Vince didn’t see it coming, and he possessed the reflexes of a dying fish, so he hardly reacted before he was slumped to the floor.
Ruin stood over Vince like a demon straight from hell as he tossed the cloth into a nearby trash can. “I’m glad I never liked this sketchy motherfucker.” Ruin said, rust in his voice, and Splice cocked an eyebrow. “Really?”
“His smile never reached his eyes. I grew up with a brother just like that.”
Ruin had killed his maniac elder brother, so yeah, he probably had the scoop on reading shady bastards better than anyone else.
“You need help in here; let me know. I’ll do it gladly. I’m gonna stay nearby.” Ruin wasn’t much for talking or touching anyone other than his old lady, but he placed a gentle hand on Splice’s shoulder.
Once alone with his unconscious uncle, Splice dragged the old man to a chair he’d placed there earlier, tying him up.
He thought he was waiting for answers.
But if only he’d been pre-warned...
THIRTY-ONE
Splice
Having waited ten minutes, Splice grabbed the ice-cold bucket of water and threw it over his uncle.
Give the old man his due; he didn’t appear confused for too long as he came back from unconsciousness with a stuttered, cold gasp, fighting for breath at the shock of being awoken so abruptly.
Splice stood against the wall.
“Wha... What is going... going on?” Vince stuttered, water dripping off his face. Splice had Vince’s arms tied behind his back, his legs zip-tied to the chair legs.
Pushing himself off the wall, the varying range of emotions lingering on Splice’s surface, he let his uncle see him. Splice knew how far he would go, and it didn’t fill him with anything but anger and misery.
There was so much he needed answers to.
“Splice?” Vince said, cocking his head back, blinking rapidly. “What’s this about? What am I here for? What’s wrong?”
“So many questions, Vince. And they all have the same answer.” Splice was the guy the club sent if there was a dispute. He wasn’t known for his calmness. He wasn’t the negotiator. He was the settler. Just one step away from Ruin, the ultimate destroyer.
Splice was a hothead and had quick fists.
But nothing here gave him joy to see a job well done.
He felt betrayal in corners of his fucking heart he hadn’t known were there. And that betrayal had sat at every family dinner—he’d been there for every holiday.
“Lisa,” he rasped. “Lisa is the answer to those questions, Vince.”
“Lisa? Why? I don’t understand.”
“You’ll make it easier for yourself if you don’t lie.”
“I seriously have no fucking clue what you’re doing now, son. But we can talk about it, just cut me free. It’s digging into my wrists.”
Without all the evidence, Splice’s uncle’s bewildered reaction would have persuaded him that he was not guilty. But Splice was too far gone to give a rat’s ass; his sympathy button was broken. He towered over the older man, dripping with water, and tucked both hands into his jacket pockets.
“I told you not to lie to me. What do you take me for, Vince, huh? Some dumb kid you can mess with? Oh, wait, you did that already, didn’t you? Ten years ago. You fucked with my life, and I wanna know why.” Splice laid it out plainly for Vince. “You won’t get out of that chair without answers.”
“You’re talking in riddles. Cut me loose, son, and I’ll figure it out with you.” Vince sounded calm, and that just pissed Splice off.
He dropped to his haunches, eye-to-eye with his uncle, who Splice had trusted without fail. And now he realized he didn’t know who this man was.
“If that’s how you wanna play it. Let me say it in small words that you can understand. Why the fuck have you been messing with Lisa?”
