Page 105 of Risking it All

Chapter fifty-two

Macie

Lifetimes passed as I waited for my parents. I couldn’t focus on the TV, my phone, or the constant texts from Lev, Demarius, and Melanie, all wondering if Relic was okay. I paced the house, empty, worried, hopeless. Could Dad do it? Could he somehow save Relic from a life he didn’t want? An even better question: would Relic accept the help?

The garage door in the kitchen opened, I raced up the basement stairs, and the first thing I heard was a child’s voice talking nonstop. I was scared to take hope at that sweet, sweet sound. I swung into the kitchen and Camila smiled when she saw me. She had a cookie in her mouth, chocolate staining her lips, and she talked as she chewed. “Your mom said I could have one. She said we can bake all the cookies. I’m not sure if she knows how many cookies that is. I can imagine big.”

“My mom can imagine big, too.” I scanned the kitchen, my heart hammering as Mom and Dad walked in. No Relic though. Where was Relic?

As I was about to ask, he walked through the garage door. Adrenaline coursed through me, and I raced across the room. He dropped the backpack he had in his hand, held his arms out to me, and I jumped into his embrace. I buried my head into the crook of his neck and had to breathe through the sob that caught in my throat. Relic held me close, hugging me so tight I could barely inhale, but I didn’t care. He was here, he was safe, and he was with me.

“I love you,” I whispered to him.

“I love you, too,” he whispered back, and we hugged each other—a silent promise that we never intended to let go again.

***

Dad grilled steaks for dinner, and it was fun to watch Camila try a piece. Turned out she’d never had steak before, and after an appropriate amount of ketchup, she declared she was a fan. Relic had been quiet through dinner, but no one pressed him to talk, not even my dad who surprisingly hadn’t even sent him a glare.

After dinner, Relic and I sat on the back patio porch swing, watching as Oliver and Seth played basketball with Camila. Relic filled me in on what happened after he realized the tattoo belonged to Marsh. It was a long story, devastating, and soul-wrenching.

My God, this had been a terrible two days. “Brayden gave Marsh up,” I said quietly a few minutes after he finished. “Abby said he was arrested this morning.”

Relic was quiet and my insides felt like a garbage dump. “I’m sorry about Marsh.”

“Don’t be. He betrayed me. A real brother would never do that.”

Still, I knew it had to hurt, and I wished I could make him better. “What about Lyra? Doesn’t she have custody of you and Camila? Doesn’t she have a say in any of this?”

“Camila and I could be missing for two weeks straight, and she wouldn’t notice.”

I stayed silent as that wasn’t exactly an answer.

“I texted her,” Relic said with defeat. “Told her that another family was willing to take me and Camila in, but I needed her to sign off on her rights. She told me to fuck off. Zuri then introduced me to Camila’s social worker. We had a long conversation. No food and no power has a way of making CPS take notice. As of three hours ago, the two of us officially became wards of the state. Isaiah and Rachel were assigned emergency placement.” He rubbed his hands over his face, and his shoulders fell as if he was exhausted. “Lyra loves us, but she never wanted to be a mom to us. I get that. I hated it and tried to make up for it, but I understood her not wanting to be responsible.”

The hurt reverberating out of him made my heart stutter. I took his hand, and he linked his fingers with mine. I squeezed his hand. He squeezed back.

“Thank you, Macie,” he said.

Confused, I met his eyes. “For what?”

“For not giving up on me. Even when I walked from you. Twice.”

“Just returning the favor. You never gave up on me.”

He rubbed his thumb over my skin, and I felt his love for me with that caress.

“Did you know Abby was a drug dealer for Ricky?” Relic asked.

I raised an eyebrow, as that had me curious as to what exact conversations Relic had with Dad, Isaiah, and Abby. “I know that, at one time in her life, she sold drugs, but that’s not who she is now. I have no idea who Ricky is.”

“Ricky was Eric’s biggest competition until Eric had him killed. It happened right after Camila was born.”

There was hurt in his voice, pain. I had no idea what to say so I remained silent.

“Abby’s dad is Mozart. He’s a legend on the street. A bogyman of sorts.”

“Only thing I know about Abby’s dad is that he’s in prison and will be until he dies.”

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