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"You haven't said much about how all this makes you feel?" Easton was looking directly at Lucien when he asked.
I appreciated what Easton was trying to do, but I understood my son. He didn't like to discuss his feelings in front of strangers.
I was about to cut in, so Lucien didn't say something rude, when my son beat me to it.
"That's because I don't have any feelings either way. He's not my father in any way that counts. I hate what this is doing to my mother and I wish I could make it better for her, but otherwise, my sperm donor could die tomorrow and I would feel nothing but relief."
There were probably a million things I should say to my son about his speech, but honestly, I was just proud.
Easton's team accepted Lucien's declaration. Hendrix stated he would stay outside and the team would rotate watch as I walked them all to the door. It took some encouragement, but Easton agreed to try and rest before coming back for the night shift. Call it intuition or just being in tune with me, but Easton seemed to recognize that I needed some alone time with my son.
"Mom?" Lucien found me a minute later with my eyes closed and head resting back against the front door.
"Nope." I popped open my eyes and met his concerned gaze. "No more talking about this right now. Instead, we're going to find a movie to watch, grab a ton of snacks, and veg out on the couch until we're mindless idiots. Sound good?"
Lucien looked like he wanted to argue, but instead, a small smile tipped up his lips. "Sounds great, Mom."
And that's exactly how we spent the rest of the day until Easton showed up that evening for his shift.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
Easton
I forced myself to stay in my apartment until after dark. As much as I wanted to rush over and be there for Kati, it was clear by the time my team left that she needed time alone with Lucien. Her son would be able to offer her the support she wasn't ready to accept from me, even if we had made huge improvements today. The last thing I wanted to do was rush her.
So I cleaned my already spotless apartment, and did research on Los Cangris, though I didn't come up with anything new. The members had been lying low since their leader got busted; not enough that they were ripe for the picking but also not making the noise they once had. It was all very strange and got me thinking that maybe the threats weren't from recruits trying to get Lucien to join them, but a rival gang looking to start trouble. It was certainly an avenue to explore, and one I needed to discuss with my team before bringing it up to Kati.
I held out for as long as I could, and when I felt like it might be close enough to the time Kati went to bed, I drove over.
Hendrix's Jeep was gone and it was replaced with Aaron's truck sitting at the curb. Since moving back to town, Aaron had been helping Maverick make connections and spending time with his mother. I was pleasantly surprised to see he had jumped into rotation with the rest of them.
I knocked once on Aaron's passenger window before opening the door and climbing inside.
"How long have you been here?"
"I took over for Hendrix a couple of hours ago. Gave him the chance to go grab something to eat and stretch his legs. You know how he gets if he sits too long."
True story. As a kid, Hendrix would've been the child who got into trouble because he couldn't sit still in the classroom. He needed constant stimulation to keep him from going insane. It had surprised me when he had been the first to offer to keep watch. Normally any kind of surveillance was a hard pass for my friend.
"How's she doing?" I motioned toward the house even if it wasn't necessary. There weren't any other females we were working with at the moment.
"No movement outside the house. I've been able to see the TV on through the openings in the curtains. Looks like they’ve been having a movie marathon since we left. I don't think they've moved from that room except for the occasional snack or bathroom break. At least, not since I've been here. I obviously can't be sure but the lack of movement gives me that impression."
"It was a lot to take in."
More than a normal person should have to deal with. Kati had hinted toward rape being how she ended up pregnant with Lucien but not once did she let that affect the way she raised her son. From everything I could see, she didn't resent her life or the choice that was taken from her. She simply didn't want Lucien to have to deal with the consequences.
"I was deployed when Los Cangris tried to move into the town,” Aaron explained, “but my mother wrote me about it. The town fought like hell to ensure they wouldn't get a foothold here. Then rumors started to spread about Kati and who Lucien's father could be. The town could've shunned her but they embraced her instead. Helped raise the boy. There are a lot of people in this town who would kill to protect those two. It's just one of the many reasons Willow Creek is so special."
It was great that Kati had so many people who loved and cared for her. It was easy to see why. She was an amazing person, and already, my team had pulled her into our fold.
"How's your mother doing? I need to stop and see her one of these days, thank her for constantly feeding me even if it meant extra gym sessions. I missed her cookies after retirement."
Aaron laughed. "She's been asking about you guys. Mav has been over to see her, but I promised that once Lex came to town, we would all come over for a barbecue. Give her a reason to make a lot of food rather than feed half the neighborhood.” Aaron groaned, “I need to find my own place soon or you won't be the only one needing extra gym sessions."
"I wonder what's holding Lex up?"
"You know how he is.” Aaron waved his hand. “He's the only one of us who marches to his own beat. Just because he agreed to work for Mav doesn't mean he plans to fall in line immediately. Retirement wasn't bothering him like it was the rest of us."
