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“Ma’am, you have the right to remain silent…”
I let their voices fade as I turn to face Officer Ferris once more. “She was bad too.”
He nods and glances down, lashes twitching over his now hidden eyes.
Lifting a hand, he wiggles his fingers, gesturing at something behind me.
Hands grab my arms from behind, and I widen my eyes. “What—”
“You sure about this?” someone asks as I feel the distinct sensation of handcuffs hooking over my own wrists.
Officer Ferris swallows and meets my gaze once more. “Just a precaution,” he says tightly, thickly, like he’s not happy about this. “You understand, right? We’re just doing our jobs. It’s to keep everyone safe.”
I stare at him, ignoring the way my heart starts to pound loudly in my ears. “But you’ll help Vale?”
His mouth thins, disappearing completely under his mustache. Nodding, he says, “Yes. He’ll be taken care of. You have my word.”
Inhaling deeply, I nod. “Okay.”
Turning as far as the cops let me, I search for my brother. He’s still seated on the floor, staring at nothing once more. A woman—a female cop I didn’t see before—squats down next to him, wrapping a blanket around his shoulders.
He’s shaking, so he must be cold. But it’s summer, so maybe he’s coming down with something. Maybe that’s why he came into my room in the first place—he wasn’t feeling well. It wouldn’t be the first time he snuck into my bed at night, but usually it’s way later, after Rick has left, when he can’t sleep.
“Hey, Valey,” I say.
At first, nothing.
But then he blinks and lifts his gaze just enough to peek up at me through his lashes.
“I’ll see ya later, okay?” I say with a smile. It feels stiff, but I’m not quite sure why. “Everything’s gonna be better now, you’ll see.”
His eyes widen and he starts to shake his head, his face turning a weird yucky color. His mouth opens as if he wants to say something, but nothing comes out. Not even that high-pitched whining sound from before.
“Let’s go, kid,” Officer Ferris says gruffly, just as the cop who handcuffed me steps into my line of sight, blocking Vale off right as his big, nearly black eyes start to fill with something that looks a lot like fear.
My face scrunches up with a scowl, but I bite the inside of my cheeks, refraining from throwing a fit. They’re going to help him, just be good, that voice in my head assures me as they start guiding me out of the room and down the hall toward the steps. He’ll be okay.
I do hope they let us live together again though. Maybe if we tell them we’re actually brothers, they won’t separate us. I really, really don’t want to be separated from him.
I feel twitchy at the thought.
Don’t they know he’s mine?
The first floor is dark as we descend the steps, opening beneath us like a giant black pit. It’s broken up only by the flicker of red and blue lights coming in through the thick slats of blinds covering the windows downstairs.
Officer Ferris mutters something into his walkie, just as his fingers on my shoulder tighten the faintest bit, holding me steady as we reach the bottom step.
It’s then, and only then, that Vale starts screaming.
1
ASTON
Six Years Later
The Eastern Tailed Blue.
Cupido comyntas.
