me that I should get up and leave. I want to hate Nic. I want to hate all of them. They knew these things about my father and not once did they come clean. How could they do that? I thought we had an understanding. I thought the trust between us was unbreakable, but lately, Nic and the boys have been testing that theory.
Nic silently sits beside me. I couldn't leave him. I should have. I should have gotten back in that damn Ferrari and taken my ass home. It’s stupid being within these walls. Men are pacing and despite having Widows out searching for the black SUV, the ones remaining are all searching for someone to blame, and considering I was the reason they were all out front, that blame falls on me.
I’ve never felt tension like this before. I’ve just walked right into the firing line of a gang war while technically being on the opposite side. If I was smart, I'd be hauling ass, yet the pain radiating out of Nic keeps me right here.
I watch him as he swirls the amber liquid around the bottom of his glass. He looks devastated and right now, I’m not sure if it’s because he lost his father or because of the responsibilities that have just fallen on his shoulders. He didn’t have much love for his father. Kian was dark and twisted and not in the romantic kind of way, but in the needs to be locked in prison wearing a straight jacket kind of way. He was dangerous and he made sure that Nic didn’t grow up with love, but as Nic grew and it became clear that he was a natural-born leader, Kian couldn’t resist reeling him back into his dark world.
What is it with the fathers around here? Is every man over a certain age just automatically a dick. My father had a web of lies and was a fucking hitman for the West Side Wolves, Colton’s father was an asshole who abused his wife and children, while Kian was a fucking monster.
I have to give it to the guy, he was the only person in my life who wasn’t afraid to tell me the truth and for that, I’m grateful even if it means putting my relationship with my boys on the rocks.
Things will never go back to normal after this. I will never have trust for them again. I mean, I sure as hell trust them to always protect me and always do what they think is right, but I will forever question their loyalty, their motives, and their hearts. It’s never a position I wanted to be in, but they’ve backed me into a corner and I’m left with no choice.
Nic throws back what's left in his glass before slamming it back down on the bar. His cup is instantly refilled and that one goes straight down the hatch too. it’s going to be a rough night.
I haven't seen Nic like this since … well, ever.
Not wanting to watch him self-destruct, I slide back off the bar stool and follow the loud grunts of agony until I’m standing before Eli. He instantly grabs hold of my hands as Kai stands at his shoulder with a pair of tweezers that look fucking dirty.
“Give me that,” I say, snatching them from his hands and grabbing the bottle of vodka at Eli’s side. “You’re going to give him an infection.”
“This isn’t my first rodeo,” Kai says as I dump the vodka over the tweezers and clean them off as best as I can.
“Yeah, I know,” I grumble, setting my jaw and not wanting to meet either of their eyes. “Tell me, how’d that turn out for you?”
Kai huffs, knowing damn well that I’m talking about last year when he dug a bullet out of Nic’s arm and three days later ended up with an infection that had him hospitalized for forty-eight hours.
Confident that the tweezers are as clean as they’re going to get, I hand them back and look down at Eli sitting on the bench. His face is white and he looks close to passing out, but the second Kai touches him, it’s all going to change.
He grabs hold of my hand, preparing to squeeze the shit out of it while I pick up his discarded shirt, getting ready to shove it into his mouth so he doesn’t accidentally break all his damn teeth when he bites down. “Just … wait,” he murmurs as I