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** NICK **

I didn’t like the way that Kevin was staring at me. His expression was a mixture of astonishment, anger, and intense worry. It was almost as if he was blaming me for the words that had just left my mouth. Just because I had been the one to deliver the news didn’t mean that I was the one who was responsible for Howie’s condition.

“Is that what the doctor told you?” Brian wrenched his arm out of his cousin’s grip and closed the short distance between us. “Is he – Is he – Where is he?”

“They rushed him into a room to have his stomach pumped.” I was sobbing uncontrollably now; my whole body was shaking with the effort. I probably looked pathetic. “They wouldn’t let me go with him.”

Brian blinked rapidly and quickly swiped his hand across his face. I could tell by his expression that he wanted to ask me more questions, but that he was holding back because he felt that I couldn’t handle it. It was at times like these that I was grateful for the fact that Brian was still able to read me so well. I didn’t want to talk about what the doctor had told me. All I wanted to do was fall into someone’s arms and cry. The idea that someone had purposefully set out to hurt Howie was too much for me to digest.

As if reading my mind, Brian reached out and pulled me into a tight hug. I practically fell into him; twisting my arms around his back and squeezing my eyes shut. He didn’t say anything, but I could feel his shoulders shaking softly beneath my grip. Apparently the notion of Howie being intentionally harmed was too much for Brian as well.

“Poisoned?! What kind of fucking bullshit is that? Are you serious? The doctor actually told you that he had been poisoned?!”

I lifted my head off of Brian’s shoulder as AJ’s rant began to pick up steam. He was clenching and unclenching his fists in rapid succession and his face was turning an ugly shade of red. He was easily on the verge of a full-scale breakdown.

“If some doctor has the nerve to tell you that Howie has been poisoned then that same doctor better have the nerve to say it to my face!” AJ turned his attention to the nurse behind the check-in desk. “Hey, Double Gulp, put down your fucking soda and tell me where I can find the doctor who’s in charge of my friend!”

“Excuuuuuuuse me?!” The nurse slammed her cup down on the desk and gave AJ a menacing stare. “Boy, don’t even think that you can talk to me like that and get away with it! I’m gonna call security to boot your scrawny ass to the curb!”

“The only place that my scrawny ass is going is upstairs to find out what is going on with my friend!” AJ roared. He whipped around to face the people in the waiting room; all of whom were staring at the four of us as if we had lost our minds. “Does anybody here have a problem with that?”

Brian and I disentangled ourselves from each other and exchanged a quick glance. One of us had to reel AJ in before he did something stupid. Two elderly individuals in the waiting room were actually cowering in fear at this point.

“I don’t know about these people, but we sure as hell have a problem with you uttering threats.”

Two uniformed police officers strolled through the automatic doors that led out to the parking lot just in time to catch the tail end of AJ’s rant. The older of the two stepped up next to AJ and gave him a hard stare. “What are the chances that you are somehow involved with the situation involving Mr. Howard Dorough?”

“Pretty damn good.” AJ shot back. He folded his arms across his chest and stared at the officer in defiance. “Do you have some information for me? That bitch behind the counter apparently isn’t going to get off her ass to find out what it is that I need to know.”

I pressed my lips together to hold in my groan of dismay. Why did AJ always have to say exactly what he was thinking? Why couldn’t he learn to keep his mouth shut when the situation called for it?

“No, sir, we don’t have any information for you.” The second officer rolled his eyes. He quickly swivelled his head to take in the rest of us and our matching outfits. “I’m assuming that the four of you are all here for Mr. Dorough? According to dispatch, you all belong to the same band.”

“The Backstreet something-or-others!” The check-in nurse shouted from behind the safety of her desk. “This bitch may be stubborn, but she has ears! Flat ass over there was all proud of the fact that he and his boys are part of some performance act.”

“Thank you, ma’am.” The older officer looked as though he didn’t know what to make of the entire situation. “We’re going to need to speak to you gentlemen.”

“You can speak to us all you want once we find out what’s happening with Howie.” AJ stated. “If you’re not going to give us any information, then we’re not going to give you any information.”

“Then, I’ll have you arrested.” The officer shot back. He looked at each of us in turn. “All of you.”

“AJ, let’s just talk to them.” I was trying unsuccessfully to disguise the tremor in my voice. I couldn’t afford to be arrested again; my rap sheet was already pretty full. “The doctor promised to fill me in once Howie was in recovery.”

The older of the two officers was now giving me his full attention. “Are you in some way related to Mr. Dorough?”

I shook my head. “I just rode with him to the hospital. The doctor told me that he had been poisoned.”

“What happened to not giving them any information?!” AJ threw his hands in the air in frustration. “Way to go, Nick!”

“You’re the only one who wants to be stubborn.” Kevin narrowed his eyes at AJ. “If you want to have yourself arrested then go right ahead.”

“Nobody is getting arrested.” Brian piped up from his position next to me. “AJ’s just upset. He’s not thinking clearly.” He looked pointedly at AJ. “Right?”

I sucked in my breath as I watched the silent exchange between Brian and AJ. If anyone had a chance of talking AJ down, it was Brian. Whoever had come up with the nickname ‘ARok’ had been spot on; sometimes I could swear that the two of them were able to read each other’s minds.

“Fine.” AJ eventually relented. “Let’s talk.”

As soon as AJ gave in, the police nodded knowingly at the check-in nurse and quickly led us down the hallway to a small conference room outfitted with one long table and several chairs. It was obvious that both officers had been there before as they moved quickly throughout the room; turning on lights and motioning swiftly for us all to take a seat.

I sat down heavily in the middle of Brian and Kevin and stared at the uniformed men in trepidation. My heart was beating a mile a minute and I could feel myself beginning to sweat. I rubbed my palms against the arms of the chair and exchanged one last fitful glance with Brian. He gave me the best look of encouragement that he could muster given the circumstances, and I felt my stomach drop. Brian was just as nervous as I was. For some reason, that realization was enough to triple my anxiety.

“I’m Officer Barry and this is Officer Russell.” The older police officer took a seat directly across from me at the table and gestured towards his partner who was pulling a recording device out of his breast pocket. “Can you all state your full names, please?”

I looked warily at the recorder before shooting my eyes up to Kevin’s face. It was strangely comforting to see that Brian and AJ were also looking to Kevin for guidance. The situation felt like an interrogation and, if that was the case, we were definitely entitled to some kind of legal representation.

“Why are we being recorded?” Kevin evaded Officer Barry’s question with forced confidence. “Are we being investigated?”

“Not at all Mr. …” Officer Russell shook his head and issued all of us a slow smile. “We’re just looking for some background information on the situation.”

“It’s Richardson.” Kevin frowned. “Kevin Richardson. And I’m afraid that we don’t know anything about the situation.”

“You mentioned that Doctor Harrison told you that Mr. Dorough had been poisoned.” Officer Barry’s blue-gray eyes flipped to me. “Did that information surprise you?”

“Was – Was I surprised?” I curled my sweaty fingers around the arms of the chair and sat up as straight as possible. “Of course I was fucking surprised! What kind of a question is that?”

“There’s no need to get defensive, Mr. …” Officer Barry looked at me expectantly. “Like my partner said, we’re just trying to get a handle on the situation. Whenever we receive a call from the hospital about a potential homicide, we like to start at the beginning.”

“Nick – Carter – Nick Carter.” I stammered out my name. I could taste the sweat on my lips. “Did you just say ‘homicide’?”

Officer Russell nodded. “Or we may be looking at an attempted suicide. We haven’t yet ruled that out.”

“Howie wouldn’t try to kill himself.” I looked to Brian for support and he nodded his head to back me up. “If he’s really been poisoned, then somebody did it to him.”

Both officers leaned back in their chairs and pressed their fingers together. They exchanged an unreadable look before redirecting their attention to me. “But who would want to poison him, Mr. Carter? That’s what we need to find out.”