Page 37 of Crown Jewels
It took less than a minute for my phone to ring.
“Finally.” I grumbled in the phone at my brother.
“What do you want Emma, I’m busy.”
“Really?” That was all he had to say. “Did you not read all my texts?”
He sighed. “I read them.”
“And?”
“And what? What do you want me to do about it?”
What did I want him to do? “You could call and see if I was okay.”
Didn’t he care?
“I did,” he growled in the phone. “I talked to Vahn, he told me everything.”
If by everything he meant lies, then sure.
“You shouldn’t listen to Vahn. He lies.” I hissed. “I never touched him by the way.”
“You didn’t touch who. What the fuck are you talking about?”
Wait… did Vahn lie to my brother, or me? Of course he lied to me. I was the only one gullible enough to believe the evil bastard.
“Nothing.” I’d get Vahn back for this. “Come home Mitch. I need you.”
“I can’t come home.”
“Yes, you can.” I argued.
“No. I can’t.” He insisted.
A tear rolled down my cheek.
If the roles were reversed I would drop whatever I was doing and rush to his side. “Don’t you care?”
“Of course I care. That’s why I can’t come home.”
“That makes no sense, Mitch.”
“It doesn’t need to make sense.” Mitch lowered his voice and muttered. “It’s better if you don’t know.”
“What is that supposed to mean?” Please tell me he wasn’t gambling.
“Nothing. Look Em, I gotta go.”
That was all I got before the line went dead.
“Son of a bitch.” I grumbled and tossed my phone back on the couch.
What was wrong with the men in my life? Did they all get a fresh dose of the asshole hormone today? I’d call Mitch back if I thought he’d answer. Or better yet, I’d talk to him in person, if I had any idea where he was. And it had nothing to do with clearing up whatever lies Vahn told him. I didn’t care about that.
I just wanted my brother. Mitch made me feel safe. Every time we were ripped out of home, or left alone in the middle of the night, he was there. When my world was spiraling out of control, his hug would ground me.
I could really use some of that right now. Mitch was the one solid I had in my life. Or at least he used to be.
