Hey, Daddy (Semyonov Bratva #2)

Chapter 28

Yeah, I’ve tried shutting up. It’s not for me.

— Nastya to Haze

HAZE

“I’ll see you two in a little bit,” I said as I kissed both of their heads as I walked past.

They were sitting at the kitchen island where they were both eating waffles from the freezer.

Nastya had so much syrup on hers that she might as well not have had waffles at all.

And then there was Desi, the complete opposite, eating the waffles from her hand, two at a time, dry as bone.

I didn’t think it was possible to be so similar and so different at the same time, but there they were, shocking me.

“Where are you going?” Nastya questioned, looking confused.

“I was called into the station to discuss my new ‘job,’” he grumbled. “I told you while you were on the phone with the dealership owner.”

Speaking of the owner, he was so damn thankful that she’d helped him get rid of his employee that he’d given her every single discount and rebate he could make.

We hadn’t walked out with a car that day, but it was being delivered this afternoon.

Nastya had gotten a steal on a fuckin’ Tremor Package Explorer, and she’d only had to pay fifteen grand for it.

It really was a steal, and it was a very nice car.

It also went over a hundred and fifty, had a racing package, and likely would get her into trouble.

It was a good thing to have my job back, because I felt like I might need it to be able to get her out of jail.

“Sorry.” She looked at me sheepishly. “That was a special circumstance.”

I laughed.

She’d been really excited about her car to the point where she wasn’t really listening to anything I said.

I didn’t blame her.

Getting a new car was pretty cool.

“Do you want a ride to your mom’s, or are you driving yourself?” I asked my girl.

“Driving myself, duh.” She rolled her eyes.

With the threat of the senator now gone, and the assurance that the creep motherfucker wasn’t going to be there—which I would be checking on my way to work—Desi got to drive herself again.

Which she was very excited about.

Having your car taken away when you were sixteen was ‘life altering’ according to her.

I took a long look at my daughter, then turned to look back at Nastya.

“Y’all are wearing the same clothes,” I said.

“We’re trying them out. They’re actually from two different companies. Mine is name brand, and hers are knock-offs,” Desi said. “Can you tell?”

“No.” I looked at the black leggings, black long-sleeved shirt, and white puffer vest. “They look exactly alike. And feel the same, too.”

I said this as I ran my hand over the sleeve of both shirts.

“Pretty sure that this company just buys from a wholesaler, slaps a tag on it, and then sells it for three times as much,” Nastya explained. “I’m going to go see my brother since you’re leaving. He’s heading out tomorrow back to wherever he’s going.”

“You don’t know where he’s stationed?” I chuckled.

“No.” She blushed. “I probably should, but he’s been at five different bases in just as many years. It’s hard to keep up with them all.”

She pulled on a white hat I hadn’t seen until now.

Desi did the same and said, “I’m ready.”

I glanced between my two girls, then pulled out my phone and said, “Squeeze together tighter. I want a picture.”

They squeezed together and both of them beamed.

Yeah, that one was definitely gonna be my next phone background.

“Come on, squirt. Let’s go.”

Desi waved goodbye to Nastya and hurried out the door.

I waited until I heard the door close before I leaned in and said, “Love you, Mama.”

She melted. “Let me know how the ex-wife’s goes, and then how work goes. I’ll let you know where I am once you’re done.”

I pulled her into my body, nuzzled her neck with my nose, then pulled away. “I noticed you didn’t say I love you back.”

She rolled her eyes. “Your body was pressed against me, Haze. I’m not quite sure how you expect me to think so clearly.”

I chuckled, and she responded with a sweet, “I love you, too,” back.

The drive to Julia’s house was weird.

At one point, that place had been my entire life.

Now it was just fuckin’ nothing.

A memory.

Desi and I both got to the door at the same time, and I knocked on the door instead of letting Desi allow us straight in.

Julia opened the door with a scowl.

I immediately looked down, expecting to see Finn, and didn’t.

“Where’s Finn?” Desi asked as she pushed past her mother, who was reaching for a hug.

“In his kennel,” Julie said. “No hug?”

“Sure, just let me let him out so he can see Dad.” Desi totally disregarded her, which pissed Julia off.

Julia’s fiery gaze turned to meet mine, and she nearly spewed venom before she said, “Well, go check.”

I rolled my eyes and did just that, checking everywhere to make sure that there wasn’t a sick fuck hiding in any corners.

Only after I made my rounds did I greet Finn, who looked less enthusiastic today.

“Poor guy,” I said. “Being stuck here without your girl.”

Finn shook his tail and leaned into me, his soft fur now against my beard.

“Missed you, big guy,” I crooned.

“It’s time for you to leave,” Julia hissed.

I ran my fingers through Finn’s fur and stood up. “You want to come with me?”

“Oh, Daddy. Please let him stay.”

I looked up to find Desi’s pleading eyes on me.

She didn’t want to be here alone without him.

That was understandable.

I gave Finn one last scratch behind the ear and said, “See you both tonight.”

I left them there, alone, and I shouldn’t have.

Had I taken Finn with me, I might not have had to say goodbye to him later.

“You want me to take over Daniels’s job,” I said. “That’s a lot more responsibility than I want, Chief.”

The chief of police looked at me like he wanted to pull his hair out.

“Just give it a try for a while,” he said. “If you don’t like it, we’ll reevaluate.”

I sighed. “Fine.”

Being in that position would make it easier to accomplish the things that I wanted to—one of which being me now helping Shasha Semyonov.

“I’ll take it. I’ll need back pay for the time off. I’ll also need the department to pay for the rental I had to get after Daniels put me on leave. And I’ll need my cruiser back,” I demanded.

“Done,” the chief said. “I’ll have an officer follow you over with his partner, you can drop that rental off today, and you can pay for it with the company credit card.”

“Fine,” I said. “I can’t start until Monday, though.”

I had plans tonight.

“That’s perfectly acceptable,” he said. “This new job comes with regular hours at least. Monday through Friday, nine to five.”

That was something.

Not having to leave in the middle of the night would make me feel better.

I hated leaving Desi home alone in the middle of the night. I hated it even more that I was now leaving Desi and Nastya.

“Thanks, Chief,” I said as I headed out.

Two patrol officers followed me to the rental place.

I dropped my rental off, then got into the cruiser, only to realize that it was Daniels’s brand new one.

I grinned and pulled out of the rental agency.

The drive back to Nastya’s was quiet.

I’d just pulled into the driveway when my phone rang.

I got out of the cruiser and answered it just as Nastya walked out of her house.

She smiled, but that smile slipped off her face once she heard me answer my call.

“Hey, baby.”

“Daddy?” Desi said quietly the moment I answered the phone.

I sat bolt upright and said, “What is it, baby?”

“Um.” She sniffed. “I don’t even know how to say this, but Mom ran over Finn.”

I didn’t think my stomach could get any lower, but it happened.

“There was something wrong with Finn. He was acting really weird about half an hour after you left.” She sniffed. “Mom said he got outside earlier. She didn’t see him and backed over him after I pushed her as to why he was lying there looking pitiful.”

“Have you taken him to the vet?” I rasped.

“Mom dropped him off, told them to put him to sleep, and then left. I got here just as she was pulling away,” she explained. “I begged them not to do anything until you got here, and they listened. You need to get here, though, Dad.”

I didn’t waste time, and the woman that was watching me closely didn’t hesitate to get into the cruiser with me without asking any questions.

“What happened?” she asked after Desi hung up.

I explained everything, my stomach in knots.

We drove hand in hand in silence to the vet, and I was thankful to see that we were all alone when I pulled into the parking lot to find no cars there.

The two of us rushed inside, and a woman who was manning the front desk saw us coming and nodded, gesturing for me to follow her.

“I’m guessing you’re here for Finneus?” she asked.

“Yes,” I replied, my voice sounding ravaged.

God, I should’ve never left Finn or let Desi return home for a visit.

I should’ve known that something would go wrong.

“Tell me what happened?” I begged as we were allowed back into what looked like a surgical area.

Finn looked like he was just sleeping peacefully when I came up to him, placing my hand on his still rising and falling chest.

“Daddy,” Desi said from behind me.

I turned, pulling her into my chest, and gave my attention back to the doctor.

“He’s in very bad shape, Mr. Hopkins,” the doctor admitted. “He has a severed spine. Broken front and back leg. Fractured skull. We’re assuming all of this happened when she backed over him in the driveway.”

“What was he doing outside?” I asked but knew that I wouldn’t get any answers.

“Sorry, sir,” he apologized.

He looked young.

Very young.

But he held my eyes, and explained the rest of his injuries, ultimately admitting that euthanasia was the best option.

“Are you sure?” I croaked, seconds away from losing my shit.

“I’m sure, sir,” he said. “With a smaller breed, this would be no big deal. But that much trauma, after having been hit by a car previously…he’s too big. He’d have to be in traction for a long time, and that’s if we could even get him to recover…”

He said more, but I stopped listening.

All I heard was, “he isn’t going to make it.”

I felt my stomach sink.

God.

Fucking Julia.

Fucking, fucking Julia.

I hated her guts.

“What now?” I rasped, swallowing past the bile in my throat.

The bile threatened to make its way up my throat, and the saliva pooling in my mouth made it worse as I tried and failed to swallow.

“Take as much time as you need.” He looked heartbroken for me. Poor guy. How could you live through this every single day? “When you’re ready, we’ll administer the medication. One will calm him down—though he’s already been given a sedative. And the other one will stop his heart.”

Desi started to cry in my arms, and a cold hand slipped into mine, Nastya leaning her forehead against my right shoulder blade.

“Desi, baby,” I said softly. “Are you ready?”

It was a heartless thing to do, putting the decision into a broken-hearted sixteen-year-old’s hands, but I did it anyway. I couldn’t do it myself.

“Yeah, Daddy,” she croaked.

The vet disappeared around the corner, and I ran my free hand over Finn’s head.

He turned his face to lick my hand.

God, he was always trying to make me feel better.

Every single time that I came over, he never held it against me that I was no longer there. It’s like he knew that he wasn’t with me so he could watch over my favorite person. To be with her when I couldn’t be.

“Why do you always have to break my heart, Finn,” I whispered. “First I had to leave you behind, then I have to watch you go when I just got you back.”

Desi made a keening sound, and she was out of my arms a second later.

I turned my head to see that my mama had her and gave my attention back to Finn.

“There are going to be so many couches for you to lay on in heaven. No one will tell you to get down. No one will push you off because you take up too much room,” I crooned, stroking his head. “You’re going to love it there. You’re going to be able to run and play forever. You won’t ever get tired, and it’ll always be the perfect sixty degrees. You’re going to be able to eat to your heart’s content. You will never run out of non-slobbery water. And even better, you’ll have so many friends there to keep you company.”

Finn licked my nose and cheek, taking away half of my tears.

“Are you ready?” the doctor asked, startling me.

I looked up to find some syringes in his hand. One clear, one blue, and another milky white.

I wondered which one of those would be responsible for taking my Finn away from me.

He gave half the clear, then the full milky white one.

Finn’s head dropped, and he started to snore, making my heart ache.

God, I’d miss that sound.

I used to sit on the front porch after getting home from a long day at work, watching Desi in the yard playing in the dirt. Finn, passed out beside me cold, because Desi had made him run around with her for an hour.

He’d snore and snore.

Every once in a while, I’d reach down and run my bare foot over his big, bulky body, and that snore would turn startled before his tail would start a steady beat against the deck.

There was no more tail wagging, though.

On my knees, with Finn’s head in my lap, I knew he was finally at peace.

My Finn.

The hand was back in mine as the doctor connected the blue syringe, and Finn was no more.

NASTYA

“What now?” I asked the vet.

He was standing behind the glass walls of his office, and at first, he didn’t act like he heard me.

But then he turned and gave me his full attention.

His eyes were red-rimmed.

He wasn’t crying, per se, but I knew that he was seconds away from it.

“Two things,” he said softly as he turned his back on Desi and Haze that were finishing up their goodbyes. “The first option is to take him home and bury him somewhere of y’all’s choosing.”

That wouldn’t work.

Not now.

I didn’t think that Haze had it in him to say goodbye a second time.

“What’s the other option?” I murmured quietly.

If I could save Desi and Haze any heartache at all, I would be happy.

God, today had been awful.

“Cremation,” he answered. “We have a facility that comes and picks up daily. From there you can get him cremated with all the other dogs, and no ashes returned. Or you can pay a little extra and those ashes will be returned to you with a small plaque.”

I swiped at my eyes. “Can you help me take care of that really quick so that they don’t have to?”

“Of course,” he agreed, gesturing for me to follow him.

“I usually have staff here to deal with this, but it being a holiday, I sent them all home, intending to take care of the animals all myself. I truly wish I had been able to help more.”

“I’m just glad that you waited for Haze to be here,” I admitted as he took me up to the front desk and gave me a pamphlet.

I took it, running my fingers over the “Rainbow Meadows” name.

“I don’t know what that woman’s problem was, but if there was a single person in this world that I would suggest didn’t need another pet, it’d be her,” he grumbled darkly.

I liked him.

“We’re on the same page, Doc,” I admitted. “Long story short, Finn stayed with that little girl in there after her parents divorced. Haze didn’t get to see his dog much after that, and they’d just won him back in a custody case.”

“I think there’s a special place in hell for people like her,” he grumbled. “For what it’s worth, I’m sorry that I had to meet y’all like this.”

I grinned. “Did you just start this practice?”

He turned the credit card machine around as he answered, “Kind of. I took over from my grandfather. I was intending to work for a non-profit for a while, but that didn’t quite work out since my grandfather suffered a health scare. Now I’m doing this.”

He didn’t sound too happy about it.

But I didn’t press.

Instead, I signed the credit card receipt, put down my new address, and turned back to the room where Desi and Haze were still huddled on the floor.

“I’m going to head outside and make a phone call,” I said quietly. “Thank you again so much.”

He nodded and turned his head back toward the room where Desi was still sobbing her heart out.

“You’re welcome.”

I stepped outside and immediately put the phone to my ear.

Shasha answered on the first ring.

“What’s up?” he asked.

I explained the situation, and he grumbled something dark underneath his breath. “Looked into the ex a little bit after I found out about you and the detective.”

“Yeah?” I asked, unsurprised, really, to find out that he’d done that.

Shasha and his overprotective state.

My phone started to vibrate like crazy, and I pulled it away from my face to see a notification from my glucose monitor.

Low.

Dammit.

I pulled a Snickers out of my purse and ripped it open.

I took a bite as Shasha started talking.

“I’m guessing you’re calling me because you want me to ruin her life.” He chuckled.

“I think ruin would be too small of a word for what I want Julia to experience right about now,” I admitted.

I took a step toward the side of the building, and had just rounded the corner when a wave of worry hit me.

“I’ll get some eyes on her,” he said. “And I’ll find what she loves the most and take it.”

I opened my mouth to reply, but never got the chance.

I was so lost in thought and grief—my heart literally aching for what Haze and Desi had to go through—that I didn’t give the direction I was heading much thought.

Not until it was too late.

I stepped one foot around the corner and was caught.