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Sypher looked at me, pleading.
Knowing when I was beat, I sighed, “We’re heading home.”
“Good. Head to the nearest airport. There are tickets waiting for you. Don’t miss that flight. Someone will be at LaGuardia to pick you up. And Sypher, if you know what’s good for you, I’d start talking the second you can.”
“Who is Ace?” I asked, shortly after our flight took off.
“What?”
“Phantom said your brothers called Ace. Who’s Ace?”
Sypher cringed. “He’s my oldest brother. Ace Leroy Franks. He’s in the military. Or at least he was the last time I checked. I’m the youngest of four boys. Mom always wanted a daughter but ended up with the four of us instead before she couldn’t have any more kids. Ace is the oldest, then there is Bailey, which you know as Chipper, then Charlie, who goes by Trout, then me, Danny.”
Something about Sypher’s brother’s name nagged at me. I’d heard that name before, but I couldn’t place where.
“Your mom went down the alphabet?”
Sypher smirked. “Yeah. She said it made it easier. Mom and dad wanted a house full of kids. Mom never had a big family growing up, so when she met and married dad, she wanted to go big or go home, so to speak.”
“So why do you seem worried about Ace? Do you not get along with him?”
“It’s not that. I love my big brother, but he never really understood me. I was always the different one. The oddball of the family. Which is kind of ironic since Ace never really fit in with the club life either. He joined the military right after high school and never looked back. The last time I saw him was when we buried dad. He didn’t even show up for mom’s funeral because we couldn’t reach him. Then shit hit the fan with the club. I know he keeps in contact with Trout, but that’s about it.”
“You two weren’t close?”
“Not like he is with Trout. Ace firmly believes in right and wrong. He hates the gray part of life.”
“You mean the life we live?”
Sypher nodded. “Give Ace a direction and he’s good to go. He likes things structured and orderly. He hated that dad straddled the line between right and wrong. Never understood club life, either. When he left for the military, he seemed happier. Dad always hoped that someday Ace would come home and take over the club, but I think deep down, dad knew it wouldn’t happen. When dad died, Ace blamed the club. Blamed Reaper and Bullseye.”
“So why would your brothers call him knowing how he feels?”
“I don’t know,” Sypher shrugged. “But if Ace shows up, then shit is really going to hit the fan. Ace isn’t like anyone you’ve ever met. He’s just more.”
“What does your brother do in the military?”
“He’s part of a special ops team. Well, he was the last time I checked. I try not to look too much into Ace. He always seems to know when I’m snooping around. The last time I got nosey, he crashed my computer.”
“How is that possible? I mean. You’re you.TheSypher. You are the best there is.”
“Like I said. Ace is more.”
The flight from Las Vegas to LaGuardia took just under five hours and by the time the plane landed, my palms were sweating. I knew the second I got off this plane, my brothers would lock me down or whisk me away to some unknown location where I would never see the light of day again. That was the good part. I refused to think what would happen if Maxim greeted me at the airport. God only knew what he would do with me.
The second the flight attendants opened the plane door, passengers quickly got up, gathering their bags as if nothing was wrong. Even Sypher wasted no time grabbing his carryon and falling in line.
Only I couldn’t.
I couldn’t move.
Holding my phone tightly in my hand, I stayed seated until the plane emptied. When the last passenger disembarked, I gathered my bag and stood just as a familiar face walked onto the plane.
“Sister.”
“Brother.”
“What am I going to do with you?” Giovanni asked, shaking his head angrily as he nodded to our cousins, Giuseppe and Nico, who boarded the plane after him, before turning to leave me standing there in shock.
