Page 55 of Murder & Mayhem
Gid met my eyes over Jamie’s head. His expression was a mix of an apology andyou fucked up, man. Then he looked at Jamie. “While you two were . . . talking, the text with the meeting place came through. You’re supposed to be there at midnight. Ari is twenty minutes away, and Brooks and Skye are about thirty. Once they’re here, we’ll all get together and come up with a plan. The priority will be to keep you safe and to get Bailey.” That was for me as much as Jamie, made more obvious when Jamie shrugged, indifferent. “As long as you can save Bailey.”
Gid stopped me with a look before I could step in again. I had to keep my fucking mouth shut.
Jamie shifted, feeling uncomfortable. I wanted to hold him so badly, but I knew it wouldn’t be welcome. “If we have some time, I need a little space. Can I go in the yard?”
No! “Sure,” Gid said instead. “There’s privacy fencing and cameras everywhere. Stay where the lights hit. And here.” He handed Jamie the phone. “I think it’s better if you have this.”
“Okay, thanks.”
Jamie shoved the phone in the hoodie’s pocket and turned toward the door. His eyes met mine briefly before he looked away, but it was long enough to see the sadness shining there. Something about it had my heart in my throat. “Jamie! Don’t do anything stupid, alright? Wait for them to make a plan?”
“Thanks for the reminder that you think I’m too stupid to make any decisions for myself. I might be willing to die to save Bailey, but I don’t actually have a death wish, Dominic. I’ll listen to the experts who are thinking clearly, and not with their dicks.”
He stomped out of the room and out of my vision. I heard the storm door open and slam shut, loud enough the windows shook. I winced.
Gideon squeezed my shoulder sympathetically. “Wow. I don’t think I’ve ever seen someone single-handedly destroy their own shot like that before. You self-destructed, bro.”
I groaned. “Fuck off.”
Seconds later, the door opened again, and Jamie stomped in, all red-faced. He ignored me entirely and asked Gideon, “Do you have pants?”
Gid laughed and I glowered at him. He responded to Jamie, but I left before I could make things worse. The room Ari usually slept in was on the first floor, so I was easily able to get a pair of his plain black sleep pants and bring them back before Gid even left the room.
I stayed silent as I handed them to Jamie. He hesitated, like he was tempted not to take them because I was the one who provided them to him, but he finally sighed and snatched them out of my hand. “Thanks,” he murmured a little sullenly. He put them on, at least, before once again turning away from me and going back outside.
I stared after him helplessly. Gideon shoulder bumped me. “He’ll be okay. We’ll make sure he’s safe. You know I’ll protect him with my own life.”
“You wouldn’t have to if he kept his ass here.”
The look Gideon gave me would have the strongest of people cowering in fear. “I think he made it clear it wasn’t your decision, Nicky. It’s the best way to lure them out and handle this safely and efficiently. You either need to get on board and be the support your boy so desperately needs or step back, stay away, and let us handle it. He needs to be fully focused, not worried about you or what you might do or say.”
Gideon walked away then to coordinate everything, leaving me alone in my self-loathing and deep in my thoughts as I tried to decide if I was capable of keeping my mouth shut and not dragging Jamie out by the scruff of his neck if I participated in this job. I hated how much I wasn’t sure of the answer.
CHAPTER 21
JAMESON
They had a swing out there. Not like one of those at a park, but one of the wooden benches. I guessed they were called a porch swing, but this wasn’t on a porch; it was just kind of in the middle of the grass. I had a feeling Gideon had had something to do with that. The yard was nice and so very normal. There was a fire pit and a grill and a lot of seating. It both seemed to fit them perfectly and made no sense at the same time. In so many ways, the brothers were so . . . I didn’t want to use the word normal, but it was the only one I could think of. And then there was their side job of murder. But even that made a warped brand of sense now that I knew their history. I could totally see how someone who’d gone through the shit they had, I had, snapping enough to take matters into their own hands when it felt like all the systems in place always failed.
I pulled out the switchblade that I had in the pocket of the hoodie. Mad as I was at Dominic, his hoodie was giving mesome sense of comfort and I couldn’t bring myself to give it back to him.
I flicked the blade open, then closed it against my thigh, the blunt side down. But fuck it was tempting to switch it. If I didn’t have to be ready for Bailey . . . I would give in to that release I needed.
I flicked it open again and ran my finger along the blade. Fucking Dominic. How dare the asshole try to stop me from doing this. And I was really thinking about trying something with him when this was all over? At least I’d learned how much of a controlling dick he was before I did something I’d regret. And okay, I get that he was worried, but I’d known the dude for two days. He needed to get a fucking grip.
My pocket vibrated, and I froze. Vibrations. My phone. It was too soon for the handoff, so any call was questionable.
It vibrated again and my mind snapped online.
It was another unknown number, and I clicked accept.
“Hello?”
“Oh, Jamie? Thank God.”
Bailey. He was whispering, his voice shaky and nearly hysterical.
“Bailey? Bailey, what’s happening?”
