“That's below the belt,” says Wild Child.
“Am I wrong?”
“This is crazier. You expect us to go to a press conference? The cops will be all over us.” King throws his hands out in frustration. “We'll move the fucking heavens and earth for ya, but we're not going to let you do something stupid. Not again.”
“Except, it's Dad who's the guilty one. He's the one who kidnapped me. Most recently, at least. I'm with you guys voluntarily. No one can prosecute you for that. Dad will be so busy backtracking that he won't have time to think about you. I just need you to support me, because without you, this can't work.”
Wild Child shakes his head. “We only just got you back. Why would they believe you instead of him?”
“Because he's already lied about me several times, and I can prove that by being alive. I will accuse him of kidnapping. And I'll accuse him of beating me.” I pull up my sleeve to show off my fresh bruises. King growls at the sight, while Mom gasps. I don't know why she's surprised. She was there.
“He'll have you picked up and locked away before you can say shit.” Hero crosses his arms over his chest and glowers down at me. Even a few days ago, that would've had me terrified of him, but not now. Not this time.
“That's why you guys have to come with me. We're going to make an entrance no one can ignore, and Dad's going to get so much freaking truth thrown at him that he'll never run for office again.”
“If I get close enough, I'll break his legs to make sure he doesn't run anywhere ever again,” grumbles King.
Eagle-eye lets out a long sigh. Jupiter runs over to him, tail wagging. “I don't like this. It's trouble.”
Hero swipes his hand in my direction. “I don't know if you noticed, but I'm pretty sure her middle name is trouble. Has been since she got here.”
“How do we get into the conference?” asks King. At least now he's starting to accept this is going to happen. “They're not going to let in just anyone.”
Mom stands up. She runs a hand tenderly over her wrist and lower arm. “They'll let in his wife, though.”
“Really?” I have to admit I kind of figured she might sit this one out, like she usually does. Her whole history is keeping to the background and letting Dad do pretty much whatever he wants. Troublemakers don't get Versace dresses and luxury spa weekends, only bruises.
She lets out a brief sigh as she straightens her top. There's a determination in her expression I'm not sure I've seen before. “I've been passive all my life. I let Kurt mistreat me, and even worse, I let him mistreat you. I don't expect you to forgive me, but it's about time I try to act like a mother. Before, I never saw any possibility of changing anything, but now? I'm just embarrassed that I had to learn it from you, rather than be the one to teach. If you don't have enough bruises to convince them, I've got several of my own.”
I choke up a little. I mean, does it make up for years of letting Dad act like he did? Of course not. But it's a start, and maybe we can go somewhere from here. And I'll take all the help I can get.
“Then we should get ourselves down to the city hall.” King nods to Hero and Wild Child. “Ready up.”
Eagle-eye pushes himself out of his chair, leaving Jupiter to jump up into the warm spot he left behind and curl up. “We're all going. You're going to need all the backup you can get. If we can knock Hawthorne off his peg, then we should do it, and before he throws his whole force at us again.”
Wild Child grins. “Fuck yeah.”
Okay, now I'm choking up a lot. “You're all coming?”
“Every single fucking one. Let's finish this once and for all.”
A shiver of excitement runs through me. After all I've been through, it's finally going to end.
One way or another.
42
EMILY
King takes the lead, with me clinging to him on the back of his bike. I've ridden behind all three of them now. Does that make me their old lady? I should ask later, but I hope so. Rough as they are, no one has ever supported me like they do, or made me feel so special, even when they're not rocking my world in one of their rooms. I don't ever want to let them go.
Next to King rides Eagle-eye, with Mom on the back. Either she got over her fears during the wild ride last night, or she's more daring than I imagined, because while I'm still working on getting comfortable with having a rumbling monster between my legs—the bike, not King, in this case—she seems already at ease, her arms casually around Eagle-eye's waist and her expression thrilled. Maybe she's just that excited to finally deal with Dad. I know I am.