“Took a long time for that son-of-a-bitch to die,” he muttered.
Joe Dunn, one of his regulars, tapped his empty shot glass on the counter to break the tension.
“One more for me, Jacob, and then I’d better get home before the phone starts ringing and you have to lie and tell Polly I’m not here again.”
Jacob grinned and poured another shot of rye whiskey in Joe’s glass while the other men laughed, and the moment passed.
But Jacob wasn’t the only one yanked back into the past.
* * *
Thirty-two-year-old Asher Kingston heard it through the grapevine at his work as an investigator for the state attorney general’s office in Austin, and the first thought he had was for his dad.
Twenty-seven-year-old Gunner Kingston was a homicide detective with the Dallas Police Department. His lieutenant called him into the office to give him a heads-up, and his first thought was for his dad.
Twenty-nine-year-old Dylan Kingston, who owned and operated a general contracting business in Austin, was at work when his fiancée, Angie Trent, who was also his secretary and company accountant, called his cell. When he saw her name pop up on Caller ID, he quickly answered.
“Hey, pretty girl. What’s up?” he asked.
“I didn’t want you to hear this on the news, but that whole thing about the old, armored car robbery and your mother’s part in it is all over the news.”
Dylan’s gut knotted. “What the hell? Why?”
“Pete Brandt, the leader of the gang who participatedin the robbery, just died in prison and the missing money never being found. It stirred everything up, I guess. You know how the media is these days. All about sensationalism. I’m sorry, honey. I just didn’t want you to be blindsided at work.”
He sighed. “Angie, my love, thank you a thousand times. I’m sure my brothers know, but I’ll text them anyway. See you at home.”
“Absolutely,” Angie said. “T-bones on the grill?”
“Perfect,” he said, and hung up.
Within the hour, the brothers were on a three-way conference call, worrying about their dad, but it was Dylan who suggested their older brother be the one to make contact.
“Asher, you be the one to call and check on Dad tonight, okay? If we all do it, it might freak him out and make him think he has something to worry about,” Dylan said.
Gunner frowned. “Maybe he does…have something to worry about, I mean. The media now, compared to the media back then, has turned into a Medusa. They’ll likely come looking for a scandal to create.”
“And Dad will tell them which jackass to ride off on,” Asher said. “But I will definitely call him anyway. Are either of you bothered? If this had brought up any bad shit, spit it out now. We don’t keep secrets from each other, remember?”
Gunner heard the worry in Asher’s voice. “We’re good, Ash. I promise. Dylan has Angie to kiss his boo-boos now, and I have so many calluses on my heart from that time, that I have yet to meet a woman I trust. I doubt I’ll ever get married. Are you okay?”
“Of course, I’m fine. I chose a long time ago, not to carry the years of resentment with me. It lessens as time passes. You’ll figure that out one day on your own.”
“Whatever,” Gunner said. “Thanks for the call. You and Dylan aren’t just my brothers. You’re my best friends.” Andthen he disconnected.
Dylan sighed. “He doesn’t do emotion, does he?”
“Not very well,” Asher said. “I’m gonna call Dad now before it gets too late. Talk to you soon.” And then the conference call ended.
But Asher wasn’t as casual about ignoring Gunner’s reaction as he let on. He ached for the little boy Gunner had been when it happened. He was barely past being a baby. He lost his first tooth and his mother all on the same day, and took her suicide as a sign that she didn’t love them enough to stay. And no number of explanations from Asher or Jacob had ever changed that.
Their baby brother had grown up into a full-grown hard-ass, and one of the best homicide detectives in the Dallas PD.
Chapter 2
The news report about Pete Brandt’s death had resurrected a few old ghosts for Jacob, but he felt no compulsion to relive any of it. What was done was done a lifetime ago. All he remembered from that time was the heartache and betrayal, and having to tell his boys that she was never coming home.
To this day, he credited Asher for stepping into the gap. For giving up the carefree years that had still been ahead of him, to make sure his little brothers knew he had their backs, and that they mattered.
