Page 27 of Nikoli

"And who are you?" I hear Gabe over my shoulder.

I force myself to pull away from Nikoli, but I am not ready to give up our connection, so I continue to grip his waist. "He's my boyfriend," I say confidently, feeling a surge of possessiveness. Nikoli smiles at me, a mixture of surprise and delight in his eyes, before turning to my brother and holding out his hand.

"Nikoli Southern. I'm in love with your sister."

Gabe meets my gaze before taking Nikoli's hand. "I'll kick your ass if you hurt Owl."

"Owl?" Nikoli asks.

"I hated Willy as a nickname." I grin. "Gabe was obsessed with his as a kid, so there was no way I was going to be called that." I cringe. "We settled on Owl. It stuck."

Nikoli laughs, and when I look at my brother, I notice a red blush on his face. He rolls his eyes when he catches me staring.

"We have to go downstairs. The cops are here."

"Who is that?" I ask Nikoli.

He replies, "Jessop Hallen. One of Rhodes' brothers."

"How?"

"Best not to ask," Nikoli tells me.

* * *

The moment we step outside, the sky opens. Rain bounces off the gravel driveway, hitting the cars parked in the circular driveway hard. Nikoli has an arm around my waist while I clasp my brother's hand. With Rhodes hovering in the background, Rosie fusses over Dodge. He finally takes an ice pack from her and walks over to the Baton Rouge detectives who have just arrived.

Jessop and Carlisle are gone, which is a good thing from what I've heard. Especially since there are five men whose hands are tied behind their backs with zip ties that are also attached to the scaffolding on the side of the building. Brian is there too, much to my delight. The men look a little battered and bruised. So yeah, it's a good thing the two oldest Hallen brothers are gone.

The detectives walk over to where I am standing with Nikoli and Gabriel. They both glance at my brother before turning to me. "We've heard some disturbing things. You all need to come down to the station and give your statements."

"You're not going to arrest us, are you? We haven't done anything wrong. Marcus Carter killed our father, Damien Carter. I have a security video as proof of what I say.”

The detective's eyebrows shoot up. "And can we see that evidence?"

I nod. "I have to get it. It's at the house."

"I assume you mean Sunny Meadows?"

I smile at the name my mother gave our house. "Yes."

He nods. "We'll take you there."

Nikoli clears his throat. "If you don't mind, we'll meet you there."

"Make sure you do." The detectives move off.

"Where the hell did you leave the evidence, Owl?" Gabe asks as we climb into the SUV Dodge rented. Gabe climbs in the back while I press up against Nikoli, and Rosie follows me into the car. Rhodes is behind the wheel with Dodge in the passenger seat. I turn to my brother and say, "Somewhere out of the rain, hopefully, or it might not work.”

"Shit," Gabe mumbles.

I rest my head on Nikoli's shoulder. As I drift off, I hear Gabe giving directions to Rhodes. The sound of the windshield wipers adds to the soothing rhythm of the rain outside.

* * *

"Wake up, sleepy head. We're here." Nikoli kisses my forehead and gets out of the car, taking me with him. I lay my head on his chest for a moment, just letting him hold me. "It's a nice house, Willow."

"My mom refurbished it. Inside and out." I sigh. "There are lights on inside. That bothers me."

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