Chapter 26
Davis and Letty were waiting for us when I pulled into the driveway of the safehouse. This wasn’t a surprise though it was a bummer. My time alone with Brooklyn and Remy had officially come to an end and I wasn’t happy about it.
Though Remington’s shriek of excitement reminded me I was being a selfish prick.
“Letty looks peeved,” Brooklyn noted.
“Davis looks the same.”
Brooklyn’s lips twitched and she smiled huge.
“Maybe Davis is just who she needs.”
“Come again?”
“I’ll explain later. But if me being hung up on a man for five years is a little strange Letty’s got me beat by about nine years. She’s going on fourteen years pining after a man she doesn’t know. It’s time she woke up.”
“Doesn’t know?”
“She’s coming, don’t tell her I told you. It’s not a secret—everyone knows—but she gets pissy when I tease her about it.”
It was safe to say I wouldn’t say anything because I didn’t know what the fuck Brooklyn was talking about.
I also wasn’t going to tell her I was mighty pleased she’d been ‘hung up’ on me for five years.
Did that make me an asshole knowing she hadn’t had a man since me?
Probably. Did I give a fuck? Hell no. I wouldn’t have had a damn thing to say if she had been in a relationship since me.
I had no call to be upset with her if she had.
But that didn’t change the fact that I liked it.
Letty pulled Brooklyn’s door open, shoved her upper body in, and pointed at me.
“You’re not allowed to take them and run to a remote locale with no cell reception ever again. You hear me, Dulles? I require constant contact or I get grumpy. And tell your friend Davis over there that if he wants children of his own in the future he needs to stop making fun of me.”
“Um, Lets, you’re acting crazy.” That came from Brooklyn and I had to agree.
Letty was a woman undone and I was unclear what her tizzy was about. Not talking to Brooklyn, or Davis ribbing her, or both. Or the stress of everything going on.
“Woman, you need to learn how to take a joke,” Davis called out.
Letty’s body disappeared out of the car and Brooklyn glanced at me and smiled.
“I better calm her down.”
“You better do more than calm her down; she’s kicking Davis.” I gestured to the scene playing out in the front yard.
Davis on the defensive backing up, Letty on the offensive attempting to nail him in the balls.
“What?” Brooklyn unbuckled and jumped from the car.
I turned back to look at Remy who was laughing.
“Auntie Letty’s dramatic. Pop says she should’ve moved to Hollyweird.”
“Again, your pop sounds smart.”
“He says that if it wasn’t for Mommy, Auntie Letty would be in jail.”
“Oh, yeah?”
“Yep. Pop says Mommy’s the brains and Auntie Letty’s the fun.”
I glanced out the window, happy to see Brooklyn and Letty hugging and Davis standing tall, balls intact.
But this time I had to disagree with Michael Welsh. Brooklyn was the brains and she was also the fun. But I wouldn’t be sharing that with my son.
“I think it’s safe to get out now,” I told Remy but he didn’t move. “Remy?”
“You’re gonna stay, right, Dad?”
I fucking hated my boy needed me to reassure him. No, I hated the reasons why he needed me to reassure him. But I’d do it as many times as he needed.
“I am absolutely staying.”
“Are we going home?”
“No, son. We’re going to stay here while we look for a new house—for all of us. Is that okay with you?”
“With you, too?”
“Yes. Me, you, and your mom. All of us.”
“Will I get new toys?”
Toys.
Shit. I totally had to get my act together with this parenting stuff.
“All of your stuff from your old house will be moved into the new house. All your toys and clothes.”
“And my baby seat,” he grumbled.
“Booster seat,” I corrected. “And yes, your booster, too.”
Remy gave me a disgruntled look and I swear he rolled his eyes before he opened his door. I bit back a laugh that would probably be misconstrued as encouragement and got out of the car.
Remy and I slammed our doors and I held out my hand.
Remy’s little hand fit perfectly in my palm and we started walking. I was man enough to admit emotion clogged my throat and I had to swallow the lump in order to control the tears.
Only thing better than my son’s hand in mine was the feel of Brooklyn when she nuzzled in, wanting closeness.
“Yo. Little man,” Davis called out.
“Hey, Davis.”
I felt no jealousy when Davis ruffled Remington's dark mop of hair.
I felt pride.
Immense pride.
Brooklyn and Letty pulled apart, I heard a gasp, and my attention immediately went to Letty.
“Oh my God,” she breathed and started fanning her face. “Oh my God.”
Remington tugged my hand and I looked down at him.
“Told you she was dramatic, Dad.”
“Dad,” Letty blubbered.
“Letty,” Brooklyn warned.
“So, so long, Brook. So long,” Letty weirdly said.
But Brooklyn seemed to understand when she returned, “I know.”
Then Letty turned back to us, jutted out her chin, and put a hand to her hip. “What? No love for your Auntie Letty?”
Remington looked back up and this time I clearly saw the eye roll before he let go of my hand and ran to Letty. She picked him up, swung him around, and peppered his face with kisses.
Again, no jealousy.
“Happy for you,” Davis muttered from beside me.
“Happy for me, too, brother. What’s up with Letty?”
“The woman is a pain in the ass. When she’s not bossing she’s bitching. She’s lucky she’s funny as fuck and gorgeous or I would’ve cuffed her and taped her mouth shut days ago.”
“Gorgeous, huh?” I prodded.
“Just because you got a woman and a son when a month ago you had neither don’t mean you don’t got eyes.
And there’s no denying Letty is smoking hot.
High maintenance ain’t my thing. And trust me, with her wicked smart mouth, if there were ever a woman to make me a believer I could handle high maintenance without losing my mind it would be her.
And I know I’d lose my mind. But she’s fun to look at. ”
This was true, both accounts. Letty was a beautiful woman and Davis didn’t like high maintenance. He was chill and he liked his women shy and retiring. The shier the better. Davis Wright liked a challenge.
“Ballistic match come back?” I asked.
“Yeah, about ten minutes ago. It’s a match. There’s been a change; Jack and Asher are on their way to Canada. Shep’s looking into the money…Wilson filled you in on that, right?”
“Yeah.”
“Wilson wants to be ready with an apprehension team when Shep makes the connection. The money that Desi had in her account was drained and put in the same account as the reward money. The woman’s not smart and not hiding her tracks.
I don’t know why the teller at the local bank agreed to help Desi because she isn’t smart and left a paper trail pointing right back to her.
It’s so sloppy, I don’t know if I want to laugh or if I’m thinking someone is yanking our chain and this is one big cover-up for something bigger. ”
“What do you mean something bigger?”
“Desi’s flush with cash in her own account but she steals the reward money.
And she’s not smart enough not to transfer both accounts to the same one in Canada.
No one’s that stupid. And the teller at CDA National.
A man comes in to wire fifty K to Canada and the teller doesn’t check the signature card on file. Really?”
“He came into the branch? So there’s surveillance.”
“Yeah, of a man fitting Michael Welsh’s build wearing a ball cap, knowing where not to look and how to avoid the cameras.”
“What’s the teller’s name?”
“Jordan Pearson.”
“Jordan have any connections to the Welshes, Desi, or Brooklyn?”
“None that we could find. Letty saw a picture of her and said she’d never seen her before and she’s never heard the name.”
“She give an excuse why she didn’t check the signature card?”
“Jordan says wires up to Canada aren’t unusual. The manager confirmed that. Though he was mighty pissed Jordan failed to comply with bank procedure.”
Something wasn’t sitting right.
“Simple and stupid, brother. If you couldn’t find a connection between Jordan Pearson and any of the other players—trust that. This is about Desi.”
“Hell yeah, it’s about Desi. But now I’m wondering who she’s running from. Us or someone else.”
“Me, too.” I looked back at Letty and Remington then turned back to Davis. “You staying?”
“You cooking dinner?”
“It’s three o’clock.”
“And?”
“Did you stock the house with groceries?”
“Is my name Davis?”
“No, it's Fat Bastard.”
“Six percent body fat, brother. Far from fat but I’ll give you the bastard since I ain’t got a daddy.”
I shook my head at his ridiculousness and moved to get my family inside.
“Not bit…complaining now, are you?” Davis caught his curse and corrected it at the last minute.
“Nope.”
I looked up from the steaks I was grilling to Davis tossing the football with Remy and smiled.
I was going to miss the guys when they went back to Arizona.
With everything going on I hadn’t thought about that, what it truly meant to quit Takeback.
No more all-night strategy and planning sessions, no more operations, no more sitting around hotel rooms bullshitting, no more throwing back beers decompressing.
The flip side to that was they wouldn’t be around to get to know Remy and Brooklyn.
They’d be gone as soon as they ensured my family was safe.
A twinge of pain traveled through me at the thought of my boy not having these men around.
Good, strong, honest men. I wouldn’t have Wilson’s wisdom at the ready.
Davis’s humor. Cole citing some obscure poet or philosopher none of us had ever heard of.
Reese’s optimism. Jack’s strength. Asher’s intelligence.
All of that would be lost to me and my boy.
Their loyalty would remain but they’d be gone more than not.
Off saving the world like the men they were.