20. Gage

20

GAGE

G age walked into the garage on high alert. He let the fury in his chest have free rein as he prepared to face his uncles.

They hurt Thea.

They lied.

Hadley isn't safe.

All the reasons he needed to keep a clear head and play the part were fighting for his headspace. His fists clenched and flexed at his sides as he shoved open the metal door, letting it slam into the wall.

Hitting something felt good when his hands were figuratively tied.

The garage was littered with half-disassembled car parts, but there wasn't any sign of life. Gage followed hushed voices to the storage room.

The waiting room had been converted into storage space years ago. Tires were stacked on one side, and a few metal chairs were bolted to the floor. Cain sat in one of the chairs with his arm draped over the back of the one beside him. Bruce and Tommy stood in the middle of the room with their arms crossed over their chests.

Their hushed voices were silenced now. If Gage had a chance of getting in on the conversation, it was gone now.

Gage adopted the same stance as his uncles. "What's the plan?"

Bruce huffed. "You decide to show up for work?"

"No one else around here does," Gage said without a trace of guilt.

Tommy didn't rise to the bait. Instead, he jerked his chin toward the door. "Bay three needs new tires."

Gage turned and walked out. His family was pulling away more and more, and any chance he had of finding out their plans for Thea was dwindling.

Having a task to occupy his thoughts was welcome, but changing tires was monotonous and basic. The work did nothing to keep his mind off the coming storm.

Bruce and Cain finally shuffled into the garage and at least pretended to work on the Chevy in the next bay. They were too stupid to figure out how to fix most things and too prideful to ask for help. Ninety percent of the time, the vehicles sat in the garage until Gage came in and finished the job.

A text vibrated the phone in his pocket.

Brett: Incoming.

That was Gage's cue to leave. If Gage was around for the talk, his family would find out that he knew Thea came back, and he had to keep that upper hand until he could leverage it to his advantage.

Gage stood from where he'd been crouched by the car and wiped his hands on a rag. Bruce and Cain didn't look up as he walked by. Gage stopped just inside the hallway leading to the offices and left the door slightly ajar. Keeping an eye out for Tommy, he settled in to listen to the conversation between Brett and Bruce.

Would it be a conversation or a fight? Bruce flat-out killed Brett's dad, and Gage hadn't seen a single flicker of remorse in the man. Bruce could just as easily do the same to Brett.

Gage's heart hammered in his chest when he heard the rumble of an engine outside. Few people just showed up at the garage since the Howards' customers were mostly acquaintances. Bruce and Cain looked up from where their heads had been bent under the hood of the Chevy.

"You expecting someone?" Cain asked.

Bruce didn't respond. His stare remained locked on the truck parking in the lot until Brett stepped out .

Cain straightened his shoulders. "What's he doing here?"

Keeping a close eye on Brett, Gage positioned himself where he could see Bruce and Cain. They were the wild cards. Cain moved to the tool bench where a pistol lay on the surface. Wrapping his hand around it, he slowly brought it to his side.

Gage reached behind him for the gun holstered at his own waist. If he had to use the weapon today, who would be in his sights?

Brett raised his hands as he approached. "I'm not here to cause trouble. I just want to talk."

Bruce looked Brett up and down, taking way longer than necessary to respond. "Talk."

"I want to put all this fighting behind us. We've both taken our shots, and I'm asking you, man-to-man, if we can bury the hatchet."

To Brett's credit, he held his ground well and seemed confident and calm. If only Gage could channel some of that ease.

When Bruce didn't respond, Cain laughed. "Yeah, that's not gonna happen. We don't take orders from a Patton."

"I'm not your enemy," Brett said. "We've both lost people in this fight, and it's not getting us anywhere. I don't want this life for any of us, but Thea doesn't deserve any of it. I'm willing to forget what you did to her, at her request, because she needs to be able to go outside without worrying. If you have any problems, take it up with me."

"I don't know what you're talking about," Bruce said.

Brett crossed his arms over his chest, bristling against the comment. "Let's cut the act. I know it was you. She's innocent in all this. If you touch her again, you won't be getting a nice visit from me."

Cain scoffed. "We're not afraid of you."

"As long as you keep your hands off Thea, you have no reason to fear me. I'm trying to save us both some trouble."

"Thea isn't our problem anymore," Bruce said.

Brett straightened his shoulders even more. "Thea isn't a problem. She's a person. Leave her out of this."

Bruce shrugged. "It was just a warning. She shouldn't have come back here. We're done with her, but we'll do whatever we have to to make sure she stays in her place."

"Enough," Brett demanded. "She's a lot more forgiving than I am, so take the mercy when you can get it."

"I don't need anything from you. Keep your mercy," Bruce said.

Brett held out his hands. "Thea and I are going to be together. You might as well get used to the idea. We'll leave you alone, and we expect the same. Take a minute, think it over, and let me know if we can be adults about this and move on."

Bruce spat tobacco onto the garage floor, leaving a dribble of brown spit on his chin. "I'll consider it."

Brett nodded and extended a piece of paper. "Let me know what you decide. This is my number."

Bruce took the paper and resumed his closed stance.

"Need me to show you the door?" Cain asked.

Brett rolled his eyes and turned to go. "I think I can find it."

Gage remained still as he watched Brett leave. Bruce and Cain stayed still too, waiting until Brett's truck was out of sight before turning to each other.

"We should'a killed him when we had the chance," Cain said.

"Did I tell you to do anything?" Bruce asked.

"No, but he came onto Howard land. He wants a fight."

"We're not fighting until I say," Bruce said, pointing to his chest. "I have to talk to Tommy."

Gage's fingers tingled as he fisted them at his sides. Feeling the crunch of Bruce's bones beneath his knuckles would ease some of the adrenaline coursing through his veins.

"She chose her side, and it wasn't ours. She's a traitor," Cain reminded Bruce.

Bruce waved his son off as he started toward the door Gage was hidden behind. Clenching his jaw, Gage moved down the hallway and slipped into the storage room. He ran his fingers down the stack of tires until he found the ones he needed. He was lifting the top tires off the stack as Bruce marched by the open door without noticing him.

Cain was right on Bruce's heels, following his leader like a loyal sidekick. Bruce spoke down the hallway, ordering Tommy into the office. Gage picked up two tires and moved to the door. The hallway was clear, meaning Tommy, Bruce, and Cain were all in the room together.

Shoot. He'd lost his chance to overhear whatever they were saying. How could he warn Brett if he wasn't in on the conversation?

No one else was in the building, so he was going to have to take a risk. Putting the tires down just inside the room, Gage stepped quietly down the hallway and stopped outside the office.

Gage listened close, but the voices were muffled. At least they weren't shouting. Shouting usually led to a carefully planned attack.

Cain spouted off a curse about Thea, and Bruce yelled at his son to shut up.

Okay. Now we were getting somewhere. If they kept the volume up, he might get an idea about what they were thinking.

"I'm not siding with a Patton. End of story," Tommy said .

"I say we go for it. It's the perfect time," Cain added.

Bruce was quiet for long seconds as Gage tried to steady his breathing. Despite his efforts to do the opposite, Brett might have just started a war.

"I'll call him," Tommy said.

Before anyone responded, Emerson rounded the corner and spotted Gage. Her eyes widened, and Gage quickly raised a finger to his lips and shook his head.

Emerson's brows furrowed as she crept toward him. She mouthed, "What are you doing?"

Gage jerked his head toward the storage room and pulled Emerson behind him, shutting them inside. "It's a long story, but I need you to find out what they're planning to do to Thea."

Emerson straightened her shoulders and propped her hands on her hips. "Thea's gone."

"Thea isn't gone. She's still here, and Brett just came by to talk to Bruce. He wanted to put an end to the fighting, but I can't let Tommy and Bruce know that I know Thea is here. They were talking about calling someone. Can you find out if it was Brett and what they're doing?"

Emerson looked Gage up and down. Her loyalty was to the Howards, but would she side with Thea or her dad? "Are you sure they're going to do something to Thea? "

"Pretty sure. Either that, or they're going after Brett, which means Thea is in danger too."

"How do you know?"

"Because they're together. Keep up."

"Why don't you just walk in there and ask what they're talking about?"

"They won't tell me. It's obvious they're trying to keep me out of this. They know I won't be okay with hurting Thea."

Emerson's jaw worked back and forth as she considered. "Are you working with Brett now?"

"Not necessarily, but we're both trying to protect Thea. Whose side are you on?"

Emerson linked her fingers on top of her head and blew out a deep breath. "You're gonna get us both killed."

"I wouldn't bet against me and Brett," Gage said. "Are you gonna help me or not?"

Shaking her head, Emerson tucked her chin. "I'll see what I can find out."

Gage rested a hand on Emerson's shoulder. "Hey, I won't let them hurt you either. You're doing the right thing."

Emerson rolled her eyes. "Like either of us knows anything about what's right. No matter which way we turn, our choices are varying degrees of wrong."

Gage shook his head. "Not this time. Trust me on this. "

Emerson turned to walk out, and Gage wished he knew how to pray to the God Hadley told him about. He'd never needed prayer more than now.