The Beginning (The Life 1)

At first, the old man didn’t realize what brought it on. I never shared Sophia’s past with him or anyone else. But since he knew I was trying to take our family business legit and, more importantly, that I was doing it for my kids, he brought it to my attention. It was from those conversations that I learned to focus even more on my boy, and that, along with some other things, led me to the realization that he knew of that horror.

Even Lance, who I have no doubt is his very best friend, knows nothing about it. He’s never uttered a word to anyone, which made me even more afraid of what he was thinking. It’s only as he got older and started pulling away that I really started to worry. As a son with a mother that I would slit my wrist for, I understand his anguish. But as a father who would die to protect his son, I can’t let him do what he wants here.

I’ve been piecing together his thought process through spying and other less ethical routes, and I make no apology for that shit. So now I’m caught between a rock and a hard place. Do I let my boy exact revenge and live with that shit for the rest of his life? Or do I step in and take care of the situation on my own?

I could’ve done it, should’ve done it a long time ago, but there’s one thing stopping me. I can’t find her father. She has no idea that I’ve been looking or that I know she cries herself to sleep some nights over his loss. I can’t go to war with this asshole in a foreign land until I bring him out of there. It’s been years with no trace of his whereabouts, and no matter how much money I spend, I’ve found nothing.

Now it looks like I’m in a race against the clock. Find the old man and get to the scum before my son graduates. I know Gabe well enough to follow his thought process without having to be told. The fact that I have eyes and ears on him helps with that as well. I wasn’t expecting this latest wrinkle, though. How the fuck do I fix this without either of them getting hurt?

I laid there for the next hour trying to come up with something to sidetrack her because I know her too. Once she gets something in her teeth when it comes to our kids, it’s hell getting her to let go. That reminds me of the call I made earlier for the girls. She’d hounded me half to death about making the call before doing anything else like it was a matter of life or death. Then again, she’s that way with everything where the kids are concerned.

GABRIEL

Why am I so worried about her? Nothing I’ve seen warrants this level of unease, but all morning my mind kept going to her, and whatever it is that’s going on with her. It’s not like I need a distraction from my own shit, but hers seem to be hogging my brain. Since I never let anything interrupt my usual flow, it’s annoying, to say the least.

By the time the bell rang for lunch, my feet were headed in her direction. I ignored the stares and the whispers as people stepped out of my way. I wonder what it is about my aloof asshole persona that keeps these people hooked. The more I shun and ignore them, the more they clamor, especially the females; the males have their own malfunctions, which I could give a shit about.

She looked shocked to see me standing there, and for the first few seconds, I said nothing, just looked her over, not sure what the hell I was looking for. “Let’s go.” I took her hand in mine and got a shock of deja vu. This time I glared at those who stood around like they were at the movies or some shit.

In the cafeteria, there was even more of a stir since it had been years since I stepped foot in the place. Pop pays a shit ton for us to eat here, but I’ve conditioned myself to eat at my own command and now when the bell dictates. Yes, I’m that guy. I go out of my way to let it be known that I want nothing to do with my peers. There’s no point in forming bonds with people I have no interest in seeing again once we leave these walls.

She just stood there with her head down as if she didn’t know what to do with herself. “Aren’t you getting lunch?”

“Oh…yeah…sure.” She walked to the table, and I stood to the side watching while she chose rabbit food for lunch. The good thing about my attitude is that people knew not to question me when I took her to my grade’s side of the room and not hers. The only one brave enough to join us was Lance, who was smiling like he won something. What an ass.