Curtain Call (The Jewel Project #7)

20. The Real Monster

Sam was so sick of people dying right under his nose. His entire body was in tremors, but he let it shake. Let himself be freaked out and vulnerable and terrified, because for now, he was just with his brothers. He could be weak in front of them.

He was back at the table in his grandmother's kitchen, as if nothing had happened. But it was just an illusion. Tom sat on a chair, too, leaning back, while Jerry crouched next to him and applied disinfectant to his burns and scratches. Jimmy stood leaning against the back door, a concerned frown on his face.

And Sam trembled. Because he knew that the shock would wear off and that they'd have to think and talk about what had happened. It wasn't a coincidence. It couldn't be one. But what had they done? What was the trigger?

"Did you file the report on our mission?" Tom asked. His voice shook with the same tremor that consumed Sam.

"The day Grandma was killed," he said.

His answer plunged the room in silence once again. It had been his first thought, too, that they were being punished for not letting the Agency know what had happened in Brazil. But maybe it was their failure in the first place that was bringing this on, no matter the hows and the whys. Maybe they weren't allowed to fail.

Maybe it was Snitch Gravel. And not knowing for sure made it worse. Left them vulnerable. How could they defend themselves if they didn't know who was attacking and why? Who would be next?

"Should we call the girls?" Jimmy asked, ending the loaded silence.

"No," Tom groaned. "Whatever happens, they know we're fine because of the watches. So just give them another few blissful moments away from... this." He indicated his body.

He wasn't too roughed up. Just a few bleeding cuts from the exploding windows and minor burns from the heatwave. They'd faced a lot worse.

"You know they're probably going to call Kay and let her know." Jimmy nodded towards the entrance. Understandably, the front lawn crawled with police.

"Maybe not if we're already here," Sam said.

"I agree with Sam and Tom," Jerry said. "Let's give them a few more minutes without death and execution."

Execution. The word danced around Sam's head as he tried to make sense of the last half an hour, of how lucky they were that Tom hadn't followed Bill to his car for more talking. The idea that he'd been one irrelevant decision away from losing his twin had Sam's skin crawling.

"I don't know," Jimmy mumbled, the idea apparently upsetting.

Sam opened his mouth to point out that Jessie didn't really need to know everything right then and that if he told, then the rest of them had to as well and they'd really rather not, but closed it once Jerry looked from Tom to his twin.

"Is the serum acting up?" he asked, his voice barely louder than a whisper.

Jimmy gave a curt nod and looked away, but Sam caught the fire in his eyes. He suddenly felt colder if possible.

Jerry pressed the bandage into Tom's hand and turned to Jimmy. "Sit."

"Why?"