Chapter 23 Braedyn #2
The war found me again, the one where sadness and hope battled. “Skylar seems like she could light anyone’s world.”
“That little princess has us all wrapped around her fingers. She sort of centered things. Gave us all a focus outside ourselves.”
“I get that.” My gaze found Owen, who was now lying in the grass with Yeti, yammering away as if the dog could understand every word. “It cures the self-pity in a snap, gives you instant perspective.”
“It does. And damn, they’re amazing to watch grow.”
“They are.” My gaze flicked to Dex.
“What about her mom? In the picture?” I asked.
A different sort of shadow passed across Dex’s face as his jaw turned to granite. “No. Not in the picture.”
There was a story there, but it wasn’t Dex’s to tell.
I gave him an out. “What about Maverick?”
That tension eased—the way Maverick’s presence seemed to do. One corner of Dex’s mouth kicked up. “Youngest brother. Hell on wheels. Always looking for the next adrenaline high. Extreme sports, risky jobs. Anything he can get his hands on.”
I grinned. “He seems like a character.”
“That’s one word for it.”
A soft laugh escaped, and Dex turned, staring at my mouth as if trying to memorize the sound.
I forced my gaze away from the temptation—too much. “And Orion?”
I felt the change in Dex more than I saw it. His hand stiffened under mine before he pulled it away. I missed the contact and steady pressure almost immediately. But I welcomed it, too. It was a reminder that even Dex would go away. I couldn’t lose sight of that.
“Middle brother. Everything that happened…it was the hardest on him.”
I shifted, forcing myself to take Dex in again, to make myself accept the pieces of him he was willing to give. But when I saw his face, everything that was so focused inward melted away. Because what I saw there was pure and utter agony.
The emotion was so strong and sharp it forced me to suck in air. I wanted to reach for him again. To tell him I was there. But I stopped myself.
Instead, I simply waited. For whatever Dex wanted to lay at my feet.
“Orion saved us. When Mav and I found things we shouldn’t have. When our father caught us. It was Orion who saved us. He got a gun from our father’s stash and shot him. Killed him. And that cost him everything.”
My heart hammered in my ears, creating a sort of whooshing sound that was difficult to hear through.
“Everything was so fucked,” Dex croaked. “Cops came. They took Orion away. Think they went at him pretty hard. At least until they realized who my father really was and saw the trophies. Until they found the women’s bodies buried in the orchard. Thirty-six. But they think there may be more.”
My body jolted. Every revelation a blow. But it was nothing compared to what Dex had faced. The blows he’d been dealt.
“After those days in custody, Orion stopped speaking. It was like his words had been turned into weapons against him, and he refused to risk it anymore. He used to write to communicate, and he learned to sign—but only to our family. Now…it’s just less and less.”
God, everything in me hurt. My heart ached for Orion—for all of the Archer brothers.
“But he texted you today.” I couldn’t help trying to give Dex a sliver of hope.
The corners of his mouth lifted in a sad smile. “Maybe pissing him off is the key.”
“It makes sense…that he doesn’t trust easily.”
“I don’t think any of us do. That’s what happens when someone so close to you turns. It makes you think anyone could. Or worse, that the ability is in you.”
I stared at Dex for a long moment. “You’re worried you’ll turn out like your father.”
It wasn’t a question, but Dex answered it anyway.
“His DNA runs through me. I can’t help wondering if there’s that urge in me.
But I deal. I face it. I fucking despise guns, but I learned how to use every type I could get my hands on.
More, I became a damn good shot. Got even better when I had access to some of the FBI’s training facilities. ”
My tongue stuck to the roof of my mouth as I struggled to swallow. “You’re not going to turn.”
Dex stared back at me, the green in those hazel eyes darkening to nearly black behind his glasses. “You don’t know that. I’ve learned a lot working beside profilers. Sometimes, living with that sort of darkness taints you.”
“And sometimes it makes you seek the light. Makes you fuel it. Dex, you light the dark places.”
He didn’t move his gaze from my face for a long moment. “You really believe that.”
“I know that.” I might not have known Dex long, but I saw how he moved through the world. The way he helped when he had everything to lose and nothing to gain.
“We still haven’t talked about Waylon.”
Confusion bloomed at the abrupt turn in the conversation. But then I saw it for what it was—a deep need to steer away from the heaviness. “Tell me about him.”
“Great-uncle on my dad’s side. The only family who stepped forward to take us in. Has a ranch where he raises alpacas, rare sheep, goats, and even a few yaks.”
My mouth curved. “Owen is going to flip when he gets to see that.”
Dex chuckled, and the sound came out a little rusty, like he hadn’t made it in a long time. In reality, he was simply shaking off the heaviness of what he’d shared. “He’s a character. Amazing cook. Incredible and eccentric clockmaker. And a Bigfoot enthusiast.”
Owen’s head popped up in the grass, sending Yeti scrambling up. “Did you say Bigfoot?”
Dex grinned, his gaze connecting with Owen’s. “I did. You like Bigfoot stories?”
Owen sent him a massive gap-toothed smile. “Tell him, Mom.”
Dex’s gaze moved to me, a hint of confusion in it.
I pressed my lips together to hide my grin. “In this house, we are Bigfoot believers. Why do you think our dog is named Yeti?”
Dex groaned, letting his head fall back. “Never mind. You can’t come to dinner. You and Waylon will be way too much.”
“Hey,” I clipped. “The truth is out there. It’s not my fault you don’t want to believe.”