Page 31 of Ruthless Beasts

“What? No.” He shook his head. “We share a bedroom wall, which can be uncomfortable. The first few weeks at the house, she was pretty ill, and she never wanted to eat anything. I don’t know. I put the clues together. I brought her prenatal vitamins, and she never denied it, so I assumed it to be true.”

How had I missed all the signs? Maybe I wanted to ignore them, just like I didn’t want to acknowledge her place with us. Maybe I still don’t. I didn’t know what I really wanted; I had mixed feelings, but what I accepted was that when Adam and the girl came out of the office, holding hands, with her tear-stained cheeks, I wanted for a second for it to me next to her, comforting her.

“Appointment made.” Mercer held up the appointment card. “I feel like this occasion deserves ice cream.”

“She’s not five.” I spoke the words without thinking, but then really thought about it. After what they just did to her, she could have anything she wants, and I’d give it to her. The lady didn’teven seem to care that she was making Bellamy wince in pain. “I mean, I could eat ice cream.”

“No,” Adam answered for her. “She’s been away from the house long enough today. I don’t want to invite danger.”

“She just had the jaws of life prying open her body. Surely, we can afford to treat her with whatever she wanted on the way home.” Was that me going against him? What the hell was I thinking? I always agreed. It was easier, and I strived to make my life easier.

“It was dangerous enough to take her to breakfast,” he reminded me, and I knew he was right. This world wasn’t a fun place to grow up in. There was danger and betrayal around every corner, and if you weren’t careful, you’d be taken out. Still, didn’t we owe it to her to treat her like she wasn’t a prisoner in our lives?

“We have the extra guards,” I pointed out.

Adam dropped her hand, and she wrapped her arms around her waist as he stepped forward, speaking low as he leaned toward my ear. “I bent the rules once for your sister and look where that left us. Do you think I would risk someone else’s life? My wife, another child, for ice cream?”

It stung that he talked to me like I had forgotten my own sibling’s death and the pain it caused him, the pain it caused us both. My voice caught. It took two swallows to get it out. “We wouldn’t let it happen again.”

“I’m not taking the chance. She’s been out for nearly three hours. It’s too long for comfort.” He stepped back, his hand going to her back to nudge her forward. “We’ll meet back at the house.”

He stepped forward, guiding the girl stiffly, and I couldn’t figure out if he wanted her or despised her. Maybe it was a little of both. I couldn’t imagine what he was feeling if seeing the childstirred something inside of me. I followed behind, quickening my steps to hand Adam the photos.

He took the paper from me, staring oddly at it for a moment, unsure what to do, before he folded it and placed it into his pocket. Then he reached forward, holding open the door for her, stopping her from going through it until I passed first. If bullets were flying, I’d be okay taking one for her. It was the promise I made to him, and now a promise I made to myself.

We waited until they were in the vehicle together before we took a seat in ours. The car hadn’t even started, the keys barely in the ignition when Mercer turned to me. “Ice cream?”

“That’s sort of a jackass move, don’t you think?” The thought of getting ice cream after Adam told her no sat heavy in my stomach, making it feel sour.

“I didn’t mean for us.” He pressed the button, turning the car on. “I meant for her. Do you want to follow them home and as soon as they are at the gate, go grab some?”

We should ask if he had any place to be, but fuck him, he didn’t ask if we did. Leaving him to spend a few minutes with his wife wouldn’t kill him. “Did you ask her what her favorite was?”

“No.” He looked over his shoulder. “We’ll just buy them all.”

I agreed, then we rode in silence until Adam’s car disappeared through the gates and into the overgrown jungle of our property. Then we continued on, not stopping until we were in front of an ice cream shop, ready to order every single flavor for a girl we barely knew, and it felt nothing like the numbness that usually consumed me. In fact, for the first time in years, I might even have felt alive.

Lady greeted us the moment we opened the front door. I reached down, offering her some pets, scratching between the beast's ears before straightening and holding the bag in my hand high. Icouldn’t let her get to the bag of ice cream, despite what the pup thought. It wasn’t good for her. Behind me, Mercer closed the door, holding his own arm of ice cream away from the jumping pooch.

“This isn’t for you,” he told the dog, and she yelped her disagreement. “Bellamy!”

His voice echoed off the high ceiling. But it wasn’t Bellamy who emerged from the depth of the hall. It was Adam. His jaw was tight as he looked at us. “You disappeared.”

“Hardly,” Mercer huffed. “We got ice cream.”

“I said no ice cream,” he growled.

“No.” Mercer shook his head, always challenging Adam for the dumbest of shit. “You said she couldn’t go for ice cream, not that we couldn’t bring any back.” He paused as they had a stare off, then shouted again. “Bellamy!”

“I need to go to the office,” he informed us.

“There is an office here.” Mercer shrugged, as he toed off his shoes, leaving them by the door before he padded toward the hallway.

“I need to be in person.”

“What’s wrong?” Mercer looked over his shoulder. “Tense car ride home?”

“Fuck off.” Adam looked so offended that I was sure he hit the nail on the head.

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