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His mouth opened and then closed again before a slow smile spread across his lips. “Really?”
“You want to know why?” I asked, and he nodded, moving closer. “Because of all my children, I understand you the most. Ethan is very much like your dad and has everyone backing him. Dona is surrounded by people who always defend her. But you, Wyatt, are like me; you see everything and ask, ‘Where do I fit?’ When you figure it out, there is going to be no stopping you.”
He didn’t seem to understand but was just proud that he was my favorite. It was true; I loved him because he was so much like me. Soon his breathing relaxed, and so did mine; before I realized it, I was falling asleep too.
LIAM
By the time I got back to our bedroom, Fedel’s body had been removed; Declan and Neal wanted to personally handle everything else. None of us had ever said it because we had never felt the need to…until now…but Fedel was as close as family. Never once had he taken a sick day. Never once had he not been there when we needed him. His loyalty was unquestionable and he’d paid the price for it with a bullet. If we were upset, I had no idea how Melody must have felt. Every last person she’d come to this house with had left in a coffin.
“Mel?” I called out when I got to our room, but the lights were off and she wasn’t back. I checked the bathroom before moving to the Dona and Wyatt’s room.
“Mel…” My voice trailed off when I saw her asleep next to Wyatt, who was curled up next to her. I would have left them, but I was selfish.
Moving over to her, I tucked my arm under her back before tilting her to me and lifting her up.
“Liam?” she said softly, her eyes opening slightly.
“Shh. I got you,” I said when her head rested on my chest.
“If …if I have a plan that would guarantee no one would ever mess with us ever again, would you forgive me for the pain it would cause?”
Melody…asking for forgiveness? I knew all of this was hurting her. She would never admit it, but her father, Emilio, Fedel…it hurt her.
“We’ll talk in the morning,” I replied, laying her down.
She shook her head. “Answer me.”
“Melody, you have always said not to ask you questions I know the answer to. Now I’m going to say the same.”
“Just this once then.” She smiled though it didn’t reflect in her eyes.
Lying beside her, I kissed her hands. “I’m obsessed with you Melody. No matter what you do, I’ll always forgive you. Even if you were to kill me, I’d forgive you.”
She didn’t reply, just closed her eyes. “Fedel…he was more than a soldier…he was like my only brother.”
“I know.”
TWENTY-ONE
“Funerals aren't for the dead. They're for the living.”
~ Gavin Extence
LIAM
It was pouring like God planned to flood the earth again, each raindrop beating down heavily on our umbrellas as we stood and walked away from the funeral home to our cars. Five black Chevy Tahoes were parked out front, each of the windows tinted so dark I could see my reflection. I said nothing. The two new men who had been promoted since Fedel’s death—Rowan, who was Irish and heavily built with blond hair and brown eyes, and Lucian, a slim man with curly brown hair and a birthmark on his cheek—now stood in his place. They had worked under Fedel from the beginning; it was like looking at dogs without their leash.
Hopefully, they last long.
“Sir, ma’am.” Lucian nodded to us, opening the car door, but Melody walked toward the kids with Rowan holding the umbrella over her. The black veil she wore covered the top portion of her face. She hugged all three of them before they got inside the car in front of us, which would take them to the airport. Declan hopped into the back with them.
“They will be fine,” I said to her when she came back after the car pulled off. She didn’t say anything; she hadn’t said anything since the night before. What was her grand plan? I had no idea. If she didn’t tell me, it meant me not knowing was crucial for it to work. It still pissed me off to no end, though.
“Follow them,” I instructed, pulling my tie down.
This silence is fucking killing me.
We took the back roads toward the airfield, the route completely covered by woods. “How long do you think it will take him—?”
