Page 36 of Tortured Souls
“Hey, baby, how are you?” Finn spews his usual bullshit while Brooks rolls his eyes at his brother.
“You know, I’m starting to think you may have a thing for him?” Brooks says while continuing to type away on his laptop.
“Of course, I do. Look how sexy he is. You can’t tell me you haven’t fantasized about him at least once?” They banter back and forth as if I’m not even in the same room.
“For fuck’s sake, Finn. What the hell is wrong with you?” Brooks lets out a laugh while leaning back in his chair.
“Well, my therapist said I have a dissociative personality, along with bipolar and an uncanny ability to make any situation uncomfortable.”
“Well, she hit the nail on the head there,” I finally say, sitting across from the twins and stretching my legs out.
“Wait a minute, you haven’t even been going to your therapist lately, which means the courts will probably be looking for you soon.”
“I haven’t? Then who told me about my diagnosis?” Standing from his chair, Finn walks over to the mini fridge and pulls out a soda before sliding me one as well.
“That would be Frieda during one of your many arguments about invading in her personal life.”“Fuck, you’re right, brother. Well, in that case, I guess I’m cured!”
I can’t help laughing at my insanely unhinged friend as he takes his seat once again and twists his laptop towards me to look at.
“Fuck, man, you’re too much sometimes, you know that?” Brooks crosses his arms behind his head and gives his brother a smirk. I pull the laptop closer to me as the twins go on about something to do with Frieda, but I’m too focused on the screen to listen.
“So, have you identified them or not? What am I looking at here?” I interrupt the two, who immediately stop bickering and jump right into business mode.
“The big guy in the middle who looks constipated—that’s Diego, Sergio’s muscles, if you will.” I immediately recognized the name. Diego is currently on Sky’s list of people who have yet to be crossed off her list. “The thin guy on the right who looks bored out of his mind is Leonard. He’s Sergio’s second cousin who handles a lot of Sergio’s bitch work. I assume hunting down his daughter was left in his hands. Clearly, he’s not too thrilled about it. However, I also found that Leonard was close with Sky in the sense that he was to follow her whenever she left Sergio’s house,” Finn elaborates.
“He was her shadow,” Brooks adds to Finn’s description. Leonard is another name on Sky’s list. Maybe eliminating the last names will be easier than I thought. Especially if they run in the same pack. “The last one on the right is a man named Riggs.” Finn doesn’t elaborate, so I look up from his laptop.
“And he is?” I ask, my eyes bouncing from Finn to Brooks. Finn is the one who speaks first.
“All we could find out is that he’s been stateside for roughly three years. He came from the UK, and that’s all we’ve been able to learn about him.”
“Kind of odd that he just shows up from across the pond. We have no idea the connection he has with the Hellstorms?” I open my can of soda and take a large gulp. The temperature of the liquid is so cold it burns as it slides down my throat. I welcome the sting of the carbonation; my anger is growing within me, and I need a distraction. The thought of Sergio’s men looking for my girl has my insides brewing with more and more rage. Then the doubt starts pouring in. The doubt that Sky is still affiliated in some way with her father. But looking at the big picture, it wouldn’t make sense since she is actively killing off people fromtheir club. It’s all so confusing at times, and I have to scold myself for doubting her in a little, but it’s all in my nature I suppose.Protect the club, son.That’s what my father always told me.
“I have a few people that may be able to identify him. I’ll give them a call and see what they can do.” Before Finn excuses himself, he shoots Brooks a look. A look that has me concerned about who these “people” are that Finn is referring to. I watch as Finn exits the room, his phone to his ear. I level Brooks with a look as he tries to avoid my gaze.
“Do I need to be worried about these so-called people he knows?”
“You know him as well as I do, Sax. We always need to be worried when it comes to him.” I let my head fall back against the chair with a deep exhale. A headache is already brewing beneath my fucking skull. I have enough shit I need to worry about in my life. I don’t need to add anything else to my plate. Just then, Saint comes through the door, concern etched across his face.
“Who the fuck is Finn talking to? It sounds like he’s hiring John Wick or Jason-Fucking-Bourne or something. What the hell did I miss?”
“For fuck’s sake,” Brooks pushes his chair back and stomps towards the door, muttering curses under his breath as he leaves.
“What the fuck, man?” Saint says to me, dropping into his chair across from me. I quickly fill him in on the three men who have been sniffing around Sky. Then I finally drop the bomb on him about Sky and her “kill list.” He doesn’t look the least bit surprised, especially since he was there the night we killed Damien.
“Listen, Sax. I don’t mean to sound like a dick, but do you think you have the time to be going through with this? Take intoaccount the plans we already have to find your father’s killer. Do you have time for her little adventure too?”
“Are you saying that what she’s doing is just a game for her? What she’s doing is exactly what we’re doing. We are finding the people who’ve fucked with our lives. Does that sound like a fucking game?” I bark out at my best friend and then immediately regret my tone. He lets out a deep sigh at my outburst.
Saint’s only worried about the load I carry and how adding to that load is not something I’d originally planned on. However, Sky is not just some person I want to help. She’s burrowed herself deep inside my chest, seeping into the crevices and holes I’ve developed, making them full again. Since my father’s death, I’ve not allowed myself to feel anything other than rage, fury, or destruction. I’ve been so set on finding the ones responsible for taking away my family, I’ve not had time or space in my head to focus on what I want, what I need, and frankly, being with Sky melts the destruction that’s been blazing inside me for years. While I pushed her away in the beginning and guarded myself from her possibly being a scout for her father’s club, I quickly realized she’s far different than I originally thought.
“I’m not saying you can’t handle it, Sax. Out of any of us, you’re the only person who can handle any and everything you take on. I just want to make sure you’re good. You’re my best friend, and I don’t want to sit by and watch you slowly kill yourself trying to help everyone else in this town.” I pull my hair elastic out of my hair, trying to relieve the now full-blown headache I’ve created.
“I know, Saint. I know.” I run my fingers through my hair, pushing the long strands back across my scalp as I close my eyes, tilting my head up towards the ceiling. We both sit in silence for a moment. That’s what I like most about Saint. He’s able to read my mood and knows when it’s time to just be silent.He’s similar to me, and I like that. We both thrive in silence while simultaneously letting our internal wars rage on until they eventually die down.
Pulling my hair back into my usual bun, Saint clears his throat, bringing me back to the moment.
“So, what’s the plan for celebrating Capital Vice now being part of the Kings’ Aces?” I smile at my best friend, and his devilish grin spreads across his face as he crosses his arms over his chest. I prop my feet on the table and settle deeper in my seat.