Page 33 of Seven

I stepped into the room and found Rooks standing by the door, talking to Mom. He was wearing a pair of Khakis with a dark grey pullover that looked one size too small, and his curly, reddish-blonde hair had grown even longer and was hanging down in his eyes. He looked like things in his life were going the way he’d always hoped, and for reasons I couldn’t explain, it pissed me the hell off.

“You son of a bitch!” I stormed over to him like an animal ready to attack. “How could you?”

“Whoa! Hold on a goddamn minute!” Rooks stepped back. “What the hell is going on?”

Mom leaned over to him as she muttered, “She saw Holt.”

“Oh, well that explains it.”

“I can’t believe you! You lied to me over and over again, like it meant nothing. Hell, I would still think he was dead if I hadn’t found him waiting for me on my doorstep!”

“I know you aren’t going to believe this, but I did it for you, Tal.”

“Oh, good God. Not you, too.”

“I’m serious.” He took a step towards me. “I knew you were trying to find him, and I knew what would happen if you did.”

“And what’s that?” I scoffed. “We could finally have the life that was stolen from us?”

“Dad was never going to let that happen.”

“What was he going to do? Kill him?”

“It was a strong possibility.”

I could tell by his tone that he was serious, and that caught me by total surprise. Dad had shown that he would go to extreme measures to keep us apart, but I never would’ve dreamed that he would actually hurt him. “You can’t be serious.”

“I am.” He gave me a light shrug. “There are things about Dad you don’t know and hopefully never will.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“It means I did what I had to do to protect you and Holt. And Mom did the same.”

“Protecting me from what?”

“From Dad.” He took a step towards me as he said, “He wasn’t the man you thought he was. He wasn’t just blowing smoke with all his threats. He meant every word, and he had the means to back them up. So, yeah. We were protecting you.”

“Okay, if that’s true, why didn’t you tell me that you messaged him and told him I was back in town?” My voice cracked as I shouted, “Do you have any idea how shocked I was to find him standing on my front steps, alive and well?”

“I was going to tell you everything, but the break-in happened and everything else. It just got muddled up.” He ran his hand through his hair. “I didn’t really tell him anything. Just told him about Dad and that you were back in town.”

I didn’t respond.

I just shook my head and let out a sigh of frustration.

“I’m sorry, I should have told you… I know I made things harder, but I was trying to mend a wrong.” His tone softened, and I could hear the heartache in his voice as he said, “Holt was like a brother to me. He was there for me in ways no one else ever was, and when it was my turn to be there for him, I couldn’t. And even worse, I had to betray him in a way that he will never forgive me for.”

“Rooks…”

“He loved you, Tal. He loved you so much, and it nearly killed him when Dad sent you away. He asked me a hundred times how to reach you, and I couldn’t answer him. I knew what would happen if I did. I prayed in time that you both would just move on, but you never did. Neither of you, so I told you he was gone. It was the only way I knew how to put an end to it all.”

“But it wasn’t the end.”

“No, it wasn’t. You were never the same after that.” His eyes were full of emotion as he said, “And every time I look at Ford, all I see is Holt. And I’m reminded of what I’ve done. What we’ve all done.”

“I don’t know what I’m supposed to say,” I muttered, as the realization of why his behavior had changed toward me sunk in.

“Don’t say anything. Just think things through.” His eyes were trained on me as he said, “You know me. You know the kind of brother I’ve always been. I wouldn’t have done this if there was any other way.”

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