28-Crow
1002 Words
One night, as we were cleaning up the bar, Rouger pulled me aside. "You can't keep playing this game, kid," he warned. "You're going to get burned."
"What do you mean?" I asked, my voice tight.
He leaned closer, his eyes serious. "Crow's got his demons. And when they come out to play, it's not pretty."
I swallowed hard, the fear rising in my throat like bile. "I can handle it," I said, trying to sound more confident than I felt.
Rouger's gaze searched mine. "I hope you're right," he said finally. "For Leo's sake. And for yours."
But as much as I tried to ignore the warnings, the whispers grew louder. The Serpents had noticed the change in me, the way I carried myself with a newfound confidence. And they didn't like it.
One evening, as I was locking up, Snake's voice slithered out of the shadows. "Looks like you're fitting in nicely, sweetheart," he sneered. "But don't get too comfortable."
I turned, my hand on the gun hidden in the small of my back. "What do you want?" I demanded.
He took a step closer, the moonlight glinting off his piercing gaze. "Just a friendly reminder," he said. "You're still on borrowed time."
The words sent a cold shiver down my spine, but I didn't flinch. "I'm not afraid of you," I spat.
Snake's smile was a knife. "You should be," he said, before disappearing back into the night.
As I drove home, the wind whipping through my hair, I knew that no matter how much I tried to keep my two worlds separate, they were colliding.
"Hey Leo, how was your day?" I called out, trying to keep my voice light as I walked into the mansion.
"It was okay," he said, his voice muffled from the cookie in his mouth. "Just tired."
The sight of him, so pale and weak, was a stark reminder of why I was doing this. I had to keep my job at the bar, no matter what.
But as I tucked him into bed, I couldn’t help but worry. He seemed to be getting worse, not better.
The following days at the bar were marked by an eerie calm. Snake and the Serpents remained in the shadows, their presence felt but not seen. It was as if a storm was brewing just beyond the horizon, and everyone at the Murder of Crows was waiting for the first bolt of lightning to strike.
"Keep your eyes peeled," Crow would murmur to me, his hand resting briefly on the small of my back. It was a casual touch, but one that sent a jolt of both comfort and fear through me. We were all on edge, our senses heightened, waiting for the moment the serpents would slither into our midst.
During the day, while Leo was at pre-school, I'd find myself lost in thought, the mundane tasks of the bar blurring into the background. I'd catch myself staring at the faded photo of Crow and Mel, Mel's mom smiling proudly between them. Now, as I gazed at the picture, I felt guilty. I'd never even thought to ask Mel what had happened to her. Giving a slow shake of my head, I turned back to stocking.
I was placing the last bottle on the shelf, when my phone buzzed in my pocket. Wearing a frown, I fished it out of my pocket, Peering at the screen, then felt my heart drop. It was Leo's specialist.
~~
"Leo needs a kidney transplant," the doctor's voice was cold, clinical over the phone. It was like someone had reached into my chest and squeezed my heart. "We need to find a match as soon as possible."
"But...but how? We've been through all this," I stuttered, my hand shaking as I clutched the phone.
"I know it's a shock, but we've exhausted all other options. His condition is deteriorating rapidly."
The words swirled in my head, a tornado of fear and despair. A transplant. That meant more bills, more danger, more risks. But for Leo...I'd do anything.
I swiped at the tears that threatened to spill over. "Okay," I choked out. "I'll do whatever it takes."
"I know it's a lot to take in," the doctor's voice was empathetic, yet firm. "But we need to act quickly. The sooner we can get Leo on the transplant list, the better his chances."
"But...what if we can't find a match?" I asked, fear in my voice.
There was a pause on the other end of the line. "It's a possibility," he admitted. "But we'll do everything we can. We'll check the donor lists, run tests on family members, and even consider the possibility of a living donor."
The doctor's words echoed in my head like a funeral bell, tolling the potential end of Leo's life. "Oh God," I whispered, my eyes blurring with unshed tears. "What if we don't?"
He cleared his throat, his voice heavy with the weight of the situation. "Don't jump immediately to the worst Oceano. We'll need to start with immediate family. We know you aren’t a match, but is there any other family?"
"There isn't any other family. I’m all he has," I answered, my voice weak as the words stuck in my throat.
"I see," he said, his tone carefully neutral. "Then we'll have to consider other options."
The silence that followed was suffocating. I could hear the clock ticking on the wall, each second a painful reminder of the race against time. "What if we don't find a match?" I finally choked out.
He took a deep breath. "We're going to do everything we can," he assured me. "But it's a serious situation. We're looking at a wait that could be months, maybe even years."
My knees buckled under the weight of his words, and I had to sit down. Years. The thought of Leo suffering through that, of waiting and hoping for a miracle that might never come, was too much to bear.
- Writer
