The Unlucky Ones, page 22
“Thank you.” I swiped them up, pressing my hands together gratefully. “I will be back soon. I promise.”
Without waiting, I ran, barreling through the back door, jumping into her tan Camry. The tires squealed as I veered out of the parking lot, turning the way I’d seen his Bronco go.
Two traffic signals up the road from me, I saw his Bronco turn, the black car glinting under the streetlights. I was usually a responsible driver, but I couldn’t afford to lose him. Swerving around a group of cars, I slammed down on the gas, the sedan jerking with the effort. Speeding past the traffic, horns honked and people screamed at me, but I arched around the turn, barely slipping through the yellow-red light.
“Sorry,” I pointlessly called back to the cars I’d cut off. Being around Lincoln seemed to bring out my reckless side, which I probably needed a little more of.
His vehicle slowed down, pulling onto a side street and stopping in a dimly lit empty lot. What is he up to? I was desperate to talk to him. Is something happening tonight?
Cruising past, I yanked the car into the first parking spot along the street. Then I rushed back to where I saw him, ready to quietly call his name, when my gaze darted over the sign on the store close to the lane.
Gold & Silver Exchange was etched in large letters over the banner. Dread filled my stomach like I had a gallon of water swishing around. Please no. Darting through the dark, my feet came to a grinding halt at the sound of voices near Lincoln’s Bronco, my throat weaving into knots.
“What are you talking about? It’s perfect. Smart.” I recognized James’s voice and crept closer behind a wobbly wooden fence. “Robbing banks always goes bad. They track the money by serial number or by dye, rendering it useless. This.” James pointed at the store. “We sell it on the black market, triple the worth, clean money. It’s ideal.”
“I love your perception of ideal,” Lincoln snarled. “And how do you think you’re going to rob a store which has security guards and alarms all over? This isn’t stealing from the houses of our father’s clients. We can’t sneak through a window.”
“All covered, brother.”
“What do you mean?”
“Bennie set me up.”
“Bennie? Bennie who sells illegal guns?” I saw Lincoln’s head waggle. “Hell no. I am out. I told you when I got of jail I wasn’t getting into this shit again. I’ve already taken the heat for carrying a weapon at our last job. One that put me in prison because I didn’t give you up.”
“Jesus, Finn…you weren’t always so fucking virtuous. Remember it was you who got us in this to begin with.”
“Don’t call me Finn,” Lincoln growled. “And you can’t keep throwing it in my face. This is all you now. You love this shit. I never did. I did it so we could survive. You do it for fun. Just another drug to you.”
“Don’t tell me this doesn’t rev your engine…or is someone else doing that instead?”
Air strangled around them as Lincoln remained silent.
“After Kessley died, you were fine to dip your toes into the dark side. Now this girl has you all twisted up. Denying your nature. Is she making you all noble? An upstanding citizen?” James taunted. “Please. You’re only fooling yourself.”
“I’m not you.” Lincoln’s voice was so low I barely heard him. “And I’m not going back to jail. I’m out for good. And I’m done with you. Leave Albuquerque and don’t come back.” Metal squealed, the Bronco door opening.
“Is this how it’s going to be? You turn your back on your brother? The only family you have? It has been just us since Dad kicked us out. Jesus. I was fourteen and had to take care of my baby brother on the streets. Remember, at sixteen, I jumped in front of a bullet for you? Saved your life. And who helped you break out of prison to see your daughter? Me!”
The only sounds in the long pause of Lincoln’s silence were cars driving on the main road and my heart thumping in my ears.
“Last job. I promise. Then I’ll disappear like you want. Pay off those guys and take the rest of my share and start a new life somewhere else so you can play house, pretend you’re a good guy.” I could feel the lasso James had tossed out, cinching in Lincoln. “Do this for me, brother.”
Again, silence.
“I didn’t want to do this…hoping you’d choose family first.” James sighed. “You know how easy it would be for you to be found. Shit, you’re walking the line now. One call. One tiny hint dropped, and you’ll have cops swarming the bar.”
“Fuck. You.” I heard anger, disgust, hate in Lincoln’s gravelly response but worst of all a defeated sigh, as if his anger was all a front. He climbed back into the Bronco, slamming the door, his brother’s laughter howling in the air as he tore out of the parking lot.
I stayed motionless behind the wooden fence, my heart pounding, hoping I stayed concealed in the dark as Lincoln’s Bronco bounded right by me. It wasn’t until I heard another car door slam and tires pulling out of the lot that I let the breath out of my lungs and tipped my head back against the fence.
This was bad.
Was my uncle curious enough to investigate Lincoln while his brother dragged him into a heist? With my luck and Lincoln’s? The only way it would turn out was tragic.
The apartment was dark when I stepped in, a glow from the streetlight cascading into the room. Amelia was out with her salon gals, which had been happening more than usual lately. Mia was downstairs, undoubtedly happy to be out of this space, making cookies with Lucia, away from the sadness and strain.
Grumbling at my phone, I went to the kitchen to find a cord to charge my cell. My worry for Lincoln had doubled, but when I returned the car to Nat, his Bronco was nowhere in sight. I had given Amelia grief for not knowing much about him, when I barely knew the real man myself. I didn’t even know where he lived.
I flicked on the kitchen light and let out a scream. Sitting at the dining table, my uncle silently stared out the window, a glass of scotch beside him.
“Shit,” I gasped, patting at my chest. “I need to put bells on you and Amelia.”
His response was to pick up his glass and take a sip. My uncle only drank on very special occasions or when he was deeply troubled by a case. When I was little and a case went cold, my father and uncle would sit and drink a glass of their favorite scotch and go over every single detail of the event, trying to find anything they missed. Neither brother liked a case or criminal getting the better of them. They would fret over it until they figured it out. That was exactly what he looked like now. As if my father was sitting across from him, both silent as their minds worked out the details.
“Uncle Gav?” The knots in my belly wound together, a pressure spreading across my shoulder blades. Hesitantly, I moved over to the table, sitting in the chair across from his. “Everything okay?” Although I had a pretty good idea what was churning in his mind, I feigned complete ignorance.
He took another sip then set the glass down with a deliberate tap. “Besides losing my parents, brother, and sister-in-law?” he replied impassively, watching the ice cubes swirl around his glass. “But I don’t think that’s what you mean.”
I kept my mouth shut, sensing a turbulent undercurrent to his words. Sweat dampened the base of my neck. I watched his profile staring back out the window, my heart picking up speed. Silence smothered the room. How much did he know about Lincoln? Had he tied Lincoln to Finn?
“What do you do when you watch someone you care about making reckless decisions?” He kept his voice low and even.
Shit. Shit. Shit.
Anxiety wrapped around my lungs and throat. Growing up in a family of cops, you learned about both sides of the law. How to interrogate and how to tactically respond to an investigation. How to keep calm and divulge as little as possible. How to stay ambiguous and vague.
“It’s a tough one. Some people need to learn from their own mistakes.” Muscles squeezing around my neck, I responded. Composed and steady.
“Even if their life could be completely destroyed because of their wrong choices?”
“What’s wrong to you might not feel wrong to them.”
He knew. I knew. And we both knew the other was aware, but both of us stayed controlled, revealing nothing.
“If it’s illegal, the law cares nothing for personal feelings or motive.” He turned his head enough for his gaze to lock onto mine. I expelled a quick breath from my lungs but held his gaze. “Don’t you think a loved one has an obligation to step in?”
My heartbeat pulsed in my throat. I did not have any response to his question. I would force him to be direct. “Why did you stay?” I coerced the words through my teeth, clasping my hands painfully together. “Why didn’t you go with Lucy?”
“You mean you don’t want me here?” His eyebrow lifted.
“Of course I do.” I pretended to not hear the implication oozing off his tone. “I’m just surprised since she drove you down.”
“I wanted to spend more time with my nieces and Mia. Is that so wrong of me?” I shook my head at his question. “Plus, Lucy needed to get back to Max.”
“Max?” Defensiveness on his behalf filled me. She was with someone else? The way she looked at Gavin, it was obvious she was completely in love with him. Had been since they were partners. “Who is Max?”
“My— our—German shepherd puppy.”
My mouth dropped open, repeating. “Our puppy?”
A tiny smile twitched on his mouth, but tension still lay coiled beneath like a tiger preparing to pounce. “She thought he would cheer me up when I was recovering. Told me no true cop should be without a police dog. So now I have a dog.”
This was huge. He had been adamant about not getting another dog after Lisa took Oscar, the shepherd they had together. As though he would be opening himself to love something again.
“You two have a dog? Together?”
“Dev…” Warning peaked in his voice.
“Stop fighting your feelings for her. Lucy is amazing. The best thing to ever happen to you. So don’t let it slip away because you’re scared of letting someone in.”
“There are rules…”
“Stop. The rules are bullshit. Officers Camia and Danny have been together forever. No one seems to care.”
“I’m captain. It’s different. I must lead by example.”
“You’re using it as an excuse and you know it,” I chided, leaning my elbows on the table. “You don’t want to be hurt again or show vulnerability to someone. But you forget, Lucy knows you. She’s seen all sides of you, probably far more than Lisa ever did, and she loves you.”
He rolled his shoulders back and took another gulp of his scotch. Lucy was breaking down his walls, infiltrating his world, and as much as he wanted to fight it, I think deep down he wanted her to. Their friendship and bond had been blatantly obvious from the start and no doubt why Lisa hated her so much.
“You really are your mother’s daughter,” he muttered into his drink. “Let me get used to the dog first.”
“The one you share.”
“Yes.” He rolled his eyes. “The one we share.”
This was a big step for him, and I knew when to back off.
“Okay, I’m going to head for bed.” I stood up, wanting to escape before we could return to the earlier, more dangerous conversation. I reached the hallway before I heard my name. I turned to look over my shoulder. Uncle Gavin’s grave expression watched me.
“You know how much I love you, right?” He didn’t wait for me to respond. “There’s nothing I won’t do to keep you protected and safe.” His gaze dug into my soul, churning the guilt around like an ice cream maker. “Good night, Devon.”
“Night,” I whispered, turning back down the hall.
It wasn’t a loving sentiment. It was a warning.
Chapter Twenty-Five
The sofa was empty when I got up in the morning, Uncle Gavin already gone. I stumbled for the coffee pot. This time I didn’t wait for it to fill, holding my cup under the drip as Amelia did.
Sleep had escaped me most of the night, worry, guilt, and fear spinning me in my bed like a Ferris wheel as I thought over everything that had happened in the past few days. No doubt Gavin knew something. But how much? I guess it didn’t matter; it was enough to put Lincoln in jeopardy. Lincoln needed to disappear. And soon, before his brother pulled him back in.
I grunted, blowing on my full cup of coffee. That thought was like a pitchfork stabbing me in the gut. I didn’t want him to go, but his welfare came first, no matter how selfish I wanted to be.
He would leave, and it would be the best for all of us. Associating with me would only bring about his downfall. And mine. Uncle Gavin was right; I was reckless when it came to Lincoln. The way my heart swelled when he was around. The way I longed for him…had always longed for him. Since the day he walked into that restroom, it felt as if I were destined to love him. It was ill-fated and tragic. My feelings for him would result in catastrophe. I realized I would do anything for him, even if it meant going against the law. Against my family. When it came to Lincoln, all I saw was gray, not black and white.
Picking up my cell, I called him, scared the sheriff was already on his way to him. The bar didn’t open until later, but I didn’t put anything past my uncle. It was probably why he’d left early, to sniff out Lincoln. No answer. I sent a text telling him to call me ASAP. Ten minutes passed, and my phone stayed silent.
“Damn it.” I set down my cup, marching for my bedroom to get dressed but collided with my sister.
“Owww, Dev!” Amelia rubbed her nose, her sleepy lids still half closed.
I opened my mouth to apologize but stopped myself. I was tired of saying sorry to Amelia. I was done with a lot of things. Moving around her, I started for my bedroom.
“Devy, wait,” she called to me, stunting my progression to my room. “I want to talk with you.”
“Amelia, I’m kind of in a hurry.”
“Please,” she asked softly, misery in her gaze. I hated I didn’t know if she was being real or playing the suffering sister. She was good at adapting, playing people. When it came to my sister, I never knew for sure.
Pivoting to face her, I folded my arms over my stomach. At first neither of us talked.
She released a sigh. “I see you’re not going to make this easy for me.”
I blinked back at her.
“Okay. Fine.” She huffed. “I’m sorry, Dev. I hate this. I hate not being able to talk to my sister.”
I shifted on my feet. I really didn’t like fighting either. As much as we could drive each other crazy, she was still family.
“I’m still hurt, and I hate how you lied to me about Lincoln.” She rubbed at her nails. “I mean, I really liked him. And to know the whole time I was making a fool of myself and everyone was laughing at me… That was really cruel.”
This was her apology? I sighed. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you earlier. I thought I was saving your feelings. But I am not sorry for any of the rest.” I held my ground. “And not for wanting to be with him.” And possibly falling in love with him.
A streak of anger flared in Amelia’s eyes, but she bit down on her lip, jerking her head to the side.
I pressed on before I lost courage. “You may think I’m being unkind to you, but I’m tired of walking on eggshells around your feelings all the time when you have no consideration of mine. You are so wrapped up in yourself, you never see me. You never notice or acknowledge what I do. I love you. That will never stop, but I won’t cater to you. I won’t keep you pacified. You have to grow up, Amelia.” My words were direct, but my voice was calm. “In the not-too-distant future, I’m going to apply to community college. I will probably move into some inexpensive housing near the college and experience what it’s like to be my age.”
“What?” Her head jerked to me. “When did you decide this?”
“I’ve wanted to go to college way before Mom got sick. You should know this about me. It’s no secret.”
“You’ll move out? But what about Mia? Me? I can’t afford this place by myself.”
“Then I guess you’ll have to move into a place you can.” I shrugged one shoulder. “Mel, I want a life. My own. Mom’s illness took it from me, and she hated it. She made me promise the moment I could, I would run. Spread my wings. She’d want this for me. And she’d want you to be able to stand on your own. Because of me, you’ve never even bothered to ask Shithead to pay a cent for Mia. He needs to step up too, or you need to figure out if you even want him in Mia’s life at all.”
A tear trickled down Mel’s cheek, her chest quaking.
“You are so much stronger than you think.” I took a step to her, touching her arm. “I know you. You are a force. When you set your mind to something, you don’t let up until you get it. I don’t doubt you will be more than okay.”
She sniffed, a few more tears cascading down.
I wrapped my arms around her neck, tugging her in tight. It was a beat before her limbs circled my waist, her sniffles turning to blubbers. We stood like that for a long time, hugging while she cried. I knew she was scared. For someone who jumped from trend to trend in a blink, she didn’t like change. Not when it was forcing her to step up.
“I love you too, Dev. So much.” Her tears abated, and she stepped back, wiping her face. “And I’m sorry for what I said to you the other night. I’m truly happy for you.”
I snorted, tipping my head to the side.
“Okay, I am still working on that one. But I promise I will try. And I will try to be a better sister. Stand on my own more.”
I had heard it a thousand times. I knew in the moment she really believed it, but the promise never came to fruition.
Let’s hope this time it stuck.
The saloon was dark and locked up, but I knew Nat and Lincoln would be behind the doors, setting up and handling the business part of the job.
At the back entrance, I spotted Lincoln’s Bronco in its usual place. For some reason it ticked me off. I was freaking out, calling and texting him all day, and he was at work, acting as though everything was okay. Ignoring me. Why the hell hadn’t he called me back? What part of “Call me now! This is URGENT!” didn’t he get?
