“You know about?” he cut himself off, eyes shooting between Ezra and Kian.
“What? I’ve been good,” Kian said, long lashes fluttering as he blinked. “I haven’t killed him or anything.”
“Or anything?” Ezra drawled.
“Wait.” He snapped his attention to Ezra. “You know, too?”
Ezra pursed his lips and avoided his gaze, which was answer enough. He turned to glare at Emma. “Is there anyone you didn’t tell?”
Her expression changed in less than a heartbeat, her lips flattening and her brows scrunching.
“I didn’t tell anyone. Definitely not those dumbasses.”
“Hey,”Kian protested. “Emma starts to take off every other day. Doesn’t tell anyone where she’s going. Looks like she’s been put through the emotional wringer every time she returns? Yeah, I’mma follow her dumb ass and figure out what the hell’s going on,” Kian said, arms crossing as he arched a brow at Emma.
There wasn’t a speck of guilt in those golden eyes as she shrugged. “He didn’t want anyone to know.”
“No, I didn’t,” he drawled, dropping back on the bed with a weary sigh, head resting on Kian’s thigh.
He didn’t bother asking Ezra how he’d found out. He knew Ezra wasn’t likely to tell him. He’d probably hacked into everyone’s phones and discovered something was going on, then decided to dig deeper. Ezra was nothing if not nosy.
Fingers carded through his hair, and he let his eyes fall shut. He knew he should be grateful that he had so many people who loved and cared about him, but it didn’t lessen that feeling trying to eat him up inside. It didn’t stop that voice in his head telling him he was weak. It wasn’t even Heath’s voice anymore. It was his own. Forever mocking him.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Wilder
HE CROSSED his arms, a slight frown furrowing his brows as he tracked the man above him. He was lying on the roof, reaching over the side as he expertly wired shit together. Talon stood next to him, and while his gaze was on their surroundings, Wilder could feel his displeasure just fine. Getting up at the ass crack of dawn for this hadn’t helped Talon’s sunny disposition one bit. He wasn’t much better off himself, though he wouldn’t have gotten much sleep either way. His brain liked to torture him with bad dreams. Memories, really. Of a past he’d prefer to forget. Of a time when he’d been utterly alone and lost.
“This is ridiculous,” Talon said under his breath.
Wilder chanced a glance at him, noting his clenched jaw and the tight grip on his gun holstered on his hip. He still wasn’t sure what this would do except alert them to the gang’s presence should they return. They already had eyes on every road into town. They’d know before the gang reached this place, though he doubted they wanted to use it after everything that went down here when they kidnapped Kian.
He breathed out slowly before saying, “Agreed.”
“The only ridiculous thing here is you.”
“Say that again,” Talon growled as he whirled around to face Ezra.
The wry smile spreading on Ezra’s face had Wilder’s hand shooting out to land on Talon’s chest. The two of them werestarting to get on his nerves. If they wanted to kill each other? Fine. But they’d have to do it on their own time.
“You done?” he asked Ezra, ignoring Talon’s deathly glare.
Ezra shrugged, then glanced toward the spot right under the roof of the building where he’d been working for the better part of an hour. Wilder followed his gaze, his frown returning when he saw nothing out of the ordinary.
Ezra grinned and pulled out his phone, tapping a few times before he turned it around to show them a crystal-clear image of the three of them from the point right under the roof.
“I know,” Ezra said, eyes gleaming. “I’m awesome.”
Talon huffed. “Still don’t know what the fuck you think it’s gonna do.”
“I could explain it, but I doubt you’d understand. Not a lot of intelligence in that squid brain of yours.”
Wilder barely managed to step between them before Talon could get his hands on Ezra, who just cackled like the fucking maniac he was. He didn’t know why the fuck Ezra kept poking at Talon. He had to know Talon could easily wring his neck. Ezra wasn’t suicidal from what he could tell, but apparently, he lived for getting a reaction out of Talon. It was driving everyone up the fucking wall, and Ezra had only lived with them for a few weeks.
“Walk it off,” he snapped, his hands on Talon’s chest the only thing holding him back. “Walk. It. Off.”
A muscle clenched in Talon’s jaw before he took a step back and turned on his heels, taking off with long strides. Wilder’s gaze followed him until he reached his bike, and then he turned back to Ezra, groaning at the smug look on the guy’s face.
