Chapter Twenty-Three #3
“I don’t believe this is the right time for you two to overcome your differences. And you might want to borrow this,” Dr. Alfie grits out and hands me a gun from the back of his slacks.
I stare at the loaded weapon in my palm. Where the hell did he get a damn gun from?
My brother, too impatient to deal with the crisis of my two worlds colliding, snatches the gun out of my hand and starts shooting.
Alfie and I don’t speak for a moment and wait for my brother to give us instructions.
One of our guys is hiding behind some crates, using them as cover.
The shots are becoming fewer and farther between now.
My brother turns around and settles in next to me.
His breathing is a little labored, his leg twitching, and I feel the urge to calm him down.
“About your question, she didn’t dump me.
I...I told her to leave. Because of the whole Danny situation.
” A lump clogs my throat, causing my voice to sound squeaky and unnatural.
The words want to go back in; my heart is telling me not to trust him yet.
But I want to. I want to believe that my brother is still there.
But as it happens, my judgment on whom I can trust is a bit skewed right now. Just wait until I get my hands on Luca.
“Hey, you know I didn’t have anything to do with that, right? I had no idea Dad was going to do that.”
August’s face is sincere, his sharp lines softening. This could be the moment things actually improve for us. If he steps away from the business, I could bring him into mine. Sure, it’s legit and not really what he wants to do, but I could help him. We could join forces and really piss our dad off.
I nod as I see Callum ring out another shot. He yells over to someone else behind him. Using his hand to call out to someone up above on top of some shipping containers. Did he just yell Danny ?
“Callum, we’re trying to have a heart-to-heart here. Can you knock it off?” I call out, trying to ease the tension.
“Fuck you, Austin.” He laughs, army-crawling toward us. “I’m out of bullets. You got anything?”
I shake my head. “Thank god you got into farming, boss, because you’re a terrible fucking gangster, I’ll tell you that.”
My initial fury is quickly extinguished when I realize how fucking happy I am to hear someone say that.
As the shouts of unknown voices come closer, we begin to crawl to the back of the shipping container we’ve been leaning on.
“My fucking suit is ruined. Whoever started this fucking gunfight is getting a dry cleaning bill at the very least,” my brother moans.
God, he really is a pretentious ass. He’s getting shot at, and all he cares about is his dry cleaning bill. The man is worth millions.
“Augustus. Who wears a Tom Ford suit to the docks? You really only have yourself to blame.”
The unsettling quiet descends, and I’m not sure if it's safe to come out.
I slap Alfie on the shoulder. “Welcome to my world, doc. I bet you’re loving your office right about now, aren't you? A nice comfy couch, air conditioning in the summer, heat in the winter, and your beautiful office manager organizing your life for you. None of this chaos.”
He grimaces, and finally, I think I might be getting through to him. He needs to pull his head out of his ass and get his girl almost as much as I need to get mine.
“I can’t see why you’d want to get out of this life, Austin. I’ve rather enjoyed myself.” He smirks.
I lean against the corrugated metal, wiping the dirt off my pants despite my ass sitting directly in a puddle.
“Are you really out?” Augustus asks.
I hear a few shouts overhead, and Callum gets to his feet. The voice is one of ours, and he goes to investigate.
“Yeah, I’m really out. I told you, I have my own thing going on.”
I look around. The dock is usually bustling with workers.
The daytime, filled with container ships, no doubt some illegal goods, I’m not completely naive.
But at night, it’s like the truth comes out.
The harsh flood lights shine a light on the grime and dirt, the seediness of it all.
The smell of copper permeates the air, and I’m starkly reminded of how much I hate this life.
Even before Olivia abducted me, I had days and days of no violence.
Not a single thought that would make me think of murder, or blood, or guns.
I was just living this normal life, content with monotony.
Then Olivia happened, and despite our unconventional start, it wasn’t violent, except for the chloroform and the taser. But that was just foreplay.
I've been hollow for so long. A shell of a man trying to work out how to be human. She fills me up with love and soft kisses, longing and simple desires like coming home to the smell of home cooking. I learned how to cook, learned how to listen. Fuck, I’m so fucking fit right now, it’s unreal.
She’s built my body into a protective force to be reckoned with, not a tool for violence.
She’s made me into the man I never imagined was possible.
He nods and holds out his hand. I slap mine into it, giving him a shake. Might as well lean into it.
I pull him into a hug, slapping his back, because, of course, men .
“I’ll help you,” he says.
“You will?”
“Yeah, the business is mine. Everything else, the house, the cars, I don’t give a shit. But I want the business.”
“It’s not mine to give, but you’ll get no opposition from me. I want my new life back,” I say, and I mean it. I’ve been very upfront about that.
“Fucking hell, Austin. What are you waiting for? Just go get her.”
I grin, knowing that’s exactly what I plan to do. Danny will tell me where she is. I’ll go to her tonight, beg her for forgiveness, tell her I’m hers to do whatever she wants with. I’ll love her forever and leave this whole life behind me if that’s what she wants.
Callum rounds the corner. His face contorted into a harsh grimace. The gun in his hand is held loosely by his thigh; the fight is over, that’s for sure. As I ready myself to stand, to leave and get my girl, he lifts his head and looks me in the eye.
“Your father was shot . . . he’s dead.”