Shift

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Authors: Sidney Bristol
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they still held me responsible. They made sure to tell him what they did. I know the cops talked to him at some point, but that’s it, really. I haven’t spoken to my brother since then.”
    â€œWhat about your parents?”
    â€œMy parents called a couple of times. They believe it’s my fault, that I led him down a dark path. He was always their favorite. I was the accident.” The echo of his mother’s voice flitted through his mind. Her words had long since lost the ability to cut.
    â€œEmery.” Tori had one hand over her mouth and her eyes were wide. Maybe he’d spoken too much, shared more than he should have, but he wouldn’t take the words back. They were the truth of his history. Someone might as well know.

Chapter Five
    Tori wanted to jump across the table and wrap Emery in a tight hug. He wasn’t exactly the hugging sort, so she remained in her seat, hands clasped tightly together.
    Not only had his brother betrayed him—but his family blamed him? She couldn’t fathom such an awful thing. Sure, it wasn’t as if she’d had a perfect family. Her mother was out of the picture before Tori could remember, and her father had subjected Roni and her to a torturous upbringing that had left scars on her soul. But that was her weird life. Emery, the others, they should have what she didn’t. Warm, loving families who worried about them.
    â€œIt was a long time ago,” Emery said quietly.
    â€œBut still, that sucks.”
    He simply shrugged.
    Her heart hurt for him, for what kind of life made him accept the betrayal so easily. Her father might have been a cold son of a bitch, but he’d provided for his daughters. Not always in the expected manner, but they’d had food, a home, and they hadn’t died. He’d given them the tools to survive, and survive they had.
    Emery’s laptop chimed. He sat up, peering at the screen, and started clicking away. She let it go, not wanting to force him to talk. Though she might chat away with her imaginary Emery, the real one was far more closed off and silent. She couldn’t imagine why he’d actually answered her, but she treasured the fact that he’d been willing to share.
    â€œSomething happen?” she asked.
    â€œNot exactly.” He sat back, frowning at the screen.
    â€œNot exactly what?” She didn’t think it could be anything to do with her sister, but her heart beat a little faster and she tugged on her hair. The sitting and doing nothing wasn’t her style, but she didn’t want to abandon the crew that had become her family.
    Emery’s gaze rose to her face, and though he didn’t smile, there was a fleeting sense of humor in the way the corners of his eyes crinkled. “Whole sentences?”
    â€œYes, please.”
    â€œThere’s too much data to search through by hand. I set a search to work through it and return items that fit certain parameters. Most of the information is coming back on front companies we’ve already looked into. The chime means a new-to-the-search company has been flagged.” He didn’t look at her, but was already scanning away at his computer.
    â€œWhy haven’t we looked at this one yet?”
    â€œBecause it hasn’t been operational.”
    â€œWhat is it?”
    â€œThe company name is just Greenworks, no description or history. They don’t even have an office or a telephone number. Or . . . they didn’t.” He spoke slowly, his brows a dark slash across his brow.
    Tori didn’t want to distract him, but she also wanted to know what the hell was going on. She got up and circled the table, peering over his shoulder as windows flashed across his screen so fast she couldn’t tell what they were.
    â€œAre you actually reading those?” she asked.
    â€œYes.”
    She perched on the windowsill, watching him more than the screen. On average, he spent three seconds on each

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