Page 3 of Revenge

His gaze holds mine, looking for any signs of weakness. I keep my expression blank, giving nothing away. If he thinks he can get anything out of me, he’s dead wrong.

Deep lines crease the corners of his eyes. It’s been six years since he had me locked up, and time hasn’t been kind to him. “You may have gotten released early, but you’ll be back.”

“That right?” I plaster on a smile so tight that every muscle in my face aches. I’m not giving him a damn thing.

“Yeah, it is. I couldn’t pin Cyrus’ death on you, but you got lucky. It doesn’t mean you won’t fuck up again.”

“Prison riots happen.” My teeth grind together at the mention of that piece of shit’s name. He got what was coming to him. I shrug to keep from saying anything that will incriminate me.

“I don’t care what they say. I know you butchered her in cold blood.” He keeps goading me, and this time it almost works.

At the mention of Lauren, my entire body goes stiff. My fingers grip the handle of my bag until the roughness of the material digs into my palm—pain the only thing keeping me grounded and stopping me from ripping out this fucker’s throat. My nostrils flare as I focus on taking slow deep breaths. Going back to prison so soon isn’t part of the plan. Finally, after a few beats of silence, I’m calm enough to speak.

He waits me out to see if I’ll give him what he wants. When I step around him and continue on my way, he calls out, “I’ll be watching you.”

My steps never falter as I take a quick glance over my shoulder and smirk at him. “See ya around, Rosenberg.” I hear him swearing behind me, but I don’t give a shit. I’m a free man now, and there’s not a damn thing he can do about it.

The sound of a lighter clicking open catches my attention. My brother’s standing in front of his black pickup truck, a cigarette hanging out of the corner of his mouth. Neither of us speaks as he takes his time studying my appearance. I’m much different than the last time he saw me. I’ve packed on at least fifty pounds of muscle and have a shaved head. Tattoos cover both sides of my neck as well as full sleeves on both arms.

He exhales a puff of smoke and rubs his bottom lip with his thumb—a nervous habit he’s had since we were kids. Nothing has changed about him, except he’s a bit older and sporting a few more tattoos than I remember. Blue eyes that mirror my own stare back at me as he pinches the butt of the cigarette between his fingers and brings it away from his mouth. His dark hair is buzzed into the same military style cut he’s had since basic training.

A few more beats of silence pass between us while we stare each other down, taking in every detail. He’s looking for my scars, but he won’t find them. They’re hidden away where no one but me can see.

“You look like shit.” He grins.

My chin jerks in response as a muscle jumps on my cheek. I want to say something, fill in the blanks for him, but I’m at a loss on what. The old me would have hugged him. This new version is broken and trusts no one. “Ax…” My voice sounds rough and dry. I wet my lips and clear my throat to try again. “Axel, I—”

He waves a hand out, stopping me. “I know, man. I know.” He understands. There’s nothing more to be said. His eyes flick down to my bag before his gaze comes back to me. “Let’s get you home, big brother.” His foot pushes off the truck as he makes his way around. I throw my bag in the bed of the truck and hop onto the bench seat.

My fingers rub against the black vinyl, taking in the newly done interior. Each stitch is done perfectly, sparking life into the old truck.

“What?” Axel glances at me from the driver’s seat.

“I can’t believe you still have this piece of shit.”

“Don’t knock ol’ Willie Mae. She’s been good to me.” He rubs the dash like his truck has feelings and I just hurt them. “She ain’t much to look at on the outside, but inside she’s got everything I need.” His lips curl into a sly grin. “You know how much pussy I got in high school ‘cause of her?”

I shake my head and focus on the road ahead. I’m itching to put as many miles between us and this place as possible. Other than a few cars and the dead leaves littering the highway, there isn’t much to distract me, but I do my best anyway.

Neither of us speaks again for the first hour of the drive and that’s fine with me. It’s a comfortable silence—familiar and safe. I remind myself that there’s no more having to watch my back for what lurks in the shadows.

Out of the corner of my eye, I catch Axel staring. He grins and shakes his head. “You been taking steroids in there, man? You’re fucking huge.”

“Necessary.” I shrug and steal a smoke from his pack laying on the seat in between us. The second I light it and inhale, peace washes through me.

Not much later, we pull up a dirt drive to a two-story cabin that’s secluded and surrounded by nothing but Georgia pine trees. Windows align the front wall, separated by a stone fireplace and a wraparound front porch. Three wooden rocking chairs are lined along the front as well as a matching small table.

The tall figure on the porch walks out of the shadows and leans against the wooden pillar. Watching, waiting. His features are similar to those of Axel and myself, except that his dark hair hangs down past his chin, tattoos only cover one of his arms, and he’s grown a beard since I saw him last.

I exit the truck, grab my bag, and walk toward the front door until I’m standing right in front of him. His eyes are similar to Axel’s as they assess my overall appearance. I hope they’re not looking for any semblance of the old me because they’ll be disappointed.

“Zane.” I greet him with a small head lift.

His stoic gaze meets mine. I stand there anticipating his reaction, and what I get shocks the hell out of me. A grin appears on his face right before he pulls me into a one-armed hug. My body goes rigid at the sudden contact before relaxing. Whether he notices it or not, he doesn’t say. He releases me just as quick and leads me inside the cabin without another word.

“Welcome home, brother,” Zane says over his shoulder.

My eyes dart around the room, taking it all in. It’s a bit overwhelming to see it completed. Everything looks better than I imagined. They followed my blueprints down to the letter.

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