“What floor?” Mo asked pushing the number four button.
“I’m going to four too.” Kevin said slumping into the corner of the elevator as the doors slid shut.
“Small world.” Mo mumbled to himself staring straight ahead.
Closing his eyes as the elevator surged Kevin felt like he was going to throw up from his wicked ass hangover that could’ve killed a horse.
After Kristen had left their hotel room in a huff, he’d ended up drinking so much that eventually he passed out in his own puke on the balcony of their room, covered in seagull shit and surrounded by empty bottles of beer and chunks of bread that he had been throwing at the birds.
Once he’d come to and dragged his sorry ass to the shower he realized that Kristen was right, he was a damn fool. A damn fool for thinking that his self-destructive behavior would bring Brian back. Brian was gone and he was going to have to find a way to live with that and maybe that way was going to be to make peace with Nick?
As the elevator doors opened on the fourth floor both Mo and Kevin stepped out and headed to the front desk where a nurse sat twirling a strand of hair around her index finger and giggling on the phone to a friend.
Looking up at the two men standing in front of her she said a quick “hang on” into the receiver setting the phone down on the desk and looking up at the men with a smile.
“Can I help you?” Mo signaled that Kevin was welcome to go first.
“I’m looking for my friends room.”
“Who’s your friend?” She said pulling out the patient list from beneath a stack of folders.
“Nick Carter.”
* * *
“What time is it?” The security guard shuffled the deck of cards looking around Nick’s room for a clock.
“Almost 10:00 p.m.” Nick answered pointing at the small round clock above the door.
“Shit man someone was supposed to come and take over for me at 10:00 I wonder where the hell he is?”
* * *
Mo stood back listening to the exchange between Kevin and the nurse.
Son of a bitch, there weren’t supposed to be any visitors at this time of night so he hoped that the nurse would do her job and get rid of the guy trying to get in after visiting hours.
Hearing the ding of the elevator Mo checked his watch and glanced over at the guy in the security guard uniform stepping off of the elevator.
“Hey, can I help you?” Mo stepped away from the front desk walking over to the guy.
“Yeah, I’m looking for Nick Carter’s room. I’m supposed to relieve the guard who is on duty right now.”
“Oh man didn’t they call you? I guess they scheduled two of us tonight and they only need one guard until morning.”
“Well shit man if you’ve got the shift then I’m outta here.” The guy slapped Mo on the back. “I got better things to do then guard some punk ass kid from a Boyband.”
“I’m with you buddy.” Mo chuckled adjusting his hat. “But you know, duty calls.”
Mo watched the guy get back on the elevator smiling as the doors slid shut. It had been pure genius of him to call the hospital earlier in the day to find out what time the shift change for security on Nick’s room would be taking place. The girl he had spoken to was more then happy to accommodate him with the information once he had explained that he was from the security company and needed the info so he could schedule his guards for the remainder of the shifts.
Everything seemed to be falling nicely into place he thought as he turned and headed back to the front desk passing Kevin who was on the way down the hall to Nick’s room.
* * *
Dan had an address, a fucking address. He could hardly believe his good luck at running into that waitress who is turn had introduced him to the woman who worked behind the counter of the bowling alley and went by the name of Dawn.
“Hey Dawn.” As they approached the woman looked up from the newspaper spread out on the shoe rental counter. “This guy is looking for that big fuck that hung around with Monty.”
“Who?” Closing the paper Dawn ignored the ringing phone on the counter beside her.
“You know, that big square faced fuck he hung out with Monty. Didn’t you say that you saw him hanging around with some Latino kid?” Dan’s waitress leaned her hip into the counter, as she spoke not bothering to introduce Dan who hovered nearby.
“Oh you mean Mo? Yeah, me and Roger saw them driving around in a BMW a few days ago.”
“You said the guy’s name is Mo?” Elbowing his waitress out of the way Dan took over the questioning.
“Yeah, or at least that is what Monty called him.”
“And he was driving a BMW, what color of BWM?” Dan had been the first one to report that Brian Littrell’s black BMW that he and Nick had been seen driving in the day before the shootings was missing.
“It was black.”
“When was this?”
“No I haven’t seen them together since that day we saw them in the car but I have seen Mo in the bowling alley since.”
“When was the last time you saw this Mo?”
“Last night, he was in the bar watching the news and drinking a beer like he has been practically every night for the last week. He always sits in the corner, drinks until the news is over and then leaves.” Glancing around the bowling alley Dan could feel beads of perspiration forming on his upper lip at the excitement of what he was about to uncover.
“Has anybody ever seen where Mo goes when he leaves this place?” Dawn shrugged as the phone began to ring again.
“When I was driving home from my shift the other night I passed him walking, I'm pretty sure he turned onto Demont Street but that’s all I know.” Leaning across the counter Dan grabbed Dawn’s face into his hands plating a big fat kiss square on the woman’s mouth before turning and exiting the bowling alley with a big shit eatin’ grin on his face.
* * *
Standing outside of Nick’s room Kevin watched through the small window in the door as Nick tossed cards back and forth with a guy in a security guard uniform who sat on a chair beside him.
Smiling at the stumped look on Nick’s face as the guy slapped down his cards on the food tray with a chuckle Kevin knew that card games of any kind had never been Nick Carter’s forte’. Hell, Kevin had even beaten him at Go Fish when they played so he could only imagine how badly Nick was getting whomped right now at whatever game he and the guard were playing.
Kevin watched Nick flip his bangs out of his eyes, trying to concentrate on the new hand of cards he had been dealt. And he realized how desperately he wanted to open the door to Nick’s room and walk inside with a warm brotherly smile on his face, cracking lame jokes to lighten the mood as he enveloped Nick in a big bear hug telling him everything was going to be okay.
But he found he couldn’t do it.
Pushing at his temple images of Brian pounded in his brain like a jackhammer on concrete making him wince. Images of a childhood spent in one another’s company intertwining with images of their adult years together becoming the men they had always wanted to be.
He realized that no matter how much he wanted to, he just wasn’t ready yet to take that step and to reach out to Nick.
And he didn’t know if he ever would be.
So turning with a sigh he walked to the elevator, pushing the down button and stepping inside just as Mo was in the process of convincing the night nurse to go downstairs and get herself a bite to eat.
* * *
“Oh c’mon you know you must be hungry.”
“But I’m the only nurse on duty right now. We’re so short handed that they staggered our shifts out so that I have to be here an hour all by myself.” Mo nodded, this was information he already knew from his phone call to the hospital earlier in the day when he asked about the security guard shifts on Nick’s room.
“Listen, I’m here. If any of your patients need help I can page you.” Mo leaned on the counter smiling at the girl who batted her eyelashes at him before looking down.
“Well…..I have checked on all my patients and everybody is doing just fine. And I am kind of hungry.”
“See there you go.” Mo patted the back of her hand.
“If I do go and get something to eat do you want anything?” Her voice was soft and flirty as she giggled lightly into her hand.
“You bet.” Mo winked. “You just get me some of what you’re having and we can eat out here together when you get back.” Nodding the nurse stood up glancing to her right and left before coming out from behind the counter and heading for the elevator.
* * *
“Shit, it’s 10:15 and I gotta get my ass home before the wife has to go to work.” The security guard in Nick’s room gathered up the cards and stuffed them back into the box. “She works a shitty graveyard shift at a factory and she gets pissed off if I don’t get home to put the kids to bed so that she can have a break before she leaves.” Standing up the guard tossed the cards to the counter.
“I’m gonna go and see if the next guard is here yet so you sit tight.” Nick smiled at the guard as he opened the door and stepped out into the hallway.
* * *
“Hey buddy.” The guard spotted Mo at the end of the hallway. “Are you my replacement?”
“You betcha.” Mo smiled walking up and extending his hand. “Sorry I’m late man, it’s been a crazy day.” The two men shook hands.
“Well as long as you’re here now. Listen, I’m gonna go and say goodbye to the kid.” Mo nodded as the guard turned and walked back into Nick’s room.
“Hey Nick, my replacements here so I gotta go. But I’ll be back tomorrow around noon.” Nick nodded smiling at the guard.
“Thanks for keeping me company and all I really appreciate. Hey wait-“ Nick called out as the guard turned to leave. “Don’t I get a hug or something? I mean, I feel like we’ve known each other forever what with you being the only person I haven’t banned from my room today.” The guard laughed pushing back his cap and scratching his head as he glanced around the room.
“Well……I guess I can give you a hug?” He said walking back to Nick’s bed.
Leaning down the guard pulled Nick into an awkward bear hug slapping him on the back as Nick slapped the guard on the hip before they both pulled back Nick tucking his hands beneath the bed sheet with a smile.
“Okay well, thanks for hanging out with me and I’ll see you tomorrow.” Nick gave the guy his best grin as the guard turned and walked from the room tossing a wave over his shoulder as the door closed behind him.
Nick waited a beat before pulling his arm from beneath the sheet, raising his hand and twisting the shiny silver gun that he had swiped from the guards hip around in the air.
Feeling confident in the knowledge that part two of his plan was now complete.