Page 148 of Sticks and Stones

The real enemy was Corbin. He had learned a valuable lesson in all of this.

He wasn’t the badass detective he thought he was.

As for the two men, they came and got him. They sprung him and were taking care of him. Taking a shitty shot at Gene was low, and he knew it.

They weren’t the problem.

Corbin had a lot to learn in life, and as a detective. That was for damn sure.

Ethan continued because it needed to be said so Corbin understood.

“That anger he’s feeling is because Gene feels responsible and so do I. We should have really talked you down from this ledge, and we didn’t. That’s on us. Maybe letting you take credit for all of the cases is our fault. It gave you a sense of being indestructible, and investigators aren’t. Look at me. I was abducted because I didn’t think about looking in the backseat of a vehicle.”

Corbin listened.

“Don’t bust his balls over it since he’s not busting yours. He’s trying to stay calm, and clearly struggling to do it.”

Corbin was to the point.

“He’s not responsible, and neither are you. I am, and now I’m questioning whether I was ever a good cop or not. They made my cover the first time I was there. It’s like they knew I was coming.”

Well, yeah.

Corbin was the boy next door. He screamed goodie two shoes. He looked like pure driven snow. There was no way anyone would think he was a biker in a gang.

Because he wanted Corbin to have some peace, he put his hand over Corbin’s casted arm to connect them. When he did, the man looked over at him, and he looked miserable.

Yeah, well, that was going around.

Welcome to the club.

No one in that group was feeling fine and dandy about any of this. Guilt was running a-plenty.

Unfortunately.

Ethan shared.

“You can’t stop a person from feeling things, even if they aren’t how you see things. Gene and I feel bad, and we feel like we failed you. We’re going to carry that for a very long time, and you can’t change that. The bottom line is we’re trying to help you out of this, because now, they know who you are. This is a much deeper mess and it’s going to take a while to clean it up.”

Corbin felt like shit for being rude.

The two men were like his brothers. They showed up when he needed them most. They canceled holidays to help him out, and they came and found him when he was lost and damaged.

That was beyond valuable.

It was essential for his survival.

“If this ended in your death, Corbin, both Gene and I would be heartbroken. We love you, and care about you. That’s why we’re doing this. It’s not to make you feel guilty, or to say,‘I told you so’. We’re trying to sort through this mess to see how we can take care of it. Right now, we’re two steps behind, playing catch-up.”

He knew he was right.

And Corbin did appreciate them—more than they’d ever know.

Only, he hated himself right now. He lost so much with that careless mistake.

His dignity.

His pride.