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“Oh my God, I’m so sorry,” Sienna says, reaching out. “That’s awful. What did your dad do?”
“The Blades knew that things were getting out of hand. But they couldn’t just fight the Serpents, they knew they had to take them down. So he and a few others managed to get their hands on Diego Sr.’s black book, all his associates, and how they got their funding. Turned it over to the police. They came after Diego Sr. but the other Serpents attacked.”
My hands turn to fists. “The Blades fought back but my dad died in the fight. When it was over, they ran the Serpents out of town for good, or so they thought.”
“I understand why you guys are so intent on keeping them away from this town,” Sienna says. “You must be furious to see them try to undo all the work your folks did to protect the community.”
“I am,” I tell her. “My grandfather was injured in the fight too. He never fully recovered the use of his leg. We thought they were gone but now they’re back, with even more members. We don’t know how they’ve managed it.”
Sienna hums thoughtfully. “Maybe someone wanted revenge and is funding it,” she suggests.
“We thought that too, but we don’t know who would have that kind of money.” I shrug and start on a second coat. “I don’t know. It’s useless to speculate. All we can do is try to keep them at bay until we can figure out a more permanent solution.”
“I'm sorry you're going through this,” Sienna murmurs, her voice laced with empathy. “It must bring up old wounds.”
I soften my gaze as I meet her eyes. “Thank you,” I whisper. “For being here, for understanding. I've never talked about this with anyone,” I admit, my voice raw with emotion. “But with you, it feels different.”
Sienna wraps her arms around me, holding me close as though she can shield me from the pain of the past. “You’re not alone, Dominic. I’m here for you.” She leans in, hugging me tightly.
“Thanks,” I say. “I don’t know what else to do right now, but I know things can’t keep going like they are. We don’t want to get others involved if we can help it, but it’s starting to look like we may not have a choice.”
“I get it,” Sienna says. “I’m sorry.”
She leans back and I finish painting her nails, the silence stretching between us.
As I work, my mind plays over our conversation and I realize that she’s right. There are only three of us and dozens of Serpents. If we want a shot at taking them down, we might need to consider our options.
It might be time to recruit new members of the Crimson Blades.
Grim determination settles over me and I vow to talk to Bastian and Caleb as soon as possible.
33
BASTIAN
As I finish up for the day, I notice the vibrant colors of the sunset painting the sky above the shop in vivid hues. The fading light casts long shadows across the pavement, and the distant hum of traffic and the chirp of crickets relax me.
“Ready to go?” I ask, wiping my hands on a rag. The bike repair is done, and the customer will be picking it up first thing tomorrow morning.
“Yeah, let me just shut down,” Caleb calls back, beginning to pack his things.
“I hope Dom had a good day with Sienna,” I mention, putting away my tools.
“Seems like we successfully lifted her mood the other night,” Caleb teases.
“Yeah, she's been a bit happier since then,” I agree.
We head out to the Firebird and I climb into the driver’s seat.
“I’m so hungry I could eat a whale,” Caleb comments. “I skipped lunch to deal with the server issue on our site.”
“Text Dom and find out if he wants us to pick anything up,” I tell him. Caleb sends the text, then flips on the radio.
“He says that he and Sienna made chicken and dumplings,” Caleb says a few moments later when his phone buzzes.
“Awesome,” I say, turning left. We arrive home a few minutes later and head inside as the sun starts fading over the horizon.
As soon as we enter the house, Sienna rushes forward in a blur of motion and throws herself at me, her arms enveloping me in a tight embrace.
