Page 69 of The Price of Mercy
“There has to be a physical copy somewhere. Your wife must have kept one. She wouldn’t have?—”
“Fucked us over?” A bitter smile curves on his lips. “I used to think so, too; that she loved us as unconditionally as we loved her. But now, I… I’m not sure anymore.” He draws a shakybreath. “It was her idea to seek an investor. She’s the one who introduced me to Samuel in the first place. We didn’t pursue any others, because she insisted that he was the right choice. I trusted her with my life, so letting her handle everything was the easiest decision I ever made. It was a weight off my shoulders, truthfully.” Staring up at the clear blue skies over our heads, he swallows hard. “But now it’s the biggest burden I carry.”
The overwhelming sorrow radiating off of him makes my heart ache. Taking a breath, I sit next to him on the bench seat. “Scoot over, Pops; make some room.” When he gives me a bewildered look, I throw my arm over his shoulder. Half my ass cheek is hanging off the edge, but whatever. It’s fine. “We’re in this shit together, now, so don’t get all mopey on me. I can only handle so much emo energy, and Zane’s got that position covered, believe me.”
I hope Zane’s appointment is going well and that Mercy can handle his mood once it’s over. I don’t envy her one bit.
“I can’t give you my company, son.”
“Don’t worry about it.” So what if I can’t put my name on it? Big whoop. “Lucky for you, Iaminterested in your daughter, so I’m sticking around for good, business or no business.”
But unlike Vinicius, I have hope for the future of Morningstar Mortuary. What he doesn’t know is that I’ve got an inside man working the scene to figure out exactly what shit Vinny and Ingrid stepped in when they tangoed with Samuel Wright. It’s only a matter of time before Sam comes crawling back home to kneel at Mercy’s feet and beg for her forgiveness for taking so long—but that won’t matter, because he’ll bring the answer to all our problems with him.
Samson fucking Wright is our ticket out of this mess with his father, and I never thought I’d say this, but I’m actually fucking grateful to have the bastard in our corner.
“If you’re sticking around, there’s one thing you need to remember.” Vinicius nods towards the expanse of land around us. “If you hurt my daughter, I have plenty of space to bury you out back.”
The biggest grin stretches across my face. “You promise?” Spending eternity on this gorgeous plot of land sounds like the perfect resting place. “Because there’s nowhere else I’d rather be buried than right fucking here.”
He glances at me from the corner of his eye. “You’re a weird fucking kid.”
I laugh as he elbows me in the ribs. “Get used to it, Pops.”
If I have my way, I’m not going anywhere anytime soon.
Chapter 28
Zane
I should have known notto trust Mercy and Kane. They were all too eager to get me out of the house—church—whatever you want to call it, citingspending time togetherandgetting fresh airas their reasons for dragging me out into the sunlight.
The reality is that they’ve been scheming to get me to see a therapist.
“Grandma Star is paying,” Mercy murmurs softly, like anyone in the lobby is actually listening to us. “And she said you can’t refuse!”
“That’s even worse,” I groan, rubbing my aching head. The throbbing behind my eyes has been killer ever since we walked into the building. Huge paneled windows give us a terrifying view of the busy streets below, and I have to tear my gaze away or risk being blinded. Whoever did the tint job needs to be fucking eviscerated.
I’m not having a good fucking day.
“I can’t take money from your grandmother.” She’s old and feeble and probably gonna die soon; she should spend it on whatever is gonna make her happy, not on getting me to see a shrink.
“Sheinsisted,” Mercy huffs, grabbing my hand. “Just sit still and wait until they call you.” She fiddles with my fingers, pinching the webbing between them and running her thumb along the middle of my palm.
“What are you doing?”
Her cheeks flush a pretty shade of pink. “I’m nervous. Doctors offices—” She inhales sharply as a door opens down the hall. “They’re not always happy places, okay?”
“How reassuring.”
Blanching, she immediately backpedals. “I mean, you’re going to be fine. Dr. Schwartz is fantastic. She’s been working with me since I was a kid.”
How long has Mercy been attending sessions?
Frowning, I dig a little deeper to see what I can learn. “What do you talk about during your sessions?”
Mercy scoffs and pinches my thumb. “That’s confidential.”
“Mhm. It would make me feel more at ease, though, seeing as how you tricked me into coming. I’m sure Dr. Schwartz would love to hear about how you and your grandmother forced a man into this appointment. She’s going toloveanalyzing that little detail about your life. I’m sure it’ll be an extensive talk the next time you see her?—”
