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Ringer
“Holy fuck,I forgot how good Maggie’s cooking was,” I groan over the fork-full of pot roast and mashed potatoes.
Dad chuckles across the booth from me, shaking his head. “Breathe, son. You’re going to choke.”
I scoff at his comment. “Can’t help it. It’s too damn good,” I say over another mouthful.
Ghost, who called earlier to let us know he was going to be late, plops down in the booth next to me. I growl at him as he takes dad’s extra fork and scoops up a large forkful from my plate, just like he did when we were kids. I pull my plate away, guarding it with my arm and snarl at him. “Back the fuck off, Kelan.”
At the use of my brother’s given name, his eyes widen and his white teeth appear from beneath his bushy beard. “Someone’s got their panties in a wad,” he laughs.
“Nah.” I shake my head.
Dad reaches across the table and thumps me over the side of my head. “Quit talkin’ with your fucking mouth full. Jesus, prison made you an animal.”
I let out a hearty laugh. “Yeah, Pops. That’s what made me an animal. It definitely wasn’t from growing up with you two.”
“Hey now, your mother did a fine job civilizing all of us,” Dad smiles. The wrinkles pulling at his eyes and the mention of my mom reminds me of how fucking long I was locked up and the fact that I’m not getting any younger.
Ghost is busy tapping away on his phone, so I successfully finish my plate, soaking every last bit of gravy up with my dinner roll.
“Pebbles is pregnant,” Ghost blurts out, looking across the table straight into Dad’s eyes, who was currently in the middle of taking a drink of his evening coffee. He coughs, nearly spitting out his last sip.
“Holy fuck,” he croaks. “Trigger’s?”
Ghost nods.Shit.“When the fuck did that happen?” I ask.
“They’ve been sneaking around for a while. They were real fucking obvious about it. But both of ‘em denied it if you asked,” Ghost chuckles.
“Is she alright?” Dad asks, wiping up his spilled coffee with the black bandana he keeps shoved in his front pocket at all times.
“I talked to Tank a little while ago. She’s settled in at their house but just as mute as she was when Triton passed.”
“Such a shame. How could we have let that happen to her?” Dad shakes his head, dropping it onto his weathered fist.
“I’ve been asking myself the same fucking question all damn day, Pops,” Ghost grumbles.
“What all happened? I still haven’t gotten the full story, just bits and pieces,” I ask my brother.
“Pebbles and Bunny have gotten really close since Bunny came to town. She was real secretive about herself, wouldn’t tell anyone where she was from or anything else personal. She started working with Flame when we all found out she could draw. You probably know that part, though. I’m sure Flame filled your ass in.”
I nod at him, recalling all the phone calls with Flame where he would spend the whole fucking time talking about his new apprentice.
“Well, Pebbles thought she was helping by making an Instagram account for Bunny. I’m guessing she thought it would help bring in more customers or whatever. Pebbles hasn’t said anything, so that’s all speculation. Bunny found out about the Instagram when we went to Peb’s apartment. One of the posts was a sketch Bunny had made of her old home. Whoever was after her is who kidnapped Pebbles, thinking she was Bunny, and you know the rest.”
I nod my head, not caring to have Ghost retell the full story of how we found her. I was there. I saw the condition we found them in. Bunny is lucky we walked in when we did, or she would have ended up just like Pebbles.
“Fuck, man,” I sigh. “This shit is fucked up.”
Ghost and Dad nod, agreeing with my statement. Maggie ambles over to our table, interrupting our foul moods. “Everything taste okay?” she asks.
I turn my best smile on her. “Maggie, you know damn well your cooking is the way straight to my heart.”
“Good, sugar. I’m glad for it,” she says sweetly before turning to Dad. “Horse is in the garage waiting for you to swing by to look at that bike.”
My dad pulls out his wallet, and Maggie scoffs. He pays no attention to her glare and drops a fifty dollar bill on the table, then winks at his best friend’s wife. “Alright boys, I’m out. I’ll see ya. Ring, I’ll see you at the shop tomorrow?”
“I’ll be there.”
