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I rented an apartment in Manhattan, a two-bedroom prewar flat on the Upper West Side, a few blocks from Columbia. It was small, but it had character.
Balor’s place was modern and huge. Fuck me…
Knowing Lachlan had to deal with the guard, I rounded the sofa to take a look at my younger brother. My da treated us with cool indifference, our sister excluded. She got hugs. She got kisses. We got stiff upper lips and vacant stares. Ma wanted to hug us more, but I’d heard Da yelling at her, saying it would make us soft.
We wanted for nothing. And never would for the rest of our lives. But fuck, a little affection would have been nice once in a while. Probably why my brothers and I got laid so much. Women were devices just to get some human touch.
I sat next to my brother and studied his face. “Balor! Did you fight back at all?”
“There were two of them,” he said bitterly.
“Why would two—”
“Four. Two kicked the piss out of Hayden until he was practically unconscious,” he referred to guard.
“Four. What did you do to four guys?”
“It’s just stupid hazing. They rule this place.” He shrugged, wincing.
I took out my phone. “What’re their names?”
He glanced at me, his head tilted. “Why?”
I lower an eyebrow at him. “Why do you think?”
“Kieran told me Da said to let it go.”
This made no sense to me. “Names. Now.”
A hint of bloodlust flared in his eyes. He glanced over my shoulder at Lachlan speaking to Hayden, still covered in blood. Lachlan was so calm and inquisitive, I wondered if he’d actually kill the guard.
Balor stood, and struggling to hide a limp, he led me into another bedroom where he did schoolwork. At a desk with three monitors, he used his good hand and typed into his keyboard, the other in a sling resting on the desk. One by one, four school IDs came up.
“Did the two who hurt Hayden lay a hand on you?” I asked Balor.
“No. When these two assholes thought I had enough, the other two let Hayden go. Then the four of them took off laughing, saying they’d be back next week for another round.”
Not likely…
“Where do they live?”
“Conveniently the two who beat me up live together.” Balor scribbled something on a note pad sheet. “Here.”
With the address in my hand, I didn’t immediately know what I’d do with it. “Are you sure you don’t need the hospital? I’ll drive you there myself. Fuck Da.”
“Considering Lachlan got stabbed in the face when he was my age, I’m lucky I just have a busted arm.”
“I heard they kicked you.”
“I protected my ribs as best I could.” He winces again trying to move.
“Lach said Da expects you to learn how to defend yourself.” I tugged the back of his neck.
Balor wore thick dark glasses from a bad astigmatism but was no frail kid. He’d always been almost as tall as me, but with a slender frame and not the intense bulk as the rest of us brats.
“Looks like I’ll have two bodyguards up my arse now, so I won’t get the chance,” he said sounding frustrated.
In Astoria, we settled problems with guns and knives. Cambridge wasn’t Astoria, but I couldn’t let this go.
