“Kelly,” I choked out.
Grace untangled me from her arms and nudged me towards my brother. I latched on and pulled him close, hugging him. A sob broke through his chest and his arms came up holding on. “He killed mum. I couldn’t … I didn’t know what to do. I’d just had enough and couldn’t take it anymore.”
“Why didn’t you call me? Why did you run?”
“I was scared I’d go to jail. It wasn’t self-defence, Casey. It was murder.” Kelly pushed back from me, wiping tears from his eyes with the heel of his hands. “I didn’t want you to know what I did. You were always so fuckin’ strong and brave and at the first sign of trouble I lost it. The neighbours called the police after hearing the shot. That’s when I met Morgan. She was just a rookie then, on her way back to the station on her own after doing some fuckin’ work errand or something. I don’t remember.” He shrugged. “I begged her to help me. She agreed. Guess she wasn’t so much of a bitch then like she is now. She called someone in from the Sentinels, made it so it looked like a murder-suicide. She pulled the records from the system two weeks after they closed the case. Didn’t want anyone sniffin’ around, knowing the truth, and I didn’t want anyone to find me. I didn’t want to go to jail. I was fifteen fuckin’ years old. I left that day and I’ve been a Sentinel ever since.”
After all this time I finally knew and I had no idea what to say. Grace tucked herself behind me, warming me. I took her arms and wrapped them around my waist. “Show me your tattoo,” I asked.
Kelly dragged his shirt over his head, mussing his hair, and turned around. For a long moment I stared at the representation of what he considered his family, and it hurt like a bitch to know he went to them instead of me. I wasn’t sure I would ever get over that.
Kelly turned back around. “I didn’t think after all these years of turnin’ Morgan down that she’d go after you instead. I’m real fuckin’ sorry about that.”
“I used her,” I told him, “and she knew it. So she dangled the case records in my face like a carrot. To be honest, I’m not sure how she got through all the psychological testing to become a detective. She’s not right in the head.”
“You can say that again,” Grace mumbled from behind me.
Gabriella appeared in the doorway, frowning impatiently. “Can you wrap this shit up? You all need to come down to the station. I need statements.”
“Tomorrow,” I told her. Grace needed a shower, a bed, and me. Everything else could wait.
“No,” Gabriella snapped. “Now. This is my first case for the department after my transfer. I want it all wrapped up in a pretty bow because I’m the new team member and a girl. I have to prove myself, comprende?”
Grace dropped her arms from my waist and went to follow Gabriella. “You up for doing your statement, Slim?”
She paused, turning. “You heard her. She’s a girl and she has to prove herself. I’ll take one for the sisterhood and get it over with.”
I lifted my chin at the front door. “Wait for me over there.”
“Okay,” she said agreeably.
Grace kept within sight so I turned to Kelly taking him in all over again because I was still in shock he was here standing in front of me. I briefly wondered where the two of us would be if he never took off like he did.
“You’re not gonna say anything, are you? About Dad?”
“No.” Relief flashed through eyes the exact same shade of blue as mine. “That doesn’t mean I agree with what you did. Remember that time with the knife? You almost attacked me with it. I’ve got a hell of a temper, but yours was always worse. You need to work on reining that shit in,” I told him.
“Enough with the big brother crap,” he muttered, folding his arms.
“Okay,” I agreed. “Just one quick thing.” I glanced over at Grace waiting by the door, starting to look impatient while trying not to. She was muttering to herself and picking at something on her dress and I was sure I heard Mac’s name mentioned. I turned back to Kelly. “I honestly don’t know what I would’ve done in your situation, but when I got the news about losing all of you, his death was the only one I didn’t cry over, because if anyone deserved to die, it was him. So if you’re carrying around a whole bunch of guilt about what you did, you need to stop that shit now.”
Kelly tipped his head to the ceiling. “Easy enough to say.”
“Say it for long enough, then maybe you’ll start believing it. Now let’s go. Grace is waiting for me.”