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She turned and gave hi look thathe was dressed only in his underwear “When did you start hanging out with Markos, Keir, Lash and Duke?”

Okay, an easy one I can do this

“I’o with since birth on that one I can’t rerew up in is close-knit” That was one way of putting it More like their particular sect valued isolationism above all else “We keep to ourselves and take care of our own—as much as we can anyway”

“What do you mean?”

In a heartbeat he was back in his roo to the sound of his h the thin walls, followed by his father’s ht, and the thud of a body hitting the wall on a bad night Bile rose in his throat He’d buried thetheain

He closed his eyes and scrubbed his palm over the short hairs on the back of his head as if he could shove the memories away “No outsiders meant no outside help”

“No cops or social workers you mean,” she said, her voice soft

He looked up into her understanding eyes Of course she’d get it Being born into a rich family hadn’t insulated her from interfamily craziness “Exactly”

“And your dad…”

“As you knoas a real piece of shit who loved to beat the crap out of my mom—except in the rare cases when it was my smart mouth that needed to be silenced”

Barsali Hazard had been a real bastard Big Mean Creative He used all three of those attributes to force others to his will That wasn’t just the case for him and his mother, but for others in the community as well

“And there was no one you could turn to for help?”

“Not anyone with a badge, that’s for sure Not that it would have ular rules applied to hi for his fa other people’s property”

“He was a thief?”

“Not in his mind” A bitter chuckle tore from his throat, laced with all the pain he’d denied existed forwhat he wanted He was a real law-of-the-jungle type of guy”