When he made to sidestep Ash’s bulk, his brother said, “You found Lupos.”
Zeke froze. His eyes squeezed shut briefly before he glared at Ash. “Who—?” His accusatory gaze shot to Liv, who looked up at the precise moment as if she felt his confusion. His hurt.
Had she called Ash? Had she felt compelled to notify her colleague of the aborted mission without him?
Seeing the direction of his thoughts, Ash said, “I didn’t hear about the sword from Olivia.”
“Who?” Then it came to him. “Phin.”
“He called me, demanding to know if I was aware of your unauthorized side project.”
“I don’t need permission from the FBI to retrieve our family’s property.”
“His words, bro. Not mine.”
Zeke pushed out a frustrated breath. “He could give two shits about the sword, yet he’s pissy about not knowing I was searching for it.”
“Phin feels things more deeply than the rest of us. Always has.”
“He needs to suck it up. I’ll be damned if I’m going to run every personal project I’m working on by my kid brother in order for him to feel involved in my life.”
“He wants the family united again.”
“So do I.” Zeke gave his brother a level look. Thanks to Ash’s defection, their family dynamic would never be what it once was. “But that’s not gonna happen.”
Ash looked away, and Zeke took a perverse pleasure in his brother’s discomfort. But Ash never dwelled there long.
“Are you sure you didn’t tell any of us about your Indiana Jones expedition because you were afraid of failure?”
Something snapped in the deep recesses of his mind like the restraints holding down a thrashing patient.
One second, he was facing his brother and, the next, his shoulder was plowing into the bastard’s solar plexus. The force swept Ash off his feet long enough for Zeke to pin him against the nearest tree.
Air whooshed out of Ash’s lungs, and his brother stood frozen for a full second before he growled, “You’re going to regret that, little brother.”
His fist cut into Zeke’s jaw. Pain shattered his skull, but his hold on his brother didn’t break.
In the distance, Liv yelled his name. He ignored her. Blood lust and years of resentment had taken control, and he wanted nothing more than to vent his rage on the selfish prick who’d lit the flame.
“The only thing I regret is that I didn’t do it years ago.”
“Still blaming me for your inability to not be a control freak?”
“Picking up your slack while still doing my job isn’t being a control freak. It’s doing what needs doing.”
“What needs doing is for you to delegate.”
“To whom? Everyone’s plate is full.”
“You’re going to tell me that Rohan, Cruz, and Phin, who all spend their evenings and a good portion of their weekends in pursuit of reading ancient tomes, working on muscle cars, and visiting nightclubs, can’t pull another hour each day to reduce the load on your shoulders?” He shoved Zeke away. “Bullshit, little brother. Bullshit.”
A truth he couldn’t deny, and one he’d come to realize in the past year, yet he still convinced himself to give them space to do their jobs.
In many ways, he had. In other ways, he hadn’t.
His mind never rested. It constantly jumped from point to point. Always analyzing, always ticking off items on a never-ending to-do list. Always asking for a status update from his brothers.
“When was the last time you took time for yourself?”