Chapter Twenty-One #2
“She’s got more stuff to hiss at us about, but she’s gonna be fine.”
“I like having her here.”
“I do too. Think we might have to keep her.”
“Sounds good,” he agreed.
“I’ll be right out here; call me if you need anything.”
He nodded.
“Thanks again, kid.”
I moved back out, finding Brio standing there with two glasses of whiskey.
I nearly lunged at it.
When I was done throwing it back, Brio nodded.
“So, you and Alara.”
“How…”
“Please,” he said, shaking his head.
“I know I should have talked to you.”
“She’s a grown woman. And she’s got some twisted thoughts about torture up in her head.”
“Gee, wonder where she got that.”
His smile curved up.
“What I’m saying is, I’m pretty sure I’d have honey on my balls and be eaten slowly by rats, starting with my nuts, if she ever believed I thought I could have a say in her love life.”
“That sounds like her,” I agreed.
“What I saw tonight when you showed up at my place was a man in love. So as long as that’s what it is, I’m happy for both of you.”
“But you’re keeping a meat hook for me in your playroom if I fuck up.”
“I got a dull knife with your name on it,” he agreed. “She’s soft with you,” he observed. “She’s never soft. It’s good for her. You and the kids, you’re good for her.”
“Yeah, doing a real bang-up job,” I said, thinking about how sick or hurt everyone was. Except me.
“Look, we both know shit happens. If any of us thought there was reason to think someone would show up here, there would have been a guard. We all blew this. But everyone is okay. Hurt. But they’ll heal. What matters is you’re here for them now.”
“Yeah,” I agreed. “You guys should be getting home. You’ve got kids to worry about too. And this isn’t fully over yet.”
“I’ll send one of my associates over to be out front just in case.”
“Thanks, man. I appreciate it.”
“You’ll have your own crew eventually. Don’t mind sharing mine until then.”
With that, he slapped a hand on my shoulder and went to fetch Ezmeray.
Then just like that, we were alone in the apartment.
I did my rounds, checking on Charlotte—still asleep, fever down—then Liam, who had passed back out. And finally, Alara.
She was sitting up in bed, her leg jacked up on four pillows, staring blankly at the wall.
“You okay?” I asked, sliding into bed with her.
“A little in shock, I think,” she admitted, leaning into me. “Is Liam okay? Really?”
“He’s asleep. I’m sure he’s gonna be hurting when he gets up, but he’s alright.”
“But mentally?”
“He’s surprisingly calm about it.”
“That’s what I’m worried about. And it’s not like he can talk to his therapist about this. There was a double murder involved.”
“He’s got us. And the whole family.”
“Yeah. We have to make sure we keep a close eye on him.”
“We will. And you have me too, you know. And your sister. Brio. Zeno.”
“God, Zeno was so cool and calculated tonight,” she said.
“When we showed up, he just casually turned in his chair, seeming completely unbothered by everything. But then when Liam came in, the two seemed to be communicating silently. And… and then Zeno attacked the one guy. And after Liam shot the other guy… he just… stuck the metal into the guy’s throat… ”
“Think we all can do what needs to be done in that kind of situation. Zeno… he was trying to make sure that Liam didn’t kill someone. He didn’t want that on his conscience.”
“It’s not over, though, is it? Those guys probably weren’t working alone…”
“We don’t know that yet. Or maybe we do,” I said when my phone started ringing in my pocket.
I reached for it while staying put. It wasn’t like Alara could be any more implicated in this than she already was.
“Hey, Lorenzo,” I said, pulling Alara closer. “What’s up?”
“How’s everyone doing?”
“Liam and Char are sleeping. Alara is right here with me.”
“Okay. Well, turns out these geniuses were carrying the password around in their damn wallets.”
“What did Zeno find?”
“Blackmail, technically. But it’s worse than that. Robin was a neighbor to the two fucks tonight. Used to hang out with them growing up. Seems like maybe her own household was not a happy one.”
Beside me, Alara sighed.
“I don’t like where my mind is going,” she said.
“It’s unfortunately, probably in the right direction. Turns out she was being abused by their dad. And, later, them too. And she had no one to tell. Seems like she maybe tried to move on with her life when she was old enough. Until she found CSAM online.”
“CSAM?” I repeated.
“Child sexual abuse material,” Alara supplied.
“Of herself,” Lorenzo added.
“Christ,” I hissed.
“Not bad enough they abused her, but they had to share it for other disgusting perverts to watch too. I guess she found a way into their place or their old man’s place and she stole one of their flash drives.”
“It’s enough to kill someone over,” I said. “Prison doesn’t like men who touch kids.”
“Is the dad still alive?” Alara asked.
“He is. As soon as the bodies are fully disposed of, Zeno is going to talk to one of our contacts on the force. See if they can do something about the bastard. Robin deserves that.”
“If they won’t,” Alara said, choosing her words carefully, “maybe Brio can.”
There was a pause from Lorenzo. “I’d be good with that. We all got kids in this city.”
“Can we… can we pay for Robin’s funeral? She never got any dignity in life. Maybe we can give it to her in death.”
“Yeah, babe, we’ll do that,” Lorenzo assured her. “I’ll let you guys know when we have any updates.”
“Thanks, man,” I said. “You okay?” I asked when I set the phone down.
“I mean, I know Robin was already dead, but this is just… so much sadder than I anticipated.”
“Yeah,” I agreed. “Ugly fucking world to be raising kids in.”
“Char and Liam are going to bring more good into it.”
“Yeah, they are.”
“Christopher?”
“Yeah?”
“I almost died tonight.”
“I know,” I agreed, squeezing her. “Don’t remind me.”
“So, I think maybe that’s what’s making me admit this already,” she said, pressing her head against my chest. “But, um, I think I might be a little bit in love with you.”
Fuck.
That made my heart feel like it was too big for my damn chest.
“Well, good. Because I’m definitely in love with you.”