Chapter 14
“Ihate everything about this,” Hollis says in my ear.
“You hate anytime I leave,” I point out.
“For good fucking reason,” he retorts. “The last time any of us left the house there was a kidnapping and a shooting. So excuse me for being worried about you.”
I smile; I love this side of my Tesoro.
Joel side-eyes me as we park at the far end of the lot. “It’s like we’re either going to be buying or selling,” he mutters. “Haven’t been in this position since I was seventeen.”
I snort, remembering when he—and consequently, his brothers—was promoted in the Amato Organization because he proved himself to be more useful than a simple drug runner.
“Oliver is in position,” Leandro says.
Joel and I exit the car, my bodyguard on high alert, as am I. There are so many ways this can go to hell, starting and ending with it being a trap because the guy Leandro is…doing things with is a traitor. I wonder if I can accidentally kill him?
Joel was right about the location—a park in the opposite direction of both the Council’s house and the Senator’s—is the perfect place for a drug deal to go down.
Thankfully, the territories around the park seem to use it more as neutral ground, rather than trying to stake their claim.
We have too much shit going on right now to worry about pissing off some small timer who was in the wrong place at the wrong time.
It’s not hard to find Oliver; he’s waiting by a small, crumbling fountain, under one of the only lights in the whole place.
Before he can say anything, I punch him in the face. “What the fuck?!”
I stare at him as he cups his nose. He lowers his dark eyes, unable to hold my gaze.
“Sir…” His voice is subdued, giving in to my presence.
“Have nothing to say for yourself, hmmm?”
He keeps his gaze downcast. “None that would make a difference.”
“If you ever hurt him, I will make you beg for your death. Do you understand?”
“Yes, sir.”
“Fuck off, Ten,” Leandro says in my ear. “You don’t get to dictate shit for me.”
“Be quiet,” I reply. “You’re lucky I don’t just shoot him and be done with it.”
“It’s fine, Sir,” Oliver says, and I can tell by his tone that he’s not talking to me. He takes his hand away from his face, wincing as he looks at his bloodied fingers, before wiping them on his pants. “I deserved it, probably worse.”
Leandro makes a displeased sound, but doesn’t respond. Oliver wipes at his bleeding nose a few times—fucker is lucky I didn’t break it.
The sound of footsteps hitting concrete has the three of us turning, saving Oliver from getting into more trouble.
The big man that comes out of the shadows would probably scare a normal person.
After all, he has a good three or four inches on me and is widely built; a force to be reckoned with, I’m sure.
But I didn’t survive this long by being easily intimidated.
Besides, the tiny child in his arms ruins the big, bad image he has going on.
Lachlan looks between Oliver, Joel, and me, before zeroing his gaze on Oliver and his bloody nose. “Problem?”
“No. Just a misunderstanding,” Oliver replies smoothly. “Thanks for taking this risk, Lachlan.”
“Don’t do that. Don’t thank me for this shit. I’m not a monster.”
I snort, and Lachlan’s dark eyes meet mine. “I think we have very different definitions of that word. Now, hand me…my nephew.” The word is weird on my lips, but it's the best I have.
Lachlan makes his way over—like fuck am I taking another step. Joel moves to stand partially in front of me, which earns him a glare, but he ignores it.
Once Lachlan is closer, I can see how Cole has buried himself into the big man’s chest, as if trying to hide from the world. I’d think he was unconscious if it weren’t for the tiny whimpers escaping his throat.
I haven’t held anyone so small since Roman was the same age, but it’s all muscle memory when Lachlan transfers Cole into my arms. He lets out a startled cry and I shush him. “It’s okay, Cole. It’s Ten. You’re okay, I got you.”
He stares up at me with wide, frightened eyes. I’m not sure he’s really seeing me, especially in this shitty light, but I hold him close anyway.
“You’re okay,” I repeat. “I’m going to get you back to your daddies, okay?”
He whimpers. “Please…” he whispers.
“I promise.”
I don’t give Lachlan or Oliver another look, though I’m finely tuned to them, even as I trust Joel to watch our six while I hurry back to the car.
Cole clings to me, his tears soaking into my shirt, but I don’t give a shit. He can ruin every single shirt I own, so long as he’s here, safe.
I get into the backseat, holding him to me, finding myself unwilling to put him down, even if it would be safer. For a moment, as Joel backs out of the parking spot, I have a flashback to one of the many kidnapping attempts I saved Roman from as a child.
I hope this is the boy’s only experience with such a thing. I know how…haunted Roman is because of both his past and present. I am many things, but I don’t believe an innocent should ever be pulled into this game.
That fucking nanny better hope Cole’s daddies find her first…
The drive home is long, and through it all, Cole stays with his head buried against my throat.
He doesn’t relax, even though he’s probably exhausted.
The only noises he makes are the small, occasional whimpers, and the cries he can’t hold back, and it’s…
concerning. I hope Javi is ready for a new “test subject”.
Because if his fathers don’t insist on getting him help, I will.
It’s a mistake Cristian made with Roman, and I won’t allow it to happen again. Not in someone so young.
Joel helps me out of the car, so I don’t have to put Cole down. It’s late enough that there are minimal house staff around, and luckily, everyone in the Family is either in bed or otherwise occupied. I'd rather get this over with quickly than make it a thing.
Knocking on the door to Keegan, Marcus, and Carter’s suite, I resist my usual urge to just walk in. For one, I can’t pick the lock with the kid in my arms, and for another, I doubt Marcus and Keegan would appreciate that.
It doesn’t take long for the door to open, showing an exhausted and haggard Keegan. “Present for you,” I say flatly.
He sucks in a breath when he sees my charge. “Cole…” He doesn’t hesitate to reach for the boy. “Marcus, Carter!”
At the sound of his father’s voice, Cole comes to life a little, bursting into sobs. Keegan holds him close, even as the other two men come out of the bedroom, looking just as exhausted as their lover.
“Fuck, Cole!” Marcus exclaims. Carter lets him pass by, and Keegan hands the boy over to Marcus.
Keegan looks at me with emotion burning in his fog gray eyes. “Thank you,” he says. “I…fuck, I’ll be pissed later that you didn’t tell us what you were doing, but right now, just…thank you.”
“Don’t thank me,” I say lowly, modulating my voice into the tone I’ve perfected.
Taking a step into the room, I grab Keegan’s arm tight enough to leave bruises. One of his lovers protests, but I ignore them. Keegan meets my stare, his eyes darkening and promising violence. I dare him to try.
“If you ever touch my son or Hollis again, yours will grow up without you. That goes for you and Marcus both. This feeling you have right now? What you experienced while you were without your son? Imagine him and Carter spending the rest of their lives with that feeling. I do not care what you think of Leandro, or what is happening, you never touch what is mine. Ever.”
“Did you save him in order to hold it over us?”
I shove him against the wall.
“Fuck, Tennant, don’t!” Carter says, but I don’t pay him any mind. He knows the rules.
“I am a monster, Keegan, but I don’t play with innocents, especially not children. You’re a father, and a lover, so you now know how it feels when one of your own is threatened. I suggest you remember it the next time you or your Tease try to touch what isn’t yours.”
I watch as his eyes grow stormy, and he gives me a short, clipped nod. I’ll take that, considering what they all just went through, but next time, there will be no warning…
Releasing Keegan’s arm, I look at Carter, who’s standing in front of Marcus and Cole. “You know better, Carter. See that they do as well.”
With that, I leave the little family to themselves, my good deed for the year now complete.