Lost Justice (Croft Family Mob Series Book 2)

by Morgan Kelley

  Sam knew it was going to be too late.

  If he didn’t die, he’d change everything. He’d make the babe happy.

  He’d listen to Dimitri.

  He’d…

  He’d never be stupid again.

  Greyson caught the glow of eyes in the distance. He knew what they were dealing with before he even got there. Pulling as close as he could, he used the light of the motorcycle to illuminate his prey.

  With his gun, he took a shot, hitting the rabid animal before it could pull Sam away.

  As soon as he did, the boy was up and running toward him. Greyson was off his bike and holding the boy to his body.

  The child was crying as he clung to him.

  “I did…didn’t…think…you were coming,” he finally got out.

  “Of course we’d come, Sam. We love you,” he reassured. Then he needed to know. “Sam! What the hell were you thinking?” he asked. “You could have died out here!”

  The boy clung to him as Dimitri pulled up on his bike.

  “They’ll smell blood,” he stated. “We need to get home and to where it’s safe,” he offered. “They’ll scavenge their dead pack member,” he offered.

  Greyson agreed.

  He hopped onto his bike, and put Sam in front of him to keep him safe as they navigated back to the house.

  The poor kid was shaking, and when they got to the house, someone was going to get hell. This had been a really stupid stunt, and it could have ended badly.

  Until then, he was safe, and that was all that mattered.

  Greyson wanted to weep in gratitude.

  At least Emma’s heart wouldn’t be broken.

  They headed toward the house, jumping the dunes, and racing the darkness. The sooner they were behind the gates of Terrace Glen, the better.

  Then he was going to kick this boy’s ass.

  As they finally got home, they parked the bikes in the garage. Greyson was silent.

  “Go into the kitchen, Sam. Wait for me there.”

  The boy had giant tears in his eyes.

  “I’m sorry.”

  “Inside, Sam. Now!”

  When the boy left, Dimitri leaned against the counter to drink a frosty brew he’d pulled from the garage beer fridge.

  His nerves were shot.

  He unscrewed the cap to the second one and handed it to Greyson.

  “What are you going to do to him?” he asked.

  “I’m thinking about grounding him until he’s Curtis’s age,” Greyson admitted. “What he did was stupid.”

  Dimitri didn’t say anything.

  “Dimitri, tonight was a bad night for a hooker booty call,” he stated.

  “I wasn’t out with a woman,” he offered, a little offended until he recalled telling him that was his plan.

  “Then where the hell were you? We can’t let this happen again.”

  “I was out handling something.”

  “What?”

  “The asshole who hurt Sam.”

  “Oh.”

  “Let’s just say he won’t be making it to court. He’s dead and I left him where the cops will find him. He’s heading right to the morgue.”

  Greyson wasn’t surprised. “What should I do with him?” Greyson asked.

  “Punish him, but don’t go over the edge. He’s scared. Let him explain,” Dimitri stated. “This healing has to be on Sam’s time, not ours. We don’t know what he needs, but he does. He’ll lead the way.”

  “You’re always over the edge,” Greyson stated. “I’m amused that you’re telling me to calm down.”

  Yeah, so was he, but the boy hit a soft spot in his heart, and Dimitri couldn’t help but want to protect him.

  He laughed. “He’s not my kid, so I can say that.”

  Greyson finished his beer to calm the hell down. “Yeah, thanks for the advice.”

  Dimitri patted him on the shoulder as they headed into the house. Greyson was about to learn parenting one-oh-one.

  Belligerent children were a bitch.

  This was going to be fun to watch. Dimitri was damn glad that those days were over.

  He didn’t think his stomach lining could take it anymore. He’d done his tour of duty in hormone hell.

  When they got inside, Sam was sitting at the table, and he wouldn’t look at them. It said a lot about his state of mind. Sam was beat down.

  This had rattled him.

  Good.

  He needed to be afraid.

  “Sam, we need to talk.”

  He didn’t look up.

  “It’s okay, send me back. I deserve it,” he said softly. “You’re going to do it anyway.”

  “We weren’t going to do it,” he stated. “We have no intention of sending you back to the system, Sam. You’re home here, and we care about you.”

  “Just don’t send me back to HIM,” he begged before breaking down into hysterical sobs. “I’ll do anything not to go back there.”

  Greyson was at a loss. He looked over at Dimitri. This wasn’t as easy as he thought it would be. He came in angry, and now felt horrible.

  “Help.”

  Dimitri got it.

  He’d dealt with two girls broken by a callous human being. It took strength to survive that.

  “Sam, we have people who would love to hurt us. If you wander out of the gate, they could use you to do that. This isn’t about us being mad. It’s about not wanting to see you get murdered.”

  The boy finally looked up at Dimitri.

  It was clear he was scared by the ‘M’ word.

  “I just didn’t want to disappoint Emma. She said she was adopting me, and I’m not good enough.”

  Dimitri sat down beside him. “You’re more than enough to us, Sam.”

  “Then why doesn’t anyone want me? Why does everyone keep throwing me away? I know she only said it because she has to do it. I want someone who doesn’t have to love me to love me.”

  He got it.

  Now how did he make a ten-year-old boy understand that? It wasn’t going to be easy.

  Dimitri sighed, trying to be patient. “Because people are assholes. Like Jason, they don’t get it, but we do. We’re trying, Sam. Tell me what you need me to do to help you.”

  “I just want to be loved.”

  Dimitri touched his hand and the boy moved closer to him. “We do love you.”

  “I just want to be safe.”

  He opened his arms and the small child slid against his body. “You are safe. I won’t let anyone hurt you.”

  “Jason said he’d get me if I talked. He’s going to come for me,” he admitted. “He’s going to hurt me.”

  “No, he’s not.”

  “Why?”

  “Can you keep a secret?” he asked.

  “Yes.”

  “I killed him.”

  Sam’s eyes got huge. “Really?”

  “Yes.”

  “Why?” he asked.

  “Because you are part of my family, and I protect the people I care about.”

  The boy seemed to weigh that in his mind. He blinked up at Dimitri with watery blue eyes.

  Then he dropped the bomb.

  “Will you adopt me?” Sam asked, staring up at him. “Will you be my father?”

  Dimitri was pretty sure this was a test.

  Still, his heart skipped in his chest.

  What was he supposed to do? Here he was, telling him they loved him, and if he said no, the boy would break. He’d told them he wanted someone to want him who didn’t have to, and Dimitri knew he fit that bill.

  “If that’s what you want, but Emma really wanted to adopt you. Wouldn’t you rather have a mom?”

  He shook his head. “No. She wants to have a baby. I’ll be replaced. You won’t replace me. I want you to adopt me. You killed Jason. You could be my dad.”

  The boy hugged him, burying his face in his neck.

  “Please.”

  Greyson couldn’t help but smile at the sight before him. Here was a h
ired killer, a tough man, and he was being taken down by a child.

  AGAIN.

  It was a beautiful thing.

  This would be the ideal thing for Dimitri. It would keep him focused on real life, and not whatever chased him. He needed to be grounded.

  Croft couldn’t wait to hear his response. While Emma and Greyson would adopt Sam, it was clear that the boy was like a baby duck.

  He imprinted on Dimitri.

  That was priceless.

  Besides, if Emma was pregnant, and Sam found out, he’d be worried about being left again.

  That was the last thing any of them wanted. He was pretty sure Emma would understand.

  They wanted the best for Sam.

  And that would be a man who would protect him like he had.

  “Is that what you really want?” he asked, not sure what to say. With his sisters, Dimitri had no choice.

  With Sam…

  “Yes. Please adopt me.”

  He took a second to make his mind up. It wasn’t a hard decision.

  “Okay, Sam. I’ll adopt you.”

  The boy held on to him. “Thank you.”

  Dimitri didn’t know what to think.

  ‘Help,’ he mouthed.

  “Welcome to fatherhood, again,” Greyson offered. “Now you get a shot at raising a boy.”

  Dimitri couldn’t believe this.

  What the hell had he done?

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Monday

  Morning

  O h, it was a short night for the men, and everyone was paying for it. Greyson and Dimitri didn’t get to bed. Instead, they sat up working on the case while Emma slept. Today, they were going to get some interviews in to work on the case.

  What worried Greyson was how Emma was going to take Sam wanting Dimitri as his parent and not her.

  Then he was thinking about the pregnancy test.

  Then he was thinking about Christ and Commissioner Raye.

  Yeah, his mind was a mess.

  Croft needed to focus.

  When his wife came downstairs, she was pulling on her blazer. She looked put together, and he knew she’d been up for a while.

  “Hello, my beautiful wife.”

  She smiled at him. “Why are you eating bacon, Greyson?” she asked, not even missing a beat.

  “You said we might be pregnant.”

  “I said might. That means the detox continues,” she stated. “That’s full of nitrites and cholesterol.”

  “I had a rough night.”

  Here it came.

  “Where did you go?” she asked, hoping he wasn’t going to say something that upset her. It was a good day. Curtis was off on his honeymoon with Kat, the case was technically closed, minus her desire to find the killer for the Harding family, and she might be pregnant.

  “Sam ran away last night.”

  “WHAT?” she blurted. “Why didn’t you wake me up?” she asked, putting her coffee cup down. “I would have searched for him! I’m going to adopt him. I need too…”

  He cut her off.

  “We found him in the desert tangling with some coyotes. Dimitri and I handled it.”

  She sat. “I’m going to ground him until he’s as old as Curtis.”

  He laughed because he had said the same thing last night when they returned home.

  “Well, I have more bad news.”

  “What?”

  “He doesn’t want you and I to adopt him.”

  She stared at him. “And today was a good day up to three minutes ago. Why doesn’t he want me to be his mother? What did I do to him?”

  Here was the tap dance.

  Already, she looked like she was about to cry.

  “He’s been burned before, Emma. He had a good home where they had a baby and sent him away. He knows we’re trying to get pregnant.”

  Yep, here came the tears. She knew he felt that way, but she didn’t think it would exclude her from the opportunity.

  “I’d never send him away.”

  Greyson pulled her into his lap. “Listen to me. This can’t be about us. He’s a ten-year-old who has emotional scars we can’t even begin to fathom. When you were damaged, did you want people pushing you?”

  “No.”

  “Sam is old enough to decide, and he doesn’t want us to be his parents.”

  “So he’s leaving?” she asked, wiping her eyes. “He wants to go away?”

  “No.”

  “I don’t understand,” Emma stated. “He doesn’t want to be adopted, but he wants to stay?”

  “He wants Dimitri to adopt him.”

  She stared at him.

  Surely, she didn’t hear that right.

  Did he just say…?

  “Repeat that?”

  “Dimitri is the one he wants, and he asked him to be his father.”

  Emma didn’t know what to say.

  This was a twist she hadn’t seen coming.

  “And he said?”

  “Yes.”

  Taking Greyson’s advice, Emma put her feelings aside. This was about Sam.

  Oh, and Dimitri.

  She really loved that man. In that moment, she knew that they had really picked a good person to be part of their family.

  “Where is he?”

  “He’s heading here now. He was running patrol around the perimeter.”

  Greyson was worried.

  “Are you okay with all of this?”

  “Yes, I am. As long as Sam has a family, that’s all that matters. Dimitri did a good job with his sisters. He knows how to do it. We need a smaller model, so we can learn how to screw it up,” she stated.

  “Speaking of a B.A.B.Y…when are you going to take the test?”

  “Why are you spelling it?”

  “I don’t want to jinx it.”

  She snorted and shook her head. “I’m taking it this morning. I’m going to head out and get one. I figured I could swing by the pharmacy…”

  “Not alone.”

  She laughed. “Oh, do you want to come?”

  “I was going to head to Tony Mays’s house, and you aren’t coming.”

  Emma stared at her husband. “Why am I not coming?” she asked, crossing her arms in displeasure.

  “I want you to head to Tiffany Harding’s house. We’re going to play divide and conquer. If you ask her questions, maybe take some pictures of Mays’s bodyguards, she might have seen some around her house.”

  He had a point.

  “Plus, you’re a woman, and you’ll relate to her better.”

  Emma knew that was total bullshit. She’d been a cop. She could relate to a homeless person if need be.

  It had been her day job.

  The family began entering the room.

  “Hey, fam,” stated Dante, dropping a kiss onto the top of Emma’s head. “What’s up for today?” he asked.

  Steele poured them both coffee and carefully carried them to the table. He was working on physical therapy for his hands, and it was showing improvement.

  He didn’t spill any.

  He sat in the booth and Dante dropped his arm around his shoulders.

  “Steele, you and your boy toy are heading into the office to do some work.”

  Dante snorted. “Like that offends me. I’ll be his boy toy any day.”

  Steele gave him a kiss. “That’s the best gift ever.”

  Dante wiggled his eyebrows. While Steele might not be into physical contact, at least Dante had his heart. Sex was just sex. He’d choose love any day.

  “Well, boy toy, I need you to put your feelers out. Are there any hitmen talking about offing Mays and Dalton Harding?”

  “Don’t you think Mays took out Harding?”

  Emma shook her head. “No. We think Harding found something out, and Mays was the original target. It was his warehouse, his accountant, and then him.”

  “Good point. I’ll make the millions. You find the killers,” he offered.

  “Yeah, and you have a wedding to
finish planning,” Emma stated. “Right?”

  With Steele, it was a crapshoot.

  He could cancel at any moment. All they could hope was with Paris Archer’s therapy, he’d stick around.

  Or Dante was going to freak the hell out.

  “Yes, we do,” Steele reassured, giving his fiancé a kiss.

  That made everyone happy.

  Before anyone could continue, the gate alarm went off.

  Speaking of Paris Archer… they had arrived.

  They waited for him to wheel into the kitchen, Tessa in his lap. She looked a little better than she had, and Emma knew that under no circumstances was she going to tell Tessa that she might be having a baby.

  NONE.

  That would be cataclysmic, and she knew it.

  “Paris, we were just breaking down our plans for today. Are you free?” Greyson asked.

  “I have an appointment this afternoon at the hospital, but I’m free right now,” he offered. “What do you need?”

  “How was your talk with Sam?”

  Paris went serious. “He’s got some issues, Greyson. The boy has more emotional scars than he’s letting on. He’s hoarding food, hurting himself, and needs help.”

  Greyson pointed at Dante. “Whatever Paris needs to help Sam, pay for it. If the boy needs a freaking pony, buy it.”

  “I would like a pony,” Emma stated.

  Greyson laughed. “No. You have family. We’re not getting two ponies.”

  Dante got it.

  “Can you actually help him?” Greyson asked, getting serious, and fast.

  “He needs stability. He needs to learn how to be a person. He’s been ignored, tossed around, and disposed of in an alley.”

  “It hurts,” stated Tessa.

  She’d been abandoned on the side of a road in a garbage bag as a child. She knew.

  “He’s going to need a family.”

  “I’ll be his family,” stated Dimitri from the doorway. “I won’t let him get hurt.”

  Greyson let them in on all of the news. “Sam asked Dimitri to adopt him.”

  Dante whistled. “Daddy Dearest round three.”

  Dimitri had time to let it sink in, and it wasn’t as hard as he thought to accept it. “I could use more help in the business.”

  Emma got up from her husband’s lap and headed his way. She hugged him so hard, he couldn’t breathe.