Barrett (East Dremest Mafia #4)

Prologue

PROLOGUE

BARRETT

Seven Years Ago

Who the fuck was buzzing my apartment so early in the morning? I groaned and stood from the bed, my bare legs hitting the cold air. Stumbling around in the dark, I found a pair of sweatpants and pulled them on. Jesus, it felt like I was only asleep for a half hour. Looking at the clock, it was damn close.

I jammed my finger against the button when I reached the door. “What?”

“Barrett?” a timid voice answered.

“Mars?” What was he doing here?

“It’s me.”

“I’ll buzz you in.”

“I n-need… There’s a cab…”

“I’ll be right down.”

I flipped on the light, careful to shield my eyes. This wasn’t one with a dimming switch. It had two modes: off and burn out your retinas. I pulled some cash from inside my wallet, hoping it was enough.

My sneakers sat next to the door, so I quickly pulled them onto my bare feet and grabbed my keys. I didn’t trust these assholes not to come into my home if I left the door unlocked. This was the kind of building where no one looked after anyone else. Except for me. I looked after them. It was my job, after all.

I locked the door and went down two flights of stairs until I got to the front and pulled the door open. The sky was still dark. A streetlight gave off a flickering yellow glow, like it was trying to decide if being on was worth the effort.

My brother stood on the sidewalk with a far too thin coat covering him, a backpack slung over one shoulder, and a duffel bag at his feet. There was also a tall tote bag on his other side. I couldn’t say I was surprised. One day, he was bound to leave or get thrown out. It really could have gone either way where our parents were concerned.

“Will this cover it?” I asked as I held the cash through the open cab window.

The man behind the wheel counted it and was about to hand some back, but I told him to keep it. Being a cab driver in East Dremest, Pennsylvania was a shitty job this time of night, or day, depending on how I looked at it.

“Let’s get you inside,” I told my brother as I picked up the duffel and the tote. They weren’t heavy, not that my brother had a lot. I was shocked he had this much.

It wasn’t until we were inside the apartment with the door shut and locked that I asked, “What happened?”

Marshall stood shivering in front of me to the point his teeth started chattering.

“Okay, let’s get you warmed up,” I said and steered him toward my small couch. The place wasn’t nice, but it had heat, as much as I could afford of it, anyway.

Marshall sat while I went to the bedroom to grab the comforter from my bed. I wasn’t living the life of excess here. There was only so much lying around. The bedding consisted of a comforter, a blanket, and a set of sheets. I could have afforded more, but I knew this day would come when I’d have my brother at my door, needing help.

I draped the comforter over his shoulders, then rounded the couch to tuck it against him. “How’s your head?”

“Ok-kay for n-now.” Fuck, his skin was ice cold.

“How long were you standing on the sidewalk?”

“N-not that. Outside.”

“You were out front of Mom and Dad’s waiting in the cold?”

He nodded, his shaggy dark-brown hair falling into his eyes, before he brushed it away.

“I’m going to make you tea.” At least, I hoped I was. I tried to keep some here in case I caught a cold or the flu.

Rooting through the cupboard, I found a box that was half full and a bottle of honey that had enough left at the bottom for what I was making. I watched as the cup spun in the microwave, the low hum competing with the sound of pipes banging as the heat kicked on. I kept it set at a tolerable level when I was home, not wanting to waste too much on heating. The air wasn’t frigid, but it wasn’t exactly toasty either.

With the mug in hand, I took it over to Marshall and pulled out the small tray table I usually ate meals on in front of the TV. “Drink.”

I sat next to him and waited until his body stopped trembling and he let out a sigh of relief.

“Can you talk?” I asked. I needed to know what I was dealing with.

“Yes, thank you.”

“What happened?”

“I lost my job because I missed two days last week and two this week, plus more in the past few months.”

My brother was a chronic migraine sufferer. He only worked part time while going to school. He had a scholarship to the local community college. God, my brother was talented. I’d never seen someone paint like he did. And the way he lit up when he did it, there was something so special about it.

He could have gotten insurance coverage through our parents had they held on to any job long enough to qualify. There was also the option of him getting it through the school or on his own, but when he could barely afford what the scholarship didn’t cover, that was out.

“Have you been going to class?” I asked.

He shook his head. “I stopped last month. I kept missing it and the scholarship has requirements.”

“Mars, I’m so sorry. Why didn’t you come to me sooner?”

He peered into his mug, his head down. “I didn’t want to bother you.”

“I could have helped.”

“I don’t want your money, Barrett,” he said brokenly. “I should be able to do it on my own.”

“There’s nothing wrong with asking for help.”

His head lifted. His brown eyes met mine. “You didn’t. You left and did everything by yourself. Now you have a great job and your own place. I wanted to do that too. I figured if I could keep working, maybe I could go full time, but the weather shifted, and we’ve been getting a lot of snow. My head’s been aching.” He didn’t need to say more. I was familiar with my brother’s migraines.

“I shouldn’t have left you there.”

“I was okay. You didn’t need to stay for me, but if I could stay here for a bit, I’d like to look for a full-time job.”

“You can stay here for as long as you want, but only if you go back to school.”

He hunched over the tea like the heat of it was seeping into his body. “I can’t afford it.”

“I’ll take care of it. We’ll talk to them and get you back on track.”

“Barrett…”

“Let me help.”

A tear slipped down his cheek. “I don’t want to be like this. I want to be like you, with a job with benefits, so I can do what I love on the side.”

“That’s what you’ll have, but first you have to finish school. Did you tell Mom and Dad you were leaving, or did they throw you out?”

For as long as I’d lived there, they griped about how much health insurance was and how much money they needed for Mars to go to the doctor. It wasn’t just the migraines. Mars had eczema and allergies too. A combination that, with the proper care, could be controlled better. With insurance coverage only occasionally or none at all, he was left with over-the-counter medicine for everything.

“I left,” he said. “They were fighting last night about money. Dad lost his job again and Mom’s not working. I kept hearing them say how much food was and how rent was due, and they couldn’t afford it.”

“So, you packed your things.” Marshall wasn’t the kind of kid who bothered anyone. He got great grades when he was in high school, would always get his work done, even if he missed days because of his migraines.

He shrugged. “It was coming. I’m eighteen. Another mouth to feed. They asked me for money. I don’t have any to give them. I have to buy the medication.”

“I know.” I put my arm around him. “You don’t have to go back there. We’ll figure it out.”

“Thanks.”

Marshall yawned and put his head on my shoulder. I took the mug from him and placed it on the table so I could ease us back and let him sleep.

I stayed there as the sun rose and light seeped in between the plastic blinds over the windows. I had to work, but not until later today. Now I was glad I never spent that money I saved on other things. Marshall deserved everything good in the world, and damn if I wasn’t going to give it to him.

He wasn’t a minor, so I couldn’t become his guardian, but I could help him in other ways. There was a clinic not too far from here that had payment options. I’d get him seen and put a plan in place. Even if I had to pay out of pocket for his medication, I would. One way or another, Marshall was going back to school, and he would feel good while doing it.

Letting my body relax into the couch, I closed my eyes. There was no way I was drifting back to sleep, but I could let my mind wander. I also couldn’t ignore the comfort I found in my brother’s presence. The only times I went home anymore were for holidays or to pick Marshall up and take him out for a meal.

Our parents made it known long ago that we were nothing more than a burden on them. They were more invested in themselves than they were in us. But that was what they got for not using birth control and not bothering to hold down a job for long. They were healthy for the most part. They just didn’t want to work.

I’d like to say it was better when we were smaller, but it wasn’t. The only saving grace was our aunt and uncle on our mom’s side. Our dad’s side was a fucking train wreck. My mom’s sister would pick us up and let us stay with them for weeks at a time over the summer. They’d spoil us. My aunt and uncle never had children of their own, so they paid us attention.

I’d secretly hoped one day we could live with them for good. It was a wish that never came true. And it was why, once I graduated high school, I needed a job that would pay enough to get me out of that house. Leaving Marshall behind wasn’t easy. Getting a job and saving money was though.

It was all for him. Everything I did and continued to do was so my brother would have a place to land when he inevitably left home.

Now he was on my couch, warm and asleep. He didn’t have to worry where he would get his medication from or how he was going to afford to return to college. I had that covered, even if it meant living in this apartment with one bedroom for years. Marshall could have the bed. I’d sleep on the couch.

My brother would never know again what it felt like to want and not receive.