Page 9 of The MC's Little Brother

I felt Wraith’s uneasiness coming off him in waves as he turned to look toward the kitchen. It looked like he didn’t want to go in there. I couldn’t imagine what it would be like in his place.

Dad stepped up beside him and squeezed his shoulder reassuringly. “Come on. You don’t gotta figure everything out now. It’s late. Just come introduce yourself.”

He went with some urging from my dad, and I followed behind, bracing myself for what was coming. Dad wouldn’t have asked me to come with if it wasn’t bad. We pushed the door to the kitchen open, and I blinked a few times, letting my eyes focus for a second. When they landed on the boy at the table, I sucked in a sharp breath.

“Holy crap.”

He looked so much like Wraith, it was a little weird. The same pretty features, same long nose, same ocean blue eyes. The only difference was the boy’s hair, which was buzzed almost to his scalp in some spots. That, and the gauntness in his face. That didn't look like it was his natural body weight, though. It looked like someone had been starving him. And beating him. He had a split lip and bruising along his face that looked like he’d tried to hide with makeup, but after staying up all night, it was rubbing off. There was a cut in his hairline too that I wanted to take a look at, but I wasn’t going to approach him until we got introductions out of the way. Introductions that Wraith seemed too stunned to handle himself.

He stared at the boy and his normal mask seemed to slip a little as horror and fury overtook him. I wasn’t sure how he was going to handle it, but I didn’t see him shutting down like that. He didn’t say a word, just stared until I felt awkward enough to speak up for him.

“Uh, hey. I’m Mel. I’m Tank’s daughter and a friend of Wraith’s. What’s your name?”

The boy’s brows drew together slowly. “Wraith?”

Whoops. I started again with a grimace. “Mattias. It’s a nickname. Sort of.” I waved a hand dismissively. “Not important right now. I’m a friend of your brother.”

He still looked confused, and I could see the distrust written across his face. I expected that. If he was in an abusive household, trusting people wouldn’t come easily for him. I made a mental note to suggest therapy because even if the beating he took was a one-time event, it was stilltraumatic for him. Not to mention being uprooted and handed over to a brother he didn’t know.

“How did you get here?” Wraith asked.

It was a good question. The kid barely looked older than Skylar’s kids. He had a baby face, for sure, and he was small, but I couldn’t tell if that was because he was malnourished or not. I’d need to get him into a hospital to be sure.

The boy didn’t look interested in answering the question. He sank in on himself a little, his eyes glued to his brother.

Tank huffed and shook his head. “I asked him a dozen times. He doesn’t wanna tell me that. All I got was that your dad ain’t here.”

I turned to him with a frown. “How’d he get to you, then?”

Dad shrugged. “Found him wanderin’ around alone. When I asked him where his folks were, he said he was lookin’ for someone.” He shot a look at Wraith. “Stunned the crap outta me when he said your name.”

Yeah, no shit.

6

Wraith

Iknew that look. The look written all over my brother’s face. I used to look that way all the time. Defensive and scared at the same time. Like he was ready for a fight he didn’t want. However the hell he got here, he was obviously scared shitless. And who could blame him with injuries like that? He looked like Jorge took pleasure in smacking him around. I thought it was bad for me, but this kid somehow looked worse. I couldn’t even stomach the idea of that.

Mel cleared her throat, giving me a significant look, but I didn’t know what to do here. He was obviously related to me. I’d never met anyone outside our family who shared the same color eyes. Such a dark blue it looked black in certain lighting. Not to mention he looked just like Jorge. Just like me.

When I didn’t immediately say anything, Mel rolled her eyes and took over, pushing past me to take a seat beside the boy. He edged away from her, his brow furrowed so deep, it looked like it was stuck that way. Did he even know how to smile?

“Okay, let’s start with the simple stuff. What’s your name? Unless youwant us to call you mini-Mattie, which I guarantee I’ll tell everyone to do just to get you to give in.”

He looked shocked at her audacity, but honestly, that was just Mel. She knew how to get what she wanted. And the threat was so tame, it didn’t trigger the kid like being surrounded by angry-looking adults might. I took Mel’s lead, coming around the table to sit opposite him. It gave him some space from me while I worked to get my emotions under control again, and hopefully would ease some of his anxiety.

“Xander… Xander Ruiz…” he finally murmured.

Mel nodded, her smile kind. “Okay, Xander. It’s nice to meet you. Can I ask how old you are?”

Trepidation flashed across his face and his eyes darted around for a second before he answered with a quick, “Fourteen.”

“That’s a lie.”

Xander whipped around to face me, panic and anger written all over his face. “I’m not lying!”

I didn’t get heated, which I think was what he was expecting. His whole body went taut and his fists clenched. He was ready to run. So much like I had been when I lived with Jorge.

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