Cut and Run 4 - Divide and Conquer

him
    regain his balance. “You‟re going to go back and play after getting hurt
    last night?” He didn‟t sound incredulous or even questioning. More like
    he wanted to be sure he understood correctly.
    Ty shook his head and blinked rapidly, then focused on Zane and
    nodded as he steadied himself. “I‟m not hurt bad.”
    “I remember hearing the words „cracked rib‟.”
    “They‟ll just stick me in right field or something.”
    “Your throwing hand is injured.”
    “So I‟ll use a leftie,” Ty tossed back.
    Zane dipped his chin to try to catch Ty‟s eyes. “It‟s not the being
    hurt I‟m worried about.”
    “What?”
    Divide & Conquer | 53

    “You‟re a little shaky,” Zane pointed out. “Even for right field.”
    He straightened and let his hands slide from Ty‟s arms. “But if you
    want to go, I‟ll take you over there.”
    Ty had to agree he probably wasn‟t in any shape to drive just
    then, but a few minutes of moving around and being awake would help.
    He wasn‟t sure a softball game was really Zane‟s scene. He knew the
    skepticism was obvious in his eyes even as he nodded. “The games last
    a few hours.”
    “I do like to watch sports, Ty.” Then Zane winked and gave a
    slight smile. “Especially the uniform pants.”
    Ty rolled his eyes and pointed at Zane as he moved toward the
    bedroom door. “No ogling in front of co-workers,” he warned. He
    turned and grimaced as his entire body protested. He groaned and
    leaned against the doorjamb, hanging his head for a moment. “Christ,
    I‟m sore,” he muttered.
    “If you take the Vicodin, you‟ll be seriously looped,” Zane said
    helpfully.
    Ty winced and looked down at his finger, his other hand settling
    on his sore ribs.
    “Ty, look at me,” Zane requested.
    Ty looked up at him obediently, unable to wipe the frown off his
    face.
    “If you‟re hurting, take the pills. You don‟t stress over drinking
    beer in front of me anymore. Why stress over this?” He was using
    logic, and he didn‟t sound upset.
    “Are you sure?” Ty asked anyway. He didn‟t feel right waving
    prescription drugs in Zane‟s face. “Maybe I can just sit the game out.
    It‟s not like the world will end if I don‟t play or anything.”
    “Like that‟ll happen.” Zane shook his head as he chuckled. He
    snagged a pair of jeans that lay folded on the dresser and walked over
    to stand in front of him. They were Ty‟s favorite pair, stolen from their
    last UC operation. They would fit Zane okay; his two to three inches of
    extra height were mostly in the torso anyway. After a smile, he leaned
    down to kiss the corner of Ty‟s mouth. “Thank you. For caring enough
    54 | Madeleine Urban & Abigail Roux

    to worry about it. Now go take the damn pill. Or half of it. A whole
    will put you back on your ass. They‟re on the bathroom counter.”
    Ty muttered as he turned and headed for the bathroom. If he took
    a half now and another half in a few hours, that would get him through
    the game, and then he‟d have the rest of the day to sleep it off before
    work Monday morning. If he didn‟t take them, he might be able to gut
    out the game, but his bruised ribcage was already screaming just from
    rolling out of bed.
    He stood looking at the little packet indecisively for a long
    moment before reaching for the pills and pouring them out into his
    hand. He plucked one from the pile, scooped the rest back up in the
    packet, and then pulled at the pill to try to break it in half. He cursed
    when he couldn‟t get the thing to snap in two like it was supposed to,
    and he pulled out another one and tried to snap it instead.
    After trying each of the pills and failing to snap any of them on
    the line, he growled quietly and cursed. His fingers weren‟t working
    like they were supposed to.
    Instead of asking Zane to deal with it, he popped a whole pill into
    his mouth and swallowed with a wince at the bitter taste. One every six
    hours was the same as a half every three, right?
    Not really, but it would do.
    He continued to mumble to himself as he hurried to get ready for
    the game. After a few more minutes, he joined Zane downstairs.
    “Need any help?” Zane asked.
    “You think you can find my cleats?” Ty requested as he buttoned
    the gray Feds jersey with fingers that felt too thick.
    “Sure,” Zane said amiably, and he headed for the front door.
    Ty was still tucking the jersey in and adjusting the Under Armour
    shirt he wore beneath it when