Total pages in book: 88
Estimated words: 86126 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 431(@200wpm)___ 345(@250wpm)___ 287(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 86126 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 431(@200wpm)___ 345(@250wpm)___ 287(@300wpm)
“The fuck you say?” my mom replied, her voice level. I grimaced.
“I’ll drive your rig,” I said, glancing around the group.
“You should take mine,” Esther replied.
“I’m drawin’ the line at that go-kart you drive.” I shook my head. No way in hell was I driving her car. It was tiny. The one time I was a passenger, I’d practically been resting my chin on my knees the entire ride.
“You can take your mother’s,” Dad said.
“You’re on thin ice, Cody,” my mom snapped. She turned to me and her tone softened. “You can take mine, baby.”
“Thanks, Ma.”
“Need to go,” Otto said, looking at the clock.
We filtered out of the house as quietly as possible as he turned to Esther, his hands on her belly as he leaned down to whisper to her.
“Didn’t think this would ever happen,” my oldest brother Mick said as we stopped in the driveway. “Not after all these years.”
“You knew they told her to call if she needed them,” my mom pointed out.
“Just been a while,” he replied.
“Must be bad if she’s finally callin’,” Rumi said, scratching at the stubble on his jaw. He looked at me. “You sure you don’t wanna sit this one out?”
“Right.” I scoffed.
“He might be right,” my mom said softly. “If you don’t think you can keep your cool—”
“Enough,” my dad said, his voice sharp. He looked at each of them and then back to me. “Titus is fine.”
I nodded at him in thanks as Bas slapped me on the back. “I’ll ride with ya, kid.”
“You don’t need to—”
“While I’d love to ride my bike because I’m a fuckin’ powerhouse and I love the wind in my face,” he boasted, glancing at my dad who was grinning. “I would be lyin’ if I said that my stomach wasn’t churnin’ like a fuckin’ washin’ machine.”
“Sebastian,” my mom growled. “If you puke in my car I’ll kill you.”
“No, ma’am,” Bas said quickly. “Hangovers give me the shits, I won’t puke.”
“That does not give me comfort,” she replied in exasperation as the boys laughed.
“Alright, let’s go,” Otto said, jogging down the porch steps. “The address she gave Esther is an hour south of Seattle so we’ve got a bit of a ride.”
“At least the weather’s decent,” Rumi grumbled, looking up at the sky.
“We’re listenin’ to my music,” Bas announced as he strode toward my mom’s rig.
“You good?” my mom asked quietly, setting her keys in my palm.
“Fine.”
“Titus.”
“Glad she’s reachin’ out,” I replied, leaning forward to kiss her forehead. “Esther’s gonna be glad to have her back.”
“That’s what you’re going with?”
“Nothin’ else to say, Ma.”
“Drive careful,” she ordered, rolling her eyes.
My heart was thumping in my ears as I climbed into my mom’s SUV and shoved the seat back until I was comfortable. My dad must’ve driven it the day before because the gas tank was actually full and the windshield was clean. I turned the car around and pulled up behind my dad and brothers, waiting for them to pull onto the pavement at the end of the driveway.
“Fuck me,” I mumbled under my breath, flexing my clammy hands against the steering wheel.
“No shit,” Bas replied as he fucked with the stereo. “Don’t worry, brother, I got you.”
“I’m fine.”
“Sure you are.” He chuckled.
The entire drive was a fucking blur. The few times Bas tried to talk to me, he gave up when I barely answered. Afterward I couldn’t even remember anything I’d seen or any turns we’d taken. I followed the pack of bikes on autopilot.
What did she look like? Was her hair still long? Had she changed? Of course she had. She wasn’t a kid anymore. We’d both grown up while she was gone. Did she still wear her hair the same? Was she in trouble or did she just finally decide she was done with the bullshit she and Esther had grown up with? What were we walking into? Was she expecting Otto and Esther? Would she freak out when all of us showed up? Thoughts raced through my head one after the other, never ending.
When we finally found the address Noel had given Esther, Bas wasn’t the only one with a churning gut.
Chapter 2
Noel
I called Esther the moment the ambulance pulled out of our driveway and didn’t even bother to turn their lights on. I’d instinctively known he was dead the instant I’d woken up to use the bathroom and couldn’t hear him snoring on the other side of the bed. Maybe that had been what had woken me up, the absence of sound for the first time in nearly five years. It had taken me ten minutes to turn on the light and check for sure, but I knew those minutes wouldn’t have mattered anyway. His lips were blue. His face slack. I shook off the memory.
I was free.
My hands shook as I pulled open my dresser drawers and forced myself to move calmly as I brought my folded clothes to the suitcase on the bed. No one knew yet that my husband was dead and I had hours before the hospital called them and my brother-in-law came to get us. I had time to make sure we had everything we needed.