“Why the fuck are all of you second guessing me?” he growled. His hand gripped the back of the couch.
“Maybe because you have yet to tell us about the plan you say is going to save us all from life in prison,” Jared threw in before I could say anything.
“You’re really starting to piss me the fu—”
“Would you all just shhh… I’m really trying to watch this…” I interrupted Zerro knowing he would take his aggression out on me this evening.
“Shut up and listen to me. We need to know the plan, Zerro. You’re not alone in your decisions anymore. What you do affects us all and we have the right to know.” My father, the logical one, finally stepped in.
I paused the DVR and turned around to look at all three men who were shooting daggers at one another.
“Maybe they wouldn’t be giving you so much flack about us going on this ‘normal’ date if you actually told them what the hell was going on?”
“Piccolo—” Zerro started.
“No, don’t Piccolo me… Just fucking talk.” Somehow, through all of this, I had found the backbone I desperately needed.
“I will put you over my knee if you…” I smiled and kind of rolled my eyes at the very thought.
“Tell us now,” Jared demanded.
Sighing, he looked between all of us as if he knew there was no getting out of the mess he had caused. “Devon is the one who let Bree go. He owed me something and it was his return. He works hand in hand with Mack. Devon has a plan. He has to bring Bree to Mack—”
“Not going to happen…” James butted in. I agreed. I wanted nothing to do with the sick fuck. Not unless it meant I could put a bullet in his head.
“Let me finish. He’s going to protect her at all costs… I was against it too, but I’m going to meet up with him tonight. He’s going to meet Bree, and then from there, we will finish out any loose ends…”
“You’re putting her in the line of death, Zerro. You know how fucked up that is?” Jared seethed. I had never seen him so angry.
“She can handle it,” Zerro said shooting me a smile. I just stared at all of them. Did they realize I was sitting right here?
“Wow…” Jared yelled, throwing his hands in the air clearly frustrated. “I bet she can handle it. Look at how she handled everything else.”
“Hey, now, asshole,” I growled at him. James started laughing, a joyful smile crossing his face.
“Well, it’s true…” he asserted.
“I was dealing with death and hurt the best way I know how. You’re lucky any of you are still alive.” I wouldn’t have killed them, but I was pretty close to wanting to hurt someone in my rage.
Zerro laughed gruffly. “Quiet. You’re merely a kitten with claws. The worst you would do is leave paper cut scratches.”
Glaring, I stood. “I can make my own choices. I will do whatever is needed to kill the fucker for all the problems and heartache he has caused.”
“I don’t think that’s a good idea, sweetie. We just got you back—” James added.
“Dad.” The word sounded foreign against my tongue reminding me just how knew all this was. “I admire the fact you want to step up, but this has to be done. Mack wants me, he’s gonna get me. You guys will be there if anything goes wrong. Don’t worry.”
“Worry…” Jared snorted. “Worrying isn’t even the word I would use, Bree.” I was seriously ready to pull out a knife and shank him. He had been using the big brother card a lot lately.
“She’ll be fine. I trust Devon,” Zerro professed.
“You trust Devon even though he’s been working with Mack. That’s a load of shit if I ever heard one. It’s a trap, Zerro. A big fat trap and you’re going to walk right into it.”
I trusted Zerro. He had fucked up and done some really strange shit, but he did what was best for all of us. He pulled the trigger when he knew none of us could. I respected him for it.
“What is your plan then, Jared?” I asked, keeping my voice firm. No one had thought of anything else to do, and I was tired of hiding. I was tired of dealing with all of this shit. I wanted to be free, without wondering if I would be taken down by a gunman.
His jaw clenched as he looked at our father and me.
“We don’t want to lose you, Bree. I get it’s not that big of a deal, but there have to be other ways to do this.” Was there another way? Would we be able to get the answers we would need? I didn’t think there was another way.
“Devon worked undercover for me. He picked up the job for extra cash from Mack. He knew about Bree and me. Word with my family gets around fast, and when he found out Mack had taken Bree... well, he knew what was up. He returned her to me, knowing if he didn’t, I would kill him,” Zerro said unremorsefully.