This family has so much on their plate, I’m once again on the verge of doing something stupid. If it weren’t for Ezra asking for the chance to make things right, I might have driven straight to my uncle’s residence instead of the Walshs. That’s how gutted I am that Maddox was dragged out of the chambers before I could even kiss him goodbye.
I swipe at the invisible tear I swear is rolling down my cheek when Caidyn asks, “How long will the appeal take?”
“Thirty days,” I answer matter-of-factly. That was the first thing I asked Owen when he returned from arranging Maddox’s transfer to Wallens Ridge.
“Thirty days?” This question isn’t from Caidyn. It’s from Landon. And he doesn’t use the same nurturing tone Caidyn used. His words blast from his throat as if I am deaf.
When I dip my chin, answering him without words, he raises his voice several more decibels. “He’ll never last thirty days at Wallens Ridge.” He rips his fingers through his hair, leaving it standing on its ends. “Especially when they find out who he’s associated with.” He doesn’t need to say my name. The disdain in his voice indicates who he means. “He didn’t get handed a life sentence. He just handed over his life!”
“That’s enough!” Caidyn interrupts before hitting Landon with a stern finger point. “Talking out of your ass won’t change anything.” Although he swivels his torso so he’s facing Landon, I still hear what he mouths. “Demi isn’t the enemy.”
“How can you say that?” Landon fires back, his voice still loud. “She may not have increased the length of his sentence, but sheisthe reason he pled guilty.” When Saint tries to intervene, Landon pushes him off him. His shove pricks Max’s ear as much as it does Justine’s. She isn’t close to descending the stairwell, but I can see her feet. “No, I’m sick of holding my fucking tongue. Maddox isn’t a murderer. We all know that, and she knows it, so why the fuck is he pretending as if he is?” I feel my heart crack a little when he thrusts his index finger my way. “Because to saveher,he had to sacrifice himself.”
I stop Caidyn from ending Landon’s rant with more than words by grabbing ahold of his wrist. What Landon is saying cuts through me like a knife, but it is also true, so I am deserving of his wrath.
My voiceless request for Caidyn to hold back frees Landon to continue with his belligerent tirade. “You’re all a bunch of soft cocks. What happened to our family morals and putting everyone’s well-being before our own? Blood before water? Family before work. Bros before hoes?”
His last comment snaps Caidyn’s last nerve. He’s always been more a lover than a fighter, so not even his brother who loves to brawl is anticipating for him to knock Landon’s words back into his mouth with his fist.
With Saint’s shock as high as mine, Landon retaliates to Caidyn’s hit without interference. He pole drives him into the coffee table. The sickening thud of their collision is soon overtaken by the grunts of two men willing to fight to the death.
Even with Mr. Walsh grabbing Caidyn’s shoulders and Saint banding his arms around Landon’s torso, Caidyn and Landon go punch for punch for the next several minutes. Max wants in on the action as well. His vicious, fang-bearing growl exposes how brave Justine truly is. It should have her cowering away. Instead, she stands on the landing of the stairwell, screaming for her family to stop fighting.
“Do you really think more violence will fix anything?” She doesn’t fight her tears as I do. She sets them free, knowing they’ll be more effective than her words. “You know Maddox picked me over himself, Caidyn. You were with him when he made his decision.” My stomach gurgles at the same time Mrs. Walsh’s shocked eyes snap to Caidyn. “And you…” Justine stares at Landon like she’s both hurt for him and angry at him. “You should know better. Things could have been starkly different for you if you had spoken out for yourself as you’re endeavoring to do for Maddox.”
I’m lost as to what she is referencing, but Landon seems to understand. He un-balls his hands in an instant before he lowers his chin to rest on his chest.
With her family subdued, Justine’s focus shifts to the outcast. The recluse. The woman who would have given anything to be raised in a household like hers. She locks her eyes with me. “This isn’t your fault. It’s mine.” Her voice cracks during her last two words. “He tried to warn me.” Tears roll down her cheeks unchecked when she adds, “They all did. I didn’t listen, and now my brother is suffering for my stupidity.”
I try to tell her no. I try to explain that nobody can predict how sadistic my uncle’s rulings will be, but before I can voice either of those things, she spins on her heels and races back up the stairwell. The swish of her hair silences the room. Her attack was a little over six weeks ago, yet her wounds aren’t close to being healed. They are a brutal reminder of exactly how cruel this world can be, and they have me sprinting for the closest exit before my brain clues on to the fact I have nowhere to run.
When they found out Maddox had been arrested, the first thing his family did was sell the lakeside cabin so they could fund his legal expenses. I almost offered them the two hundred thousand dollars Maddox had saved, but since I would have had to explain how he got that much money, I decided not to. I didn’t want them treating him differently while he was facing the biggest battle of his life. Was it stupid of me to do? Probably. But no one could accuse me of being smart lately.
I run and run and run until Max isn’t the only one whimpering in pain. I’m wheezing, out of breath, and have enough sweat running down my face I can cry without shame.
It’s a heart-tugging couple of minutes that becomes even more defeating when a voice on my right says, “Maybe it’s time to call it.” Caidyn steps out of the shadows. The sweat marks on his shirt expose his sprint was as strenuous as mine, he just remained a few paces back to give me some much-needed privacy. “Knowing you’re hurting will hurt Maddox more than any sentence. His happiness is through you, Demi. If you’re not happy, he’s fucking miserable.”
It’s the worst time for me to smile, but it can’t be helped. Maddox has always said he and Caidyn have opposing personalities. I’m not close to reaching the same conclusion. If you exclude the alternative outside packaging, they’re one and the same.
After lifting my shirt to clear the sweat and tears from my face, I say, “I can’t give up on him, Caidyn. I don’t know how to be happy without him. I existed before him, but I didn’t live. He brought me to life.” I could emphasize my reply, but I don’t need to. Caidyn understands because he too is facing his own rebirthing.
He holds his hands in the air to ensure Max he means me no harm before he steps closer to me. “Then what’s your plan? And where do I enter into it?”
My uncle has always said love and affection fixes nothing.
He’s a liar.
The thank-you hug I give Caidyn mends my heart. It’s still in tiny little pieces, but it’s together, in one place, instead of being scattered in all directions.
We stay huddled in the middle of the street until Max gets too close to Caidyn’s backside for him to feel comfortable. I’d laugh at his cowardice if Justine’s wounds weren’t burned into my retinas.
While inching back, I pat Max on the head. It took a lot for him to realize I needed Caidyn’s support. I can only hope it won’t take Maddox quite as long to realize he needs mine.
“Is it true? Did Maddox pick between Justine and himself?”
Caidyn licks his lips before halfheartedly shrugging. “It wasn’t exactly like that. It was more a suggestion than an order.”
My heart aches for Maddox. I fought my demons head-on just vying to keep him safe. He had more than my life on his shoulders.
