Chapter 24 Klaus
KLAUS
“Here.” I handed Evan a beer.
“What’s this for?” he asked as I stepped around him to settle on the couch.
“It’s been a long day,” I mumbled before taking a deep drink. I hadn’t been a beer drinker until I moved in with Evan and Anson, but they made it seem like a nice escape. I was used to top-shelf liquor, but a beer from time to time really helped me out.
Evan took a drink from his beer and wiped his mouth.
“Something’s up. What is it?” he pressed. He’d hit his deadline and was free for a bit. That made things less lonely.
“Guess I’m feeling lonely. Figured you may be too.”
He sighed. “She’ll be home soon.”
“Likely with a horseman,” I muttered, drinking again.
I wasn’t against her getting close to them, not really, but we’d left that life, and I rather liked the calm I lived in now.
Going back, especially after Fox’s “death” and Ellis, just screamed bad news to me.
Enzo wasn’t some run-of-the-mill wannabe.
He was the real deal. Billions of dollars to throw around. Power. Respect. Fear.
He had turned into Matteo.
But now that Teo was gone, all that was left was Enzo and the horsemen. Of course, Dominic was definitely still in the game, but he had an alliance many could only dream of.
“Maybe,” Evan said, not bothering to deny it.
“Aren’t you upset over it?”
He was quiet for a moment. “Not really. I miss them, too, but I am still pissed about the shit they did to her. Not so much E as he was struggling. But there isn’t an excuse for Cole and Enzo. I’d like to see them again just so I could punch them both in the face.”
“I’d also like to,” I said. “I saw her back then. She was a mess. But had they not done it, I’d not be here, so I’m conflicted on the violence.”
“Then I’ll do it for you.”
I smiled at that. “You remind me of Teo.”
A tiny smirk cut across Evan’s lips. “Well, same family tree and all that.”
I nodded.
Definitely the same family.
“Did Rosalie call today?” I asked.
“Yeah. We talked for only a few minutes. She sounded exhausted. Said she spoke to E and that Cole had been a dick in the background. Apparently, that’s an ongoing thing with him whenever she calls E.
Cole thinks she’s some girl named Emily, so he’s giving E shit for it.
I’m not surprised. Cole always was an ass and overly possessive, even of us guys. ”
I rolled my eyes. “Pricks don’t deserve to know her anymore.”
“It’s her call. I do miss E. We never had any closure after everything. I’d like to tell him I’m sorry and…” his voice trailed off, and he looked down at his lap. “I don’t know, I guess. It would be nice to hear from him. Who knew death could suck so much?”
“I’ve heard it’s not the best,” I murmured, thinking about my old friend Teo. “But this is your call, too. You don’t have to stay dead.”
He nodded. “I know. I guess fuck them if they’re pissed. Hurting Rosalie like that…” He shook his head and drank again. “Almost five years and I’m still pissed over it.”
“But you wanted her free from them. Seems odd to me to be OK half a decade later and be willing to fall back in.”
He said nothing as he drank more. Finally, he wiped his mouth.
“Death does fucked up shit to people.”
I chuckled at that. “I only want to make sure your head is in the right place. And your heart.”
“I’m good, man. I’ll kick their asses if they try anything. If Ellis wasn’t in the picture or asking about Cole, I’d maintain the course and not bother with any of it, but she matters, and so, I’ll endure whatever hell is out there.”
“You’re a good man,” I said. “Better than me.”
“You’re a good dude, Klaus. Don’t sell yourself short.”
I smiled at that. “I appreciate it.”
We drank more in silence, the TV quiet in the background as a cartoon played.
“I’ve not seen this episode,” I said.
Evan laughed. “I fucking hate this show.”
I grinned. “The joys of being a dad.”
He continued to smile. “I honestly can’t wait to have more kids. I love Ellis so damn much, and Rosalie…damn.”
“Girl or boy?” I asked.
“We have a girl. I’d like a boy this time. Name him Legend if Ro allows it.”
“She will give you anything you want,” I said with a scoff. “She lives and breathes for you.”
“And you.” He gave me a pointed look. “So what about you? Girl or boy?”
“I have sons. I have mein ballerina. I do not care if I have more children, but if I did, I wouldn’t care about the sex. I have both already with Ellis, Stefan, and Levin. I’ll adhere to the cliche as long as they’re healthy.”
“Good answer.”
Before our conversation could continue, my phone rang. I grabbed it off the coffee table and saw Anson’s name on the screen.
Evan adjusted his sunglasses and sat forward.
“Hello?” I answered.
“Hey.” Anson sounded breathless.
I straightened my spine and put him on speakerphone.
“What’s wrong?” I demanded.
“The tour bus is on fire.”
“What?” I said, looking over at Evan. They’d decided to take the bus for the remainder of the tour because Rosalie was tired of a different hotel every night. “Are you OK? Is Rosalie—”
“She’s fine. Everyone is fine. I got us a room for the night. No flights out, so we have to cancel another show.”
“What the fuck is going on?” Evan snarled. “I’m coming—”
“No, man. Hold off. There’s nothing you can do. Everyone is safe. Cops are on it. Fucking press is on it.” He let out a frustrated sigh. “No leads.”
“Do they think it was her stalker?” I asked tightly, knowing damn well it was.
“Yeah. He left another severed body part behind.”
Evan swore softly under his breath. “Anson, bring her home. Cancel the rest of the shows. It’s not safe.”
“I tried. She is adamant about finishing this shit out. She bitched me up and down when I was on the phone to Alex about it tonight.”
“Where is she?” I asked. “I’ll talk to her.”
“She’s sleeping.” He sighed. “I think we should back off the tour, too, but you know Rosalie. She won’t.”
I rubbed my eyes. “I’ll come out there. Both Evan and I—”
“No, it’s bad enough I have Dante Church breathing down my neck.
He’s a one-man army on his own if he shows up here again.
He’s a fucking rabid dog. I won’t be surprised if I wake in the morning and he’s glaring down at me.
” Anson let out a soft groan. “Fuck, I hate this shit. I find out who did this, and I’ll kill him. ”
“I have men on it. Nothing comes up. He’s good.” I shook my head. “We’ll keep digging.”
“Tell her I love her,” Evan said. “That I’ll be there in a heartbeat. She just needs to say the word.”
“I will. For now, let’s just finish this shit out. We have Chicago in a few days,” he said tightly.
“We have a lot of support in Chicago. The kings. Even the horsemen,” I said, not wanting to drag them in on it, but I’d reach out personally to Lorenzo De Luca if it came down to it.
Plus, we had Dante and the watchers. I had my doubts that anything would get past them.
I was hoping it was the safest place for her.
“Anson,” Evan started.
“I know, man. I know,” Anson said softly. “I know you’re worried. I am too. This shit is too much. Fucking body parts. Fires. I just… Fuck.”
“Do you think it’s…underground related?” Evan asked.
I snapped my attention over to him and frowned.
“Everett has been missing for a long time. I-I don’t know. I doubt it because he knows what awaits him if he’s found by Dante. I can’t imagine him being so fucking stupid as to pull a stunt like this.” Anson cleared his throat. “But I’m suspicious. I’ll talk to Dante about it.”
“It’s the only thing we have. I’ll follow-up. See if there’s been any noise on the streets. I’ll give Levin a call.”
“Let me know what he says,” Anson said. “I need to go. I’ll let you guys know if anything happens. I love you.”
“Love you. Take care of our girl,” Evan said, a slight waver to his voice.
“You know I will, brother. Klaus—”
“Love you,” I said, “take care of Rosalie. We’ll do what we can on our end.”
“I will.” Anson disconnected the call, and I looked over at Evan to see a muscle thrumming along his bottom jaw.
“It’ll be OK,” I said.
“And if it’s not?”
“Then we’ll start fucking killing people.”
He tightened his hands into fists before getting to his feet and leaving the room. A moment later, I heard the door to the basement click closed, and I knew he was going downstairs to punch things.
He was so much like Matteo. He and Anson could be brothers.
“Hello?” Levin’s voice greeted me.
“Son,” I said gruffly. I’d worked a lot on my relationship with my boys, and while Stefan was easier on me than Levin, I still had my work cut out for me.
Levin was stubborn.
“What do you need?” he asked.
Always right to the point.
“It’s about Rosalie—”
“Tour bus fire. I heard. It’s all over the news,” he said. “Rosalie is OK, right?”
“Yeah, Anson said she’s fine. I was calling to see if you’d be able to put your ear to the ground there and see if you’ve heard anything about Everett Church.”
Levin was quiet for a moment. “Why not ask Dante? He’s the one hellbent on finding his ass.”
“Levin, it’s Rosalie,” I said softly.
He sighed. “I know. I’ll do it. I’ll let you know if I hear anything.”
“Thank you. I appreciate it.”
We were both quiet for a moment.
“How are you?” I asked. “We haven’t spoken in a few weeks, and you were quite busy when I was in Chicago.”
“I’m fine.”
“Anything going on?”
He sighed. “Yeah. I guess. Bianca is pregnant again.”
“Oh?” I raised my brows at that information.
“We just found out a few days ago,” he continued. “It’s mine.”
“You’re going to be a father?” I asked, my voice choked.
“Yeah.” He sighed.
“You do not sound happy.”
“I am. I just… I don’t know. I don’t want to fuck it up,” he mumbled.
“Because you have no one to model being a father after,” I finished for him, my throat tight. “I am sorry, Levin.”
“It’s whatever. You’re… you’re not that bad.”
I wiped at my eyes.
“I mean, you were a cocksucker, but you’re not bad now.”
I laughed sadly at that. “I am still learning. For what it’s worth, I’m proud of you, son. You will make a great dad.”
“Thanks,” he murmured, his voice thick. “I want you to know, since you’re on the phone, that Cole Scott is losing his mind over this Rosalie stuff. Anson marrying her and all that.”
Levin did not know that Fox survived. I felt like shit lying to him, but I made a promise I intended to keep to Evan.
“I assumed.”
“I just think you should be careful. I’m friends with the horsemen, and if they find out I knew about this Rosalie stuff…
” his voice trailed off. “I don’t want to cause problems for any of us.
Dom and the horsemen get on really well for the business side of things.
I don’t want a situation where we’re turning on our friends. That never ends well.”
“I understand,” I said gently. “If it gets out, you can say I lied to you, and you didn’t know. They’d believe that.”
He scoffed. “That’s true.”
I swallowed hard. I’d been such a terrible father. I wish I could outrun my past, but I vowed I’d face it and be better to my boys.
“We-We are trying for a baby,” I said softly.
“What?” Levin sounded shocked.
“Yes. I-I think Anson will beat Evan and I to it, but I didn’t want you to be in the dark about it should it happen.”
“Are you sure you want a kid?” he ventured.
“I am afraid, yes, but Rosalie has said on repeat she wants another, and so we agreed. I fear I will fuck it up as I did with you and Stefan.”
“We came out OK. Little damaged, but Vin says it gave me character.” He laughed softly.
I smiled at that. “I like the silver lining.”
“Vin is good at pointing it out.”
“He’s like his father.”
We were both quiet for another long moment.
“Well, I best be going,” I said. “I don’t want to keep you. Let me know if you need anything for Bianca and the baby. I will be here for you.”
“Thanks. I appreciate that.”
“Talk later?”
“Yeah. Later. Bye, Dad.”
“Bye, Son. I love you.”
“I-I love you, too.”
The line disconnected, and I wiped at my damn eyes again.
Hearing my boys say they loved me would never get old.
Now I just had to save our girl.
And so, I did what I always did.
I got back to work.