AllFreeNovel
Share Us
He is a complete psychopath.
“What happened?” I ask him, jutting my chin toward his hands. I need to take his attention away from the fact that I was touching his precious little sister a second ago.
Nate is more than my best friend. I would sacrifice everything I have for him. We grew up in the same fucked up conditions. We both carried each other’s traumas when one of us wanted to give up. Only there’s one thing we will never agree on. One single topic that brings him and his brother Jake to agree.
My love for Rose.
Said girl is looking at her older brother with an indescribable face. I guess he’s barely recognizable with his sandy blond hair cut short. He used to have it to his shoulders, up in a tight bun most of the time. He also used to wear suits on a daily basis, drink expensive whiskey, and help rule one of the most influential families in the Cosa Nostra.
He put Bianco away, killed the men who didn’t want him in power and got his rightful place as the head of the Bianco family. But Nate is a megalomaniac, and it’s one of his worst flaws. He took a page out of Icarus’ book and flew too close to the sun.
Now he’s here.
“I like the buzzcut,” Rose finally says.
While I’m sitting upright in my chair, trying my best to act like I didn’t just sign my death warrant by touching Rose in front of him, she slumps in her seat, talking to him like she saw him last week. “Orange isn’t your color, though.”
Nate chuckles. He twitches, and I know it’s because he’s dying to take Rose in his arms. He didn’t know we were coming. He didn’t even know she was back.
Rose looks around, seeing some people hugging, and she turns back to him. He can read her mind as much as I can.
“I’m not the most exemplary inmate, Ozy,” he tells her, using the nickname only Jake and him do. “I don’t get to hug my visitors. They’re too scared I’m going to bring something in.”
“Shocker,” she only replies.
He nods. “How did you escape?”
Rose shrugs, and her eyes dart to the side, a certain embarrassment in her behavior. “I know everyone expects a crazy story about how brave and strong I was when you ask me this question. But prepare for disappointment because I did absolutely nothing honorable.”
“Unlike when you escaped Bianco?”
She shakes her head and only smiles when she notices a dimple appearing on her brother’s cheek. “Yeah, like that. I was braver at thirteen years old than eighteen.”
“I’m glad I’m so special to you,” Nate chuckles. “The only one who ever got to experience your aim to their heart. So how?”
“I made friends with Aaron Williams during my stay with the Volkovs.”
“As in Jamie’s brother?” he checks.
“That’s him. Yelena Volkov had her dog of a guard try to kill me. He beat me up and shot me in the leg. Aaron thought it was time for me to cut the stay short and risked his life to get me out of there.”
She explains it all with such a factual tone, I’m worried she won’t ever be able to honestly deal with what happened.
“The guard followed us, and we got in a car accident. When I woke up, I was in Silver Falls’ hospital and Aaron had returned to the Wolves already.”
He turns to me. His eyes are identical to Rose’s, without the life in them. “I’m assuming the Volkov brothers have been taken care of.”
Bringing my knuckles to my jaw, I take my time to think of the words I want to say, or if I want to say any at all.
“Address yourself to me when you talk about revenge on the men who tookme, Nate,” Rose snaps. Her attitude makes her brother smile, and I know he’s happy she didn’t lose her spark.
“Are you planning on killing them?” Nate asks her.
“Why don’t you worry about how you’re going to get out of here. The outside world keeps spinning with or without you, so sort yourself out before you intrude on my life.”
“Noted, Ozy,” he lies. “What are you doing now? Can you still go to Duke?”
“Of course not. I was on a lacrosse scholarship, idiot. Do you really think I can play at the collegiate level after being shot in the leg? I can barely jog for ten minutes.”
