Through the Storm (The Montclair Brothers) Read Online Free PDF

okay, Brian, I spoke with her surgeon." Emma wished she didn't have to have this conversation with him. Renee had become his only safe haven. Now, she had to try and fill those shoes. "Are you in pain?"
    "Yeah. My back is killing me." Brian's hand was wrapped tightly around the bedrail. "Who did this to us?" he whispered; his breathing was becoming more rapid.
    "Robert was in the driveway shooting at us. The bullet hit your kidney and came out of your abdomen. The doctor will explain more to you when he does his rounds. It didn't strike your spine and you're going to make a full recovery. Everyone is." I hope that wasn't a lie, thought Emma.
    "Damn him!" Brian fiercely shook the bedrail.
    "I know you want to leave, but you can't. You need a lot of medical attention, Brian. I need to give the staff some information about you, so they can provide you with adequate care. Because you're a minor, the doctors will need to contact your parents." Emma held her breath, waiting for the kid to explode.
    "No! They'll make me go back home!" Brian tried to get up again.
    "We're not going to let that happen. All of us are here, and we'll protect you." Emma eased him back down on the bed. She hoped they could protect him. So far, they'd done a horrible job. But like Tyler told her, when she'd had to disclose Renee and Brian's whereabouts, it's better to be hated, knowing her friends were safe.
    "You don't understand the system like I do, Emma. If I tell the staff who I am, they'll call the cops to find out my parents' phone number." Brian shook his head and stared at the ceiling.
    "The doctors have to have more information to safely treat you. You could have a really bad allergic reaction to these drugs! They were able to operate on you because it was an emergency, but I think it's time for you to be upfront with them. We don't even know your last name, Brian, and we've been together for a while now. What is it?" Emma pleaded.
    "I really like you guys, Em. I've never had friends before, let alone a family, but I can't risk it. If I go back to my parents, they'll kill me. You'll never see me again, and no one will know what happened."
    Emma wished he'd tell her everything, but she knew how fearful he was. The first night she'd met him, he was like a scared cat. After Brian got to know her and the Montclairs, his trust grew, and he was even able to relax around them.
    "Brian, your parents can't hurt you here, and you won't be discharged until you're better. That'll give us time to build an abuse case against them. There's a lot of staff running around the halls, and they'll be in and out of your room, so your parents aren't going to have the balls to harm you while you're here. Let us call the police for you, and you can tell them about the abuse. They'll make a report and do an investigation. The cops won't let you go back home to them with those kinds of charges pending." Emma watched Brian's eyes widen again.
    "No cops! I'm not talking to the staff, either. When I get better, I'm going to walk right out that front door, and I'm taking Renee with me!" Brian raised his voice.
    " Listen, just be honest with the detective when he comes to talk to you." Emma was already kicking herself for saying too much.
    "Detective? What ?! Get me my clothes. I have to get out of here!" Brian began to shove the covers off of himself.
    "I'm sorry, Kid, but you can't go anywhere," said the officer as he stepped inside the room.

Chapter 4
     
     
    It took a while for Emma to calm Brian down. The nurse had come in, asked the officer to wait in the hallway, and then injected pain medication into Brian's IV. It didn't take long for him to become sleepy. Emma knew she'd have to make sure to stay right beside him until he was completely out of it, or he'd get riled up again. She leaned back in her chair and held his hand, waiting for him to doze off. She was pretty angry that the cop had spoken to Brian like he was some kind of prisoner. But weren't they all? They