“You’re right. That’s bullshit. But I can’t tell you. Not yet.”
“Dex—”
“Dad, I swear to you, when I can say more, I will. Right now, I need you to trust me on this, okay?”
Maddock exploded. “Are you fucking joking? Look at you!” He began to pace, his hands going to his head. “Someone did this to you, and all you have to say is trust me?” He shook his head. “No. Abso-fucking-lutely not, Dexter. From day one, you’ve asked me repeatedly to stand on the sidelines and do nothing but watch you as you get beat up, shot, kidnapped, and who the hell knows what else. And I have, because I trust you. But now? You’re asking too much of me.” He flexed his fingers as he paced, his lips pursed. The longer he paced, the angrier he seemed to get. He stopped and faced Dex. “I am not going to fucking stand here doing fuck all while you sit in front of me after having God knows what done to you. Enough is enough.”
“Dad, please.”
“Dex, you tell me right fucking now what the hell is going on. I don’t give a shit about the parties involved.” Maddock resumed his seat on the coffee table across from Dex. He gently took hold of Dex’s wrists, but his eyes were hard. “You are my son. I don’t give a shit how old you get, how tough, how trained. Someone hurt you, and I sure as shit deserve to know the truth. This isn’t about me trusting you. This is about you trusting me, and you haven’t trusted me in a long time.”
“That’s bullshit,” Dex spat out. “How can you say I don’t trust you?”
Maddo
ck pulled away, his hand going to his knees as he leaned in with a growl. “Then why are you constantly keeping me in the goddamn dark!”
“Because I have to!”
Sloane watched the shouting match with growing unease. The two had fought before, but this time it was different. Whatever was going on with Maddock, it was clear it had been bubbling up for a while now. Sloane hated to admit it, but Maddock was right. How long had Dex expected to keep his dad in the dark? He’d been doing it since he’d joined the THIRDS. Their sergeant had always been a patient man, but everyone had their limit. It looked like Maddock had reached his.
“Now who’s bullshitting? Talk to me, Dexter,” Maddock pleaded.
“No,” Dex replied through his teeth.
“Why the fuck not?”
Dex held his ground. “Because I won’t lose you too.”
That seemed to ebb Maddock’s bluster. He stared at Dex, his jaw muscles working. Dex reached out and put his hand on his father’s arm.
“I swear, it’s not because I don’t trust you or don’t want to tell you, but right now, I’m barely holding it together, and I can’t—” His voice broke, and he took a deep breath. “I can’t be worried about you right now. I know that’s a shitty thing to say, to do, but I really need you to do this for me. Just for now.”
Maddock let out a heavy sigh. He nodded before hesitantly putting his hand to Dex’s cheek. “Are you okay? I mean, despite the obvious?”
Dex swallowed hard and nodded. “I’ll be okay.”
Maddock didn’t look too convinced, but he accepted Dex’s assurances for now. “Promise me you’ll do what you can to stay safe.”
“I promise.”
Dex gave his dad a wobbly smile as Maddock kissed the top of his head. He looked as if he wanted to say more but instead headed for the door, glancing at Sloane on his way there. Sloane followed, bracing himself when Maddock turned to face him, his voice quiet.
“I don’t know what the hell is going on, but I’m disappointed in you. You promised me you’d keep him safe.”
Guilt bubbled up inside Sloane, and he found it difficult to meet Maddock’s gaze. “I’m sorry. I let you down. I let him down. I should have protected him.”
Maddock studied him. “Was there anything you could have done different?”
“It was out of my hands.” It was the truth. Sloane had been out. Whether it had been Wolf himself or someone else, they’d been skilled. Sloane hadn’t heard a thing.
“In his defense,” Sloane added, “he never went out looking for this. It found him.”
Maddock seemed to think about that for a moment before walking out the door. Sloane watched him go, waiting until he climbed into his car and drove off before closing the door. He found Dex staring down at the floor, a frown on his face.
“Hey.” Sloane stopped in front of him and held his hand out. “How about we go to bed?”
Dex smiled at him but didn’t reply. He took Sloane’s hand and followed him upstairs. Tomorrow Sloane would call Sparks and find out what the situation was at work. Right now Dex needed him, and that mattered more to Sloane than anything else.