sneaky smile.

  “Well, I might need some help with it, bud. Up you hop.” I wriggled over as best I could and patted the bed next to me.

  Matty smiled and I knew whatever worries he had were assuaged for now. Grandma wasn’t so easily placated, and I could see in her eyes that we were going to have some serious words later.

  The woman had been a godsend for Matty.

  As for me?

  Well, let’s just say I wasn’t taking to this whole parental figure thing quite as well as I should have been.

  ****

  I wriggled my foot and tested my elbow.

  “How’s that feeling?” the doctor asked.

  I nodded. “Yeah, fine. Little stiff, but,” I shrugged, “you know, the usual.”

  The doctor nodded as he looked over my notes. “You’ll know what to expect now. Physio is important, as is the moon boot.”

  I nodded, trying to hide my annoyance. “Sure.”

  “I’m serious, Cole,” the doctor said sternly. “I know what happened last time. You’ve got to wear the boot for at least the next two weeks.”

  I sat in sullen silence, looking forward to getting home and having a drink and a smoke. I’d been holed up in my room for the last four weeks with little but my own poisonous thoughts for company. I hadn’t been alone the whole time, but it certainly hadn’t been as much fun as I would have liked, or as I was used to. Seriously, you try fucking your grandmother’s maids with two casts and your little brother down the hall – totally ruins the mood. Plus, the pain meds were totally fucking with my alcohol intake and I was this close to done with the whole thing. The only good thing to come out of it was that I’d made a pretty good dent in my to-read list.

  “Cole? Are you listening to the doctor?” Grandma asked, bring my mind back to the present.

  I nodded. “Yes, got it. Stupid moon boot bullshit for at least two weeks,” I muttered.

  “Cole!”

  “What?”

  “Apologise to the doctor.”

  I glared at him and saw his face pale slightly.

  “It’s fine, Lady Jones… Irritability in a case like this is common and understandable–”

  “I love my grandson, doctor, but let’s not make unnecessary justifications for his poor behaviour, shall we?” Grandma’s voice was stern and even I quailed a little. “Lord knows he needs a little more discipline in his life. Manners seem a good place to start.”

  My eyes flicked towards the ceiling for a moment, then found hers narrowed at me. Love overrode everything else in them, but there was a heavier than usual dose of authority and displeasure. I knew I hadn’t been the easiest to get along with lately – not that there was much change in that – but I didn’t think I’d been as bad as I could have. Surely that counted for something?

  I was still in this weird push-pull when it came to Grandma’s discipline. On the one hand, it was totally foreign and I rebelled against it with everything in me. But, on the other, I loved and appreciated that someone cared enough to want me to be better. In typical me fashion, I never did show her I appreciated it as much as I showed her I hated it, so I tried my best to be good now.

  Taking a deep breath, I cut off the doctor’s apologies. “I’m sorry I was rude and sounded ungrateful.” Fuck, why do I always sound like such a dick when I’m trying to be sincere…? I snorted to myself, Lack of practise, no doubt. “I’ll wear the moon boot for at least two weeks.”

 
The doctor’s smile was thankful and just a little uncomfortable. “Great. You don’t have to wear it to bed, unless you find it more comfortable. Same goes for washing. And, if you’re sitting for long periods, you can give it a rest. Just make sure you’re wearing it whenever you’re standing and on your leg as much as possible.”

  I nodded again and my “sure” was a little less abrupt this time and I injected as much sincerity as I could.

  The appointment finished up fairly quickly after that and I hobbled after Grandma to the car.

  Grandma’s butler, Jeffrey, pulled out of the carpark. “I’ll drop you home first. Can you let me know what you want for dinner?”

  “I’m coming. Let Matty pick, I don’t mind.”

  “You don’t want to go home now?”

  I shrugged. “No, I’ll come.”

  “Are you sure? You don’t need to go home and sit in a funk and steal my good liquor?”

  I tried not to smile at her teasing tone. “Yes, I’m sure. I’m coming.”

  I’d promised Matty I’d turn up after my appointment; it was the last day of term and I’d promised him I’d be there and we’d start the holidays off with a bang. And, I really needed to log some more hours on the good brother clock or Matt was going to notice at some point that I was a piece of shit.

  We drove for a while in silence and I watched the world go by as I tried not to itch my leg. The annoyance was just settling, my anger was just subsiding, when Grandma opened her mouth with her damn regal nonchalance.

  “Cole…” Grandma started in her warning tone.

  “Phyllis…” I replied in the same tone, not looking up from my phone.

  “I’m trying to be serious, dear. Please hold your witty sarcasm at bay for just a moment.” It’s not like Grandma was looking up from hers.

  I sighed. “Sorry, Grandma. What is it?”

  “I’ve made a decision.”

  “Uh huh. And, why does it sound like I’m going to absolutely love this decision?”