“And did you see how happy Alicia was when she and Vike left here with their little girl?” I stop her before she gives herself another thing to worry about.
“Yeah, I did, and she is very cute.” Eden smiles for what I think must be the first time in a month.
“Thats better.” I lift her chin with the crook of my finger and tilt her to face me, kissing her gently until the door opens and Peyton steps back inside.
“He’s gone.” She smiles sadly, taking the seat beside Eden and resting her head on her shoulder.
“How was he when they took him?” Eden slips her arm around Peyton's shoulder, and I shuffle away so she can comfort her properly.
“Better than last time. I promised him I’d visit.” I’m surprised at how calm she’s been. Last time child services took Leo, she was a mess.
“You’re coping so well; that can’t have been easy,” Eden tells her.
“I guess last night made me realize that coping is all I can do. I’m blessed enough that that little boy loves me, and I may not be able to have him here the way I’d like to, but it doesn’t mean I can’t be part of his life. His foster family was understanding. They say he speaks a lot about Raze and me.” She smiles again, and so does my girl.
“How's the damage out there?” I ask, standing up and looking out the window onto the yard.
“Better than I thought; it won’t take long to fix up. I don’t know how much of the deck out back will be left. I’ve been telling Raze for months that the rails need replacing.” Peyton rolls her eyes.
“Well, how about you make sure my girl eats the rest of her breakfast, while I check it out?” I suggest pushing the plate Eden forced away five minutes ago back in front of her.
“Sounds like a plan. Can you let Reggie out of the cage while you're out there? He’s been locked up all night.”
“Sure.” I get up and smile. It’s good to see Peyton looking brighter. I guess spending a few hours with the boy has done her the world of good.
The deck’s still standing strong, but there’s a lot of debris that has blown onto the beach and washed up on shore that’s gonna take some shifting.
I place Reggie’s cage on the bench and open the door, laughing at the odd little creature when he hops out onto the floor, and then instead of flying like a normal bird would, leisurely hops down each step till he gets to the sand.
“Dumb fuckin’ bird.” I shake my head as I test out the rail. It still feels sturdy, like everything else here is. My father may not have known how to build a family, but give him his due, he built a strong fortress to keep his secrets in. Now we've got a strong brotherhood, too, and it’s hard not to be pissed at Raze for leaving it to me to keep everything together... including our old ladies.
I look up at the sky and breathe in the fresh air. I’ve always loved the calm after a storm, and last night’s storm sure ain’t gonna be forgotten about in a hurry. It feels kinda fitting that Griller's kid was born here at the clubhouse. Something tells me that he would be happy his little girl decided to make her appearance here.
I hear Reggie kicking up a fuss over by the water’s edge, pecking at something that's washed up on shore. It’s hard to see from here what it is, but the harder I look, the more it seems suspicious. I head down the steps to check it out, remembering the morning not long ago when I found that girl; her young life was stolen just because some sick fuck in our town gets sick satisfaction by killing women.
“What ya got, Reg?” I step closer, and what I see instantly makes me turn my head and vomit into the sand.
“Wrath, I forgot to tell you, don’t let Reg… What's the matter?” Peyton suddenly looks worried when she steps out onto the deck and sees me hunched over. “Wrath... What's thematter?” When she starts racing down the steps, coming toward me, I have to fuckin’ stop her.
“No!” I pull all my strength together and charge across the sand to stop her from getting any closer.
“Peyton... No.” I grab both her arms and hold her firm.
“What is it?” She struggles against me, trying to look around my body or over my shoulder to see what I’m shielding her from. “Wrath, what the fuck is it?” she screams, surprising me with her strength.
“You don’t need to see it.” I sniff back my tears, holding her so damn tight, I know I must be bruising her.
“Wrath, you tell me right now what it is or–”
“It’s Raze,” I whisper. Dropping my hands and letting her go when I lose all my fight. “It’s fuckin’ Raze.” I fall to my knees and cry as she races past me, screeching at the discolored and bloated body that lies among the debris by the shore.
“Nooooooo!” Peyton screams, louder than I’ve ever heard anyone scream in my life, and I slam my palm into the sand, crying out in agony myself. My heart fuckin’ stops when Eden comes outside looking concerned and wondering what's happened.
“Peyton. Wrath… what's going on?” She supports her stomach with one hand and holds the stair rail with the other as she starts coming toward us, and I quickly get up and stop her before she manages to reach the bottom.
“Get back upstairs,” I tell her, spinning her around and forcing her back up.
“Wrath, you're acting crazy. Why is Peyton screaming?” She tries to turn around, and knowing that I can’t hold off telling her any longer, I let her turn back around and carefully guide her to sit on one of the steps.
