Page 45 of The Fire We Make

June raised her hands in mock surrender.

Dinner continued and with business talk banished from the table, conversation moved around Ace. He contributed when necessary and emoted where appropriate, but for the most part, he silently forked his dinner into his mouth as his mind raced.

Hours later, when the family had been fed to capacity, the siblings lounged in the living room long after their parents and grandparents had retreated to their separate wings for bed. Too tired and stuffed to return home to their own places, they opted for a sleepover.

Ace laid stretched out on the couch with one arm over his eyes to shield them from the bright light of the 100 inch television August and Jrue were watching to catch up on the basketball game they missed earlier.

“Yo Ace, you up?” he heard Von’s voice ask, paired with tapping on his arm.

Ace opened his eyes and sat up. “Wassup?”

Von jerked his head towards the backyard and together they walked outside together. Sitting in one of the pool lounge chairs, Von rolled up a blunt before speaking.

“Been keeping my ear to the streets after that shit went down in Manhattan the other day and just thought I’d let you know I’ve been hearing some mumblings,” Von said after taking a puff and passing it to his big brother.

“Fuck they mumbling about?” Ace asked, lifting the blunt to his lips.

“The lieutenants and their soldiers are nervous about all this weird shit going on. The arrests. Missing shipments. It’s making them antsy and they’re turning it around on you.”

“The fuck?”

“I’m just the messenger,” Von said, raising his hands. “You know I ain’t gone tell you how to do yo job, I just wanted you to know what you up against. It’s probably just growing pains but they ain’t gon’ keep quiet about it for long.”

Ace nodded. “I hear you. ‘Preciate it.”

Von nodded and watched as Ace stood. “You out?”

“Yeah I got shit to do.”

With one hand on the wheel and the other flipping the top of his lighter open and closed, Ace opted to make the hour drive to his place in the city.

He was restless, the stress of his new role settling on him like a ton of bricks.

Ace couldn’t fail.

This was what he was born for. He’d been raised to continue the legacy his grandfather started and he couldn’t fuck it up. He’d spent his whole life preparing for this. He’d endured isolation from his siblings and loneliness as he trained. He’d sacrificed his own desires in favor of his duty to the family.

It couldn’t have all been for nothing.

Chapter Twelve

“Hey, Thibodeaux.”

Joy looked up from the case brief she was writing, more than a little annoyed to be interrupted but she tamped down those feelings and replaced them with a smile.

“Hey Shawn,” she greeted one of the senior attorneys she’d been working with.

“We got a few new cases. Boss man said it’s all hands on deck, we’re meeting in conference room B.”

“Okay. And B is… downstairs?” Joy asked.

He shook his head. “Upstairs. I’ll wait and you can walk with me.”

Joy gave him a genuine smile. “Thanks,” she said, putting her computer to sleep and grabbing her notebook.

She joined him in the hall and fell into step beside him as he guided the way. The side of her face heated with his periodic stares. Joy could see him out of her periphery, stealing glances and working up the courage to say something.

She could practically hear the gears in his Ivy League-educated brain turning as he fumbled for a conversation starter. She stayed silent, not bothering to offer him any assistance.