I start pulling my shirt back on. “Yeah, one of my fathers was an engineer. He didn’t build cars, but taught me enough I filled in the gaps.”
“Engineer? Damn, you come from money?” Kinsley jokes, but his face loses all traces of mirth when I decide just to be blunt. They’re going to be my in-laws, and just like Ezra, I’d rather our fresh start be on honest footing.
“No, he was forced to build some of the machines at the genetic lab the psychotic dictator had built. It was follow orders or they’d kill our family; not exactly much of a benefits package to go with the job.”
Kaiden curses. “Fuck, man. Sorry.”
Kahl looks at me for a minute before hesitantly asking, “What happened to your family when you fled the country then?”
I bite the inside of my cheek until I taste blood before emotionally detaching myself from the situation. “He eventually found out about my little sister, tried to demand my fathers turn her over. She killed herself rather than be subjected to that; she was eleven. Mom followed her, couldn’t live with the pain. Mine and Cai’s dads helped get us out of the country, stayed behind to hold them off and give us a head start.”
I grab my keys out of my pocket and start walking towards my car. “Where’s the truck broken down at?”
“I’ll text you the address,” Kinsley offers and I give him a thumbs up over my shoulder without turning around.
I spend the drive just breathing, not nearly as pissed off and worked up as I should be. The only way to survive is to distance myself from those thoughts, to leave me numb to the pain. If I were to sit down and focus on it all, I wouldn’t be able to function. I’d spend my days wallowing in misery or too pissed off to function. My fathers gave their lives trying to give me a chance; I’m not going to spit on that gift by throwing it all away and wasting it.
My angel needs me to be happy, needs me to be the best man I can be. She swooped down to save me from a miserable existence and I’ll return that favor tenfold by saving her from anything that tries to hurt her. My soul is stained in blood, but that doesn’t make it worthless, not to her. She sees me despite the pain I keep buried, sees the man I want to be for her. I’m more than my past and though these shadows will always haunt me, I won’t let them suffocate me.
“Hey there, the tri-force sent me,” I toss out flippantly, trying to get my head on straight again. “What seems to be the problem?”
He’s thin, not what I would have expected for someone carrying hundreds of pounds of weapons; though I suppose he just needs to drive, not necessarily unload. His brown hair is stringy and his fingers tap on the wheel nervously.
“I need to get moving, that’s the fucking problem!” he snaps, agitated and twitchy.
I’m not an idiot and promptly get right back in my car, lock the doors, and call my bosses. One, I came as a nicety; I don’t owe this asshole jack shit. And two, he’s given off about forty red flags.
“What?” Kaiden asks, voice perpetually gruff and irritated.
“Who do you sell to?” I ask without preamble.
He huffs. “Funnel orders through a shop two towns over and they distribute from there, why?”
“Something’s wrong. Delivery guy is twitchy as hell and freaking out over running late. I can’t say for sure, but I think you’re getting fucked over somehow.”
He relays the message to the others as I start heading back. “Come back to the forge.”
I snort. “Duh. I wasn’t about to fix some asshole’s truck for free and wait to get jumped. I look like the dumb blonde that goes into the creepy basement?”
I hang up and go back without any more weird shit happening, finding the triplets in the middle of a heated debate. Kinsley slams his hand on a table, more pissed off than I think I’ve ever seen the usually laid back man.
“I fucking told you there was something shady about that guy! What do you bet we’re giving weapons to the enemies on a damn silver platter?! I told you we needed to be more selective of our clientele.”
Kaiden throws something at the wall that shatters upon impact. Kahl scowls, stomping towards me. “You’ve dealt with more of this shit than we have, what are your thoughts?”
Well, be still my demonic little heart.
“Best guess? Kinsley’s right. Someone’s probably hoarding and I doubt it’s just to defend the town.”
Kahl scrubs a hand down his face, looking burned out. “We can’t just only deal to Hadeon; we don’t get enough orders to make our bills. Everyone here already has a weapon, not all stockpile their collections. Besides, we get half of our materials from out of town; it would be financial suicide.”
I get where he’s coming from. Damned if you do and damned if you don’t.
“Trust me, I get it better than anyone,” I point out. “And if you don’t supply the weapons, they’ll just get someone else that will. But when you’re backed into a corner you shouldn’t just lash out at the first thing that appears in front of you. If you want, I have a suggestion.”
They gesture for me to continue. “Send someone they won’t recognize to investigate and make sure we aren’t just being paranoid before doing anything. Then, if we’re right, the fun can begin.”
Kinsley perks up. “How so?”
