Total pages in book: 71
Estimated words: 71179 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 356(@200wpm)___ 285(@250wpm)___ 237(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 71179 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 356(@200wpm)___ 285(@250wpm)___ 237(@300wpm)
“And when will that be?”
“Soon as I can get it scheduled.”
“Jesus Christ, Lola. Doesn’t my family own a judge or something?”
She raises an eyebrow. “I’m going to pretend you didn’t say that, Falcon.”
“Look, I know it’s not right. But these Bianchis and McAllisters can pay off judges, and we have just as much money as they do. And ours is clean.”
“If that were the case, do you think you would’ve gone to prison in the first place?” Lola asks.
“I know, I know. That was my choice. And I know you guys did the best you could to get me out of everything, but there was a dead cop involved.”
“That’s right.”
“But there’s no dead cop involved this time, Lola.” I stand and pace the room. “I missed a couple parole meetings and I had a gun. That’s it. Yeah, the guy died, but what I did was in self-defense.”
She sighs. “This is complicated, Falcon. And you know why.”
I rub my forehead. “Yeah, I know why.”
And I wonder, for the first time ever, if it was worth it to save my brother’s ass that day. To sacrifice eight years of my life for my little brother who got in over his head.
I breathe in.
Yes, it was.
Not only because he’s my brother, but for one even more important reason.
The entire experience led me to Savannah.
And I will fucking burn down anything in my way before I let the McAllisters take her.
“I’ll do what I can to get this hearing expedited,” Lola says. “But I’m afraid you’re stuck here in the county jail until it happens.”
“First-class fucking accommodations,” I say dryly.
“They’re within their rights to send you back to prison,” she says. “And trust me, there are people there who can’t wait to get a shot at you.”
“You think that scares me?”
“Falcon,” she says, looking me straight in the eye, “I don’t think there’s a thing on this earth that scares you.”
18
SAVANNAH
After I show Vinnie around the safe house, I make us a light dinner, and then I ask the age-old question that’s on my mind.
“What’s been going on for the last seventeen years, Vin?”
“I moved around a lot at first,” he says. “Like I told you, I did odd jobs to make ends meet. I had plenty of money, but I couldn’t look like I had money. Then I heard about Mikey.”
I nod.
“I thought about coming back,” he says. “I had a plane reservation and everything, made under my alias. I was at the gate, ready to board, and when they called my section, I stood.”
“And?”
“I walked the other way.”
“What changed your mind?” I ask.
He looks down. “I couldn’t go back to it, Sav. I was scared to death. Especially with Mikey gone, they’d pull me back into the family, and I wasn’t sure I had the strength to refuse. But I should’ve come back. I should’ve come back for you.”
“I wish you had,” she says. “But I don’t fault you for not coming. You had to do what was right for you.”
“No, I shouldn’t have been so selfish. Sure, I wanted out of the whole racket, but I should’ve come back for you and then taken you with me.”
“I would’ve gone gladly,” I tell him, “but I think things worked out the way they should have. I met the love of my life, Vinnie.”
Vinnie smiles. “He seems like a good guy, but not the type I thought you’d ever go for.”
I cock my head at my brother. “It’s interesting that you say that, Vinnie, since you really don’t know me. I was ten when you left.”
He smirks. “That doesn’t mean I didn’t keep tabs on you. I had some feelers out, got information when I needed it. When I heard that Dad actually allowed you to go to college without marrying you off, I was elated. And then, when I heard he didn’t marry you off after college, I was even more elated.”
“Yeah, but I clearly paid the price for that.”
“You did what you had to do. You got a job you liked, you did a few favors for the family every now and then.” He sighs. “It’s what this life is about, Sav. It’s why I left.”
“I should’ve left as well, but if I had done one thing differently, I wouldn’t have met Falcon.”
He simply nods.
“But seventeen years, Vin.” I grab his hand. “You said you came close to ending it all after Mikey died. You said you studied philosophy. Give me some details.”
“I did. I actually spent six months in a Buddhist temple studying with monks.”
“You’re kidding.”
“Yeah, it seems a little off brand for me, but I learned so much about myself. I did that right after I walked away from the flight that was going to bring me home after Mikey died. I felt terrible. It was like I had made all the wrong choices. I was thinking only of myself and not of you and Mikey. So I went to the Buddhist temple, studied with the monks. They put me on a strict vegan regimen.”