Page 64

Colton

“You want to see Athelia?” I ask Haven as we’re cleaning up after breakfast.

She perks up immediately. I’m relieved that she’s already acting way better than she was last night. Sleeping well—and being sandwiched in between Lucas and Xander—did her a lot of good. I missed having her in my bed, but I’ve had her all to myself for the past four days.

“I’d like that,” Haven says.

“Good.” I glance at Xander and Lucas. “I’ve gotta rope Wesley and his friends into this.”

Lucas frowns. “You sure that’s a good idea?”

“Charlotte’s orders.”

“That woman knows more than God,” Xander says. “If she thinks it’s a good idea, I trust her. We need as many Rooks on our side as possible.”

“That’s my line of thinking, as well,” I reply.

“Let us know how it goes,” Lucas says.

Within fifteen minutes, we’re out the door and on our way to Athelia’s. I’m still not sure why exactly she forgave Wesley, Cal, and Kellan for all the things they did to hurt her, but I’m not examining it too closely. It gives me hope that things will really work out between Haven and us.

I park out front and rush around the car to help Haven out before she’s even finished opening her door. Her balance doesn’t seem as bad today, but just in case, I want to be here if she has trouble. I keep an arm around her waist as we walk up to the house and knock on the door.

Within seconds, Kellan opens it. He’s dressed in all black, and his brown hair is damp, like he just got out of the shower. He narrows his eyes when he sees me. “If you’re here about your car, you can go fuck yourself.”

“I’m not. That was months ago. It’s forgotten.”

“That’s not how you’ve ever played things.”

I bristle. “Or you.”

Kellan rolls his eyes. “Whatever. If you’re not here to retaliate, what the hell do you want? And don’t think you’re getting in just because you brought her.” He nods to Haven.

“I need to speak to Wesley.”

“About?”

“That’s between him and me.”

Leaning against the doorframe, Kellan stares me down. “That type of attitude isn’t going to help you.”

Even though she’s behind me, I can feel Haven roll her eyes. It only confirms it when she shoves past me so she’s standing toe-to-toe with Kellan. “It’s important, and my safety depends on it. Do you want to tell Athelia that you’re to blame when I end up hurt? All because you wouldn’t let Colton talk to Wes?”

The shock I’m feeling is reflected in Kellan’s expression. He thinks on it for a second, eyes locked with Haven’s, before he opens the door wider. “Only for Athelia,” he spits out, glaring at me. “Don’t think we’re doing this as a favor for your sorry ass.”

“I’m well aware.”

Once we’re inside, Kellan shuts the door and heads for the stairs. “Don’t fucking move. I’ll be right back.”

I watch him disappear into the hallway upstairs before I turn to Haven and kiss the top of her head. The smell of a dozen lilacs fills my lungs, and I linger there for longer than I need to, my hand finding the small of her back.

“Thank you,” I mutter.

“Yeah.” She rests her forehead on my chest, and she grasps at my shirt, her fingers curling into the material. Even though she seemed fine on the ride over, now her body is riddled with tension.

“Hey. Talk to me.”

“It’s not…” She shakes her head. “I’m fine.”

“No, don’t do that.” With a bent knuckle under her chin, I tilt her head up. “Don’t shut me out.”

Not after the progress we just made.

With a sigh, Haven squeezes her eyes shut. “It just kinda hit me all at once, I guess. Your dad is way more powerful than I thought.”

“Only because of the men who stand behind him.”

That only seems to make her anxiety worse, and she lets out the tiniest of whimpers. “To me, that sounds like they’ll all turn against you the second you try to take over the Rooks.”

“They won’t.” I stroke her hair, watching the way the light from the door’s window catches the purple strands. “I’ve been building up their trust and loyalty for years.”

“Years? Colton, you’re only twenty-one. Isn’t this too much for you to take on? You’re still in school, for fuck’s sake.”

“This is what I was raised to do. You’re right, it wasn’t supposed to happen this early, but I can’t risk anything happening to you.”

Her eyes soften before they turn pleading. “There’s no other way?”

“No. I don’t trust the organization in anyone else’s hands.”

With a frustrated sound, Haven buries her face in my chest. Instinctively, I wrap her up in my arms and rock her gently. I’ve had my entire life to prepare for this moment, but Haven? She’s not part of this world. It’s all so daunting, so big and scary.

“I’ve got it handled,” I tell her soothingly. “I don’t have everyone, but I have a majority. Having Wesley on my side will help, too.”

“Help with what?”

We both turn to find Wesley stalking down the stairs, Athelia behind him. She doesn’t smile the way she normally does when she sees Haven. She’s aware of our relationship with Haven, but she obviously doesn’t approve. I can’t really blame her. She’d be a bad friend if she didn’t have concerns.

“Can we speak privately?” I ask Wesley.

Distrust flashes in his eyes. I can’t blame him. We’ve been at each other’s throats for as long as we’ve known each other.

“Fine,” he says eventually. “Follow me.”

Athelia is holding Haven protectively, and she glares at me as I walk past. Wesley leads me onto the back porch. He leans against the railing, facing away from me. This is uncomfortable for both of us, so I jump right in.

“My father runs the organization you work for. It’s called the Glass Rooks.”

Wesley doesn’t react at all. He just continues staring into the backyard.

Because he doesn’t believe me.

“I know about the bank robbers,” I say. “It was you and Kellan, right? Looks like you had fun with those kills.”

Wesley tenses. “What do you want, Heverly?”

“I’m not threatening you.”

“Like hell you’re not.” He whirls around, and the look in his eyes is dark and menacing. He’s ready to pounce, to kill. “It was hard enough to get to where I am. To where we are.” He gestures toward the house. “You can’t just waltz in here and take it all away. I’ll fucking kill you before you get the chance.”

It’s possible, I can’t deny it. Wesley has years of training behind him and a hell of a lot to protect. I’ve seen the aftermath of his rage.

I hold up my hands. “All I’m doing is proving to you that I’m telling the truth.”

“Then what do you want?” he snaps.

“Things… have been slowly going downhill within the Rooks. It’s gotten to the point where Xander’s family and Haven have gotten hurt.”

“Is that why Haven winced when Athelia hugged her? Because if it wasn’t—if you three are the ones who did that to her—don’t think I won’t rain Athelia’s wrath down on you all. No one hurts her or her friends.”

“My dad tried to kill her.”

Raising his chin in surprise, Wesley leans against the porch railing. “Why?”

“Because I married her.”

“Huh. You never struck me as the settling-down type.”

“People change.”

Wesley’s gaze drifts to the house, a contemplative look taking over his features. “That they do.”

“But all of that’s beside the point. What matters is that there’s a lot of unrest in the organization. Things are about to change, and I need them to change in my favor.”

“And what does this have to do with me?” Wesley asks. “I’m a low-level grunt. I don’t think my opinion matters that much.”

“You have a larger stake in this than you think you do.”

“Is that so?” His tone is sarcastic, but he’s still here. Still willing to listen.

There’s a chance, even if it’s small, that I can get him on my side.

“There were… details of your dad’s death that were never passed on to you or your mom.”

Wesley goes still, his eyes locked on mine. I have his full attention now, even if it’s only because I’m pissing him off more.

“It was labeled as an accident,” I continue. “And, in a way, it was. But it could’ve been easily prevented.”

“What the hell is that supposed to mean?”

“My father was running point for that specific job. There were standard safety precautions we always take that he neglected because he didn’t want to deal with the inconvenience. He knew the chances of your dad getting hurt were high, but he didn’t care. And your dad… he trusted Mark to a fault.”

It takes Wesley a minute to process before he mutters, “Motherfucker. So you’re saying that if your dad had just cared a little, mine would still be alive?”

I nod. “I’m sorry.”

He turns away with a huff. “How can you even stand to call a man like that your father? What the fuck, Colton?”

“I hate him,” I say quietly. “I have for a long time.”

Wesley runs a finger over the ring he’s wearing. “I’m assuming you have a reason for telling me all of this.”

“We need to take Mark out of his position of leadership, and we need your help. This is a chance for you to get revenge, and a chance to bring the Glass Rooks back to what your father helped build it into.”

“And what exactly was that?”

“A collective that takes care of its own, unwaveringly, as long as its members stay loyal. A society that offers stability and protection. We have each other’s backs. Always.

“My dad has lost sight of the original values of the organization. He’s sacrificing too much in the name of power. Mainly, the wellbeing of his people. Pay is still good, but it’s gone down, mainly because he’s stealing from all of us, and we haven’t even realized it.”

“Damn,” Wesley mutters.

“He’s also planning to cut ties with a few key people—people we need on our side to keep running under the radar like we have been.”

“That sounds like it would affect his bottom line in a pretty bad way. What’s his angle?”

I smile. It’s good that Wesley is asking questions. The more information I can provide him, the easier it’ll be to win over his trust, even if it’s only a small portion of it.

“He wants to cut out the lower-level enforcers entirely. Start using independent contractors instead, or people who’re desperate enough to take on a risky job for a single paycheck.”

“Lower-level enforcers,” Wesley mutters. “That’d be me and the guys.”

“Not quite. You three were an experiment. A way to see if changing the system could work. In Mark’s mind, if you’re caught, it doesn’t matter what happens to you. You’re easy to replace.”

“So he’s already moved on to using independent contractors.” He points to himself.

“That’s right.”

“And if the organization loses their sense of community…”

“Then they lose sight of what’s really important,” I say. “Protection. Security. A safety net of people who’re willing to drop everything and help when needed.”

“Shit,” Wesley murmurs. “There were so many people who helped us after my dad died. They were strangers—not even my mom knew who they were. They gave us meals. Fixed her car when it broke down. Helped her get a new financial advisor when we realized our old one was fucking us over.”

I nod. “We take care of our own. Or, at least, we did. That’s the type of community we need to get back to. My dad has already sown a lot of distrust between members, and it’s led to rifts that could tear us apart. And if that happens, then we all go down.”

Wesley crosses his arms. “So it’s not just about taking care of each other. It’s avoiding mutually assured destruction.”

“That… is another angle of it, yes, but it was never something we had to worry about until now. None of us had a reason to leave, or to snitch. But my dad has made a lot of people unhappy, and that’s going to lead to problems unless we fix it.”

“Which we do… how?”

“By taking over.”

Wesley groans. “I was afraid you were going to say that.”

“Lucas, Xander, and I have that handled. What we need you three for is extra voices in our favor—and extra manpower for if things get messy.”

“All right. We’re in.”

I stare at him in shock. “That’s it? Seriously?”

Wesley shrugs. “We know way less about the jobs we take on a weekly basis, and this one finally gets me some closure on my dad’s death. Of course I’m in.”

“You don’t even need to talk it over with Cal and Kellan? You’re allowed to, you know. I wasn’t expecting an immediate—”

“They’re in,” Wesley says firmly. “I know them well enough to know how they’ll answer.”

“Fair. I’ll let you know when we need you?”

“Please do.”

I turn to go.

“Oh, and Colton? When you kill your father, make him suffer.”

I smirk. “Don’t worry. We will.”