Page 21 of Roses and Murder
Trevils just grunted and drained his Bloody Mary. He was going to have problems getting home drinking it that fast, but Neco was right.
The Guttertown brats were pretty motivated to fuck the Barons over and keep the Ghoul off our streets.
Mom wasn’t back at one hundred percent, but she was definitely feeling better and not coughing up blood anymore because she was meddling. She was my best friend, and I’d never felt the need to keep secrets from her. If she asked me something and I wasn’t ready to answer it yet, she accepted and just waited until I was. I appreciated that.
“This could be your opportunity to make up with Neco,” she said. “You both fucked up, but this feud has gone on too long.”
“You’re feeling spunky. Neco doesn’t want to make up.”
Before Mom could say anything, there was a knock on the door. It was Basselt and Ollie. Basselt was here with food and tea for Mom and Ollie was here for me. I gave Mom a look and mouthed something about stepdads before I left. She flicked hermiddle finger at me and laughed. Yeah, she was definitely feeling better.
“What’s going on?” I asked, stepping out of our apartment.
It was the Day of Respect, so I couldn’t make money with my tavern and I couldn’t dig into the Ghoul, either, because it was considered work. I kept trying to take care of my mother because she nearly died and still could, and she kept attempting to boot me out our flat to make up with Neco.
I had no intention of leaving her alone, but then Basselt showed up and he was definitely someone I wanted to leave my mother alone with. And only part of that was because he was a skilled healer. Basselt and Mom deserved to be happy.
“We’re kidnapping you. We have the whole thing planned. The Day of Respect sucks financially and the Barons don’t deserve it. We’re turning it into a day to respecteach other.”
“I like that, but shouldn’t I have been on the planning so I can respect all of you as well?”
“You will, in the future. Today is all about you since you have so much to stress about. I asked and Basselt said Caitrin is stable. If she stays that way, he can make the cure. You’re going to catch the Ghoul and we’re all going to figure out how to make him pay. But we’re not thinking about any of that tonight. It’s forbidden. I will spank you.”
“We played in a brothel as kids, Ollie. Some people are into that. I might be.”
Ollie’s nostrils flared.
“That’s cheating,” he muttered. “We’re going to the brothel first. We worked it out with the Madame.”
“Um, you’re not bringing another girl in, are you? Because that would expose me. I know the girls there are a fortress at keeping secrets, but I’m not comfortable with anyone else knowing right now.”
“Do you trust us?”
“Yes.”
“We’d never expose you like that and we’re also kind of possessive. I’m okay with Beck and Ronan touching you and I’d be okay with it if you and Neco made up and he joined us. I’m not violent, but I might be if anyone saw you like that. Actually, I definitely would be. We all would.”
Wow, so yeah, Ronan was the least violent of us. He avoided fights and got his revenge without laying a finger on you. Ollie was next. He’d usually give someone a chance to calm down and one free punch before he reacted. Beck never started it, but he would finish it.
It was a little comforting they were all that protective of me.
Ollie brought me to the back of the brothel where the Madame, Beck, and Panas kept their living quarters. I didn’t know what we were doing until Ollie let me into the bath house.
I was shocked it was free. Beck had a big family outside of the Madame. They used the bath house all the time. I always wanted to take a bath here, but they all thought I was a man and it felt weird asking to use it alone since no one else did. Also, I wasn’t related to them to ask to use their bath in the first place.
This was basically the fanciest, best kept secret in Guttertown. It was a little slice of the Jagged Key Isles, a place I’d never see. The Barons didn’t even have something like this because they didn’t bathe that often.
It smelled amazing in here. It smelled like Beck because he soaked in the perfumed waters daily. He was already lounging naked with Ronan.
“Hey, beautiful. I get why you never asked to bathe here now, but I could always tell you wanted to. Get in.”
“Wait, you’ve all been bathing here?”
“Not a lot,” Ollie said. “There’s usually a schedule and we can’t always get here when it’s Beck’s turn.”
“I swapped with Aunt Keeva because she traumatized me and owes me,” Beck said.
“What did she do?”
