Page 9 of Veil of Obsession
“Seventeen’s not a kid.”
“You’re still my son.”
I glance at her face—drawn tight, shadows under her eyes.
“You worry too much,” I mutter, leaning back.
“And you don’t worry enough.” Her voice is so quiet, I almost miss it. She wraps the bandage tight, her hands shaking just a little. “This life... it doesn’t give second chances.”
I look away.
She touches my jaw, turning my face back toward her. “Don’t let them take your soul.”
I smirk. “Pretty sure that ship’s sailed.”
Ma doesn’t laugh.
Pops is waitingin his study. I knock once, and his voice rumbles through the door.
“Come in.”
He’s behind his desk, reading glasses perched on his nose, papers everywhere. He looks up when I enter, eyes narrowing.
“Lose the shirt, gain a scar. That’s one way to commemorate your second meeting.”
“The deal went south,” I say simply. “Outfit pulled guns. We responded. Two dead.”
Pops exhales and takes his glasses off. “Eli?”
“Unharmed.”
“And you?”
“Fine. Just a graze.”
He nods slowly. “Cleanup?”
“Already handled.”
Silence stretches. He studies me like I’m a report he’s not sure whether to file or burn.
“You’re starting to see it now, aren’t you?” he finally says.
“See what?”
“This life. What it costs.”
I don’t answer.
He leans back, his voice quiet. “You either lead it, or it eats you.”
And that’s the end of it. He waves me out, already turning back to his paperwork. I shut the door behind me and head upstairs, the words ringing in my ears.
You either lead it, or it eats you.
2
Princess
