Chapter 12
CHAPTER TWELVE
Monk held back the sigh threatening to escape. His fucking father. Bringing a mother and her child to the castle. Whether he knew about Kendall didn’t matter—no single parent should be lured into the things that happened in the dungeon.
But none of that was anything Kendall needed to hear.
“You cold?” he asked, lifting his chin toward her.
Her clothes looked clean but thin, and the top, by design, left her midriff bare.
Another judgment he wouldn’t pass on her mom, although he wondered about the appropriateness of it for a twelve-year-old.
“A little,” she admitted, wrapping her arms around her body. Another sign of vulnerability.
“Let’s get you a sweatshirt. And some food,” he said, turning and heading toward the staircase. He didn’t wait for her—wanting her to understand she had choices—but he kept his ears tuned. He did allow a tiny bit of relief to ease his worry when her light footsteps fell in behind him.
“You grew up here?” she asked.
“Yep.”
“Must have been wild. It’s an actual fucking castle. I heard people say it was brought over from France.”
“Italy,” he corrected, opting not to police her language. If dropping an f-bomb every now and then gave her the illusion of some control, some maturity, who was he to argue?
“Did you like it?” she asked.
“The castle’s all right. Didn’t make me popular with the kids in town.”
“Everyone assumed you were a rich asshole?”
He inclined his head as his feet hit the landing of the ground floor and he started toward the tasting room.
Dulcie had picked up a few items of clothing for him from one of the chain stores in town.
The sweats and sweatshirt would be huge on her, but better than the thin cotton she had on now. He’d give her a pair of socks, too.
“Pretty much. Didn’t help having a father who liked to flash the money around.
Made him popular with a certain set—and all the nonprofits he donated to—but kids are a different story.
Here,” he said, tearing the tags from the clothing and handing them over.
“They’ll be huge, but you can roll them.
If you need a belt, Roger probably has one we can punch a hole in for you. ”
She took the clothing and cocked her head. “You call your dad by his first name.”
He considered glossing over his relationship with his father, but if he wanted information from Kendall, he better be willing to offer the same.
“My father was a shit human being. When I was not much older than you, he put me in situations that no one, especially not a child, should be in. I left the day after high school graduation. Didn’t come back until after he died.
This”—he lifted his arms, indicating the castle and everything in it—“is now all mine and as you can imagine, I’m conflicted about it.
There’s a lot of family history here going back several generations.
And a shit ton of money. But there are also bad memories and things I’d rather not be reminded of. ”
Her dark eyes studied him with a wisdom she shouldn’t have at her age. She might not know the exact things that had happened to him, but she got the gist.
“You gonna take the money and run, as they say?”
His lips twitched. “If only things were that simple.”
“What’s not simple about that?”
“Go get changed. I’ll make some food since it looks like my arrival home might have interrupted your dinner. We’ll talk more when you get back. I’d point you to the bathroom, but you probably already know the way.”
The imp grinned at him, then darted out.
When he heard the bathroom door close, he pulled out his phone, texting Mantis as he headed to the kitchen.
Monk: New development, there’s fucking kid living here. She’s been here two weeks. Her mom was one of my father’s party “guests” and left her behind. Name’s Kendall. Can you see if Leo can find out anything?
Then he added a brief description of her. He wished he had a picture to send, but he didn’t want to creep Kendall out by taking one.
Mantis: Done and she okay?
Monk: TBD, tough, but weren’t we all?
Mantis: A place we all know too well. Let us know if we can help
Monk: Getting Leo on it is all I need for now. Will update you when I know more
Setting his phone on the counter, he opened the small fridge. He’d gone through most of the cured meats and cheeses, but he’d spotted another industrial fridge/freezer in the laundry room so decided to look there.
Hoping she wasn’t vegan or vegetarian, he snagged a packet labeled “Asian Bites” and headed back to the kitchen.
“That’s a good one,” Kendall said, appearing in the door. She swam in the clothing but looked comfortable. “I grabbed one of those things that ties the curtains back and used that,” she said, lifting the sweatshirt to show him the shiny gold rope edged with fringe circling her waist.
“Whatever you need.”
“After what you said about your dad, I didn’t want anything of his anywhere near me.”
He chuckled at that. “Can’t say I blame you.” He started the small oven and set the twelve little spring rolls on a pan. He’d sauté the dumplings, then heat the chicken skewers over the gas flame.
“You found the food?” he asked.
She hesitated, then nodded. He sensed her apprehension more than saw it. “Good,” he replied. “Where are you sleeping?”
Again, she hesitated. “Third floor, north room.”
“The one close to the fire escape?” She nodded. “Smart girl,” he said. It killed him that she needed to think about having an escape, but he was glad she was smart enough to do it.
He finished preparing her meal in silence. Once he plated everything, he gestured her to the tasting room. “I’ll make a fire, and you can eat there.”
She followed him out, taking the plate from him when he handed it to her.
“Do you want me to help find your mom?” he asked. Well aware that the question might raise a mix of emotions, including helplessness and vulnerability, he kept his back to her, giving her space to experience them without feeling under the microscope.
Setting a log in the fireplace, he waited. He set another before checking the kindling underneath. He was reaching for the matches when she answered.
“Can you do that?”
“I have friends who can.”
“No.” Her answer came so swiftly that he turned. “They’ll get the police involved. That’s a one-way ticket to foster care, and that’s a ride I’m not going to take.”
He studied her, then turned back to the fire. Once the flames grabbed hold, he rose and took a seat on the same sofa he’d slept on the past few nights.
“Are you in school? Don’t you think they might have already reported you missing?” he asked.
“I do online school. My computer’s upstairs and the internet security here is shit. The password is taped to the inside of a desk drawer in one of the offices. I found it years ago.”
Ignoring the fact that she’d obviously been to the castle before, he frowned. “Online school. That’s a thing?”
The look she shot him was pure tweenager. “You’re not that old, dude. Yeah, kids can learn online.”
He rolled his eyes. “I know there’s online learning. I didn’t know it extended to what, fifth graders? I don’t exactly spend a lot of time with kids.”
“Sixth grade,” she corrected. “But I work at the eleventh-grade level. I’ll be ready for my GED next year.”
“You’re a savant.”
“I’m someone who spends a lot of time alone with my computer. May as well learn while I’m at it. Beats the shit out of reading about whatever scandal the newest pop star is getting into or who cheated on who in Hollywood.”
“I agree. And I know a few geniuses, so no need to get defensive. My comment was an observation, not a challenge.”
A glint of interest came into her eye. “What kind?”
“What kind of what?”
“Geniuses? There’re all kinds. Painters, mathematicians, chemists…”
“They may be more than one thing, but I know them for their cybersecurity skills.” Ah, that piqued her interest. He bit back a smile and lured her in.
If he got her interested in Leo and Sabina, maybe she’d let them help find her mother.
Leo was probably already working on it, but he’d rather Kendall agree to the help than feel as though he went behind her back.
“Sabina runs the cyber team at a private security company called HICC. Leo is on her team. Ava also works there, but she’s on family leave now.
Gave birth to twins recently. The last person on the team is another Collin, but he works mostly on developing new technology hardware rather than the hacking-type stuff Leo and Ava do. ”
“Hackers?” She straightened in her seat.
“White hat, of course. But between you and me, they might skirt a few laws to make sure the right things happen.”
She watched him as she ate another spring roll. Then a dumpling. He knew the power of silence, of letting people have the time to think. Especially those who had so little control.
She finished a skewer, then asked, “Are those the people who might help find my mom?”
He rose from his seat and walked behind the tasting bar as he answered. “There’s no ‘might’ about it. They will if I ask them. But yeah, it’s them.”
“How can you be so sure?” she asked.
Bending down, he examined the contents of the fridge. “Water, some sort of fancy fruit soda, or ginger beer?”
“Fruit soda.”
He nodded and grabbed a can for her and a beer for him. “I can be sure because they’re practically family. Not blood family, but it’s…a little complicated.”
She raised a dark eyebrow. “You called me a savant. I can handle a little complicated.”
“Touché,” he said on a chuckle, before telling her about his fourteen brothers and Mantis and Charley and Joey and Leo. “Like I said, complicated. But it is what it is. Family isn’t always what we’re born into. Thank fuck,” he muttered, then grimaced. He didn’t need to encourage her language.
She snorted at his expression, then quickly covered her nose as the sip she’d taken hit her nostrils. He laughed as she wiped her face with a napkin, all while rolling her eyes.
“That stung,” she said on a smile, tucking her napkin back under her plate.
“Yeah, it does.”
“Will they really help?”
“I told you they will.”
“And they won’t call the cops?”
“I can’t promise that.” Her expression shut down, but he wasn’t going to lie to her.
“If they find out your mother’s been hurt or needs help or is in danger, they might need to call in law enforcement.
But if that’s the case, they won’t do it without talking to you first. I can also promise they won’t report her for leaving you here.
Especially not if they know you’re in good hands. ”
“Yours?”
“If you’re not comfortable with me, like I said, I have a huge family-by-choice, including several new sisters. The Warwick family—Charley and Joey’s family—would step in, too, if you’d rather be with someone else.”
“I can just leave.”
“Why head out on your own when you have options?” he said, knowing he couldn’t push her.
“I get that trusting people isn’t easy, that it probably goes against everything your survival instincts are telling you.
I won’t belittle that because those instincts have kept you alive.
Sometimes, though, when presented with a novel situation, those instincts can be off.
But I can’t make you trust me. That’s a decision you have to make. ”
“Can I sleep on it?”
“Yeah, but don’t bail on me tonight. I’ve already got a lot of shit going on and you’ll give me a heart attack if I have to worry about you, too.”
“I can take care of myself. You don’t have to worry about me.”
“Too late.” He didn’t miss the brief flare of hope in her eyes.
She blinked and looked away, taking another sip of her drink. Several minutes passed before she turned back and nodded. “I’ll stay.”
“Thank you,” he said, rising and holding his hand out to take her empty plate. She hesitated, confused by the offer, then handed it over. “Why don’t you head up and get some sleep. I can turn the heat on in that part of the castle, too, if you like.”
She blinked again, then nodded and started for the stairs. He followed but stepped into the kitchen as she continued down the hall.
“Collin?”
“Yeah,” he replied, popping his head out the door.
She stood at the bottom of the stairs, her hand on the doorjamb. “You said you have a lot on your plate right now. Is one of those things your dad—Roger’s—murder?”