Page 130 of Beneath the Surface

“If you kill him,you’llbe the one who gets taken away.” He runs his hand over his face. “And fuck it, man. They need you, okay? She loves you. She’s gonna forgive you, and Baby C needs you too.”

My heart swells.

I spin back around, peering down at Darryl’s crumpled form. He struggles, pushing up on his skinny arms, attempting to stand. Chase and I are shoulder to shoulder, watching his effort. As soon as he gets himself upright, I move forward, coldcocking him across the temple again.

His limp body collapses to the ground.

Grabbing the zip ties I brought from my back pocket, I secure his hands and feet, picking him up and slinging him over my shoulder before walking out of the room.

Chase follows, his eyebrows at his hairline. “Came prepared, huh?”

I grin, adjusting Darryl’s dead weight as we approach the car and throw him into the back seat. I revel in the sound of his head smashing against the door.

“Where the fuck are we taking him?” Chase asks.

“If you won’t let me kill him, then we sure as shit can make sure he gets locked the fuck up and kept far away. Let’s drop him on a street by the police station and we’ll call in a tip. They’ll pick him up. It’s not like he can run.”

Anger still swims in my gut for all the shit he caused, but I feel confident that justice will be served.

As we kick him out into an alley by the Sweetwater police station, I breathe a little easier.

I can’t help but feel like this was a turn for the better with Chase. There’s an acceptance that he never showed me before. A common cause that brought us together, showing us that in the grand scheme of things, maybe we’re not so different, after all.

60

Lily

Baby Chase has decided that my life is a superhero movie. I go along with it, just happy he isn’t traumatized by seeing me beat black and blue. I take a bite of cereal, smiling as he explains to the room how his mom was saved by Spider-Man. The girls all came over for a “spa” day, which was really code for “make Lily feel less like shit.” But it’s been nice having them around. Feeling like I belong.

Strange how tragedy can bring people together.

The front door opens, my eyes widening when Chase and Mason walk in, giggling with each other like schoolboys.

What the hell?

“Fuckingfinally,”Jax groans, walking in from the living room. “I thought I was gonna have to spend the rest of the day listening to them talk about fashion.”

I snort into my cereal, and Blakely grins. “Jackson, I thought you loved when I share my fashion tastes.” She grins, and his eyes darken.

“Ugh, gag me. I’m gonna go call Eli,” Becca says, leaving the room.

“Where have you two been?” Lee asks, sipping from a glass of water.

Chase shrugs, and Mason takes off his jacket, one I have no clue how he wears in this heat. My insides flare as I take him in.

God, he makes it hard to be mad when he looks that good.

“Awex!” Chase squeals, scrambling off the barstool and running into his arms. The name is a shock to my system; already having gotten used to calling him Mason.

The biggest smile splits Mason’s face as he scoops up my baby boy and brings him to his chest, his eyes closing as he holds him tight. “Hey, little man. I missed you.”

Chase leans back, his little hands pressing into Mason’s cheeks. “You pwomised me a pancake tower.”

My heart expands, warmth flowing through my chest, and Mason laughs. “Yeah, buddy, I did.”

He adjusts him on his hip, and walks farther into the kitchen, completely at ease in a roomful of strangers. His gaze locks on me.

I grin. “Sneaking off to bond with my brother, now?”

---