Page 3 of Edge of Danger

After tackling part of the mound of paperwork, Brax headed to the gym to work out the kinks he’d earned hunched over his desk all day. All four brothers kept themselves in top shape. It was one of the reasons a security business fit them all so well—it required engagement of both their minds and their bodies. They were all willing to endure both.

By the time he finished his workout, ate dinner and stopped back by the office to finish a little more of the never-ending paperwork, it was getting late. Time to head home. He enjoyed spending time with his brothers, but didn’t mind being by himself. A little peace and quiet at the end of the day. Privacy. One thing he’d never had much of as a kid in one foster home after another.

Which was the reason he’d chosen to live in a house in the middle of nowhere with no neighbors close by. The most he heard at night was an owl’s hoot or a cricket’s song. He welcomed the nightly symphony as he dragged himself up the stairs toward his bedroom.

The ring of the doorbell brought him up short, tension coursing through him. He didn’t get many visitors, especially at this time of night. His gun was already in the safe.

Another ring. He crept down the stairs, eyeing the door, grabbing a second weapon he kept hidden in a top kitchen cabinet.

Of course, if it was somebody coming to stir up trouble, they wouldn’t ring the bell. They’d barge right in.

Still, it was worth caution.

Caution that didn’t diminish when he heard the voice coming from the porch. “Brax? Let me in, man. I need you.”

Brax muttered a curse. Of all the people to show up in the middle of the night, his half brother, Robert, would be the one. He put the SIG Sauer back in its hiding place.

He could ignore the bell, something he wouldn’t consider for a split second if the man on the other side of that door was a Patterson. Luke, Chance and Weston were his real brothers. Much more than Robert, though he and Robert shared blood by means of having the same father.

Brax opened the door before Robert started shouting. “What are you doing here?”

“Hi to you too.” Robert flashed his typical, greasy smile. Under the porch light, Brax could see Robert’s sweaty forehead, dark circles under his eyes, his skin paler than usual and oily black hair that looked as if he’d run his fingers through it over and over.

Robert glanced nervously over his shoulder, then back at Brax. “You going to let me in?”

“Do I have a choice?” Brax stepped aside, noting his brother’s nonstop fidgeting. Hands he rubbed together, a twitchy jaw. Was he high on something? It wouldn’t come as a surprise.

Robert hadn’t exactly lived an honest life.

Brax and Robert looked almost nothing alike, something Robert had been quick to point out countless times in the five years since they’d known of each other’s existence. Robert had also made it obvious he looked down on Brax’s mixed race through little comments and slight aggressions against him and all of Brax’s adopted brothers.

Funny how he showed up when he wanted something, though. Usually cash.

“What do you want?”

“There’s been an emergency.”

Again, no surprise. There was always trouble. It was difficult for Brax to muster interest. “What sort of emergency?”

Robert shrugged his thin shoulders and surveyed the room. Anything to avoid eye contact. “It’s a long story. I’ve got a friend who owes me money. It’s important that I get this money right away.”

“I’m sure it is. But I don’t see why you had to come to me about it. Do you need protection? Help in some other way?”

“Yeah. Some other way.” Robert held up a finger and went to the door, pausing with one hand on the knob. “Will you help me, bro?”

Bro? That made Brax’s teeth clench.

The only reason he nodded his agreement was he knew Robert would never leave him alone otherwise. Besides, Brax was curious. He wanted to see how this would play out.

Whatever he had been expecting, it wasn’t what Robert carried in one hand when he came back from his car. Not even close. “You’re kidding me.”

Robert looked down at the baby in the infant car seat. “Meet your nephew.”

“My nephew? Since when do you have a kid?” Then, another thought, one that would’ve made him shout the house down if it hadn’t been for the sleeping baby. “Are you alone otherwise?”

“Yeah.”

“You left the baby alone in the car? What’s wrong with you?”

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