Quite Precarious by Lyla Payne

Author:Lyla Payne
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Published: 2015-12-07T14:26:58+00:00

Chapter Seven

Leo

I sit in Marcella’s room a long time after she’s fallen asleep. My sister probably thinks I’m hiding, avoiding a longer talk about the case against me and how we’re going to pay for it, among other things. Maybe she’s not totally wrong.

But it’s also peaceful in here, with nothing but the sound of the rain pattering on the windows and the deep breaths sighing from my niece’s perfect little form. The only illumination comes from her princess nightlight and the occasional flash of lightning through the trees.

I can’t help but feel as though I’ve spent too much of my adult life sitting in the dark.

Life had been so simple when I was a boy, even though our family produced too many kids, not enough bedrooms, and ran short on cash more months than not. I did well in school, got in an appropriate amount of trouble, had friends and enemies and plenty to keep me busy. My family was big and loud and noisy and annoying as shit, but they were there for me.

When all of that changed, it cast me adrift. As though someone had cut my moorings and I’d lost my grip on the docks, slipping out to sea with the tide, too far gone to find before anyone noticed. If anyone had noticed at all, which remained to be seen. Even Lindsay hadn’t been there for me, not at first. I’d forgiven her because she’s had her own troubles, a mountain of them, and since she’d been forced to pay for them she’d been the one person I could count on.

Strangely, Gracie’s return to Heron Creek felt a little bit like she’d wandered down to the docks and picked up an old mooring line, giving it a tug. It’s somehow still attached to me after all this time, that life I once had—and also the one I’d fantasized about more times than I cared to remember—but the rest of the lines were missing. I don’t know whether Gracie’s friendship is enough to pull me all the way back to shore, but I do know that these last six months, I’ve had more than one reason to get out of bed in the morning.

I’ve been thinking about what I want to do with my life, other than whatever I feel like that day.

It’s a start. Or at least, it was until this whole getting shot and arrested thing.

The sounds of my sister rustling around the kitchen making grown-up dinner tells me it’s time to move. As nice as it would be to stay in here listening to Marcella breathe for the rest of the night—or maybe the year—we need to discuss how I can possibly get myself out of this situation.

I’m guessing the evening will also feature more glowering and snarky comments

about whether or not helping Gracie is worth giving up my freedom, followed by me trying to keep my mouth shut because neither of us is helped by me voicing the truth.

Which is an unequivocal yes.

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