of it. So she’s either ignoring me… or she’s not here.
Where the hell did he take her?
Cursing under my breath, I pull out my phone and call her again. Like the last three times, it goes straight to voicemail. I jog around the terrace to try the back door, but it’s locked as well. Cupping my hands around my eyes, I peer through the glass, into the dark kitchen. I can’t see a damn thing.
“She’s not in there,” a voice says casually from behind me.
I go tense, my muscles turning to stone.
I know that voice.
Sucking in a deep breath, I spin around to face my brother. My hands curl into fists at my sides as I take in the sight of him. There are a few more tattoos decorating his arms than the last time I saw him, but otherwise he looks exactly the same.
Tousled hair. Furrowed brow. Sharp gaze.
“Jaxon.”
“What — no welcome-home hug?” His lips twist. “Thought you’d be happy to see me, hermanito.”
“I doubt that very much, seeing as last time you were home, I threw you out on your ass.”
The memory of that night — when I caught him stealing money from our parents’ stash of petty cash and tossed him out the front door, into the dirt — hangs heavily in the air between us. It always will. That’s not the kind of encounter you ever truly move past.
“Oh, I remember.” He takes a step closer. His eyes never shift from mine. “How could I forget such a moment of brotherly bonding?”
“Cut the shit, Jaxon. Where is she?”
“Your precious Jo? Why?” He laughs. “Don’t tell me you think I’m capable of hurting her.”
“I don’t know what you’re capable of, Jax. I don’t know you anymore. I haven’t for a long time.”
“By all means, don’t dance around my feelings.”
“Do you have feelings?” My brows lift. “Forgive me. I wasn’t aware that a guy like you was capable of feeling anything.”
“A guy like me?”
“Yeah. You know — one who’d endanger the lives of his entire family to save himself.”
“I warned you,” he snaps. “Last month, when I came home—”
“To steal money.”
“—to pack my clothes, I told you things were messed up. I told you to be careful.”
“Messed up? Messed up?!” I step forward and grab him by the shirtfront, my fingers fisting in the fabric. “Two gang members have been following me for weeks. They ambushed me after practice last week and almost shattered my pitching hand.” My grip tightens. I want to physically shake some sense into him. “Four days ago, they broke into our house, knocked me unconscious, tied me to a chair, and threatened my life. Our parents’ lives. All because they’re determined to get to you, Jax.” I drop my arms to my sides, disgusted. “That’s far more than just messed up.”
He grimaces, but offers no response. Not even an apology.
“You don’t seem surprised to hear any of this,” I point out.
He shoves past me and starts to pace. “The guys who came here… Did you get their names?”
“Rico. Barboza.”
Jaxon nods. His skin is wan in the moonlight, his face bloodless with fear. He continues to walk tight loops around the terrace. “They’re top enforcers for the Latin Kings. Not the kind of people you want to fuck around with, Archer.”
“Since when has what I want ever been a factor here? I didn’t exactly invite them over for tea and crumpets.”
“I know! I know.” He runs a hand through his hair. “It’s complicated, all right? I owe their boss a debt. I thought when I got out, I could pay it off gradually. Or, if I couldn’t get the money, I’d just… disappear for a while.”
Rage swells inside my chest. “That was your grand plan? You thought you could just go off the grid until a goddamn gang forgot about you? Jesus Christ, Jaxon! Did you really believe, if these guys are as dangerous as you say they are, they’d let you skip into the sunset without coming after your family?”
“Don’t yell at me.” He presses a hand to his temple, his movements jerky. “I can’t think when you’re yelling.”
Suspicion stirs to life as I watch him. The jerkiness of his movements. The erratic speech pattern. I’ve seen it all before — far too many times. It’s hard to tell in the dark, but I’m certain if I looked close enough, I’d find his pupils constricted to pinpricks.
“Are you high right now?”
He glowers. “Fuck you, Archer!”
“That’s not an answer.”
He’s tellingly silent.
I step forward, feeling