Permanent

Excerpt From: Permanent

Friends help friends no matter what.

Tory stomped on the gas and floored his Jeep across town. Rain pelted the windshield and blurred the road before him. Who needed a stupid party anyway? He barrelled down the winding asphalt road until the hazy neon of the Darkness sign came into view. Why the hell would River call? He had a car. All the other times he’d gone to Darkness, he’d come home with no issues. The fragments of the call from River played on a loop in his mind.

"Come get me. Need help. Please?"

The guy was usually unflappable and placid. For River to freak out, it had to be something huge. Tory’s heart hammered against his ribs. The fear and pain in River’s voice ate at him. Sure, he knew River liked to play at the club, but always in the past River had come home just as happy as when he’d left.

Tory wrenched the Jeep into the parking lot. Was he supposed to go inside? Wait at the door? As he drove through the parking lot, he spied a figure huddled next to the ebony column. He knew that plaid shirt. He’d given it to River last Christmas, but dear God... According to the Jeep’s display it was below freezing out. Tory jerked to a halt and burst from the vehicle. He knelt next to his friend. The bright white and deep greens were almost unrecognisable in the midst of the dark marring the cotton.

"What happened?" Tory propped River on his arm, supporting him as he stumbled to the car. "That’s what you get for being bombed." Although he worked to sound nonchalant, something wasn’t right.

River tilted his head, making Tory gasp. Both of River’s eyes were swollen, one completely shut. A cut bisected River’s cheek and blood slipped down the dirt-stained skin. His body trembled. His hair lay in damp hanks about his forehead.

"You’re shivering. Are you going to be sick?" Tory helped River into the passenger seat then grabbed a blanket from the cargo bay. He tucked the cover around River, being careful not to jostle him any more than necessary. The stench of urine emanated from River’s clothes. Tory wrinkled his nose as he clicked the seatbelt into place. The guy was in shock.

Tory drove out of the parking lot with thoughts swarming around in his head.

For six miles, he said nothing. As they passed a sign for the hospital, the thought struck. A healthy, hundred-and-eighty-pound guy didn’t just go into shock. Someone had beaten the living shit out of River and it pissed Tory off. "We need to get you looked at by a doctor."

"No," River replied quickly and grabbed Tory’s arm. "They’ll blame me."

"They?" Tory swerved against River’s grasp. "Who are they? Come on. What if something is broken?"

"I can’t go to the hospital. I won’t."

"What are you afraid of? The nurses? It’s for your own good—in case you have internal bleeding or something."

"Please? They won’t understand any of it."

"Man, you’re in shock. This could be serious."

"No." River pulled away and curled into the seat. He covered his head with his arms and sobbed. "I’ll be all right."