“Mom, you sure you don’t need anything else from Aunt Linda’s before we go?” Rock asked.

Part of me wanted to protest her decision to go back to Vail with him, but it was useless. She’d made up her mind.

“No, we said our good-byes already. She’s keeping everything I don’t take.”

Mom’s suitcase was already packed and on the limo floor in front of her. She didn’t have much left thanks to the explosion, so only one bag was required.

Both Rome and I had offered Rock money to cover her expenses, but he wouldn’t take it. Said he could take care of her just fine. Considering I’d been sending extra funds to Mom every month since I left, I didn’t argue with Rock about that either. Rome told him to shut the hell up and spend the money that would show up in his account in a few days on her. Neither Rock nor I wanted to know where the cash was coming from. Rome’s mercenary lifestyle wasn’t a topic of discussion for today.

“Why don’t you take the limo to the airport then?” I said to Rock. “Rome and I can jump out at the hotel.” We’d all stayed at Aunt Linda’s last night, on the floor in her living room like we had when we were kids sleeping over. One night was enough of that. I’d checked into a hotel before the service for a few minutes alone to pull myself together.

Rome shook his head. “I’m going to the airport too. Got a flight out in a few hours.”

My attention cut to my little brother. “You’re leaving already?” I didn’t know why I was surprised. The fact that he’d showed up at all was a shock.

“You need me to stick around? You got plans?” Rome asked.

Mom’s gaze locked on me. “He doesn’t have any plans, do you, Rhett? You’re going to let the police sort this out, right? It’s time for you to let go and move on.”

I knew what she meant. I’d been living in limbo the last year, drowning my bitterness in whiskey. I told myself that was normal after you lost everything.

“Mom—”

Her expression hardened and she considered each of us. I didn’t know if it was a habit left over from childhood, but we each straightened as she did it.

“This family has been through hell. First Robin, then . . . all of this.” She couldn’t even bring herself to say it, and I didn’t blame her. “We’re Hennessys. We’re strong, we’re resilient, and we won’t let this break us. My life is not ending with your father’s. I refuse to let it.”

She stared directly at me. “Rhett, you’ve spent a year wasting your potential. Wasting your life. Turning in that badge wasn’t the end of the line. If you ask me, it was the best thing you’ve ever done, but instead of finding a new purpose, you’re shutting everyone out. Life is passing you by while you sit on the sidelines. You’re better than that. Figure out what you want and go after it. That’s what I’m going to do. No more of this wallowing nonsense.”

Then she moved on to each of my brothers, giving them their own tough-love speech, but instead of listening to what she thought they were doing wrong, I replayed her words to me in my head.

I was surprised she thought turning in my badge was the best thing I’d ever done. But then again, she’d buried a husband and a son because they’d been cops.

Figure out what you want and go after it. That’s the part that stuck with me. But what the hell did I want?

After she finished dispensing her wisdom, Mom’s eyes filled with tears as she extended both hands and we gripped them.

“I love you boys. Please be safe. This family has borne too much loss. It’s time for happiness.” Her lips formed into a trembling smile despite her tears. “And maybe some grandbabies to spoil.”

When she released our hands, Rock offered her another tissue to dab at the tears clinging to her lashes.

None of us volunteered to go out and impregnate someone, but if I had to guess what Rock was thinking, I’d say he was running through a list of women in his head to decide if there was anyone suitable.

An image of one woman flashed through my mind, and it wasn’t the dark-haired beauty I’d lost to Rix last year. I had already moved on from my hang-up with Valentina before my life went to shit. No, the woman who came to mind was a redhead with a quick smile and an even quicker brain.

Ariel Sampson. The girl next door. My best friend’s little sister. A woman off-limits to me who I’d worked hard to forget since the last time she blew in from the West Coast and then left just as quickly.

That red hair of hers had stood out like a flame against the slim-fitting black dress she’d worn to the funeral, bright enough to penetrate even the haze of my grief.

She hadn’t approached me. Hadn’t approached any of us.

And I probably wouldn’t see her again for another five years, if ever.

“You getting out?”

Rock’s question shook me from my thoughts, making me realize we were parked in front of my hotel.

“Yeah. Sorry.” I shook each of my brothers’ hands before hugging my mom tight. “Take care, Mom. I love you.”

She squeezed me in return, and I climbed out of the limo to watch them turn the corner and disappear. My family would never be the same again.

The missed calls still registered in my phone’s memory would haunt me for the rest of my life. What was Dad going to tell me? Why the fuck didn’t I answer? Regret and shame consumed me in equal measure.

I stood before the tall building, dreading the idea of going up to my room and staring at the TV for hours, hoping it would drown out my grief. No. Not tonight. Tonight, I was getting drunk.

I headed inside, ready to get the hell out of my suit and into jeans so I could make my way to my old haunt where people would leave me to drink my whiskey in peace.