19. Chapter Nineteen #2
I took a deep breath and led it out slowly.
“Actually, yeah. There’s been an incident in Chicago, and Lukas has concerns about something happening here as well.
We don’t know the likelihood, so extra precautions are being taken.
Phil and Chelsea have been instructed to stay at Lukas and Quinn’s for now. ”
Borce’s eyes went wide for a moment before he sighed. “Well, okay then. I suppose it couldn’t be smooth sailing forever. I assume I’ll be updated when necessary?”
“Absolutely.”
Edith and I left the security room, and once the door was closed behind him, I turned to her. “I think we should let Lynn and Miles know to keep an eye out for anything suspicious.”
She pressed her lips for a moment before answering. “You know, that’s a good idea. It’s not quite a ‘Code Jeffery,’ but I’ll insinuate that it could be upgraded at any moment.”
I liked her plan. “And where would you like me to hunker down with my laptop?”
“My office.” Her answer was immediate. “No one will accidentally walk in and either disturb you or see something they shouldn’t. Also, I have a love seat in there, so either one of us can stretch out and get more comfortable if needed.”
We made our way back through the kitchen and settled in again. I made a few rounds through the camera feeds before a buzz from my phone startled me.
Lukas:
I let out a huge sigh and sagged back in the chair for a second before responding.
Peter:
Lukas:
It was then I remembered I hadn’t updated Lynette about Hummingbird, and I immediately called her.
“Hello, my dear. Have you been updated about Ryan?”
I smiled. “Yes, ma’am. Lukas texted me.”
“Good. Good. I’m assuming you have something for me?”
“Yes, ma’am. It took Edith and I a minute to place the location of things, but once we figured it out, I’m happy to report that everything looks as it should. All your kids are safe and accounted for.”
She let out a small scoff. “I’m not sure all of them are safe right now.”
Before I could ask, there was a commotion in the background. I recognized Lukas and Ben’s voices, and what sounded like a heated exchange.
“Enough! Separate corners. Both of you. Now.” Lynette’s hissed words startled me.
There had only been a handful of times I’d heard of her getting angry, and it was terrifying to be part of it, even if I wasn’t the one in trouble.
There was a grumble from someone, but she cut them off.
“Not another word, or I will have Avery collect you and then give her permission to deal with you as she sees fit.”
Shit. My eyes went wide. “Dumb question, but is everything okay over there, Lynette?”
She sighed deeply, and if I had to guess, was probably rubbing one of her temples. “If I thought the get-along shirt would fix this…” She sighed again. “Ben and Lukas are on one of my last nerves right now.”
“I’m done with my report if you need to go.”
Lynette cleared her throat. “Thank you, Peter. I’m glad to hear someone here knows how to behave. Keep me updated.”
The call ended before I could respond, but that was fine. I was more than a little terrified of her at the moment.
Edith was looking at me, heavily concerned. “That looked intense.”
“A bit. Lynette has her hands full right now. I’m hoping Lukas quits running his mouth so he can enjoy being alive and married.”
Her eyebrows shot up. “Is he sassing his momma?”
I shrugged. “I honestly don’t know. I overheard enough to know he and Ben are going at each other about something… and that Lynette threatened to have Avery discipline them.”
“Oh dear. Those boys better straighten up.”
I glanced down at the phone as a text popped up.
Quinn:
“Uh oh. I have a feeling Lukas isn’t done upsetting people.”
Edith nodded and headed for the door. “I’ll leave you to it.”
After she was gone, I responded to Quinn.
Peter:
My phone immediately rang, and Quinn didn’t even greet me when I answered it. “No, he hasn’t. I heard through Avery, though, that Ryan will make it through surgery, but Lukas isn’t answering me.”
I let out a nervous laugh as I relayed what I overheard when speaking to Lynette.
Quinn let out a frustrated groan. “Why is that man picking a fight with the one person who can’t get in trouble for kicking his ass? Does he have a death wish?”
Her comment surprised me. “You think Ben would beat up Lukas?”
“Have you ever talked to Ben about his upbringing? Like, had a full discussion with him about it?”
“No?” Should I?
Quinn hummed. “Okay, well, I have. He and I have had quite a couple of deep conversations. Like me, the vast majority of the time, everyone sees the happy, composed version of Ben. The calm version he’s worked extremely hard to cultivate.
But in life, there’s balance. No one can be the happy, sunshine character all the time.
Yes, he is genuinely a happy person who loves his wife and family, but there’s also the dark side of his personality he controls and keeps locked down as much as possible.
” She paused for a moment. “Let me ask you something, Peter. If any of the Agosti people get threatened or hurt, how does everyone in the house react?”
“They want blood.” I was no stranger to helping exact revenge.
“Exactly. Ben is no different, and if I’m being honest, he might be the scariest one if he fully went off. And I’ve seen some pissed off Agostis.”
My eyes were wide with shock. “I had no idea Ben had that kind of fight in him.”
“Most people don’t, and I hope it stays that way.” She let out a sigh. “By any chance, did Lukas ask you to bring Chelsea to our house?”
“He did.”
“At least some of my husband’s rational brain is working. I feel better knowing you’re all in one safe place.” Silence fell again for a moment. “I hate the awful feeling in my gut that this isn’t over yet.”
My eyebrows went up. “Oh?”
A tense laugh came out. “Lynette, Lianne, and Lukas are still upright, and Liam still hasn’t gotten what he wants. You gonna look me in the face and tell me this bullshit is resolved and over?”
“No.”
“That’s what I thought.”