3

Iexpected Jasmin and Jule to be waiting for me, but I hadn't anticipated them to be dressed up like gangsters about to dash the streets in some poetic justice rampage.

"There were sirens," Jule explains. "Sirens."

Jasmin crosses the room and hugs me. "I didn't even know they would still respond to a call." She lets me go and takes a seat on one of the beds. The window is still open and the rain trickles in.

"Word on the street is they saw a gun in the hands of Justice." Noah's voice rings through the rain as he drops his feet to the ground with a loud thump. He'd climbed in through the window and is soaking, his gray t-shirt drenched.

Fuck, gossip in this city spreads faster than a forest fire. I grimace and my brother smiles unrepentantly. I cross my hands over my chest and Noah comes toward me.

My eyes are still shooting daggers at Jule from across the room when Noah pulls me into his arms. "I heard a lady say she didn't see a gun, she saw hope, and called the cops."

My brother chortles. "There, you see? You owe me, Nik."

"You shut up, Julius. Do you have any idea how dangerous that thing is? I don't kill people… I report."

Noah takes hold of my shoulders, which are trembling with pent-up rage. More than anything, I wonder how Jule got his hands on a weapon at all. Oh, God, I hope he didn't steal it!

"That gun saved your life, Justice."

"No," I scoff. "The siren did."

"Actually," Jule pipes in. "It was the gun that caused the sirens to be called."

"Whatever." Jasmin raises her hands, exasperated, then glances out the window. She squeezes Jule's shoulder, a sisterly warning to shut up already. "The point is, she's alive. Now, what happened out there?"

Noah kisses my temple lightly as he lets go and moves to hug my back against his chest. He holds on to my waist, one hand on my hip, and crushes me tighter to him. I feel the heat of his breath near my ear and can't help but wonder if this is how it would feel if that rookie cop were holding on to me.

Noah is three years older than me; he's tall, strong, quick on his feet, and even quicker with a weapon at hand. He keeps his chestnut-colored hair at chin's length, and I rarely ever see him without facial hair. I know he shaves though, like today his beard is more or less a shadow across his cheeks, upper lip, and chin.

I hadn't seen Noah in over a week, which is why he holds me so closely. I wonder if anyone else notices how tight he's holding me, or how he grazes my temple gently with his lips. I shudder in his grip. I don't want his hands on me; the proximity is suffocating. On instinct, I reach for my mother's charm bracelet. I twirl and count each charm quickly and then ignore my insides screaming at me and clear my throat. "I saw Vork."

A collection of gasps from the three people surrounding me makes my skin crawl. In fact, the reason it'd taken me so long to get back was because I was obsessed over the images I'd recorded. I slowed the film and froze it on Vork's face, wishing I could have shot him. But my parents taught me better, and I wanted him to rot in prison. He'd make a dashing girlfriend for the inmates.

I wriggle in Noah's arms, unable to hold back the feeling of suffocation. I walk to the dresser for my camera and take off my drenched sweater, then throw it over the hissing radiator. I sigh. "I got him on camera, Jule. I finally got this son of a bitch."

Jule's eyes focus on my hands, and he approaches me slowly. His lips quiver. "We got him, Nik."

Across from my brother and me, Noah tenses, and I know what he's thinking. So many times he'd already told me what Piper had an hour ago: that it was too dangerous to hope to land Vork, and that he most likely was working for someone higher. That I should stick to reporting the news and not risk my life by uploading any dirt on Vork and his bandits. I guess he hoped I wouldn't get the opportunity to find the evidence I needed. Yet here it was, already in my hands.

But it wasn't like me to break promises, and I intended to further press Piper and convince her that we should leak this new footage. Now I just had to break the news to Jule. His gaze is locked on my camera as I plug it into the nearest outlet and signal him to sit next to me on the floor.

Jule's back collapses against the wall and he slides down next to me, our shoulders touching, and he leans into me.

"Show me."

"Justice, I don't really think that's the best thing for you—"

I silence Noah's protest with a glare. "Jule has the right to see the man who killed our parents."

Jasmin sits at the edge of my bed, watching us closely. I know from the look in her sad, tired, and bloodshot brown eyes that she agrees. Noah scoffs under his breath and resigns by crossing his arms across his chest. I turn on the camera and play the footage for my brother.

The sound is as bad as I dreaded with my harsh breaths, thunder, and loud rainfall–the distant voices are muffled. Still, it's way better than anything else I've managed to get in the past with my cheap cameras, yet it would've been better if there'd been no rain. When Vork comes into view, my brother goes rigid beside me. He holds his breath and grips my fingers. He squeezes so hard I think he might break them.

Once the footage is done, he lets go of the camera. So much unlike me. If I were in his place, I wouldn't be able to let go. I'm relieved, though, because I don't want him to flip forward and see the picture I took of my rookie cop.

Whoa. My rookie cop? Get a fucking grip.

"When can this go live on the blog?"

I inhale a deep breath and keep it in my lungs for a long while before breathing out. "I can't do that just yet, Jule."

My eyes stare at the camera in disbelief. I can't believe I managed to sputter the words out loud. My brother stands up frantically, his hands balled into fists. "Why the hell not?"

From under my lashes, I peer up at Noah. He's smiling and looks relieved. I roll my eyes at him; he's never seen eye-to-eye with me regarding Vork. Whatever, fuck Noah. I'm desperate to explain things to Jule before he storms out of the room and does something stupid. So I stand, leave the camera on the floor, and grip my brother's arms, giant in comparison to mine.

"Try to understand. You didn't witness what Piper and I discussed because I shut off the camera—"

"Who the fuck is Piper?"

I ignore my little brother's outburst and inhale sharply before I lose it. I have to be the calm one, the responsible one. He shakes me off of him and angrily slides his hands over his stubble-filled face, then through his short hair.

Did he actually think I would let this man go so easily? Jule wasn't there to witness how my parents were taken from us; he didn't have this enclosed and restricted rage ready to explode on just about anyone who tried to stop me. I wanted to kill Vork with my bare hands. He has no idea how much it took for me not to empty my birthday present into him. Mom and Dad wouldn't have wanted that.

"Piper is the redhead from the footage, the other one is Macy: they're sisters. Piper won't let me expose Vork, says he isn't the source. Getting rid of him will pry open Pandora's box."

Jule snorts. "So you're gonna let this tramp decide how we expose this … monster!"

It wasn't a question. Jule is enraged, and he flails his arms, drawing attention to his anger directed at me. He feels betrayed.

Jasmin's calm voice sighs behind him. "This girl, Piper… she's right, though. Assuming that Vork is the mastermind of the pack is giving him way too much credit."

"I don't give a damn. I'm not looking to enlighten anyone: I'm looking to settle a score. Even if it brings on more shit, at least we'll be rid of one problem."

I have to admit that what Jule says makes sense. If, in fact, there is someone higher in ranks than Vork, then we have more than just one issue. But in getting rid of Vork, we would have less to worry about, right? And after the footage leaks, we would be presented with that other issue and therefore given a chance to resolve what's exposed.

"My plan isn't to just delete this and forget about it. I want to convince Piper to let me show it. Her sister is underage, and if I expose her circumstances, Piper threatened to have me arrested."

"Slut has a brain. How convenient."

"Watch your mouth, Julius! Ask yourself what Mom was doing before she met our father and see how comfortable you feel with the name-calling."

I'm the angry one now. My control is lost to the abyss of seeing Vork after so many years. That and the reality of my mother having once been in Piper's shoes. She'd proven to be the best wife and mother to us. My father never wanted her to regret her choices because she'd done what she needed to do in order to survive in her hell. Jule knew better than to judge the sex workers in the video and he responded by lowering his head.

Jule nods suddenly. "You're right, Nik. I'm sorry." His hands go to a simple silver cross around his neck. It belonged to my mother, and he grips it, squeezing his eyes shut.

I approach him and gently pat his muscled bicep. "I understand your anger, trust me, little brother. Piper is just afraid."

My hand falls to my side, and he opens his eyes, then gives me one solemn nod. I look at Noah, who's leaning against a wall, his arms still crossed. Jasmin sits on the edge of one of the small beds. She rolls her eyes at Noah and hugs herself.

"Piper works alone, with no procurer to manage her actions or money. This tells me she is smart. She also genuinely cares for her younger sister. I think if I use the right words, and perhaps offer some sort of protection, I can convince her to help me trap Vork."

"I want to help," Jule stresses, his voice cracking.

Jasmin nods. "I'll do whatever you need, you know that."

I smile at my best friend, who is more like a sister. She'd lost her mom when she was eight, and my mother took her in and we grew up like siblings. We lived in one of the neediest counties, but we were lucky to have had such great parents who worked their asses off to buy a small trailer. We still resided there now, and it's our home. Many of our neighbors struggle to keep up with plot rent, maintenance, and all other utilities, but we're lucky. Jas and I had been working since we lost my parents and we were surviving this hell just fine.

Noah cocks his head. "You know I got your back, Justice. Always have, always will."

I smile at him. I've known him since we were two kids running around in our underwear while our moms washed our clothes in the river five miles into the woods. His father left when he was twelve, and he started working right away to help his mother come up with the money to pay off loan sharks.

We'd been dating for a couple of months now, mostly because I grew tired of constantly turning him down. Noah is handsome, strong, and adventurous, and he knows me. He loves me and I love him. Although our love is wildly disparate, I decided to give him a chance.

I'm not sure if it helps, but it feels nice when he holds me, kisses me, and whispers seductive suggestions in my ear regularly. I admit that I somewhat enjoy his company and expect his arms around me. It's easy to be in his arms, familiar. Sometimes he presses his hard cock against me and I'm positive I will let him fuck me soon. Suddenly, an unbidden rookie cop materializes in my daydream and he takes Noah's place.

Fuck.

Thankfully, my brother's voice interrupts the dream. "Alright, so let's do this. Let's go."

I laugh. "We can't go now, Jule."

"But we may lose them!"

"Settle down." I place my hand on his chest–his heart beats crazily against his ribcage. "I know where they're staying. We need to do this right if it's going to work. We need to give them some time to recover."

Jule nods. He'd cringed throughout the entire footage, surely at the sight of Macy's beaten body. I'm glad he agrees, and even more so, that he seems to understand. I sigh in relief and the release causes my stomach to growl.

"So, breakfast, anyone?" Noah laughs quietly.

Breakfast.

My eyes snap to the alarm clock on the broken-down bedside table across from me–it's five in the morning. The tense knots in my stomach loosen some at the thought of food. For days now, Jule, Jasmin, and I had been living on scraps and water. We could always count on water. But the trailer was empty of food. Crumbs had been licked off wrappers and the foot-long countertop.

I look at my brother, growing taller each day–his eyes glisten at the mention of breakfast, which is his favorite meal of the day. Jasmin swallows and stares at nothing.

"I'm sorry, Noah. We're out of food."

"Well, what kind of boyfriend would I be if I didn't take my girlfriend, her sister, and brother out to a birthday feast?"

I try to grin past the annoyance I don't want to feel and throw my arms around him. I look up and his chin grazes my forehead due to his height. "My birthday was yesterday."

Jule ignores me. "Where to?"

"How about we eat breakfast at the corner diner and what do we say…Vincent Tavern for dinner?"

I hear Jasmin rise from the bed and my brother's heavy footsteps approach us.

Jule gapes at Noah. "Vincent Tavern… no one goes to VT's."

"That's because no one here can afford it. I've been putting in extra hours, which is why you haven't seen much of me," Noah explains.

He lets me go to hold my hand and now stands beside me. The last time I enjoyed a birthday dinner that was somewhat fancy was when my parents lived. They always saved up for birthdays. I, on the other hand, could do with fewer celebrations. Jas and Jule understood. There were other more important expenses, and we were disciplined enough to not break our budget.

Jule had been risking his ass by hauling water from the river, and that was forbidden. I cautioned him to only take amounts he could carry alone and not force himself to bring larger loads.

I'm a penny counter. Precisely why I forbade Jasmin from buying me such an expensive camera, but she, of course, does what she wants.

"I suggest we wear our best clothes."

Both Jasmin and Jule brighten and begin to gather our things. They're out the door before I can retract the charger from the power outlet. I leave the camera on the counter to put my sweater back on and don't notice Noah flipping through the images.

"Why'd you snap a photo of a cop?"

"Oh, I don't know." I tug the sweater over my face and shrug. "I actually used it to zoom in. I found it strange to see cops respond to a call, and I was curious."

Noah nods and sets the camera back down. His expression is serious. "He's new–Detective Dylan Montreal. Transferred about a month ago."

I'm not surprised Noah knows who the rookie is–he's been arrested various times for petty law-breaking habits, fighting with the men who abuse the sex workers' time, and disgruntled arguments with loan sharks.

A somber guilt I've never felt before travels up my starving gut and squeezes my chest to where it becomes difficult and even painful to breathe. Noah isn't only my boyfriend, but my best friend. He knows me so well, and I can't help feeling he understands exactly why I took the photo–because I fancy the handsome rookie enough to have his image among my stash.

Noah deserves better than my half-assed attempts to be his girlfriend, so I reach for the camera and erase the image. I barely even allow myself to stare at it again.

"It isn't important." I raise the camera and quickly snap a photo of Noah smiling at me.

He blinks away the blinding flash and I giggle, then tuck the Pentax into my bag. I rush to him, wrap my arms around his neck to bring him lower, and kiss him in a way I never have before.