Convict (Bastard Brothers of Carnage #2)

Prologue

PARKER

S ix years old

I crouched behind the pillar in the residential wing, waiting for Gregor to come around the corner. I’d show him. He’d never break anything of mine again.

It only took a few tries to steal the lard from the kitchen. Gregor loved it in his food. Nasty man. Mia said she saw him eating it straight out of the tub.

Footsteps echoed around the corner, and I shifted my weight from side to side. I was the cat waiting to pounce.

He’d never break any of my toys ever again. Not after I broke his face.

No one ever went against Vicente because he hurt people first. He wasn’t a nice man, and I didn’t like him. I didn’t even think he liked me. But people left him alone.

This part of the mansion was always deserted during lunch. All the men were working. The women were in their rooms on the other side of the property. The staff was only ever allowed to clean during very specific times.

Except for Gregor. The guard. Why was he allowed to sleep on the residential floor, and I wasn’t?

It was Vicente’s place. But each of his favored women had a suite on this floor. Just Vicente, his women sometimes, and Gregor.

Who cared? What was important was that he was evil. And I’d taken his phone, so he’d have to come back here looking for it. He’d never know it was stashed with the dog food.

The footsteps got closer; the sound bouncing off the ceilings. Around the corner, the tip of the first black boot popped.

Then a separate set of angry footsteps pounded from the other end of the hall, coming from the courtyard.

Andre ran right toward the lard spread out over the white floor. His arms pumped and his face poured sweat as he locked eyes on Gregor.

“No!” I popped out from behind the column. But Andre sidestepped the lard like he knew it was there.

“Gregor.” He stopped and braced his knees while panting. Then he extended one hand, holding Gregor’s phone.

How did he know where that was?

“You dropped your phone outside.”

Gregor glared down his nose at Andre. “Where outside?” he asked, because Gregor wasn’t outside this morning.

Andre was about to get beaten, estupido .

“Not outside. At the entrance to the dining hall. Isn’t this yours?” Andre straightened up and examined the phone. “Maybe this is someone else's?”

“It’s mine.” He snatched the phone from his hand and tucked it into his pocket. “Get out of here. Both of you. Vicente would flay your hides if he knew you were in this part of the mansion. Consider that a favor, bastards.”

Bastards. I sneered up at him, but Andre jerked on my arm and I turned my glare to him. They loved that word. Like it made us less. Or small. Or…what was that word we learned in lessons the other day…

Insignificant. They used that word like it made us insignificant.

I’d show him. I started forward, and Andre yanked me back again, my shoes squeaking across the floor as he wrestled me back.

“We’ll leave. We were just looking for you.” Andre dipped his head and started carting me away like we had less of a right to be here than Gregor.

“Let go of me!” I whispered, kicking my legs, trying to catch his knee or ankle. He was too tall. Much too big for me to actually hit him.

Andre shoved me into one of the servant stairwells and waited for the door to shut before pushing me against the wall.

“ What is your problem, Park? Do you want to die? I can’t always save you! You’re lucky I saw you sneak into the kitchen. I would have been here sooner, but Pilar was trying to take me to the chapel.” He grimaced. We all hated the chapel.

“I was about to kill him! He would have slipped and cracked his head! Do you know what he did? He broke my favorite car. Mia got that for me for my birthday.” Andre might pretend to forget things, but I didn’t. I huffed and rammed my shoulder into his stomach. He grunted but didn’t move.

“Parker, listen to me. He wouldn’t have died. Only you would have. You’re my baby brother, and I can’t lose you. You and Grey and Lafe…you’re all I have. Stop being stupid.” He gripped my shoulders. “Now, let’s go clean up the floor before Vincente falls and really takes our heads.”

“It’s not fair,” I cried, balling up my fists as he turned me toward the door. “Why is he allowed here with them, and we aren’t?”

That wasn’t necessarily true, either. Andre was allowed in here sometimes. When Pilar was here. But I didn’t have a mom to call for me like that.

“It’s not so great here. I’d rather stay with you all in the servant’s wing than ever come here,” Andre whispered like he didn’t want anyone to hear his secret.

When we made it back to where I’d smeared the lard, the marble floor was squeaky clean. No trace of grease.

We glanced around, but there was no one there. Had Grey or Lafe followed us up here? I snickered. Not Lafe. He was a coward. Maybe Grey.

“One of the maids must have seen you. Let’s go before anyone else notices us.” He squeezed my arm and pulled me back toward the stairs.

Whatever. I’d have to find another way to take care of Gregor.