Page 164 of Reaper
“Don’t get mad,” Atlas starts and then he winces when I turn my glare on him. “Reaper got a lead on something and didn’t want us far from you just in case something went down. We’ll stay out of sight, but we won’t be sitting in the truck like originally planned.”
That pulls me up short. “A lead about what?”
“We’ll fill you in later, there isn’t enough time right now,” Cannon says as he tilts his head toward the house and as I turn, I catch movement behind the curtains.
Nodding, I round the van and walk up to the house like nothing is wrong, however, I continuously scan the area as my mind whirls with what Anthony could have found out. Then I frown as I take in the condition of the house Anthony grew up in.
The decorative stones that I know used to look gorgeous from pictures Anthony has shown me, are now mostly broken and chipped. Some of them are laying loose on the ground and not along the edges like they’re supposed to be. The paint is peeling and even I can tell that the roof is in need of new shingles. My boot catches on the uneven sidewalk, and my frown deepens as I look down at it. How the hell is Chris able to get around in his wheelchair with the sidewalk this broken and uneven? I mean, it’s wide, double the width of normal sidewalks so that he’s ableto pivot his chair if need be, but how the hell is he able to wheel over this without getting stuck?
Reaching up, I’m about to knock on the door when it swings open and a smiling Chris is looking up at me.
“Chris, it’s good to officially meet you.” I reach out my hand to shake his, not sure if he wants a hug or not. He scoffs, and when he rolls his eyes, he looks just like a younger Anthony. He takes my hand, pulling me down for a hug.
“Christopher! Shut the fucking door, it’s freezing,” a woman yells from further in the house and I narrow my eyes over his shoulder in the direction of the voice.
“Ignore her,” he sighs as he seems to deflate a little, but then it’s gone as he smiles up at me again. “I’ve been looking forward to this—” he starts to say when hands grip the handlebars on his chair and someone tries to pull him backwards, but he doesn’t move. I move to step inside but then stop when he raises his hand to stop me, a knowing smirk on his face. A woman comes into view and she tries again, but when he doesn’t move again, she opens the door further.
Chris scowls up at her and I get my first good look at Julie in months. It’s obvious that whenever she’s out and about in town she puts on a front, because the woman in front of me is a shell of the woman I normally see. Worry slithers down my spine when I notice how skinny she’s gotten. She was skinny before, but this… she is almost so thin it’s unhealthy. She’s almost skin and bones whereas before, she at least had some meat on her bones. She had to have been wearing baggy clothes to help hide her thin frame. Her dark brown hair is dull and limp and she’s wearing ratty old clothes. I know these could just be clothes she wears around the house, but… something tells me that isn’t the case. I glance down at her arms and am relieved to see no track marks, but I know that isn’t the only way to take drugs.
“I told you I’m going out with friends today for my birthday. Did you really think that trick would work?” he asks her before pointing down at the brake handles which I hadn’t noticed he’d set earlier.
Julie narrows her eyes at me and her scowl deepens when she sees my cut. “And I told you it wasn’t happening. Especially not with her and not with them. I’ve told you a million times that my worthless brother is the reason you can’t walk anymore and you stubbornly refuse to believe me. You’re barred from contact with her and anyone in the club ever again. Especially with my good for nothing brother.”
I cock my eyebrow at her. “Pretty sure Chris gets final say in who he spends his time with now that he’s eighteen.”
“Not while he’s living under my roof,” she sneers and I smirk at her.
Chris tries to hide his smile, probably already knowing where I’m going with this. When Julie notices, her face turns red with anger, and I cut her off before she can unleash more lies and poison.
“It’s not your house.”
Chapter 61
Lark
Julie’sangerturnsintoconfusion as she turns toward me. “Of course it’s my house! I’ve been living here all my life.”
I shake my head. “You may have lived here your whole life, but it isn’t your house, and when Anthony sees the state you let the house fall into, he’s going to be pissed as fuck,” I tell her as I take in the state of the hallway and kitchen.
Almost every floor tile and multiple kitchen cabinets have duct tape on them, the walls are stained yellow with tar from cigarette smoke that I can smell even from out here, and there’s piles of trash and dirty dishes covering every surface. The laminate on the counter is peeling and I’m almost positive the table is broken and just barely being held together with the way it’s bowing in the center. The stairs leading upstairs are bowed and I know Chris must not be using the chair lift, or isn’t able to for some reason, because of the heavy layer of dust on it.
“Yes, I do own this house. Mom and Dad signed the house over to me when they moved into their condo.”
“No, they didn’t. Anthony bought the house from them and has continued to let you live here, rent free, even after you cut him out of your life for an accident he didn’t even cause.” I pause as I tilt my head, studying her closer. “Then again, you already knew that, but you just need someone to blame for the accident.”
Her face turns red again with anger. “No, Tony was the reason my Chris was hurt! He never should have had him on the back of his bike to begin with!”
I catch movement out of the corner of my eye and give Cannon the signal to call Anthony. This bitch isn’t going to see sense until we can make her see it.
“He did everything he could to keep the bike upright. Then again, that’s also something you know because I happen to know both you and Chris used to ride with the guys any chance you could get.”
“No, it’s because of his recklessness that my Chris was hurt!”
I study her closer and then my gaze drops to Chris as a sinking feeling forms in my gut.
“You keep saying ‘my Chris’ like he’s the center of your world. That he’s the most important person to you. However, if that were the case, then why is Chris using a normal wheelchair instead of one of the nice, motorized wheelchairs that I know Anthony bought for him? Why does that chair lift look like it hasn’t been used in months if not years? And the van that Anthony bought specifically for Chris when he turned sixteen… I can tell from the garage windows that it’s full of boxes so there’s no way the van is in there and the driveway is empty. So, where is it?”
I cross my arms as I stare her down but all she does is sputter and her eyes dart around like she’s desperately trying to think up some believable lie. I already know she hawked the van, just not the reason behind it. It’s also why we bought the van I drovehere for Chris. The title is in his name so there’s no way Julie can hawk it this time unless she wants to be charged with stealing it.
