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What thefuck?
His hands clenched into fists, and he realised that something was in his hand.
A card. Jericho must have put it there when he’d been… It didn’t matter what he’d been doing. Trying to get a rise out of Sebastian. He refused to give it more weight than that. He couldn’t. He had more than enough to deal with.
He frowned as he looked at it. There was a ten-digit mobile number on the plain white card. Jericho’s personal number? Another way to play with him?
Fuck that.
He shoved it in the top drawer of his desk and slammed it shut. He ran a shaky hand through his hair. “Fuck,” he breathed out.
His mobile went off, and he squeezed his eyes shut, willing it to go away. He needed at least a goddamn fucking minute to get his bearings again, for fuck’s sake.
The number on the screen had him hesitating even further. The universe was laughing at him, he was sure of it. Or just fucking hated him.
He almost didn’t answer it except that he’d been expecting it. His sister had already called to read him the riot act. It had only been a matter of time before Eli came for him. And he knew his brother would just find him, no matter where he hid, and then it would be so much worse. Better to get it over with now.
“Elijah.”
“Don’t you fucking full name me,Sebastian.”
Sebastian winced. He already regretted his choice to rip the Band-Aid off. Avoidance should always be the first tactic.
“What are my charges?”
“Fuck off, Seb. Yougot shotand didn’t think that telling your siblings was important?”
“Jay told you.” Not his most well-thought-out argument, but it was all he had.
“Youshould have told us.”
He’d heard that before. “I didn’t get shot, I got shot at. There’s a difference.”
“Is there?” Eli growled. “Thanks so fucking much for clarifying for me. I feel so much better now, knowing that youonlygot shotat.”
The sarcasm was definitely not lost on him. “My job can mean dangerous situations. It’s hardly the first time I’ve been in trouble.”
“You think that argument is making thisbetter?”
Hehadbeen thinking that. Eli didn’t need to know that. “I’m fine. There was no need to worry you for nothing. If something had happened—”
“Somethingdidhappen!” Eli burst out. “I Googled it because of fucking course it was on the news. You can’t doanythingsmall! A drive-by shooting at a coffee shop. I told you coffee was bad for you.”
“I don’t think blaming the coffee is fair.” The coffee hadn’t done anything wrong. It was the only place in a five-block radius that knew how to make a decent brew. Now he was stuck drinking something he wouldn’t offer to his dog. If he had a dog. Quinn had a dog. Sebastian wasn’t cruel enough to give it to Persephone. The only reason he was even going to drink it himself was that the withdrawal headache was hell, and he’d deal with horrible coffee to avoid it. Plus, it didn’t sound like Eli knew about the other shooting, so maybe his day was going to get better?
“We had a right to know.”
“Well, you know now,” Sebastian said defensively. If he told his siblings about every threat he ever received, or even every time someone tried toacton those threats, they’d all be constantly jumping at shadows. Sebastian had learned how to handle it and accepted that it was just a part of the career he’d chosen. There was no reason for them to be involved or have to needlessly worry. He was still here, and he was fine.
“Not because youwantedto tell us!”
“I’m sorry.”
The “messages” from his mother, Jasmine, came into view. His heart dropped. He fingered the notes as he picked them up, biting his lip. To read or not to read, that was the question.
“You don’t sound sorry.”
“Should I write it in my blood?” Sebastian asked absently, only half listening.
