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Which he had been.
He’d balked at the idea of being paid to help out, especially since he and Newt were still staying in the house, but Nolan had managed to convince Isaac that he’d be earning every penny.
Much like I’d said to Nolan so long ago.
Newt, for his part, had been put to work too. His job was to help anyone who was interested in adopting a kitten, since he’d become as obsessed with them as he was with Loki. He’d named all the kittens and would tell anyone who would listen all about each kitten, from what toys they liked to play with to which ones were the best cuddlers.
Nolan and I had talked to Sawyer about whether or not he was interested in starting at the center as a paid employee now, versus waiting until the spring when Nolan and I went to Europe. He’d accepted the offer with the caveat that he had obligations as the on-call vet for the area, which I’d readily agreed to. I’d also asked him if he’d become the center’s regular vet, even after he opened up his own practice. He’d been more than happy to accept that offer as well.
Having a little extra help meant Nolan and I weren’t killing ourselves trying to do it all. It also meant I could potentially take in more animals. I had the space and money to build more habitats; there’d just never been enough of me to go around when I’d been doing it on my own.
We’d also gotten word from Deputy Miller this morning that Sheriff Tulley had been fired and that he was facing obstruction charges. Jimmy and his two buddies had already been arrested for the attack on Gentry.
As I made my way up the small bluff, I slowed when I got to the curve where my mother had missed the turn and we’d gone over the embankment. I couldn’t see down into the ravine where the car had ultimately landed, but I didn’t need to. It would be etched into my brain forever. Despite what I’d told Nolan about not carrying anger around, it was admittedly more difficult to find the forgiveness for my father a second time around. I could only figure that he hadn’t been in his right mind when he’d told Maddox I’d insisted on driving that night and that I’d refused to give him the keys when he’d asked for them. I knew I’d get to the point that I’d be able to let go of the anger, but it would definitely take some time.
It took just a few more minutes to reach the old Victorian mansion overlooking the water. It was incredibly run-down and I suspected once the snow melted, it would reveal that the surrounding land that had once been acres of pristinely landscaped grass and gardens was an overgrown mess. I didn’t see any cars in the wraparound driveway, but that didn’t mean anything since Sawyer had mentioned that he’d never actually seen Maddox drive to and from the center.
There was no answer when I knocked on the door, but when I tested the knob and found it unlocked, I didn’t hesitate to enter.
The house was freezing cold, so it wasn’t a shock to find Maddox sitting in front of a roaring fireplace in what had once been the den. He’d moved the cloth-draped furniture aside and rolled a sleeping bag out on the floor. My brother sat unmoving in the single armchair in front of the fireplace, a bottle of liquor at his feet.
“Took you long enough to figure it out, little brother,” Maddox murmured.
I walked around the chair so I was facing Maddox. He looked tired, but not drunk.
I held out my phone to him to show him the message I’d typed for him even before I’d left my house.
“Don’t thank me,” he said as he leaned back in the chair. “All I did was tell the truth. It was long overdue.”
I typed, What do you want from me, Maddox?
“I want you to have the life you should have had ten years ago. I want to go back to that moment and do what I should have done.”
What should you have done?
“Told you how fucking glad I was that I hadn’t lost you too.”
I hated how lackluster his voice sounded. Maddox had always been the more intense of the two of us, but this was different.
“Did the kid and his brother leave?”
At twenty years old, Isaac wasn’t exactly a kid, but to my thirty-two-year-old brother, I supposed he did seem quite young.
No, he’s working at the center for a little while. Nice trick with his car.
Maddox waved his hand impatiently. “Little fool doesn’t know what’s good for him,” he growled. It was the first bit of life I’d actually seen in him.
