Firefly Lane (Briar County 1)

The way he saw it, folks should stick together like that.

Roe got out of his truck and made his way toward the cabin. It would be rude not to say hello.

“Evenin’.” He adjusted his baseball cap, turning it backward.

“I know I shouldn’t be smokin’. I had quit, ya know? Then everything with Adam, and, well…I’m not gonna keep at it. I gotta be healthy for Sean, and it’s a money suck, but I need something to keep my hands busy.”

She broke Roe’s heart. He couldn’t imagine what she was going through. “I’m the last one to judge you about anything. You need to smoke? Smoke. You’ll quit again when you’re ready.”

“Thanks, Monroe. You’re… I don’t know why you’re so nice to me. Not after what Adam did. He said you accused him of stealing, but he didn’t do it. I don’t believe that, though. I think he stole from you, and you still let Sean and me live here.”

He didn’t want to confirm or deny it. What was the use? It would only make Marilee feel bad, so he just said, “Even if he had, that has nothing to do with you. I don’t think people should suffer for others’ mistakes.”

She took a shaky drag of her cigarette. He wondered how rough things really were for them, if they had bills they were struggling to pay. He wouldn’t ask, of course; it wasn’t his business. Marilee worked her ass off at Bunny’s General Store, picking up all the extra hours she could, but raising a kid wasn’t easy, especially doing it alone.

“I lost everything for him…everyone.” Her voice cracked, but then she shook her head. “Sorry. You don’t want to listen to the crazy lady next door whine about her dumb decisions.”

Truth be told, Roe wasn’t the best at this kind of thing unless it was with Lindsey, but still, he said, “I don’t mind.” And since she’d opened the can of worms, he asked, “You and Sean don’t have any other family?”

“Yes and no. My parents were—are—I don’t even know if they’re alive, but they were real pieces of work. I got an older brother, Holden, but I haven’t spoken to him in a long time. I’m not exactly sure where he’s living. He’s a pilot, doesn’t stay in one place too long.”

He sounded like an asshole if he wasn’t there for his family—his sister, especially, if they couldn’t count on their parents.

She took another drag before putting the cigarette out in a can on the porch. “I thought about calling him, ya know? But, what would I say? Oh, hey, it’s the sister you spent your life trying to take care of, the one you did your damnedest to protect. Remember me? I cut ties with you because I thought I was in love and wanted to make my husband happy.”

So it hadn’t been the brother’s doing. That made Roe more comfortable in saying, “You should call him. I bet he’ll understand more than you think. You said he was the kind of brother who wanted to protect you.”

Fuck, his heart went out to her even more—bad parents and a shitty husband.

“It’s embarrassing—Jesus, so is this. I can’t believe I’m telling you my whole life story. I don’t have…I don’t have a lot of friends. Adam…how could I let him do that to me? I didn’t see it at the time, the way he wanted me to have nothing but him.”

Roe shuffled uncomfortably, not sure what to do or say. Marilee swiped at the tears running down her face.

“Ignore me. I’m just feeling sorry for myself. I’ll let’cha head home now.” She stood and got to the door before Roe spoke.

“You need anything, you can come to me, okay? You and Sean both, but…call him, your brother. If you were my sister, I’d be worried sick and I’d want to know.”

She nodded, but Roe wasn’t sure she’d follow through. Marilee slipped into the cabin, and he heard the lock click behind her.

He turned and headed for his house, the motion lights coming on as he passed between the two buildings. He’d talk to Linds tomorrow, see if maybe she could invite Marilee out for coffee or something. No one deserved to feel alone.

CHAPTER TWO

Holden

“Ladies and gentlemen, this is your captain speaking. We’re making our final descent into Atlanta. The local time is three oh five p.m., with clear skies and eighty-five degrees.”

Holden didn’t have to think anymore when it came to any of this. He finished his standard speech, continued their descent and landed the plane, just as if he were simply showering or cooking Top Ramen. It didn’t require much thought at this point, which he guessed was a good thing. The alternative meant something was wrong, and that was the last thing a pilot ever wanted.

He stood at the cockpit door, thanking passengers as they walked by. He’d always loved flying. When he was a kid, he thought it represented freedom—being up in the air where none of the shit from his daily life could bother him. Where he didn’t have an asshole dad who would get drunk and call his mama names, a dad he frequently went head-to-head with, trying to get the other man to take his anger out on him rather than his mom or his little sister.