Page 57 of Lane

“Thane.” It was all JJ needed to say before more glass crunched and Jordan Altair Sr. filled my line of sight.

He placed a hand gently on Raiden’s back. “Ray,” he said softly.

Raiden lifted his head from my neck but didn’t release me. “My dad, Jordan. They killed my fucking dad.”

“I know.” Jordan had to be careful what he said too, but there was a promise in his words as well, in the look on his face. Whoever did this was going to be found, and they were going to pay. Jordan lifted his arm and Raiden went to him. He held on to Jordan for dear life while sobs took over again.

I didn’t know what to do or where to go. If there was anything in my power to help them. I just stood there crying softly with my arms wrapped around myself.

“Come on,” Jordan said. “Let’s gather your brother and get you to the hospital. Barry will handle this.”

Raiden nodded against him then turned and lunged for his brother. The two men dropped their foreheads together, looked into each other’s eyes, and collapsed to their knees on the hardwood, not caring that they fell on glass, blood, or anything else. They held each other and cried, mourning the loss of their father.

I heard Barrett talking with the cops about two others who were hit. They weren’t in as bad of shape. I hadn’t even thought to ask about others. I was so focused on Thane, then Raiden.

Jordan clamped his hand on my shoulder. “Look at me, Lane.” He swam in front of me. I couldn’t hold back the emotion pummeling my system. “You have to be strong for him. Raiden needs you. I know it hurts, but we have to be there for them.” He leaned close and whispered, “Then we’re going to find, torture, and make the motherfuckers who did this wish they were never born.”

I nodded but no words would leave me. I moved on autopilot after that. Jordan gathered us and led us to the fleet of waiting SUVs. Raiden and Reghan clung to each other in one vehicle, with Jordan in the front and Albert. Barrett and I got in theother, Sheldon behind the wheel and Vincent with him. I didn’t know who else was here. It didn’t matter.

We had to get to the hospital so Lily could be with her sons. I didn’t blame them for not going earlier. Neither of them could face what was happening. This was their father, one of the strongest people in their lives. They probably thought he was invincible as they grew, looking up to him.

Their family was nothing like mine. I wouldn’t wish what I went through on anyone. But this was proof that nothing in life was fair. Nothing was balanced. The fucking scum of the earth walked around thinking they were invincible, while good people were gunned down as they celebrated their birthday.

Anger welled inside me, pouring through my veins. I wanted to lash out, to hit, to kill, to fucking scream, but I bottled it up and pushed it down. The time would come when I could unleash it. I had no doubt Jordan would find who was responsible. When he did, we would make them pay.

23

RAIDEN

The days leading up to the funeral were a blur of trying to be there for my mother and brother, of trying to help with the preparations. They were also full of guilt, so much fucking guilt.

When I should have been at the hospital with my mother, I was at their home, taking care of things. All that kept going through my mind was I had to handle the house for them. The cops were there taking photos, asking questions of the guests. There was glass everywhere and blood, so much blood.

There was also the part of me that couldn’t face what was happening. My dad slipped unconscious. It wasn’t good, yet I couldn’t go to the hospital. I’d never lost someone close who was family before. I still had one grandfather and two grandmothers. My grandfather on my mom’s side passed when Reghan and I were only two. Neither of us remembered him, but we had plenty of photographs of us together.

Losing my dad was the first death we’d experienced. Neither my brother nor I knew how to handle watching life slip from him, so we stayed at the house to handle what our mom couldn’t. We should have been at the hospital with her.

Once we finally arrived, she took us in her arms and instead of falling apart, held us up as we cried and apologized. Shesaid our dad wouldn’t have wanted us to see him like that. He wouldn’t have wanted us to witness more than we already had. The memory of that day would never leave us. We had to hold on to who he was and try to move forward without him.

Mom didn’t go back to the house. She stayed in the spare room in Reghan’s apartment. The bed was still in there from when Barrett’s brother had been living with him briefly.

Reghan and I returned to the house with our partners and people we worked with. We brought in a crew to clean the crime scene while Reghan and I threw out the spoiled food, cleaned the kitchen, and gathered the items our mom had asked us to. She still wasn’t sure if she could live there again. Jordan offered a place of her own in his building if she wanted it.

We had no idea who came after us or who they were aiming for. The reality could have been a number of us. Could it have been a disgruntled person who tried to get into Dexen’s club and was rejected? Were they after Jordan and went through us to get their revenge? Were they after Barrett because of someone he’d locked away when he was still a detective? Was it because of someone we’d tortured or killed? The possibilities were endless.

That guilt didn’t rest solely on me. I saw it on my brother and our partners. On our friends and family. Alton must have apologized a hundred times for not being able to save my dad. No one could have on the floor of our family room. He was bleeding out with the hospital a distance away. Alton did what he could. We were grateful for the effort he’d made.

At the hospital, he rushed toward me with tears rolling down his cheeks. Apologies slipped from his lips as he clutched me tightly.

Lane whispered apologies in bed at night. He was convinced the person responsible was after him. Hell, even Jordan apologized to my family.

None of them should have. None of them shot and killed my dad. The motive only mattered in terms of revenge.

“Ray,” Reghan said softly, getting my attention.

I’d been sitting on the couch in his apartment, looking out the window, focusing on the snow falling outside. I blinked and looked up at him. My brother wore a black suit with a hunter-green button-down underneath. My mom asked that everyone attending had green on in some way or another. Our dad loved being outdoors. He fished, hiked, and would spend hours walking along the trails with our mom, just breathing in the fresh air.

“Will you stand up there with me today?” Reghan asked.

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