by Ann, Bry
“Again, man, she’s a fully grown adult. She could have reached out and asked for help.”
“Addictions are complicated,” I murmur.
“Not saying they’re not. I'm saying she’s been trained to reach out, too.”
“Doesn’t she—”
“What are y’all talking about?”
Kyle and I immediately stand so Evie can sit.
“No, please sit. I'm fine. You’re my guests.”
“Sit, Evie.” That comes from all three of us. The last thing my little sis needs is to be up walking around and burning calories.
Blushing, she sits. None of us are subtle presences, so little Evie getting bossed around by three FBI agents is maybe not ideal. Especially in this cramped space.
“So, how’s work, guys?” Evie asks timidly.
Kyle straightens and I groan.
“Intense,” Kyle answers.
Evie’s eyebrows shoot up and she looks to me.
“Kyle’s right, sis, work is intense right now.”
Tucking her head in, Evie slowly looks to Carson.
“What do you think?” she whispers.
Carson cocks his head. “I'm not very involved in this case. I'm just running things on the back end. Making sure we don’t get behind.”
“Not just. That’s important! Almost harder. You’re responsible for having your team’s back in a major way. You have to do the things you all used to do all by yourself.”
Kyle smirks at me. The hell? Is Evie crushing on Carson?
Carson gives her a soft look. “Thanks, E. I appreciate that.”
“Hey, Car!” I point my beer at him. “Don’t be giving my sister nicknames. I’ll kick your ass.”
He smirks at me. “I’d love to see you try.”
Oh, no, he doesn’t. I push to my feet.
“I have fifty pounds on you, runt.”
“True, but I actually train in fighting instead of lifting weights up and down all day.”
“You nut, fighting is required for this job.”
“I go above and beyond.”
“Let’s go at it, punk.”
I roll up my sleeves. Carson stands there, doing nothing to prepare. Extending his arms slightly, he smiles.
“Go for it. I’ll have you on your back in two seconds.”
“You confident little shit,” Kyle laughs a little.
I move to charge when the front door swings open. We all turn to face the intruder.
“Why didn’t you tell me you have guests, Evie?” a deep voice barks.
In the doorway, a man stands with shaggy dark hair, a serious gut, and murky, dark brown eyes.
“Sorry, Mac, i-it was last minute.”
“Who the fuck are you?” I demand. I don’t like his tone with my sister, and if he knows her, why the fuck has no one gotten her help sooner?
“Mac, her boyfriend.”
Like hell. I laugh.
“Yeah, in what universe?”
“Landon,” Evie whispers, coming over to me.
Mac, stupidly ignoring the three pissed men in the room, enters and approaches Evie.
“What time are they leaving?”
He runs his hand down her arm in an intimate gesture. I want to gag. Look, I'm not some asshole overprotective brother. Evie’s an adult and is gonna see dudes, good for her. But this gross prick isn’t good enough for her. Evie’s beautiful; this dude is sweaty and fat and looks at her like he owns her.
This part of her breaks my heart the most. She doesn’t see her worth. I can’t count the number of these assholes I’ve chased away.
“I don’t know, Mac,” she whispers, clearly uncomfortable. “My brother’s here. I never get to see him. He’ll stay as long as he wants.”
Damn right, I will.
Mac looks pissed. As much as I want to, I won’t interfere until I have to. I won’t insult her. Evie pays her own bills. Works her own job. Rents her own place. I'm not gonna be the asshole who steps in every few months and acts like he knows it all.
I mean all of this until Mac pushes Evie against the wall and jams his tongue down her throat.
“Get the fuck off,” Kyle barks.
I'm charging forward, but before I can even take a step, Carson has Mac’s t-shirt twisted in his fist and is literally dragging him out the door. As Carson charges out with Mac, I immediately go to Evie. Kyle goes to check on Carson, since he walked out with the asshole who mauled my sister in front of me, and to give us privacy.
“Hey, you okay?”
I gently peel Evie off the wall, ignoring her screwed-up hair.
“Oh God, what is Carson doing with him?” Evie cries, shaking all over.
“He’ll live. Look at me, Evie Parker.”
She does… and breaks. She falls into my chest and wraps her arms around me. In that instant, she’s not twenty-something. She’s a gangly teen with the biggest blue eyes, scrawny limbs, and a smart mouth, crying because she feels all alone.
“I'm sorry I failed you again. I'm sorry I'm not stronger.”
Her bony body shudders against me with violent sobs.
“You didn’t fail me, sis. We’ll figure this out. We always do, we always do.”
“I'm not the sister you deserve.”
“Hey!” I pull her away so she looks at me. “There’s no one else I’d want. You’re fucking funny as hell, sarcastic, and the most loving sister a dude could ask for. I just want that girl back. I want you healthy.”
I chuff her chin.
“Do you trust me, Evie?”
She’s hesitant. “You know I do, but…”
“You’re scared.”
She nods.
“Let’s go tonight.”
“Go where?” She knows. The terror on her face tells me she knows.
“Treatment, sweetheart. Treatment.”
“No! My therapist and I are working on it! I’ve already eaten more today. I don’t need that. That’s so dramatic. This isn’t that bad. You just don’t want to deal with me! You’re so tired of dealing with me!”
“Evie…” And here’s the dark side of eating disorders. The rage.
“Screw you, Landon! Get out of my apartment!”
“Evie.” I didn’t even hear Kyle reenter, but her fiery gaze snaps to him. “We’ll go together. Be strong.”
“Fuck you, Kyle! I—”
“Evie.” Carson tries a softer approach. His voice freezes her. She’s always had a hard time losing it in front of Carson.
Carson approaches her slowly and ducks down to meet her eyes.
“Get help.”
“Why? Why does it matter?”
Evie furiously wipes her tears with the back of her hand.
“I'm never gonna get over this.” Her eyes flash. “I don’t want to.”
Carson tilts his head and takes her in.
“What’s your biggest dream?”
Evie blushes and turns away.
“Well?”
“What does that have to do with anything?” she mutters.
“It does, trust me.”
“It’s stupid,” she whispers.
I lean forward. Damn, I don’t even know this. I’ve never asked her this. Kyle must sense my spiral, ‘cause he pats me on the back.
“I want to be able to keep a dog alive.”
My and Kyle’s eyebrows shoot up. What? That’s it?
Carson probes. “Why?”
“I'm not stupid. I can’t even take care of myself. How can I keep a dog alive? I’d never risk it.”
“I get that, but why is that your dream?”
Evie looks pissed. “Why? Is that not a good enough dream for you?” she snaps, shoving at his chest.
“You’re worth more,” he says simply.
She freezes. “Dogs love unconditionally.”
My heart stops. Does she not feel loved?
Carson nods. “You can make your dream come true. Get healthy, learn how to keep yourself healthy, and get a dog. Love is better than living li
ke this, Evie. I promise.”
Her lip wobbles. “What did you do to Mac?”
Carson smiles and turns to Kyle. “What did we do with Mac, man?”
Kyle shrugs. “He just left. That’s what I recall.”
Carson looks back at Evie with a smirk.
“See, I was just an escort.”
Evie giggles a little under her breath. Her cheeks turn bright red as she blinks up at him.
“Will you come?”
Carson stiffens, but slowly nods. “Of course, Evie. I’ll come.”
Evie looks at me, stiff and terrified.
“Okay, Landon, I’ll go.”
Chapter Ten
Landon
One Month Later
“Knock, knock. Coming in, Ms. Taylor.”
When the nurse sees me, she shakes her head.
“I can’t believe you’re still coming to see her.”
“I'm persistent, ma’am.”
Her cheeks turn the lightest shade of pink.
“Has her family come by?”
“Yeah, yesterday after you left.”
I straighten. “They did? Why was I not informed? How did she take it?”
The nurse glances over at Essie, brows pulled tight.
“She was worse. A lot worse. She started cussing out pandas. Her mom left crying, but her dad was, oddly, seemingly unaffected by the whole thing.”
“Hmm.” I glance over at Essie and take a seat in my usual spot. “Thank you for letting me know.”
“Of course. Just so you know, agent, Essie’s being moved tomorrow.”
“Where?”
I was not informed of this either and I'm pissed. I will be notifying Collin and having a talk with the staff here.
“That swanky psych ward outside of town.”
“Who’s funding this?”
“I'm not at liberty to say.”
Furious, I slam my badge on Essie’s bed. “Who’s funding this?”
“Charles Briar-Rose,” she whispers.
Sage’s dad. Interesting.
“Thank you.”
“Of course.” She hurries out of the room.
“Sorry about that, Essie. I hope I didn’t scare you too much.”
I slip my badge back in my pocket. When I glance up, I'm shocked to see a pair of leery green eyes staring at me. She hasn’t looked at me once since I’ve been to visit. Not once in thirty days. This feels huge.
I smile.
“Hey there, baby doll, it’s so good to see your face. I'm hoping for some words today.”
Her head tilts. “No fucking sirens. No fucking sirens. No fucking sirens. No fucking sirens.”
She says this, like, twenty times. It’s odd and there’s a heavy weight to her voice, but I force myself to play it off.
“No sirens here. Not unless there’s some kind of emergency and I'm in the right car, ya know?”
I almost miss it, it’s so fast, but she scowls. I know I'm not imagining it.
She’s coming back.
“Sorry if that offended you. Can you explain what you meant by sirens?”
I lose her. She turns her head and rolls to her other side, away from me. I'm not even upset about it. It felt purposeful. Like she was avoiding me. Like I was annoying her.
Which means she was aware of me and what I was saying enough to feel something about it.
I swear I could cry.
“I know you heard me, Essie Taylor, and you know what?” I lean forward on my elbows. “I hear you, too.”
* * *
“Any progress with Essie?” Kyle asks over the phone. I know he’s reporting this straight to Collin. As my partner, he usually is the go-between for Collin and I. Although Kyle and I have the same rank, it’s unspoken that he has the higher status. Which is completely fine with me. Kyle’s a rock.
“Nothing definitive.”
He barks out a low laugh. “What’s that mean? Specifics.”
I hesitate. “I don’t know how to explain it. She just seems more aware of me.”
“It’s been a month.”
“I'm aware, Kyle. Do you want to come down here? She’s not well, man. They really did a number on her. I'm doing my best, but I'm not gonna push her too far. I won’t cause further damage.”
“I respect that,” Kyle says quietly. “How’s Evie doing?”
“Still in inpatient. I haven’t been able to visit as much as I’d like. I feel like shit knowing she’s all alone during visiting hours.”
Kyle goes quiet. The silence drags on so long, I know he’s hiding something.
“Spit it out, man. I'm twiddling my fingers over here.”
“Evie hasn’t been alone, Landon. Carson’s been by to see her.”
“What? No way. Carson and Evie—”
“Are you that much of an idiot? Fuckin’ hell, no wonder you’re single. Carson and Evie have chemistry, man. Carson looks like he’d slaughter an army for that woman and Evie doesn’t stop blushing for one second when he’s around.”
“Oh, gross. Damn it.” Kyle laughs. “I can’t think about this right now, but I am glad Evie has company. I need to make time for her like he is.”
Kyle’s quiet, so he agrees.
“I’ve been by three times, Landon.”
“I hate seeing her here,” I whisper, almost to myself.
“I know, but she needs you.”
“Alright, fine. I have to go.”
“Take care.”
“Yep.”
Click.
I push the doors to Essie’s new facility open. Damn, this place is fancy. Fancier than any kind of place I’ve ever been able to afford to send Evie.
“Hello, sir, how can we help you?”
This woman is on guard, even though I’ve already had to flash my badge to no less than four security officers guarding the place. This isn’t including the men Collin and Brad will inevitably send down to protect Essie since the bastards that took her are still out there.
“I'm looking for Essie Taylor.” I flash my badge. “The hospital should have mentioned me in their reports. Special Agent Landon Parker.”
“Oh, yes! Essie will be so glad you’re here.”
She smiles warmly at me… and I already like this place. They treat Essie like she’s a real person, not already dead.
I smile back. “Good to see her somewhere a little more warm.”
The lady sobers. “Yes, agreed. Come, I’ll take you to Essie.”
I follow her down a series of hallways. She stops outside a white door with an adorably handmade sign that says “Essie Taylor’s Room” on it.
“Here we are. Don’t be alarmed. Essie still has her feeding tube in.”
“Other than that, medically, how is she?”
“She’s doing as well as could be expected. Lots of healing injuries, injuries that never got a chance to heal right, the like. We have an IV in there just in case. It’s not connected to her. She still needs the feeding tube, but all that said, she’s here with us and we’ll fight to bring her back in spirit as well.”
Okay, I fucking love this place.
“Thank you… I didn’t catch your name.”
“Edna. I know, it’s horrible.” She makes a face.
I chuckle. “It’s not bad. Thanks, Edna.”
It is horrible, but she’s a cute thing. She can get away with it. With that, she walks off and I push Essie’s door open.
Essie’s lying on the bed, staring at the ceiling as usual, but that’s not what captures my attention. It’s the room around her. There’s a large window overlooking a sea of trees. By the window is a cushioned chair overlooking the view. The walls are a light shade of green with frilly decorations all over the place. It almost looks like something out of Pride and Prejudice or something like that.
“Well, these are the digs you should have had all along, babe. This is great. Very 1800s of you.”
Blazing green eyes land on me. The intensity of them almost knocks me back a step, b
ut I keep going.
“Chirp, chirp, chirp, chirp…”
I drag a chair over and take a seat, legs spread.
“I know, you love birds. I was hoping today we could talk about something else. Something more.”
Green eyes drill into me. I have no medical reason to think so, but I believe she understands me now. Something’s changed in her from a month ago. At least around me.
She opens her mouth, but I cut her off.
“Nope, no animals. No sirens. I think you hear me, Essie. I think you understand, and I think that scares you.”
Her eyes flash. Her fists clench.
“Hey, cuss me out. I don’t care.”
Her frail little hands fly up and hold the side of her head, teeth gritted.
“It’s okay,” I murmur. “You’re safe with me. I promise.”
She glances at me, still holding her head, looking so absolutely broken.
“My name is Landon Parker,” I whisper softly. “I work for the FBI, but don’t lock up on me. I'm also just a guy. I have a little sister, some best friends. I like hockey and tacos a whole lot. What do you like?”
Her fists tighten, but she lowers them. Her mouth opens, my heart pounds, and words come out.
“Silence.”
Then she turns away from me without another word.
“I hear ya, baby doll. We’ll meditate, then.”
She glances over her shoulder at me. I smirk. She turns away…
And we sit in silence for the rest of the day.
* * *
By the time I finish paperwork, it’s 10 p.m. The only person left at the office is Carson. The little punk I need to have a sit-down with.
“Carson!” I call out, shoving my papers to the side of my desk. “You little shit,” I mutter. “Carson!”
Pushing off my heel, I stalk down the hallway.
“Carson! Jesus Christ, where the fuck are ya?”
That’s when I hear it—the pounding of fists on a punching bag. The kid is always training. He’s fitter than the rest of us. Skinnier, but fitter. I swear he has more abs than six. Working out is his release. He doesn't go a day without it.
I throw the door open. He immediately turns around, all sweaty and nasty.
“What’s going on?” He jumps to attention.
“Why have you been by to see my sister almost every day?”