Page 94 of The Lost Kings
“This is shit my dad doesn’t want in the city…” my twin mused, obviously conflicted with this decision. I wasn’t conflicted, not when I thought about how my father had the ability to protect Kyle and Presley all this time and just chose not to use it. He had all this manpower, all these guns behind a single order, and yet he kept handing out bowls of soup as if my best friend wasn’t slowly crawling onto an altar to be served up as a sacrifice to keep her family safe.
My father had dismantled this gang, tore it apart at the seams to create something good for this community, and yet within the span of a few weeks, we’d flipped it over and revealed its underbelly.
While my brother still looked conflicted, I tossed my knife onto the table. “Show us where we need to start.”
Chapter 35
Gio
PRESENT
Ikicked through a weak board in the wall and began pulling all the remaining wood apart. Kingston was on the other side of the room, doing exactly the same thing. We worked in silence as the afternoon warmed up the walls and seemed to suffocate the room.
We hadn’t spoken about last night. Not other than the text I’d sent to Presley…the one she never responded to. I wasn’t even sure why that bothered me so much, but I’d shown her something that took me a long fucking time to come terms with. Did I ever want to entertain the idea of sharing her?
No.
But fuck, she’d added in an outlier threat and my heart couldn’t stand the idea of her choosing him. Suddenly the idea of touching her at the same time as my twin brother didn’t seem so bad. Not when it meant she’d still belong to me in the end.
I cut my losses and went all in on the idea that Presley might forgive us, and then choose us, but she was honestly stressing me the fuck out with her silence.
After a handful of hours, both my brother and I took a break byeating on the front steps of the house. The air was warm, but clouds filled the sky.
“What do you think she’ll do about the video?” Kingston asked.
I shrugged and tore another piece of my sandwich.
“Last night…were you okay with?—”
I cut him off with a quick retort, “I’ve never done anything I haven’t wanted to do, King. I wanted to touch her last night, so I did. I couldn’t give a flying fuck that you were also touching her. If she’s open to it, then that’s where I stand. I want her. I know you want her. If this is what we’ll need to do to have her, then it is what it is.”
My brother stared at me. “At least until we get her away from Adrian.”
Glancing at the ground, I kicked a clump of dirt off the steps. I imagined little feet one day running up the same steps into a house that was full of peace and happiness. A home filled with love and acceptance. A little girl with Presley’s hair and my eyes. Maybe a little boy with King’s.
“Honestly, even after we get her away from Adrian. I’m tired of being away from her. I’m tired of doing everything within our power to protect her, only to be forced away from her. I never wanted to leave her in the first place, and now we’re here and she feels out of reach. If she chooses both of us, I’ll accept it. I’ll give her the future she once asked for. If that means we buy a much bigger bed, or take fucking turns every night, or it means I have to get used to seeing her be with you when she isn’t with me, then I’ll accept it.”
My brother’s throat bobbed before he ducked his face, but before he could answer, his phone rang.
I already knew who it was because that phone only went to one number.
“Yeah?”
My brother listened and then his eyes snapped to me before he pressed his thumb to the screen to end the call.
“What happened?” I began gathering all my lunch trash into the paper bag I’d brought.
Kingston ran his hand through his hair and let out a heavy sigh.
“Henry said Adrian’s brothers were just identified as two men who are currently with him, acting as security.”
I quickly got to my feet and pulled out my own phone, dialing Scotty’s number. “That means his entire fucking family is here in Rake Forge.”
Chapter 36
Presley
PRESENT
