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“You’re helping me keep her alive. Can we talk about security here? You said you have guards, but I didn’t see any.”

“If you did, I’d fire them.” He gets to his feet and crosses over to an armoire. After pulling open the doors and revealing a series of security screens, he steps back so I can see. “We have proximity alarms set up through the tree line, as well as three-sixty camera coverage. I have a dozen guards on the premises at all times, and you saw the large gate before entering the property. That fence continues all the way around.”

“A fortress.”

“That was the idea.” He moves away from me.

“Why?” I question, turning toward him. “Why is this necessary?”

Presley cocks his head to the side and crosses his arms. “You’re not the only one with people who want you dead. Difference is, my enemies don’t know where I am. For now.”

“That’s why you came to the mountains? So you can disappear?”

“Pretty much?”

“What happened to you, Presley? After I left?”

“We don’t have that much time, Big Brother.”

“Try. Why didn’t you tell me Mom got remarried? When you came to see me after she got sick, you didn’t say a word about it.”

Presley uncrosses his arms and puts his hands on his hips. “Oh, so we’re doing this again, then? Fine.” He’s quiet for a moment. “Mom met him at work. He was a drunk. Didn’t care too much for me. That’s the end of it.”

An anger so strong it nearly knocks me over surges through my system. I uncross both arms and clench my hands into fists. “He put his hands on you?”

“Calm down, Ryker. I’m a big boy now.”

“Why didn’t you tell me?”

“What was there to tell? If he hated me, then he really would have despised you. Anyone in Mom’s life who didn’t bow down to him was a problem. I may have been stubborn, but I was nothing compared to the immovable wall that was you.”

I don’t miss the look on his face. The brokenness of a childhood he’s trying desperately to hide. “What did he do to you?”

“Not getting into this. I’ve moved past it. So should you. Look, I carried a lot of anger after you left. I was furious at Mom for what she said to you⁠—”

“You knew?”

“Of course I knew. Do you think she was quiet in blaming you? After you left, it’s all she could talk about.”

“Then why didn’t you say anything?”

He takes a deep breath, and suddenly I know.

“Because a part of you blamed me, too,” I say softly.

“For a while,” he admits. “Of course, once I had any common sense at all, I realized you were just trying to do what was right. Not that it made it any easier. You left, he came into the picture, and the rest is history.”

“What was his name?”

“I handled it.”

“Presley—”

“I told you, Ryker. I’m a big boy. When he didn’t come to her funeral, I made sure he didn’t get even a penny of what was left. Last I checked, he was living in some RV park in Southern California.”

“You keep tabs?”

“I make it a point to know where my enemies are.”