Freeing Zane (Barretti Security Series, Book 4)

by Sloane Kennedy

  “Yeah. I had a lot more of them but only managed to grab a few when Family Services took me back to our apartment to get my stuff. Those were my favorites.”

  “You should see if Ren needs help with his new business restoring cars. Even if it’s just for fun.”

  “Wouldn’t mind getting my own GTO someday,” Zane said. “Fire engine red with flames on the hood.”

  Connor smiled. Who would have guessed that Zane who nearly always dressed in suits and ties and spent his days in courtrooms would be a muscle car fanatic? “I bet we could have a lot of fun in that car.”

  He felt Zane’s body tighten beneath his at the innuendo and then he was being pushed down on the couch. Fucking Zane had opened up a whole new world of sexual exploration for them and as much as he loved being balls deep inside Zane and listening to him beg for more, Connor would always revel in the feeling of Zane’s hard body covering his completely.

  Zane’s fingers had just started reaching for the hem of Connor’s shirt when there was a knock at the door. “Fuck,” Zane muttered as he dropped his head on Connor’s chest.

  “Ray said he had to leave early today so maybe that’s his replacement,” Connor said as he let Zane pull him to a sitting position. He climbed to his feet as he watched Zane go to the door and answer it.

  ***

  “Mr. Devereaux, there are some kids out here who say they need to see you. Looks like they snuck past the front desk.”

  Zane hadn’t been pleased at the interruption but at Ray’s words, he opened the door wider and saw two kids standing behind the large man.

  “It’s okay,” Zane said as he opened the door all the way.

  The boy looked to be around fourteen or fifteen and had a mop of black hair and green eyes. He was on the skinny side but average height. His black jeans were loose on his lanky body and his brown coat was dirty and faded. He had on a pair of dark sneakers but Zane could see that the soles were worn and the canvas was frayed. A small black backpack was slung over his shoulder. He was holding the hand of a little girl with long blonde hair and Zane guessed she wasn’t more than four years old. Her clothes looked a little less worn than the boy’s but she was nearly drowning in the pink parka she was wearing. Her shoes had pink sparkles on them and some cartoon character that Zane didn’t recognize. While the boy looked him straight in the face, the girl had her eyes on the ground and her thumb in her mouth. She was also clutching some kind of stuffed animal that looked like it had never seen the inside of a washing machine.

  “You’re Mr. Devereaux?” the boy asked cautiously.

  “I am,” Zane said as he studied the pair.

  Ray had stepped back to his position along the wall and the boy’s eyes kept darting to him as if he was expecting Ray to reach out and grab him.

  “Um, we need a lawyer,” the kid said as he tugged the little girl closer to him.

  Zane sensed Connor’s presence behind him and he saw the kid step back when he saw Connor.

  “Okay,” Zane began as he tried to figure out what to say next. “What do you need a lawyer for?”

  “We need a lawyer to make it so me and Hannah can stay together,” the boy said.

  “Stay together? Are you brother and sister?” Zane asked.

  The kid nodded.

  “Who’s trying to split you up?”

  “Some people,” the boy said in frustration. “They said I’m going to go live with another family and Johnny’s going to take care of Hannah.”

  Realization dawned and a sick feeling overcame him. The kid was talking about being placed in foster care.

  “Who’s Johnny?” he heard Connor ask.

  “My mom’s boyfriend.”

  “Where is your mom?” Zane asked though he suspected the answer.

  “Dead.”

  “What’s your name?” Zane asked the boy.

  “Brennan.”

  “Brennan, you need a family lawyer. I can recommend someone-”

  “No!” Brennan shouted. “It has to be you. She said you were the best.” The kid was shaking so hard that his sister actually removed her finger from her mouth so she could wrap her arms around her brother’s leg.

  “Who did?” Connor asked gently, his voice low and soothing.

  “Our mother,” Brennan responded as he glanced at Connor before looking back at Zane. “She printed stories she found about you on the Internet. She kept telling Johnny how you were the best lawyer in the country…she said you saved someone’s life.”

  Zane was completely lost. There’d been enough stories about him getting Anthony Ferrera off death row to make headlines but he couldn’t image anyone outside of the legal community being interested enough to print out stories about him.

  “Brennan, what was your mom’s name?” Connor asked.

  “Selena. Selena Redding.”

  ***

  Connor heard Zane draw in a sharp breath and when he looked over at Zane, he was stunned to see a look of pure shock on the man’s face. His hand which had been resting against the door was now holding it so tightly that all the blood had rushed from it and his skin was deathly pale.

  “Do you know her?” Connor asked.

  Zane gave only a slight shake of his head but his eyes never left the kids standing in front of them. And he’d gone completely silent even as Brennan looked up at him expectantly, pleadingly.

  “Hey, you guys hungry?” Connor asked as he gently pushed Zane back a couple of steps to make room for the kids to enter. “Why don’t you come on in and we’ll fix you something to eat.”

  Brennan looked suspiciously at him and he could see him start to shake his head when the little girl, Hannah, tugged on her brother’s hand. He looked down at her and she nodded slowly. “Um, yeah, okay,” Brennan said as he glanced around and then entered the apartment, his sister in tow.

  They came to a stop inside the doorway but before Connor could close it, Zane pushed past him and began striding towards their bedroom. “Be back in a second,” he grated out.

  Connor stepped into the doorway and sought Ray out. “Ray, could you give me a hand for a second?”

  Ray nodded and stepped inside the apartment. Connor closed the door and said, “Ray, would you show Brennan and Hannah where the kitchen is and let them pick out something to drink?”

  The man glanced at him and then the direction Zane had stormed off in and nodded in understanding. He herded the kids towards the kitchen while Connor rushed to the bedroom. He found Zane in the attached master bathroom running his hands under the water spewing from the faucet. His face was already dripping wet. The naked pain in Zane’s eyes stole Connor’s breath.

  “You know them, don’t you?” Connor whispered as he pulled Zane back from the sink and ran a dry towel over his face. He made Zane sit on the closed toilet seat because he was shaking so hard that Connor feared he’d actually fall over.

  It took a long while for Zane to finally speak but Connor already had a pretty good idea of what he was going to say.

  “Selena Redding was my mother.”

  ***

  Zane actually had to drop his head between his knees because he was feeling lightheaded. Jesus, he had a brother AND a sister.

  Connor’s hand rubbing over his back did nothing to ease the shock levering through his system but when Conner lowered himself to his knees in front of him, he at least had something else to focus on.

  “Take deep breaths, okay,” Connor said as he stroked his thumb over Zane’s cheek.

  “She’s dead, Connor,” Zane said. It was insane that that was the first thought that had hit him when Brennan had said his mother’s name considering he’d thought little of his mother since she’d walked out of their lives. But there it was. She was gone. He’d never hear her voice again or see how she’d aged…or be able to ask what he’d done wrong that she didn’t love him enough to stay…or to come get him when he needed her most.

  “I’m sorry,” Connor whispered.

  “What the hell i
s happening?” Zane muttered as he ran his hands through his hair.

  “You said she was pregnant when you went into foster care.”

  Zane nodded. “That kid would be at least eighteen by now. No way that kid out there is eighteen.”

  “Zane, I know this is hard but you need to go out there and talk to them.”

  Zane was about to tell Connor there was no way he could spend even another second around those kids when he remembered the desperation in Brennan’s voice and the way he’d clung to his sister’s hand…their sister’s hand.

  “Um, I need a minute,” he said as he fought the urge to throw up. Today was supposed to have been the start of his whole new life…his life with Connor. He’d walked out of that hell hole of a job finally feeling completely free for the first time since his father died and now this.

  Connor brushed a kiss over his lips. “It’s going to be okay, Zane.”

  Zane managed a nod. “Don’t tell them who I am, okay?” He wasn’t looking at Connor when he made the request so he had no idea if Connor thought the decision was a good one or not but he heard Connor say okay before he left the bedroom.

  It took him almost fifteen minutes to get himself under control enough to go to the kitchen. He felt like he was holding on to his sanity by the thinnest of strings but seeing the two kids scarfing down pancakes at his kitchen table while Connor cooked another batch had him wanting to run back to the bathroom.

  “You want some?” Connor asked as he flipped a pancake. As much as he loved Connor’s specialty pancakes, no way could he eat anything. But his stomach knotted at the sight of the kids devouring bite after bite. They were sitting so close to one another that their chairs were touching and Brennan’s backpack was tucked between his feet, the strap wrapped around his ankle – probably to keep someone from stealing it. It made him wonder what the pair had been through for such a young boy to even think to do such a thing.

  Zane settled himself in a chair across from them and watched as Connor put another plate of pancakes down in front of the pair. Brennan filled Hannah’s plate first before his own. Connor turned the stove off and took the seat next to him and he was grateful when Connor’s hand sought his out under the table and held it.

  “Brennan, where do you guys live?” Connor asked.

  “Missouri,” Brennan said between bites. “Kansas City,” he added.

  “How did you get here?”

  Brennan seemed to hesitate before he finally said, “Bus mostly.”

  Mostly? God, what the hell did that mean?

  “We went to your office but the lady said you didn’t work there anymore. I told her it was an emergency and she told me where you lived.”

  Connor pulled Hannah’s empty plate back when she reached for her cup of milk. “Do you want me to make you some more, Hannah?” The little girl shook her head and slurped down the milk.

  Connor focused his attention on Brennan. “What happened to your mom?”

  “She drove her car into a tree,” Brennan said flatly. “Cops don’t know if it was an accident or not. No skid marks but she’d been drinking so they said it could go either way.”

  “Do you have any brothers or sisters besides Hannah?” Zane asked.

  “We used to have a brother but he and our Pa died a few years back. Pa was showing Cody how to fly his plane. Ma didn’t want them to go ‘cause it was real stormy that day but they went anyway. The plane crashed in a field when they were trying to land. That’s when Ma started drinking.”

  A combination of sadness and pity went through Zane for the half-brother he would never meet and the grief his mother must have felt to lose her child. But the second the thought registered, he shoved it away. His mother didn’t deserve his pity and she’d had no problem giving him up not just once, but twice. Fuck if he would waste any emotions on her.

  “Zane,” Connor said softly as he tightened his grip on Zane’s hand where they remained joined under the table.

  Zane shook himself from his morose thoughts and tried to send Connor a reassuring smile. But Connor’s worried gaze had Zane knowing he’d failed miserably.

  “You said your mother had a boyfriend,” Zane said as he focused on Brennan. God, the kid actually looked like him. How had he not seen it when he’d opened the door?

  “Johnny,” Brennan said, his eyes darkening.

  “Is he Hannah’s father?” Zane asked.

  Brennan shook his head. “He and Ma only met a few months ago.”

  Zane shifted his eyes to Connor and he could see the he was thinking the same thing. Why would a guy who’d been dating a woman for only a few months be interested in taking custody of her kids?

  “You said Family Services was trying to find you someplace else to live,” Connor said.

  “Johnny only wants Hannah.”

  “Why?” Zane asked.

  Brennan didn’t answer but he did glance down at Hannah who was leaning against him, her eyes half shut.

  “Hannah, honey, do you want to go into the living room and watch some cartoons?” Connor asked.

  Hannah looked at him and then glanced up at Brennan. She had yet to speak a word. Brennan looked back and forth between him and Connor and Zane could tell he was reluctant to let his sister out of his sight. Which didn’t bode well for what Brennan would likely tell him once the little girl was out of hearing range.

  “If we stand over there,” – Zane motioned to the part of the kitchen that had a view of the living room – “you’ll be able to see her the whole time.”

  Brennan hesitated for another moment and then finally nodded. “Go on,” he said to the little girl. Connor led her to the living room and got the TV going. He sat down near her and began talking to her about what she wanted to watch.

  Zane stood and moved to lean back against the counter. Brennan was already near the doorway that led to the living room and his eyes scanned the whole room before he turned his focus on Zane. But even as he began talking, his eyes constantly shifted back to check on his sister.

  “He looks at her funny.”

  “Johnny?”

  Brennan nodded. “I caught him standing in her doorway a couple nights after Ma died. He was staring at her while she was sleeping.”

  Rage went through Zane but he managed to mask it. “Did he touch her?”

  “No, I don’t think so. I asked her and she said he didn’t. I started sleeping in her room on the floor after that. I didn’t go to school anymore neither ‘cause I didn’t want him messing with her while I was gone. Johnny told the Family Services people I was no good and that I caused too much trouble so he didn’t want me to live with him and Hannah.”

  “Did you tell them about the way he looked at Hannah?”

  “They didn’t believe me. Said I was just trying to make trouble. I told them I could take care of Hannah myself but they said I was too young,” Brennan said in obvious frustration. “I got money,” he said suddenly. “I heard Johnny talking to one of his friends about Ma’s insurance and how she left it to me and Hannah. I can pay you with it.”

  Zane glanced into the living room and saw Connor watching him with concern. It was clear he’d heard Brennan’s last statement. Fuck, how the hell had this happened? Twenty minutes ago he’d been laughing and joking with Connor and thinking about their future.

  He could see that Brennan was still waiting for an answer from him – an answer he didn’t have – so he said, “Listen, I’m going to need to make some phone calls, check things out. Why don’t you and Hannah get cleaned up and rest for a while and then we can figure out where to go from there, okay?”

  “Here,” Brennan said as he reached into his pocket and pulled out a few dollar bills and some change. “If I pay you, you can’t tell anyone where we are or what I said, right?”

  Zane looked at the money as Brennan carefully placed all of it on the counter. “It’s called attorney-client privilege and yes, it means I can’t talk to anyone about what you say to me.”

 
“And he can’t neither, right?” Brennan asked as he looked at Connor.

  “That’s right,” Zane said. The relief on the kid’s face was palpable. “I’m going to need some more information like Johnny’s last name and your address,” Zane said as he reached into a drawer and pulled out a pad of paper. He waited while Brennan wrote stuff down and then watched Brennan get his backpack.

  “Is that all your stuff?” Zane asked.

  Brennan nodded and Zane led him into the living room. “Brennan and Hannah are going to stay with us for a bit while we try to figure this out,” Zane said to Connor though it was more for Brennan’s sake than Connor’s since Connor had likely already figured out that there was no way he could let the kids leave the safety of the apartment.

  “How about I show you guys your rooms?”

  “We’ll share a room,” Brennan quickly said as he went around the couch and reached for Hannah’s hand. She obediently took it and they both followed Connor down the hallway.

  Zane reached for his phone and dialed. When Declan answered on the second ring, Zane said, “Hey, you at work?”

  “Yeah, what’s up? Everything okay?”

  “Um, no. No, it’s not. I need your help. Can I come down there?”

  Declan was silent for a beat before saying, “Yeah, see you in a few.”

  “Thanks.”

  He tucked his phone in his pocket and grabbed the piece of paper off the pad.

  “You’re leaving?” he heard Connor ask.

  “Yeah, I’m hoping Declan can find out more about this guy,” Zane said as he held up the paper. “Can you watch the kids for a bit?”

  Connor hesitated and Zane had an idea why. He closed the distance between them. “You’ll be fine, Connor.”

  “What if I have an episode? I don’t want to scare them.”

  “You won’t. But Brennan seems like a pretty sharp kid so just let him know if it’ll make you feel better.”

  Connor managed a nod. “Right, of course. Go,” he said before brushing a quick kiss over Zane’s lips. “We’ll be okay.”

  Zane nodded but when he made a move to step past Connor, Connor grabbed his hand. “You okay?” Connor asked softly.