Page 32 of Morsel

“Sit down,” Oscar says, and I sit.

“What the fuck?” Phoenix turns to his brother. “What was that?”

“She’s my pet,” he says.

I feel my cheeks heat.

“Like, your submissive?” Alex asks.

“Something like that,” Oscar says.

“Are you two fucking?” Ryan asks.

“Not yet,” Oscar says.

They all stare at me. I stare at my hands.

“We found out more about your brother,” Phoenix says, saving me from my own humiliation.

“What did you learn?” I ask. I wonder if it’s anything I don’t know.

“He worked for our dad a few years ago,” Phoenix says.

“What?”

“He worked for our dad,” Oscar repeats his brother’s words. “We don’t know how. We just know they were involved in the adoption business.”

“Like, you think my brother stole kids?”

“There were both a lot of kids taken and also, not a lot,” Phoenix says. “If that makes sense.”

“It doesn’t.”

“There were about twenty-five missing children that we’ve been able to tie to our father.”

“Meaning what?”

“Meaning that our dad was a complete prick,” Oscar says. “We want to find the kids and reunite them with their birth families.”

“And what does that have to do with Craig?” I ask.

“If he worked with our dad, he might have access to records we don’t,” Oscar says.

“He tried to capture Oscar, which means there’s more to this than we know,” Ryan adds. “If your brother is trying to hurt ours, chances are that there’s something shady still going on.”

“And you think he’s going to come after Oscar again,” I say, realizing why I’m still here.

“No,” Oscar says. “We think he’s going to come after you.”

16

Oscar

There are few moments in life where I feel out of control.

When I’m skydiving, when I’m skiing, and when I’m bungee jumping are all examples that come to mind.

When I’m watching Dolly be hounded by my brothers for information is another.

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