Page 69 of Benji

He looked at me then, his eyes full of sadness. “I left two weeks later for boarding school. I started year seven at Kings. I could have lived at home but my father wanted me out of the house.” He managed a sad smile. “All the boys I went to school with hated boarding thatfirst year. They all wanted to go home. They missed home. I was the happiest I’d been since before my mother died. I was finally free. I was out of that house, away from him. I never wanted to go back. And in the end, I didn’t. When school finished, I moved out but didn’t go home. It took my dad a week to notice.” He nodded toward the DS on the coffee table. “I’ve kept this with me though, and I’ve kept it charged so the battery didn’t die. I don’t know why I kept it. I wanted to smash it a hundred times, just to delete what I knew. But something told me to keep it.”

“I’m glad you did,” I murmured, holding his hand in both of mine.

“Those names your father mentioned,” Dominic said. “Luzon and Arad. They’re both dead. Luzon was in a car accident. Ran off the road, other driver never found. It was treated as suspicious because of his ties to the crime syndicate and your father, but the case went cold. And Anthony Arad was gunned down in his own driveway, in front of his kids.”

Benji nodded, his lips pressed together. “Yeah. Just like he said.”

“And Snake,” I added. “Jake ‘the snake’ Moreno.”

Dominic nodded. “Definitely.”

“Who’s that?” Ky asked.

“Notorious bikie,” I answered. “Has spent half his life in prison for violent crimes. Claims several murders, never been charged due to lack of evidence.”

Dominic sighed, leaning forward, his elbows on his knees. “Benji, we’re going to need to take your device,” hesaid gently. “And we’re going to need to speak to the police.”

Benji stared at his lap, at our joined hands, and gave the smallest nod. “Will it do any good?” Another tear rolled down his cheek and he scrubbed it away. “Because my father will know where this recording came from. And those guys who’ve been trying to find me will be the least of my worries.”

I let go of his hand so I could put my arm around him instead. I pulled him closer, which included Fitch as well. I didn’t mind. Benji was going to need all the support he could get.

“We’ll do everything we can to keep you out of it,” Dom said gently. “There are procedures in place for cases like this. Protocols, security measures. And,” he added with a bit of a smile, “hopefully with this new evidence, he’ll never see the outside of a prison again.”

“And my brother?” Benji asked. “He knows everything my father’s done. The money, the murders. My father offloaded a bunch of shell company stuff in his name, and he’s been running business matters for years. He’s as complicit as my father. If you want to end the Barbieri family crime business—if you really want to keep me safe—you’ll need to stop him too.”

Dominic stared at him for a second and I knew what he was thinking because I was thinking it too. “They looked into your brother’s companies,” Dom said uncertainly.

I nodded. “Not entirely ethical, but nothing illegal.”

“Look into Murzik and Raynor Pty Ltd,” Benji said. “It’s a real estate front in Vanuatu. Tax free property something or other. I don’t really understand how it works, but it was my brother’s idea. I remember him telling my father about it and my father was so proud. They discussed how to make it look on paper.” Benji shrugged again. “I was only young when they talked about it, and I didn’t understand it. All I know is dirty money goes in, clean money comes out.”

Dominic’s jaw ticked and he had fire in his eyes when he looked at me. I knew he wanted to smile. Hell, he probably wanted to laugh. Because this was pure gold. If we could prove any of what Benji had just told us, with the voice recording and fresh new investigations and charges, the Barbieri’s were finished.

Dominic looked at Benji, dead serious now. “Benji, before I make some calls, I need to know if you’re one hundred percent certain you want to do this.”

Benji looked at him and barked out a teary laugh. “I’m scared shitless right now,” he said, squeezing my hand. “But yes. I need this to end. And it will never end unless I do this.”

I was both proud of him and scared for him.

Dominic stood up. “Good boy.”

Fitch shot him a look. “Hey. None of that from you to him, mister. That’s for me only.”

And it was the perfect moment of levity we needed. Ky snorted and Benji chuckled, wiping his face. Dom huffed at Fitch, but there was a hint of humour in it.

And we all took a minute to breathe and collect ourthoughts. Dominic stood over by the dining table, putting in calls to some pretty important people.

I kept an ear on his one-sided conversations while I sat with Benji, rubbing his back. “You’ll be okay,” I told him. “You can stay here until we get everything sorted out. You’ll be safe here. And I meant what I said before. If you don’t want anything... you’re not obligated to... you don’t have to sleep in my bed is what I’m trying to say. Only if you want to. I would never?—”

“I want to,” Benji said quickly. “Nolan, I want to stay here with you.” Then he swallowed hard and looked at Fitch and Ky. “I can’t go back to the apartment right now,” he said. “Sorry. But it’s too exposed and I can’t put you in danger. God, maybe you two shouldn’t even stay there. I’ll still cover my rent... somehow... until we know what’s going on, at least.”

“Hey,” Fitch said softly. “It’s okay. We’ll be okay. As long as you’re safe here. And I totally get it. He has the big apartment and the big bed and the big dick. I’d take it too. Actually,” Fitch looked around Benji to me. “If you want another?—”

Benji shoved him. “No.”

I chuckled and kissed Benji’s shoulder. “You’ll be okay, Benji. I’m proud of you.”

Benji shot me a look, eyes wide and still a little glassy. “You are?”

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