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You need time to trust this, to trust love and to trust me, and I get that.
“Of course you don’t understand.” Della dropped her head on the table with a loud thump.
“Wait,” Kylie said. “Don’t panic, I’m trying to understand. You love Steve, but you don’t love him, like … true love, right?”
Della raised her head. “Yeah, kind of.”
Kylie spoke up again. “Earlier you said that Steve made you feel safe. Does he still make you feel safe?”
Della considered the question and remembered sitting with him on the porch. “Yeah, still safe.” She recalled when she hugged him. It had been awkward, but not unsafe.
Miranda piped up. “And safe’s good, right?”
“Yeah,” Della said. “But love’s not safe. Not for me. You get it?”
“No.” Miranda looked at Kylie. “Do you understand any of this?”
Kylie looked back at Della and made her “sorry” kind of face. “Not a bit.”
“Okay,” Della said, trying to think of how to explain. “Steve used to be scary. I mean, I was always scared because I had feelings for him. It was like a shadow following me around and it made me want to run and keep running.”
“And now Steve doesn’t scare you,” Kylie said, but still looked unsure.
“Right.” Della inhaled.
“I’m still lost,” Miranda said.
Kylie held a hand out to Miranda. “I think I’m figuring it out.”
* * *
Chase walked out. He saw two vampire guards standing on the side of the porch, and he walked past them. Part of him wished they’d try something; a good fight would suit him right now.
A fight. But he wouldn’t kill them. He wasn’t a killer. He went down the stairs.
“Chase?” Kirk shot in front of him. “I know this is hard.”
Chase stared at him. “Hard is knowing you’ve deceived Eddie all these years. Which means you deceived me.”
“I was protecting Eddie, Chase,” Kirk’s eyes grew bright with anger at the accusation. “What do you think would happen to him if the FRU found out he killed one of their own? You’ve preached your justice talk for years, Chase. But where is the justice in Eddie being put to death? And that’s what they will do. You know that.” Kirk shook his head. “Eddie killed the man who murdered the woman he loved. Can you fault him for that?”
Chase stared out at the water. His chest hurt. “Maybe there is no justice in this world.”
“Don’t do it for the council. Do it for Eddie. Word is that the FRU are after Stone. We can’t get any of our guys to go after him for fear they’ll get tangled up in this. You could do it.”
He handed Chase a piece of paper. “Here’s all of Powell’s son’s hangouts. A list of all his friends. Take care of this.”
Chase curled his fist around the paper and stared at the man he no longer respected. “If I kill Stone without handing him over to the FRU Della’s father will get tried for murder. And—”
“And you would choose him over Eddie?” Kirk spouted out.
The love and devotion Chase carried for Eddie rose in his chest until the point of pain.
Chase scowled at Kirk. “Don’t you get it? Eddie told me his plans. If it appears his twin brother will go down for this murder, he’s going to come forward and confess to a killing he didn’t do. Either way, I lose Eddie!”
“No, you won’t,” Kirk said. “I’ll talk to Eddie. I can talk him out of it. Besides, you don’t even know they will convict her father. The lawyers can get him off. We know the FRU are on it. You take care of Stone. I’ll take care of Eddie.”
Chase stood there and wondered how the man he had once respected so much could ask him to do this.
