What happened? mouths my sister.
“Our place got trashed,” Ryan says.
“Oh my God.” The jar of oats she was removing from the cupboard drops to the counter. “Was anyone hurt? Should I call the doctor?”
“No. We’re fine.” Eden puts on a brave smile.
“I’m going to kill those fuckers,” Ryan shouts.
“Don’t curse, Ryan,” Eden chides almost as if by rote.
“Don’t curse? Why shouldn’t I curse? If there’s ever a time to be cursing, it’s right fucking now.”
Eden winces and rubs a tired hand across her forehead.
I don’t like seeing her this way. “Don’t shout at your sister, buddy. We’re all upset here.”
Ryan slams a fist on the counter and then bangs his way out of the kitchen onto the deck. Eden rubs her lips together and tries not to cry. Ryan’s right. We’re going to kill those fuckers. I cross the room and crouch next to Eden’s seat. “He’s going to be fine. Your café will be fine. There’s nothing that a little paint and drywall can’t cure. Can Violet help you source all the repairs?”
Violet rushes over. “Yes, please. Give me something to do, or I’ll end up pulling my hair out.”
“I don’t know if it should even be salvaged,” Eden mumbles.
I don’t know if she’s saying that because she’s tired of the café or she really wants out. It’s not something that should be answered today after the shock she just suffered. “Take your time before deciding then. I want to send Ryan to a spring break vacation. I’m going to find out what his preferred destination is, okay?”
Eden hesitates but then gives me a small nod. I don’t need to explain myself to Violet. Twin intuition kicks in, and she gives me a knowing look of approval.
I close the kitchen door behind me and grab Ryan by the shoulders. “We’re going to take care of the mess, but first you’re going to go into the kitchen and apologize to your sister. She isn’t the one who caused the problems and so she shouldn’t be yelled at.”
Ryan’s eyes fall to his shoes in shame. “Yessir.”
“Go now and meet me in the garage over there.” I point to a smaller building that houses four cars. “Don’t tell your sister you’re going somewhere either. Just say you’re getting some fresh air.”
His head pops up. “We’re going somewhere?”
“Yeah. I told you. We’re going to fix this mess.” I have a list of his old man’s creditors and there’s only a couple on there that would be brazen enough to do this shit. A quick call to the PI who worked my sister’s case gives me the location for suspect number one. Ryan appears at the garage with a bright look on his face.
“I’m ready.”
“Let’s roll.” We both hop into a black nondescript sedan. Ryan searches the backseat for something, turning around with a frown of disappointment when he comes up empty handed.
“No guns? No baseball bats? We going to huff and puff until we blow their house down?”
“I would’ve thought a kid of your smarts would’ve had a better imagination,” I reply.
“What do you mean?”
“A house is full of weapons. You just need to be creative.” I show him what I mean when we arrive at Gom Antonov’s place. There are two guards out front who are trying to blend into the scenery and pretend not to be guards. I drive one face into the iron railing and then slam the planter across the back of the other one. Ryan nods his approval.
“I think I’m getting it.”
“Watch and learn. There’s more to come.” We stomp through the entryway and up the stairs, where we find Gom in his bedroom surrounded by three women. “Best leave so you don’t get hurt,” I advise before walking into the bathroom. I find a blowdryer and a can of hairspray, which is all I’m going to need. When I come out, Ryan’s got a glass vase in his hand, and he’s aiming it threateningly at Gom. The girls are gone.
I toss Ryan the hairdryer. “Find an outlet.”
Ryan is confused but does what I ask. “I was kidding about the blow your house down thing,” he mutters when he hands the dryer back.
“Like I said, watch and learn.” I turn the dryer on high and shove it against Gom’s neck.
“What the fuck. Get that off me. Fuck, that burns,” he screams.
I remove the dryer and spray the burn mark with the hairspray. The alcohol makes him cry out. “Next place the dryer goes is going to be your balls. I want the name of everyone associated with trashing The Daily Drip, and I want it now.”
Gom sings like a canary. I leave the man with just one burn mark on his neck. Ryan follows along, having watched and learned.
Chapter Eighteen Eden
“Sip on this.” Violet puts a hot chocolate in front of me. “I can give it a little kick if you want.”
“This is great. Thank you.” I sit there still feeling numb from everything that’s happened today. Ryan and I can never catch a break. I mean, how much am I expected to endure before I lose my cool? Something is building inside of me and I’m scared I’m about to blow. I’ve never felt this level of anger before.
“Everything is going to be okay,” Violet says, placing her hand over mine. I have to admit that it feels good to at least have her and Miles in our corner. I can’t even imagine going through any of this without them. It’s crazy how quickly they’ve assimilated into mine and Ryan’s lives.
“Is it?” I ask. I know there is something going on with her. Miles told me a little, but he didn’t get into many details. She is sweet and beyond beautiful, but she never leaves this house. I may not know the details, but whatever happened to her must have been bad for her to resort to never leaving here.
“Right now
