Daddy's Boy (3 page)

“I like her body.” I snapped.

“You like more than her body brother.”

“Shut up and get your shit. We’ve got a boy to find.”

“Avoiding it won’t change the fact that asshole to women Denny might actually like a girl for something other than just sex.”

Going to get my gun I refused to let what Jonah said enter my mind. My father supposedly loved my mother but he had never been anything but an abusive son of a bitch. His blood ran through my veins. If I let Rachel become anything more than just sex she would become a broken woman, just like my mother.

I was an asshole, end of story.

****

When looking for someone in the Denver underground, there was only one person to go to, Shark.

Shark knew everything there was to know about the Denver underground, he was an enforcer, a con-artist, carried messages between the gangs and businesses and had gotten into the scene by killing someone.

Shark was everyone’s go to person. Jonah and I were hush friends with him. In front of others we weren’t friends, Jonah and I bullied Shark for information nothing more. Hell we worked for Vinnie, which meant we bullied everyone. However unlike others when Shark was by himself there was no bullying between us, Shark was a good guy and a good friend.

Jonah pulled into the parking lot of what could only be described as the world’s shittiest bar. Parking close to the alley that ran along the backside of the bar, the place we always met with Shark.

Getting out of the car the smell of rotting trash hit me like a punch, turning my stomach painfully.

“We have to find a new meeting place.” Jonah grumbled shooting me a dirty look like it was my fault the alley smelled.

Pushing my gun into the waistband of my jeans at the small of my back, I followed moody Jonah into the alley.

Shark was already there, with the boy with the long hair. I would have commented on his hair needing a cut, but I liked my face way too much to have it smashed in. The guy was like a ghost, a very scary quiet ghost. I’d only ever seen him with Shark, he never talked, and we had no idea what his name was. No matter, Shark trusted him, so we did too.

Jerking his chin up and running his left hand through his wavy blonde hair, Shark gave us the code that no one else was around to hear or see. Thank god, I thought as I let out a relieved breath, the less people who knew about Jace, the safer it was for Rachel.

There I went again. I didn’t care about Rachel’s safety. I needed to start remembering that.

Stopping a couple feet away from Shark, I skipped over the greeting and got right to business. “I’m looking for a guy named Jace?”

“I need more than just a name D.” Shark said his sea blue eyes on alert darting around the alley looking for anything out of place.

“New dealer for Adam.”

“I got you, he’s not new, and he is not going by the name Jace. Adam gave him a trial run the kid brought in the money, but his old man is a cop. The kid had to go D.”

Goddamnit all to hell Rachel’s father was a freaking cop, which meant Jace was in more trouble than I could probably fix. “How did Adam take the cop thing?”

“Word on the street, not well at all.”

“Fuck.” Jonah hissed.

Nodding at Jonah Shark winced. “Adam beat the shit out of him, and threatened to go after his father’s career if he breathed a word about Adam or his business to anyone.”

“When did Adam do this?”

“Last night.”

Well that explained why no one had seen him this morning. “Did Adam leave him breathing?”

“Messed up but breathing, even Adam’s not stupid enough to kill a cop’s son.”

Well that was something, now I just had to figure out where the hell Jace had gone to lay low. “Any idea where he would go?”

Shark never let any emotion show unless it was him being a smartass, so when he gave me a look that said he thought I was extremely stupid, I was too surprised to be pissed.

“Tell me something D, your friend Mason where does he work?” There was the smartass. With a cheeky smirk Shark flick two fingers out, then disappeared down the back of the alley with his longhaired friend.

Staring after Shark and feeling very stupid I missed Jonah’s movement, but felt the smack up side my head.

“You’re a dipshit.” Jonah growled walking back to the car.

Jonah was right I was a dipshit. Mason our roommate and best friend worked for a private investigator and had tracked cell numbers for us before. Rachel had me so off balance I wasn’t thinking straight.

After calling Rachel and getting Jace’s number, Jonah called Mason. It took Mason ten minutes to get us a location, another ten minutes to drive to the seedy motel Jace was hiding out in, and then fifty bucks and a death threat to get the room number.

To start we just knocked on the door, but from what Shark told us Adam had worked Jace over good, so if the kid was smart he wouldn’t open the door to just anyone. Knocking again I yelled through the closed door that I was a friend of his sister. This got us the sound of movement coming from inside the room and the door to open just a crack. I couldn’t see much of Jace, as the door wasn’t open wide enough but what I did see had me shuddering. I knew Adam had beat Jace, and knowing Adam for as long as I’d worked for Vinnie I knew it would be bad, but it was nothing compared to what Jonah and I were seeing. Adam had used Jace as an example to show his crew and the underground scene what would happen if anyone ever messed with his business again. It was sad that I knew this but example beatings were the worst, not an inch of skin would be left without a bruise or cut.

Clearing my throat I put my hands up showing Jace I meant no harm. “Rachel came to me this morning asking if I could help find you. I found you, now I need you to let my brother and I in so I can help you some more. I see three cuts on your face that need at the very least butterfly clips, probably could do with some stitches, but I’m guessing you don’t want to explain to the cops why a drug boss beat the shit out of you.”

A strangled sound pushed through Jace’s split and swollen lips and the eye that wasn’t swollen shut widened in horror. “Are you here to hurt me?”

My heart squeezed painfully, the reason I came to be here in the first place dropped to the back of my mind as I stared into the eyes of a boy who’d just lost his innocence. Yesterday the World was full of light and good, today it was dark and bad. I knew what the kid was feeling as it was the same feeling I got the day I started working for Vinnie.

“I’m not going to hurt you Jace but I would really like to help you.” I said in the kindest voice I had.

Nodding Jace stepped back, and opened the door for Jonah and I to come in.

Stopping Jonah with my hand to his chest I jerked my chin towards the bed, “Sit back down Jace I’ll be right with you I just need to talk to Jonah first.” I waited until Jace was sitting on the bed and out of earshot before I slipped my gun out of the back of my jeans. Turning to Jonah I handed him the gun taking extra care to make sure Jace didn’t see it. Jonah took it without question, shoving it into his waistband at his hip. “Get the medic kit from the car and run across the street and get water and food.”

“Be gentle Denny I’m not sure this kid can handle your badass big brother thing.” Jonah whispered turning on his heels and walking down the hall.

“Don’t worry I’ll save that just for you smartass.” I yelled to his departing back, getting his middle finger before he turned the corner.

Chuckling I went into the room and shut the door, putting on a blank expression to deal with Jace.

The kid was at breaking point so I kept quiet while cleaning up the cuts with a wet washcloth. But damn was I dying to know why the fuck a cop’s son would want to work in the drug scene. He looked like a good kid, almost the same as Rachel actually. He had the same light blonde hair as Rachel, hazel eyes a couple of shades darker, but tall and lanky, just like her. He was the picture of an innocent boy.

“How old are you?” I asked rubbing the washcloth over the last bit of dried blood on his face.

“Twenty.”

Too fucking young to be in the underground scene of Denver and too fucking young to know someone like Adam, someone like me. No, I quickly thought shaking my head, I was nothing like Adam but every year I stayed with Vinnie put me one step closer to becoming him.

Jesus, it seemed nothing could keep the asshole out, because of Vinnie’s blood running through my veins I was destined to be an asshole no matter what I did. Stay or go, it wouldn’t change who I was.

Jonah coming into the room carrying the medic kit and a bag of food and water pulled me away from my thoughts.

After Jace drank a full bottle of water I cleaned up more cuts, butterfly stitching the worst ones and putting antiseptic cream on all of them, Lord knows where Adam’s nasty hands had been.

With all his cuts clean and the boy holding an ice pack to his ribs it was time to get some answers.

“Tell me something Jace, why does a cops son want to be a drug dealer?” Jace’s body stiffened but the boy offered no answers. “Ok don’t answer that but can you tell me why the hell you were dealing for Adam but buying from Vinnie?”

The eye that wasn’t swollen shut widened in fear darting between Jonah and I. “Oh fuck you work for Vinnie. I knew your help was too good to be true.” Jace said his voice cracking at the end.

Ignoring the part of me that wanted to ease the boys fear I went right to scaring him shitless. “Adam’s business is nothing compared to Vinnie’s. Adam will not kill a cop’s son but Vinnie will do it without blinking an eye and that’s just from buying from him. Add on that you’re working for Adam, a rival business. A rival business Vinnie hates very much, well that will make him kill you slower. Vinnie likes pain kid.” Jace was breathing heavy and a sweat had broken out over his bruised skin, the kid was scared. Good, scared is the place I needed him to be to make sure he never went back to the Denver underground. “You’re lucky Kay went to J and not Vinnie himself. You’re playing with fire Jace, if there is a next time, you will get burned.” Standing up I walked half way across the room before turning back to him. “A bank account will be set up in your name, there will be enough money in there to take you to any State you want to go to, and enough to live on for one month. A text with all the information will be sent to you within the hour. You have one week to get out of town. No one, not your sister or your girlfriend can or will ever know I helped you. Your story to everyone, not in this room is you fell in with the wrong crowd made some bad choices, now you need some time alone to get your head on straight.” Turning away from Jace I nodded once to Jonah signaling it was time for us to go.

My hand was on the door when Jace’s weak voice sounded through the small room. “Why are you helping me?”

Good question why was I helping him? Was it just to get another go around with Rachel? Did I want Rachel to be more than just sex? Maybe I just didn’t want to see Jace go down the same path Jonah and I went down.

If I was being honest with myself it was all the above but I was never one for being honest, so instead I did what I did best. I lied.

“Luck’s a bitch Jace, she comes and goes as she pleases. J’s luck ran out on him a long time ago, killing you is no way to get her to come back to him now is it.”

Jace took a sharp intake of breath, Jonah chuckled quietly and I left the room as fast as I could.

****

Pulling up to Rachel’s small house outside of town, stuck between bare fields I fought a war within myself. Half wanted to be here the other half knew I shouldn’t be here. A drug lord’s son working for said drug lord did not date or screw a girl whose father was a cop. I was and probably always would be a grade A asshole, which meant I had no business being with Rachel. But goddamn if I didn’t want to try with this woman and see if I could be more than just an asshole like my father. Jonah was always telling me I was nothing like Vinnie. Could I let go of the asshole for once in my life and try with Rachel? Could I risk Rachel’s safety by bringing the Denver underground to her door? What if her father found out? I wouldn’t have to worry about the guy throwing me in jail; Vinnie would kill me for even looking at a cops daughter.

Fuck it. I was done thinking through Vinnie. I wanted Rachel and I wanted her now. Before I could talk myself out of it, I was at her door knocking.

The door opened and Rachel stepped out in nothing but old sweats, blonde hair pulled high on top of her head and not a drop of make up on and it was the most striking thing I’d ever seen. Staring at the most beautiful woman in the world I let the asshole slip away and for the first time I was honest with myself. I didn’t want to be an asshole, I didn’t want just sex, I wanted to date; I wanted to fall in love. I wanted everything and I wanted it all with her.

“Jace?” She asked her hazel eyes showing how scared she was for her brother.

“A misunderstanding.”

“A misunderstanding?”

“Yeah from what I got from his friends he got in with the wrong crowd and then lied to his girl to get some time away from it all.”

A small gasp left Rachel’s lips as her small hand slapped across her chest. “And the drugs?”

“No drugs, just bad friends. I think your brother made the right choice to just get away for a while.”

Nodding I watched the fear leave her eyes. “Thank you Denny.” Rachel whispered as a blinding smile spread across her face.

Her sweet lips touching mine stopped the smile I wanted to give her back. The happiness that swept through me was like nothing I’d ever felt before and damn did I like it. I liked it so much I planned on trying to keep it.

Pulling my lips off of hers, I put some room between us so I could see her face. “Why did you leave before I woke?”

“Sleeping with a guy five minutes after you meet him is kind of a slut move Denny. I didn’t want you to think I was a slut when you woke up.”

“If I thought you were a slut I wouldn’t have slept with you. Ok that’s a lie, but if it helps I don’t think you’re a slut. Far, far from it baby. Now, kiss me again.”