Page 19 of Deliverance

I hung up before he could reply.

“Fuck!” I chucked the phone onto the bed and ran my hands over my head. Well, that was useless. Looked like I was on my own. Well, not really.

I looked around the guest room Adrian had graciously offered to me. It was decorated in tones of grey and white, but it was safe. Adrian and the Stone brothers hadn’t skimped when it came to this building’s security. They were protecting me, but what could I offer them? Nothing from my federal contacts, apparently.

Ethan had been the third call I had made this evening, and every one of them told the same story. Director Keller was being charged for his crimes as Kingfisher. It was an open-and-shut case. No one was willing to entertain the idea that they had gotten it wrong. I understood to a point. Director Keller being arrested had shone a great big unflattering light on the federal agency. It was an embarrassment not just for the FIA but also for Justice, which oversaw the federal agency. Everyone wanted to put it away and get it over with, but the real Kingfisher was going to get away, and the only people who were trying to take him down were a security firm and a vigilante group.

“How the fuck did you get yourself into this mess, Dominic?” I asked, looking up at the ceiling like I would find the answer to my question written there. I wanted to call my dad to get his advice, but on the off-chance that Kingfisher was monitoring our calls, I didn’t want to put my dad on his radar.

Even without calling him, I knew what he would say. It’s what he always said. When I was growing up and he was a cop, when I went to the FIA Academy, and when I graduated.

“The law tells you what’s legal. Your gut tells you what’s right. Listen to your gut.”

Well, Dad, my gut is telling me that this was where I belonged. In this impersonal bedroom surrounded by these people who were fighting to save their city. I just needed to figure out how to help them.

My phone buzzed on the bed.

Adrian:Dinner’s ready.

I collected my phone and headed upstairs. I wished I had better news to share at dinner. Maybe one of the others had better luck today.

A weird feeling twisted my gut as I used my thumbprint to get up to the penthouse apartment. The guys had accepted me almost instantaneously, despite the fact that I had originally come to the city to investigate Evelyn. I was an only child, so I’d never experienced the sibling dynamic before, but I imagined this was what it felt like. My FIA training warned me against trusting it so soon, but my gut was telling me to trust it.

“Dominic,” Sebastian greeted as I entered the penthouse. “Just in time.”

I couldn’t help but grin back at the cheery youngest Stone brother. He had definitely earned the “golden retriever” personality title Evelyn had dubbed him with. But from my years in the field, something about the way he carried himself told me he could be dangerous when threatened.

“It smells great,” I said honestly.

Alexander was a great cook. It had surprised me when he cooked the first meal we had together from scratch, but clearly, cooking was a way he unwound at the end of the day. And hey, we all benefited from it.

“We’ve got chicken and beef hibachi and vegetables tonight,” Alexander announced. “It’s almost done.”

“Beer?” Marcus asked from in front of the open fridge.

“Yes, please,” I replied.

He nodded, grabbed another bottle out of the fridge, twisted off the top, and handed it to me.

“Thanks,” I said.

Marcus was probably the brother I interacted with the least. He was gruff and guarded. Adrian had told me not to take it personally, and I didn’t. He was fiercely protective of his family, and I was an outsider.

“You two better sit before Alexander has a coronary,” Adrian said, smirking.

He sat across from Evelyn, and Sebastian was next to her. I took a seat next to Adrian, and Marcus took a seat at the end of the table.

“I was not going to have a coronary,” Alexander grumbled as he placed two steaming bowls on the table. “But Evelyn hasn’t eaten since lunch, and she’s hungry.”

Evelyn rolled her eyes. “Yes, I haven’t eaten a meal since the last mealtime. How tragic. I’m going to waste away.”

I chuckled. Evelyn’s glare only lasted a few seconds before her expression softened to a smile.

“I’m going to stop feeding all of you,” Alexander said as he picked up Evelyn’s plate and filled it.

“Sure,” Marcus drawled. I guess that threat was a familiar one, as Alexander glared at him.

For a few minutes, it was quiet as we filled our plates and ate.