Page 89 of Between Steel and Secrets
“I can’t call the cops, but you can call your dad, the mafia?” Harper throws her arms up into the air. “I didn’t do anything wrong. It was self-defense. Why do you have to involve them?”
Twenty-One
Luca
When we finish practice, I notice the barrage of texts on my phone coming from Harper.
“Ashton, did you get any messages?” I ask, wondering what the hell is going on, but already, my stomach is in knots.
Harper wouldn’t be sending me frantic texts unless something bad happened.
Harper: Get home now!
Harper: Luca, I need you.
Harper: Nova called her father.
Shit.
If it’s as bad as I suspect, texting and calling will leave behind evidence. I refrain from reaching out to Harper. I’ll be home soon. Five more minutes won’t make any difference.
“Yeah,” Ashton grumbles. We rush to get dressed from our practice attire. Thankfully, we already showered, or I’d be skipping it.
The three of us hurry out of the locker room and head back to the house.
There’s been zero communication from Dante or Moreno. But if Nova reached out to her old man, then it’s possible they’re now involved in whatever is happening at home.
Fear threatens my senses as I near the house, worried what I might find.
Lightning flashes overhead as the storm refuses to ease its severe hold over the town. The rain has slowed, but the wind is whipping around. Lightning illuminates the night sky. Thunder cracks overhead with a sharp bang.
There are no police cars.
No ambulances.
Minus the storm, everything is quiet.
Dark.
Except for the faint light glowing from inside the house behind the closed curtains, nothing looks out of the ordinary, but I feel it.
As we approach the house, Zeke’s screams reach the porch—he sounds inconsolable. I unlock the front door, but I don’t see anyone yet.
“Harper? What’s going on? Is everyone okay?” I’m afraid for my wife, my son, my sister—for all three of them.
Harper comes barreling toward me, her eyes glassy and red, her hands trembling, covered in blood.
I embrace her, glancing her over quickly, making sure she isn’t injured or bleeding.
“Are you okay? Whose blood is that?”
Nova is cradling my son, trying to offer him comfort, but it doesn’t seem to help.
They’re all alive.
I almost have time to breathe a sigh of relief, but the blood concerns me greatly.
“What the hell happened?”
