“Fuck.” Zane wraps his knuckles on the wall as he starts down the stairs once again. “Shane isn’t answering his phone. We need to find him. He’ll tell us where his cousin is.”
***
As it turns out, Shane isn’t so hard to find. Jesse tells us he’s at Halo, the bar the Brotherhood and the Damage Boyz favor of late, playing pool with Micah who has his day off.
Indeed Shane’s there, looking slightly disheveled, his long, dark hair unbound and draped on his back like silk. He turns to look at us when Micah taps him on the shoulder, and for a moment I think I see Seth’s face.
But no, Shane’s face is finer, his eyes more widely set. Seth’s is more roughly hewn, the jaw more square.
Beautiful.
God, I need to see him. See that he’s okay.
“Whatcha want?” Shane slurs, and nice, he’s drunk. He’s a cute drunk. Relaxed, grinning, quite unlike his usual scowling self.
Wish I was relaxed myself to enjoy this.
“We’re looking for Seth,” Zane says.
His grin falls. “Saw him yesterday.” He puts his cue down. “Went by his place. Haven’t seen him since.”
“Well, his landlord threw him out,” I say, “and his phone isn’t answering, so if you have any idea of where he might be…”
“Threw him out?” He blinks, cocks his head to the side. “What the fuck?”
Rafe’s fists tighten. “Tell me about it. We can’t find him, and none of us know where he is. Do you?”
“Jesus. I don’t…” Shane leans back against the pool table, his cheekbones flushed. “I punched him.”
“You what?” My hands curl. I’m ready to punch him back. “Why?”
“For telling you guys about us. About our rap sheet.”
“Seth didn’t tel
l me about it,” Zane says. “Rafe found out by chance when he went looking for a job for Seth.”
“Oh hell.” Shane hangs his head, dark hair curtaining his face. “He tried telling me that. Shit. I should’ve known, but I was too pissed off.”
“Known what?”
He grunts. “Seth. He’s always looked out for me, since we were kids. I made him promise he wouldn’t tell you. He’d never break his promise. Dammit.”
“Help us find him and you can tell him that,” I say.
He turns to me. “He’s not with you?”
“Jesus, does drinking affect your hearing?” Anger makes me tremble. “We don’t know where he is.”
“Where would he go?” Rafe grabs Shane’s shoulder and shakes him. “Where, Shane?”
He shudders. “There’s this alley where we used to sleep when it got cold. Not far from State Street. I’ll take you there.”
“Good,” Rafe says and hauls him away from the pool table. He nods at Micah who’s watching us wide-eyed. “Come on. Let’s go get Seth.”
***
“Fucker, tell me this,” Zane says as we head down the avenue, looking for the alley where Shane is taking us. “What’s the truth? Did Seth do it, did he deal drugs?”