Page 6 of Vision of Truth

Easton stepped closer. “How do you know?”

“Because she loves me,” he roared, and could’ve sworn the ground shook beneath him. Easton and Gus were momentarily stunned. The only thing louder than his declaration was the silence that ensued. Deafening.

Gus prowled toward him, past Kinley, until he was inches from his face. Isaac just stood still. He deserved whatever beating he had coming to him. “Did you sleep with Jules?” Betrayal clung to every word. “Is that why she looked so broken tonight? Not because of Vesey, but something you did—”

“I’ve never touched her. Why the hell do you think I spend half my life across seas? Because I can’t fucking bear to be near her knowing how she feels about me. Knowing how I feel about her. Don’t you think I know how fucked up that is?”

Gus stopped, staring at him with a hard glint in his eyes. He ran his hand over the stubble peppering his jaw.

“You know what my mother did to me. To us,” he spat out, gesturing to Easton. “She used that maternal trust to lure us into unspeakable situations. Used it to profit off of us for her next fix. That ugliness is inside of me. No way in hell am I letting that filth get anywhere near Julie. I’m her brother. She trusts me. If I took advantage of that, I’d be just like my—”

“Do not finish that sentence.” Easton stepped forward. “You are nothing like that woman. She was no mother. And if that filth and ugliness is inside you, don’t you think it’s in me too? You’d no sooner hurt Julie than you would any of us. And don’t compare something good and wholesome like Julie loving you and you loving her right back to what that fucking monster did to us.” Kinley went to Easton’s side and wrapped her arms around his middle offering silent support, while Sasha had sidled up to Gus, putting a hand on his shoulder.

“I echo Easton on that. I hate that you see yourself as less. More than that, though, I hate that you’ve hidden this shit for so long. Hate that you felt like you couldn’t come to your own brothers with this. Our bond is stronger than that.”

“I don’t want to hurt her.” His voice was too raw, too exposed. He was supposed to be tough, a SEAL, but if he messed up with Jules, he’d not only be hurting her and their relationship. He’d be hurting his family, too.

Sasha’s eyes narrowed and she took a few steps across the foyer floor toward him. “Don’t handle her like she’ll break when for years she’s been the glue holding you all together.” His sister-in-law looked downright pissed at him. “The hope you all needed to move forward. You hurt her tonight, so make sure you know what you want before going after her, because you’re going to get one shot to make this right. Julie knows her worth. She might love you, but she’s not going to hang onto a one-sided love forever. How would you feel if she met someone else? If she married them? Carried another man’s babies?”

Sasha’s words alone had jealousy spearing through him. She’d find less baggage and more stability with another man. He’d be stupid to think no one would ever love her as much as he did, because Julie was so damn easy to love with her huge heart and endless affection for those she cared about. He loved her with everything he was, but that didn’t make it right.

“Please, Sash, I’m just beginning to wrap my head around this,” Gus rubbed his hands over his eyes. “I don’t want to think about our baby sister having babies.”

“Maybe that’s part of the problem,” Kinley said. “You all treat her like she’s a little girl when she’s a grown ass woman. Let her make her own choices.”

“Agreed.” Sasha and Kinley exchanged a look that he couldn’t decipher.

“Jesus. What a cluster,” Gus muttered, then shook his head. “You poor bastard.” His brother’s hand came down with a hard smack on Isaac’s shoulder.

“What?” The confusion was audible in his voice.

“Jules is admittedly lazy—right up until she puts her mind to something she wants. Then she sinks her teeth in and doesn’t stop until she has it. She can run circles around everyone else and never tires so long as she has her eyes on the prize. You never stood a damn chance.”

And just like that, the hallway cleared, leaving him wondering what the hell had just happened.

Chapter Five

Julie had on her winter coat, but her teeth wouldn’t stop chattering. Ever since she’d slid into the backseat of the car, there was a tingling sensation along her spine. According to Agent Dawson, though, they were almost to the field office. Still, she couldn’t stop looking over her shoulder, waiting for a masked man to pull up alongside their car. Chalk it up to an overactive imagination or this new feeling of responsibility for protecting Sabrina, but her stomach was a jumbled mess.

She hated the way she left things with Isaac, too. The tortured expression on his beautiful face when she told him there was nothing left to discuss was one she wouldn’t forget. When Isaac insisted on going with her, warmth had enveloped her. Then she remembered it wasn’t because he loved her and wanted to stand by her side. No, he only wanted to protect her. The sister who couldn’t take care of herself. That’s why she had to vehemently oppose his wishes. She didn’t want to be the pathetic woman who cherished every scrap of attention her love interest tossed her way—and that’s exactly what she’d been doing. But damn if his protective streak didn’t give her all the feels, never mind the way he’d gripped her hand on the way out the door.

Every time their skin touched, it was like being branded. She could recall the most innocent of caresses long after they happened. Sabrina mumbled something incoherent in her sleep, and Jules tucked her in closer, leaning down to kiss the top of her head. Her hair still smelled like the cotton candy shampoo Sasha had picked up at the store. The little girl had touched the button for Dad on her tablet several times over the last twenty-four hours, and each time she had to suck in a breath before explaining that law enforcement was doing their very best to help him. Still, the men who took Mr. Vesey had said they put a bullet in him. She feared the worst. Sabrina sat in the middle, while she was behind the passenger’s seat.

They rolled to a stop at a red light and Agent Dawson shifted in his seat and glanced at her over his shoulder. “Hangin’ in there?”

“Yeah. Just want to get this over with and go back to my family.” Leaving them would turn her whole world upside-down. They had so much to look forward to with the holidays right around the corner and Kinley and Easton’s engagement.

“I know you’ve been put into a tough situation, but it wouldn’t be advisable for you to continue living in the area for the time being.” Agent Dawson turned his focus back to the road, and eased on the accelerator. Cold seeped down to her bones. An FBI agent telling you to enter witness protection wasn’t a good thing. She didn’t want to heed that advice, but she had more than just herself to worry about now. Sabrina was in her care. Not to mention her family would be in danger simply by having her home. She wanted to be selfish. Wanted her brothers to rally around her. Wanted Kinley’s and Sasha’s friendship. And then there was Isaac. Always Isaac.

Shadows shifted against the window as they drove. Brick buildings and triple-deckers were obscured by the dark, only scraps of their façades outlined by pale streetlamps. Sirens hummed in the distance and the occasional hunched figure listed in the midnight air beneath the awnings of shuttered shops. Something glinted in her peripheral vision and she looked out her window to the right. The scream bottled in her throat as another vehicle screeched out of an alleyway. The headlights were off but the car was positioned for a direct hit.

“Get down!” Agent Dawson hit the accelerator, but it was too late. Her body jerked to the left as steel twisted and crunched. The passenger side windows shattered as the car folded in on itself and rolled. Something wet and warm splashed over her face. A metallic tang filled the air. Her head slammed into something hard and stars bounced behind her lids. Pain sharp and insistent. Then the feeling faded. Everything went dark.

****

“Baby, open your eyes for me. Gotta get you out of here.” Julie recoiled from Isaac’s unrelenting voice. Her head was pounding. The last thing she remembered was two federal agents coming to her home. No, that wasn’t right. There was more. Shattering glass, the crash, Agent Dawson telling her to get down.

She sucked in a breath and opened her eyes. “Sabrina! Where’s Sabrina?”

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