Page 158 of Severed Rivalry
This is as foreign to the girls as all the rest. But love is worth demonstrating. And Rosie’s love even more so.
47
roulette with my ovaries
Cian
“Any luck?”
“Nothing we didn’t already know,” Liam starts. “Freddie Gauthier seems to be on the straight and narrow. Well, as much as any addict can be. He’s been to Rosie’s again, but she asked him to leave. She didn’t want the girls to see him milling about.”
“Makes sense.”
“We have another problem.”
“What’s that?”
“Rosie has called out of work for the week. She can’t very well go to the center with five teenagers in her home who don’t understand modern technology.”
“And?”
“And Rosie Ocotea can’t afford not to work.”
“So, Sariah’s not working, I’m not working, and Rosie’s not working. We have three mortgages, and none of us are independently wealthy. Good times.” I stare at the headliner of my truck’s cab and pinch the bridge of my nose. “I’ll get you some cash. Can you get it into her account?”
“The old-fashioned way, sure. Banks never argue with cash deposits.”
“Keep digging on Gauthier. Somehow, I don’t feel we’ve seen the end of him.”
“My gut says you’re right.” The roar of pipes thunders behind him.
“You out on the road?”
“Near Gunnison. I needed to tear up some curves and get some fresh air.”
“Stay safe and keep the shiny side up.”
“You know it.” My brother clicks off just as his engine revs.
Leaning back on the island stool, I check the clock. It’s after midnight. I haven’t had a daily office routine since the shit went down with the Laotians. How long ago was that now? Have we even checked to see if they’re still a threat?
I’ll add that to the list. I have enough dangling threads in my life to make a fucking quilt.
The most pressing one for me right now is Jonas. The man may or may not have a legal last name. Even Liam can’t find it.
We saved Renée, at least once. We saved Sariah, though the nightmares continue. We got Rosie and five fourteen-year-olds free and clear.
But the man needs to go down.
I don’t like the idea of using the girls as bait. But what better way to draw the guy out? It’s terrible, but if they could be safe, we could be rid of him once and for all.
None of this is quick. Mostly because Rosie’s girls, what I’ve taken to calling them in my head, freeze up around me. Or they did. Integration into modern life will be brutal—well, more brutal—if they can’t be near men.
I need them to trust me, to trust us, for an operation like this to go with as few hitches as possible.
My father is… what the hell is he? I don’t know. He admitted to everything to Ayla. That was weeks ago—it was a nail in a coffin that was already superglued shut.
Mom has decisions to make. I won’t force that. Yet. We’ve been tight. Aside from her making allowances for my father’sbehavior, she’s been a great mom. Somehow that’s like saying, aside from the shit in the brownies, the texture and chocolate are spot on. Gross.
