Page 85 of Torch
“I need a fucking word.” Well, I was pretty sure whatever had him so pissed off wasn’t my fault, but sure. I nodded to Grace, and pull the door closed after me, as I followed him down the hall.
“Your timing sucks, man.”
“Your dick’s still in your pants, so I know I didn’t interrupt that, fucker.”
I followed him up to his tech room, and he led me inside, locking the door after us, and turning to face me.
“Brother, if you’re getting bi-curious, pick a guy who didn’t just choose his old lady. Stag might do you?”
He wasn’t laughing, and that was my second clue that something big was wrong, because what was the first? Oh yeah, him beating a hole in my fucking door. He stared at whatever was in his hand and then thrust it at me. It was a crumpled note.
“Love letters? I didn’t know you cared, man.”
“Can you try being serious for a sec? I found this under Lissa’s pillow, and if she thinks that’s a good hiding place, she’s clearly a little delusional, but then maybe what’s in it has her on edge.”
He gestured at me to read this personal property of his old lady’s, and I had to admit I was curious, so I smoothed it out and started to read. What the fuck. I hadn’t recognised the handwriting, but it was pretty fucking obvious who sent it.
Lissa,
I know we haven’t really had a chance to get to know each other, and that sucks, but I’m apparently dead right now, and it needs to stay that way. The club will kill me if they know I didn’t die, but something made me reach out to you, because I thought I’d lost everyone, but there you are. A sister.
I wish I had time to spend with you, but now’s not the time. Please don’t think of me as a monster. I did what I had to do, to avenge my father, our father. He was all I had. Until I found out about you.
One day I’ll be back. One day when I’m not broken into a million pieces. I want to know my sister. I hope you’ll give me that chance.
Your new brother, M
No wonder Ice was freaking out. Not only was Micro still alive, but he’d already reached out again, and to his fucking old lady.
“You’re taking this to the Pres?”
He sighed, taking it back from me, and shoving it in his pocket.
“How the fuck can I do that, man? That’s like telling tales on my fucking woman, and I know she hid this for a reason, and whether it’s to keep it from me, or just because she needs to process it before she talks about it, I don’t have a clue.” I think he’d just cleared something up for me though, because Grace was holding someone’s secret right now, and what secret would be bigger than this?
“I think she told Grace, so maybe she’s puzzling it out right now, and doesn’t know what action to take. Is it even our business?”
He clenched his fists, casting his eyes around his tech room, like maybe he hoped the answer was there somewhere among lines of code, and fucking ones and zeros.
“Ice?”
A low growl was my initial response, but then his shoulders slumped, and he leaned back against the door.
“I don’t fucking know, man. If he shows at some point, then yeah, but… Jesus, what if she needs a chance to meet up and talk to him? What if I’m going to be stopping her from getting to know her brother, when she fucking needs that? What do I do here, man?”
Well, fuck. Don’t make me be the one giving advice, I mean, what the fuck do I even know?
“Lissa’s the one who gives advice, man.”
“Asshole. Why the fuck did I come to you about this,” he gritted out, turning to cross the room and sit in front of his main screen. I followed him, taking the seat beside him.
“Honestly, I have no idea, man. I feel like first and foremost you probably need to talk to your old lady, tell her you saw it, and give her a chance to let you in on what she’s thinking. She may be wanting to talk to you about it, and not sure how to start that convo. Most of us are gonna go off if anyone mentions his name right now.”
“But not you. I notice you’re calmly absorbing things, and not going nuts like you might normally do.”
“Maybe Grace has been good for me,” I offered with a shrug.
“Yeah, or maybe you’re still struggling with hating him. I know you guys were close. I mean, hell, many of us really liked and trusted him.” Yeah, trust. It took me a fucking long time to trust a person, and then he did that to me. How the fuck could I trust my own instincts, when I was so fucking wrong about him?
