Sighing, I head to the kitchen, open the freezer, and pull out the worn ziplock bag labeledsunny day. I dump the contents on the counter and start counting.
Eighty dollars.
I grab my wallet…forty more.
A hundred and twenty total. Barely enough to keep a roof over my head.
I almost cry when I see the last lonely twenty sitting on the counter. It’s not enough to pay even one bill. Heck, it’s barely enough to cover one more taxi ride to work.
Still… It’s better than losing everything.
So I tuck the twenty into my wallet, shove the rest of the cash into an envelope for Dorsen, and whisper to the empty room, “Guess the lights’ll have to take a vacation this month.”
And the water…and my phone.
And food.
***Skip***
I waltz into the garage with a…pun fully intended…skipin my step.
That is, until I see Eli start to sway as he hauls a massive hunk of metal toward the junk pile.
“Hurry the fuck up, Eli!” Knuckles barks from across the garage. “I don’t have all day. Put some damn muscle into it.”
My good mood dies instantly. I take a step forward, ready to break his fucking face, but a heavy hand lands on my shoulder, halting me mid-stride.
“Stand down,” Maverick says.
“Release me, brother,” I growl, every muscle in my body coiled tight. “I’m not standing here while that fucker treats Eli like shit.”
“I’ve been watching them for the past half hour,” Maverick says evenly. “Knuckles has been a broody bastard the whole time, yeah…but he only just told Eli to move that hunk to the trash. I was about to step in when you showed up.”
He gives my shoulder a quick squeeze before letting go. “Now go help your boy. I’ll keep an eye on Knuckles.”
I don’t need to be told twice.
Maverick releases my shoulder, and I head straight for Eli. The sound of metal scraping concrete echoes through the garage, cutting through the usual noise. Eli’s still trying to lift the damn thing. Too proud to ask for help, too stubborn to stop.
Halfway there, I catch Knuckles watching me. I meet his stare dead-on and let mine harden into something cold enough to freeze him in place.
His smirk falters. Eyes widen just a fraction before he takes a single, cautious step back.
Smart move.
When I reach Eli, I don’t say anything at first. I just grab the metal from his hands and toss it on top of the pile.
He blinks up at me, cheeks flushed, sweat clinging to his temples. “I...I had it.”
“Sure you did,” I say with a grin that doesn’t quite reach my eyes. “But next time, maybe don’t try to wrestle something twice your size when you’ve barely slept.”
“How do you know I’ve barely slept?” he asks, eyes widening.
“Because those pretty brown eyes of yours are surrounded by exhaustion,” I tell him softly. “Now, I want you to go sit down and rest.”
“But Knuckles is—”
“None of your concern,” I cut in, already steering him toward the office. “Foster’ll be by in about an hour to go over the building schematics with you. Spike wants us to upgrade… well, everything.”
