Page 64 of Maximus

“Hey, Liam.”

My body jolted and my eyes cut to Dec. Never had I heard him talk so gently.

“Hi.”

“Bet you’re happy to be out of that car.” Dec continued to blow my mind with his soft tone.

“Yeah. It was long.”

“Looks like Max hooked you and your brother up with lots of stuff.” Dec motioned to the bags that were still on the floor and I wanted to throat punch him for the reminder.

“Mom says we’ll go through them tomorrow. She said we’ll keep what we need but it’s not cool to waste Max’s money on stuff we won’t use since we won’t be here very long.”

“Sounds to me like your mom’s pretty smart. No sense in being wasteful.”

Huh? What?

“Eva. Liam. It was nice meeting you both. Sorry to have disturbed you.” Dec tipped his chin. “Max, a word in private?”

I followed Dec to the sliding glass door off the dining room when Liam spoke, bringing me to a halt.

“Are you leaving?”

“No, bud. I’m just gonna step out back with Declan.”

“You won’t—”

“Liam, I’m not going anywhere. I’m staying with you, your brother, and your mom. Promise.”

Liam nodded and wrapped his arms around Eva’s middle. I couldn’t miss her tight features—she felt her son’s attachment and uncertainty and she felt it deep.

* * *

Dec and I stepped outside, and before I had the sliding door closed, Dec started.

“It’s too bad that motherfucker’s already in the ground.”

I felt the same way but was taken aback Declan had voiced his thoughts.

“What?”

“That kid in there is jumpy as a rabbit. Doesn’t want you out of his sight. Kid doesn’t behave like that unless he’s been traumatized, scared, or both. I reckon that boy’s both.”

“He is,” I confirmed.

Declan knew all about childhood trauma, not that he spoke about his past. However, everyone knew he and his twin sister, Violet, had been separated and placed into foster care after their parents’ deaths. In a cruel twist of fate, Violet had not remembered she’d had a brother.

“Seems pretty attached to you,” he noted a second time.

I didn’t say anything because there was nothing to say. Declan was smart, he was also observant. He didn’t need me to confirm what he saw.

“Is this what you wanted to talk to me in private about?”

“Tom’s people got Landry to talk.”

“Tom’s people?”

Tom Anderson was the president of the United States. He was also a personal friend of Zane’s; they were such good friends they were on a first-name basis. Something I still wasn’t used to calling him even after several years, but the man became cranky if someone on the team addressed him by anything other than his first name. And a cranky Tom Anderson didn’t make for a good day.