Page 110 of Claim & Don't Tell

“Mom? What do we do? Mom?”

She sucked in a startled breath and rolled her neck. Her eyes were filled with tears and her hands...they were clutching the steering wheel, which was impossibly close to her body, as if pinning her to the seat. “My sweet Brady.”

“Mom?” I asked, voice trembling. “The car is on fire, Mom.”

She nodded, swallowing as though it pained her. “Get your brothers out of the car, Brady.”

“What about you?” My hands trembled as I reached for my seat belt. None of the air bags had gone off. “Mom? What about you?”

She smiled at me, but it might’ve been the saddest thing I’d ever seen. “Brady, you have to get them out, okay, my brave boy? You have to protect them.”

“Mom,” I cried. “What about you?”

“Brady, please,” she begged, tears spilling down her cheeks. “Protect them first. We’ll get me out last.”

And that had been enough to get me moving. Austin had been the heaviest, but Dylan was the hardest to get out. By the time I’d gotten back to the car for him, the fire had grown and my mom had been sobbing.

“It’s okay, Brady. It’s okay, sweet boy,” she said around whimpers. “Mommy loves you boys so much, okay? Take care of them, baby, okay?”

When the fire took over, she didn’t make a sound. She’d protected me from that in her dying moments.

I drag in a ragged breath and shove away the worst of the memories, hating that I’m trembling as hard as I did that night. Hating that, even after almost two decades, that night has so much power over me. I count my breaths until my skin grows cold and the smoke fades. Another breath, and I close the final door that my therapy session opened, shutting out the worst of the pain.

You have to protect them.

And that’s what I’ve always done.

It’s why I was adamant to push Quinn away, knowing the taboo nature of our relationship and the scrutiny it would draw. Knowing there’s a risk of our parents disowning us for it. We’re family. That’s what they’ve always said.

And we are, just not in the way our parents expect.

They want us to be brothers and sister, but that was never going to happen. We were always meant to be mates. Scent matches. We were always meant to fall in love; I just didn’t think our descent would happen so fast.

A vicious trembling rattles my bones, and I grind my jaw.Get in the car. Drive home. Talk to her.My fingers grasp at the key fob, but I can’t bring myself to unlock the vehicle. I can’t bring myself to open the door and get behind the wheel. I’m in no condition to drive.

I grab my phone and dial the most recent number. Dylan. He’s pissed at me for more than one reason, but I know he’ll come.

“What do you want?”

“I need your help.”

Silence. Nothing but a soft crackle from the phone line.

“Dylan.Please.” Fuck my voice for cracking.

He exhales. “Shit. Okay. Where are you?”

I let him know and push off the car, moving away until my back hits the wall. I sink into a squat and glare at the Mercedes like it’s at fault. Clasping my shaking hands, I force my eyes shut and breathe, fighting for control of my own body. I don’t know how much time passes, but when a car idles nearby, I open my eyes.

Dylan studies me as he approaches, eyeing me like I’m a wounded animal that might attack. Maybe he’s not wrong to be so cautious, but I’m tired of hurting everyone. I’m tired of trying to control it all.

“You look like shit.”

I laugh, but it’s hollow. “Yeah,” I rasp.

“Are you okay?”

Even after everything, he still cares. He’s still here. I’ve done so many shitty things, all in the vein of fulfilling that promise. “I don’t know.”

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