Chapter 3
3
J AMES
Sunk in thought, I fix myself a drink and walk onto the patio.
Later, I slide into a chair, take a cigarette from the pack, light it, and fish out my phone.
I pull it closer to me.
Meticulously, I go over my brother’s pictures, sifting through his most recent photos and the ones meant to help me learn a little more about his life.
Or make me curious about him.
Perhaps, intrigue me.
Whatever it is, it works.
I still have no clear feelings about this whole thing–-not good or bad––but I wrestle with curiosity. It’s impossible not to be curious since it feels as if I look at my own life.
I’m sure Tiago is different in many ways, but we look so much alike.
I study a snapshot of him as a young boy. And then another one as a teen. And then a picture that was taken at his prom with a beautiful girl on his arm.
His smile makes her melt.
And then a more recent picture of him. A social media post.
I locate his account online with more photographs. In his car, on the beach, at the gym––strenuously training himself.
Sometimes, he has a woman’s arms around his neck, her lips on his cheek, her eyes drinking him in.
And yet his stare is vacant. A small smile tilts his lips, but it’s not addressed to her. Or anyone. Or anything.
I know those smiles.
I close the app, check the time, and make a call.
My phone rings a couple of times before a man picks up at the other end of the line.
“I have a job for you,” I say.
“James?” he murmurs incredulously.
“Yes, man.”
“I’m glad to hear from you again. Is everything okay?”
“Everything’s fine. I need you to find someone for me.”
“Uh-huh... Man or woman?”
“A man. A family member.”
“Okay.”
I pause.
“It’s my brother,” I finally say.
“Your what?”
“You heard me right.”
“When did you get a brother?”
“Apparently, twenty-one years ago. It’s just now that I found out about him. Turns out he’s missing.”
“Circumstances of disappearance?” my bodyguard asks in a serious voice.
“Unknown. I have a bunch of information and a few photos.”
“Send them to me. What do you know so far?”
“Police got involved, but they have no leads. There hasn’t been anything suspicious reported so far. Regardless, I need to find him. Dead or alive. Although I hope he’s alive. He fought for a living and couldn’t be taken out that easily. On the other hand, he might’ve pissed off the wrong people, which usually does it. He was last seen in London.”
“When?”
“Three weeks ago.”
“Anything particular about him?”
“He’s half American and half Portuguese. He looks just like me ten years ago.”
“Got it.”
“How’s Lauren?” I ask.
“She’s good.”
“The kids?”
“A handful.”
I breathe a chuckle.
“Good, man. I’ll see you when you get here.”
“Where are you?”
“I’m in Monaco. I’ll fly to London as soon as I can. I’ll meet you there.”
“Sounds good.”
“One more thing. I need all the information that you can get, and I’ll handle it from there,” I say.
“Sure.”
I hang up before I call Ed.
“Hey. Did you go to sleep?” I ask.
“No. I just finished talking to Thea. She and Rain are planning a party for me for when I’m going back,” he says, a grin threading through his voice.
A moment passes.
“Is everything okay?” he asks.
“Yes, um... Yes, it is. Can you work in Lex’s office for a few days when you return?”
“Yes. Why? What happened?”
“Nothing. I’ll be busy with some things, and I need Lex here if he can travel.”
“Of course. Do you want me to stay?”
“No, no. Go home, man.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yup.”
“What happened?”
I stay quiet, taking a drag off my cigarette and pushing the smoke out before speaking.
“My mother was here.”
“So she did show up after all.”
“Yeah, she did,” I say solemnly.
“How did it go?”
“It was... I don’t know,” I say, running the hand holding my cigarette through my hair. “She gave me an explanation for all these years of silence, and I sort of bought it, but it doesn’t make me feel any better.”
“How does she look?”
“She looks good. She’s as hot as you remember her,” I say, grinning.
A laugh travels to my ears.
“That’s not why I asked.”
“I know you had a crush on her, Preston.”
“When I was eleven.”
We both laugh.
“She looks good,” I say in a different tone. “She’s single, regretful. Doesn’t know if she’ll ever come back. She’s built a life here, so it’s understandable, in a way. There’s something else...”
I pause.
He doesn’t say a word.
“I have a brother.”
“Wait… What? Seriously?”
“Uh-huh.”
“Is he like a teenager or something?”
“He’s a man.”
“How can he be a man?”
“He’s twenty-one years old but looks like he’s twenty-five. He’s, um... He’s a bare-knuckles fighter and fights in the underground clubs in London.”
“No.”
“Yes. And he’s missing.”
“Shit. That’s why she wanted to talk to you?”
“Precisely.”
“Perhaps she thought that asking for help under these circumstances would make you more lenient toward her.”
“Maybe.”
“So, how was it?’
“We talked. I was angry at her, but then I didn’t feel much about her. Toward the end, I had sympathy for her. My brother is not a happy pup either, and she blames it on herself. There may be some truth to that, but she’s not entirely responsible for it. Based on what she says, she’s done everything she could to raise a happy man. It’s just that she hadn’t had much success. She feels as if life has punished her for leaving me with my father. She seems remorseful.”
“She probably is.”
“Yeah... So that’s it,” I say before sucking in a long breath. “She wants me to find him and straighten him in a way. She didn’t use this word. Gave me a longer, sentimental version of it. Anyway, I called Thomas. As soon as he gets here, I’ll be heading to London.”
“Did you tell Rain?”
“No.”
I pause for a second, musing.
“I don’t want to tell her yet. I’ll tell her when I know more.”
“Okay... I guess?”
“Yeah. It’s better that way. I’ll see you in the morning.”
“Cool, man. Get some sleep.”
“I will.”
I put the phone down and move my eyes to the stretch of water glimmering under the moonlight.
My mind goes adrift, my cigarette burning and morphing into little shreds of ashes.