Hold (Gentry Boys, #5)(23)
“So you’re releasing them to our custody?”
“Cappie – you remember Cappie, my brother-in-law – he’s the judge and he’s releasing them to the custody of a blood relative for a nominal bail.”
“You call eight grand nominal?”
“In terms of bail, hell yes. Those jackasses could have killed someone with their little joyride. They were racing the Cortez boys when a cat froze in their path and rather than flatten the mangy thing they swerved into a canal.” Gaps chuckled and I was hit with the smell of sauerkraut. “Of course, it was rather entertaining to watch The Gnome get his horns all twisted up.”
The Gnome was a rather insulting nickname that’s long been applied to a local businessman who’d also been the town mayor for years. In a weird twist of fate, he also happened to be Saylor’s stepfather.
I could see Chase’s skepticism. He narrowed his eyes and glanced at us before turning back to Gaps. “Does this mean we’re responsible for babysitting them until their court date?”
“Nah.” Gaps waved a hand. “Just a formality. Tracy Gentry can be a little hot-headed but she’ll open up the door if her sons come knocking.”
I tried to picture my dead cousin’s wife. All I remembered about her was frosted hair and really long red fingernails.
Gaps sighed in the backseat. “Look, Cappie’s doing this as a favor.”
“Why would he do that?” Chase countered. “From what I remember there’s no love lost between Emblem law enforcement and the Gentry family.”
Gaps snorted and wagged a finger. “Don’t underestimate the reach of Deck Gentry. You boys call him, by the way?”
“No. Deck’s on vacation.”
Something about that statement struck Gaps as enormously funny. He guffawed and clutched his bobbling belly like some ugly Santa Claus from a dystopian universe.
Creed shot me a look. He was ready to leave the Gaps-featured part of the evening behind.
Luckily Gaps suddenly shifted to professionalism. He held out a pen, watched while Chase signed and accepted the wad of cash. It all seemed rather unofficial and unseemly to me but what the hell did I know.
A moment later he rolled his body out of the truck and motioned for us to follow him to the Agave County Detention Facility. Emblem happened to be the seat of the poorest county in the state, but that turned out to be pretty convenient sometimes because the majority of those who were arrested and processed happened to be Emblem residents.
“Do they know we’re coming?” Creed asked as we followed Gaps around to the back.
“I told them you were on your way,” Gaps said. “Con looked relieved but Stone just crossed his arms and shrugged. Hey, when was the last time you saw them? I know you guys don’t make it down here too often.”
“It’s been a while,” I admitted slowly, feeling suddenly strange over the concept of coming face to face with cousins I hadn’t given a thought to in years.
Gaps squinted, punched in a code and waited for the click.
“Well,” he said, beckoning that we ought to follow him as he flashed a crooked grin. “You ready to meet some Gentrys?”
CHAPTER EIGHT
CREED
They were exactly what I expected.
Young but filled with all kinds of cocky arrogance, strutting around with a bravado that probably never really touched their hearts. Something kind of struck me when I first set eyes on Conway and Stone Gentry after the better part of a decade. I glanced over at Cord and Chase to see if it was hitting them the same way. Cord raised his eyebrows. Chase smirked.
The brothers kidded around and slapped Gaps on the back as they were released from the bleak cell they’d been sitting in since early this morning. I could tell they were so relieved they wanted to kiss the f*cking floor but they’d be damned if they’d show it.
They were just like us.
Well, just like what we’d once been.
Stone was slightly taller and there was something vaguely sharp about the way his light blue eyes appraised us. I would have guessed him to be the tougher of the two, the one who probably had the idea to steal an expensive vehicle and race it down the main drag where they were almost certain to get caught.
The other one, Conway, had a loose, careless look about him; ripped jeans, laughter in his expression. He pushed the shaggy dark blonde hair out of his eyes and offered us a wide smile.
“Shit, it’s the famous triplets,” he said, closing in to shake hands while Stone hung back and coolly watched. “How the hell are ya?”
“Famous? Hey guys, did you know we were famous?” Cord asked in a shocked voice but I could tell he was amused.
Conway nodded eagerly and poked his brother in the side. Stone frowned at him and tipped his head with what was probably supposed to be a silent warning. Conway just shrugged.
“It’s true,” Conway insisted. “You’re legends in the stuffy halls of Emblem High, even after all these years.”
Chase snorted with laughter. “All these years. Such ancient history. Predates electricity.”
Conway paused and stared at him, probably trying to decide if he was kidding or not. “Yeah,” he finally said.
I snapped my fingers to get everyone jarred out of this sweet family reunion. “Let’s move out. Don’t want to spend the night at the back door of a jail.” I motioned to Gaps. “We all squared away here?”