Page 81 of Hold the Line

“I’m not interested, Rich.” I kept all emotion out of my response. If he caught anything in my tone, he’d latch onto it. I was aiming to bore him enough he’d lose interest and move on.

“All right, all right. How about you and I get together? I’m into something big, and you’re going to want to hear about it. It’s—shit, where did you say that construction job is?”

“I’m on the road. It’s always changing. Lately, I've been out in Natrona County.”

“Oh yeah? You do a lot of driving, right?”

Uneasiness swamped my gut. “I have to drive to inspect roads,” I answered carefully.

“Makes sense. Chris’s old man make you drive your own vehicle?”

I didn’t like his interest, and I had no clue what his angle was. And this was Richie. He always had an angle. “We’ve got company trucks.”

“Hmmm.” He paused, and I braced. Instead of pressing me more, he moved on. “I guess you gave up building furniture, huh?”

“Nope. I’m still doing that.”

“Good, good. You always were talented.”

My suspicions skyrocketed. Richie did not give out compliments unless he was trying to get something. I couldn’t guess what he’d think he could get out of me, and I didn’t want to find out. I’d had a lot at stake before, and I’d lost it. Now, I had even more on the line.

I did not make the same mistake twice.

“Appreciate it,” I replied, neutral.

When I didn’t give him anything else, he sighed. “Look, I should’ve said this a long time ago, but I’m sorry. You got dragged into my thing back then and took the fall. If Hailey’d toed the line like she should’ve, you wouldn’t have served time, but that’s all done and over with. Point is, I regret you went down for my shit, and I’d like to make it right. I’ve only got one brother, you know? Same as you.”

Oh yeah, there it was. This was his apology tour. He’d aim to get back with me then pull me into whatever scheme he had going on. I’d tried to help him out more times than I could count. The last time, I lost four years of my life. Fortunately, I’d wised up. Some people did not want to be helped, and Richie was the captain of that team.

“Appreciate that too, Rich. The thing is, I’m on parole. One screwup, they throw me back in, and I’m not going back.”

“All right, all right.” I could picture him nodding like he agreed with me. “That makes sense, man. Like I said, I just want my brother back. You don’t need to have anything to do with my side interests.”

“Gotta stay clean,” I stated. “That’s how it has to be.”

He grunted. “And I’m not clean?”

“You know you’re not. I can’t let any of that touch me. I go back inside; I’m not gonna make it out again.”

I might walk out the doors, but I’d never be the same. I’d lost a piece of myself the first time; I couldn’t afford to lose more.

That earned me a scoff. “Come on. I know plenty of guys who spent time inside. None of them came out being a drama queen.”

“That’s them. Me and prison didn’t mix well. I’m not going back.”

“No one’s sending you back,” he argued. “I’m just trying to hang out with my brother.”

I didn’t raise my voice, but I answered him as firmly as I could. “And I’m declining.”

If I hadn't heard him shuffling and noise in the background, I would’ve thought he’d hung up. Finally, he spoke, and I wished he hadn’t.

“All right, Deke. Your life. Maybe I’ll see you around SB. I should really stop by Joy’s. I haven’t seen our dear aunt in years. A visit is overdue.”

The threat was clear. It was how he’d hooked me weeks ago. This time, I wasn’t going to bite. If I did, he’d keep coming back. It was past time for me to put my foot down.

“You do that, you’ll see the kind of welcome Joy’ll give you,” I warned.

After a beat, Richie let out a maniacal laugh. “Oooh, I’m shaking in my boots. Joy’s so,soscary.” He kept right on laughing at himself. “Really, Deke, prison made you way less cool. Like, I don’t even want to hang out with you at this point.”

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