No such thing as a second chance,
Only first chances that never end.
~ Romeo’s Quest
She was gone. I didn’t know what to think. I didn’t know what to feel.
Randy sat with me at the kitchen table and sipped on a beer. He hadn’t known what to say to make me feel better, and he didn’t try to make me feel better. “I’m sorry, man.” He lowered his head and shook it back and forth.
“Yeah. Me too.”
The back door to the house opened and Jace walked in. His eyes were bloodshot from tears as he slipped his hands into his jean pockets. There was a clear sign that he’d received a black eye from someone, and my gut twisted from looking at him. His lip was cut open, and he looked way too much like he had when I saw him the day Mom died.
“I asked Red to let me out.” His body shook with nerves and he laughed, shrugging his shoulders. “They were never going to tell me who killed Mom, were they?”
My head dropped and I studied my hands, which were resting against the table. “No. They weren’t.” I listened to his sobs and pushed myself up from my seat.
Walking out of the room, I came back with a cloth. Filling it with ice, I placed it against his darkening eye. He cringed when it made contact with his skin, but he didn’t verbally complain.
I didn’t want to scold him anymore. I didn’t want to tell him how much his choices affected his life and others’ lives. I just wanted my brother back. I’d witnessed too many people lose their siblings, and I was tired of fighting.
Wrapping my arms around my brother, I pulled him into a hug and he sobbed against my shoulder.
“I miss them so much, Danny.” His heart was shattering and he was finally allowing himself to feel sadness over our parents’ deaths as opposed to revenge. “I don’t know what to do now. I don’t know what to do…”
I didn’t have a reply for him. I hardly knew what I was doing with my life. I pulled out a chair at the table and Jace and I sat down next to Randy. The room filled with silence as the three of us remained still for the longest time.
“Well,” Randy smirked, moving over to the refrigerator and pulling out three beers. “We have an opening in Romeo’s Quest.”
Jace’s eyes widened and he shook his head in disbelief. “You would want me back? After everything I’ve done? Especially with Ashlyn—”
I flinched when I heard him say her name. “Jace…just say okay,” I said.
His blue eyes smiled when he looked up to find my stare. “Okay.”