Page 49 of The Sweetest Cruelty: Hudson (A Sawyer Brothers Story #1)

“What the fuck was that for?” Micah bellowed, clutching the bruised jaw I had just connected with my fist.

Pissed off didn’t come close to what I was feeling. I had waited for Micah outside our house and was more than ready to lay his ass out. Reed had pulled his Jeep up the drive, and I waited for all men to leave the vehicle.

I knew Reed and Nix had picked Micah’s lying ass up as he walked home because I’d told them to. Give him less of a chance to light up or snort any shit he had no business taking. I’d never seen him with powder, I just had a shitty feeling.

I went in for another hit, but he dodged it and threw a left hook into my stomach. I doubled over. I hadn’t expected him to fight back so quickly.

And then shit got real as a full-on brawl ensued, right there on the front lawn of our house.

I didn’t give a shit who saw us. Hell, even if Ma witnessed it. I just had to knock some sense into my dumbass brother.

As we rolled around in the grass, Ma’s flowerbeds, and driveway, tearing at clothing, elbows and punches flying, Reed muttered. “Are you going to do something or just let them kill each other?”

“They’re not going to kill each other,” I heard Nix chuckle.

“What the hell is going on?” I heard Harper squeal from the porch into the house.

“Get back in the house, Harper,” Phoenix boomed.

“Do something!” she yelled.

“For God's sake, woman. Do as I tell you!”

She must have listened to him, as I heard the front door slam.

After cuffing Micah on the side of the head, he became dazed, and I shifted my weight from foot to foot, maintaining my boxing stance. I hit him twice in the face in quick succession. He then punched me back, hard.

One eye felt twice its normal size, and I knew my mouth was bleeding.

I smirked as Micah jumped to his feet and came at me again, his chest heaving. I allowed him to get another one in, feeding off the pain before I round-housed the fucker. He stumbled but didn’t go down.

“You hit like a bitch,” I spat as I squared up to him again, dodging his fists .

“Bite me, white boy!” Micah volleyed back.

“Phoenix?” Reed prompted.

His voice broke us apart, and we started circling each other. Blood was streaming down Micah’s nose.

“Why am I always the one who has to clean shit up?” Nix grunted from the sidelines. He was usually used as a human shield during brother-to-brother conflicts that he wasn’t directly involved in.

“Because you’re one huge cornfed motherfucker,” Reed pointed out dryly, putting himself between me and Micah, his hands up. During fights where Phoenix was involved, it was over quickly.

“Hudson!” Reed yelled, grabbing my full attention. He had his boys back as he tried to square up to me. He didn’t need to do that. I’d made my point. It was over.

My brother had a nasty cut over his eyebrow that was already starting to clot, and I felt a wave of regret. I dropped my fists, signalling that we were done.

“Thank fuck,” Micah huffed, dropping back on his ass. “You’re one crazy bitch. Now, can you tell me what I’m supposed to have done?”

That metallic taste in my mouth turned my stomach, and I spat on the driveway, leaving a mixture of saliva and blood.

“Cute,” Nix snorted. “Ma will probably make you lick that off.”

“You know what you’ve done, Micah. I saw you buying again from Creed.”

“I haven’t bought shit. It’s not what you think.” Guilt and shame still rippled across his features.

Backing up a step, I leaned over and attempted to pull more oxygen into my lungs. I was getting too old for this shit. Resting my hands on each thigh, I reined in the beast.

I could hear Reed helping Micah to his feet. We were both covered in a mixture of dirt and blood.

“That’s it? It’s official. You are a fucking psycho,” Micah choked out and I straightened with a glare, his face was now all colors of the rainbow. “You can’t solve everything with your fists, man.”

“Nope. But it makes me feel so much better. And don’t lie to me,” I bit back, cracking my neck from side to side. My knuckles burned like hell.

“I met with Creed to give him part of the money I owe. This is my favourite jersey too, and it’s ruined now.”

“Stop whining like a bitch and stick to the point. ”

“Is one of you going to tell us what the fuck is going on?” Reed barked.

Phoenix remained where he was, leaning against Reed’s Jeep with his arms folded. Fucker looked so relaxed and smug that my palms itched to bitch-slap him. I didn’t care that I’d be signing my own death warrant if I did so.

Once I caught my breath, I nodded towards the one brother in the bad books. “Why don’t you ask Micah where he was today?”

Reed frowned and turned to his brother with a questioning look. “Where were you?”

“What?” Micah said, grabbing his dreads and tugging them. The motion of a guilty man trying to buy himself more time. “Let’s get this straight right now. I don’t fucking answer to you Hudson. You don’t get to tell me what to do.”

I ignored that as he did, they all did. And with good reason. I looked out for them, would kill for my brothers if I had to. They were the ones who had cast me as their leader, and when things didn’t go their way, what did they do? Bitched about it.

I was selfish where everyone else was concerned. But not when it came to my brothers and Ma.

Rubbing my lip to see where the blood was coming from, I explained. “I saw Micah by Xander Creed’s car tonight buying who knows what.” My thumb came away clear. I must have bit my cheek when Micah landed that one good blow. He wasn’t usually that accurate, but the boy was fast.

Phoenix pushed off the car and stormed forward. “What the fuck?”

“Micah?” Reed growled, clearly upset.

And my brother’s barriers dropped. I held up a hand to stop him from pussying out, not in the mood for more lies.

“I suggest you think long and hard before spouting more shit. You rub elbows with the scum of the city, you force us all to do the same. What the hell were you thinking you lying son of a bitch.”

“I told you. You know I owe him money. What did you want me to do?”

With one last look of disappointment, I walked towards the house, shaking my head. “I’m going for a shower.”

“Yeah, you do that. Cool off your crazy ass,” Micah chuntered under his breath.

“I suggest we all meet in the den in ten. Micah is going to tell us exactly what type of shit he has signed us all up for,” I tossed over my shoulder.

All I could hear was my brothers arguing as I slammed into the house.

**** *

Micah started to tell the truth. He said he got carried away with trying different types of shit and had been given credit with the Creed family. Micah was still in debt but had managed to reduce it to two and a half thousand dollars.

And why was the amount so high? Cocaine.

That’s why. He confessed to trying it but said it wasn’t for him.

Something about his nose bleeding after inhaling a couple of lines.

He promised me that he had been focused on weed since then and had decided to stop.

Micah explained that his physics teacher, Ms. Gibbs, had put him forward for a Ron Brown Scholarship.

It was an African-American-supported college scholarship.

The pride I felt at that news washed away my disappointment in him.

Two and a half thousand bucks?

I felt sick as there was no way we could settle that debt. The only option open was to go to the prison, collect my father’s shit and see how much money he left me. Ma said something about my father’s bank account and a check? I was surprised that cons had bank accounts in prison.

Over the last couple of days, I had decided I wanted nothing from that prick and would leave the shit he’d left behind to be incinerated.

Now I had no choice. The thought of going to Ma with it didn’t even register.

Not only would it break her heart, since buying the house, her means were meagre.

That’s why I worked during the summer. To help bring in the bread.

I knew I’d have to put in for some extra shifts at the docks.

Fuck Micah for putting us in that position.

After around an hour of grilling and what were you thinking , we got through to Micah. And then we got wasted.

Ma came home as Micah and I (with our arms around each other's shoulders) were halfway up the stairs, singing out of tune. We managed to hide our faces as Phoenix and Reed offered to take the shopping through to the kitchen. Harper had ordered takeout, so Ma didn’t have to cook when getting in late.

I was the only one who knew that Ma had been to the agency to speak about Harper’s foster placement.

Ma wanted to make it permanent. Hopefully, my little sister would get the good news that night, and we left the girls to it.

“I fucking love you man,” Micah slurred as we got to my room.

Taking my arm from around his shoulder, I pushed my door open and turned to face him. “I know, bro. I love your black ass too.”

We fist bumped and hugged that shit right up .

“We will put it right, won’t we?”

“Yeah, man. Go to bed. You look like shit,” I replied with a lopsided smile.

“You too.”

After hearing Micah’s door close, I padded into my room and showered.

After drying myself and pulling on joggers without bothering with underwear, I stood shirtless by my window and checked my phone.

I had messages from Tate, one from Storm, but nothing from Molly. Disappointment swelled in my chest. Her words from earlier still stung after I’d tried to explain that I was only joking.

“I’m not. Not anymore anyway. And not with you.” What did that even mean?

Why would she message you when you’ve been such a prick towards her?