"Are you sure?" I demanded, not believing the words that my parents had spoken. When they had called me today I knew it would be bad. But now that we were in my apartment and the truth had come out it was worse than I thought. The food that I had started preparing was now forgotten.

"Of course." My mother barked, peering out the window of my tiny apartment. Her small, narrowed eyes were locked onto the expensive Lexus that she and my father had driven here. "You couldn't have found a nicer apartment to live in, Nike? Somewhere less...rundown."

In that moment it was almost enough to make me snap. My parents had just dropped the worst news I had received in my twenty three years on this planet and she was now concerned about her vehicle and my living arrangements. But while she and my father had stretched their budgets to the limit to accommodate for a pricey car and renting a stunning condo I had settled for extra spending money and living well within my means. Still, I was smart enough to know that this was only her coping mechanism. In an effort to hide her true feelings she was using material like she always did.

"I'm comfortable where I am. It's a safe neighborhood and it even had a community pool. It's close to my work and it's close to Bella." I defended, then added, "Aren't you here about Declan and not concerns over my apartment?" I hinted.

"I wouldn't call it concern." my father responded carefully.

"Your son is being hunted by the police and federal agencies and who knows who else and you aren't concerned?" I demanded, my control slipping with every second.

"Of course there is parental concern," he continued, then paused to find the right words, "Declan has made his choices and we have to accept that they are not our fault at some point. When he was first convicted of working alongside a criminal among his other charges we did everything we could, didn't we?"

"I think so. We got him the best lawyers and we even managed to land him a deal he didn't deserve." I agreed.

When my brother had been found working for a drug lord by the name of Trent Shaw we had all been stunned. I remember telling my parents over and over again that it couldn't have been him, there had to be some mistake. Even I hadn't believed that. My younger brother had always had a bit of a an evil streak. But what had once been childhood selfishness and mild contempt for everything twisted into something darker as he got older.

We didn't see much of Declan once he finished high school. Though there had been rumors surrounding his small drug trade back then I had chalked up his reclusiveness as avoidance instead of accepting the obvious. My parents were good people at heart. They were both teachers who had aspired to be college professors but couldn't make the cut. Somewhere along the line they became very concerned with their image, always buying newer better cars and moving from one condo to another for the sake of keeping up appearances. We never talked about it but I knew their debt load was immense. Among the financial strain they also expected us to be the perfect children all the time. What kind of teachers would they be if they couldn't keep their own children in line? So we always wore perfectly pressed clothing, talked to only the smartest and most stable students in our grade, and reported every movement to them. Yes, there was plenty of love in that house, but it was enough to make any kid feel like they didn't have any breathing room so no one was surprised when Declan began pulling away.

But, while I moved out and went to college to get my space Declan had gone a much different route. He had spiraled. His little drug ring blew up and he had more clients than he could handle. But he loved the money and he loved the rebellion. And even after everything he had done- which had sent my parents into shameful hiding for a few months- we had fought for him. we did everything we could to cut him a deal. And we had gotten him a deal he never deserved.

In exchange for minimal information on Trent Shaw he had gotten a significantly lesser sentence. No jail time, just living in an undisclosed safe house with a television and even some outdoor time every day. There were guards and officers milling around consistently, but there were no bars on the windows and the security was more to keep people like Trent Shaw out than Declan in. when we had landed the deal I had thought it was a miracle.

And now he had made it a nightmare.

"Why on Earth would he leave the safe house?" I demanded, "What the hell was he even thinking?"

"Nike, please sit down." My mother insisted, patting the worn fabric of my sofa. She looked peculiar sitting there in her Chanel suit, but I fell onto the couch beside her anyway. "This is not your burden to carry."

"He is my brother."

"And through his previous trial you did everything you could to keep him safe." My father piped up. "He is not a young boy anymore. He knew the risk that would come with leaving the safe house. He knew that Trent Shaw is out there."

"Trent Shaw is going to want him dead."

Both of my parents winced at this. Through the trial with Declan they had both changed, both became better at hiding their emotions. But the reality of what could happen to their son was enough to make any parent grow pale.

"He knew the risk." My father repeated, but he could no longer look at me or my mother. His eyes were locked on the windows overlooking the pool. I knew he was struggling to hold back tears. Underneath the expensive condo and the stylish car was a father worried about his only son.

"We have been told that a few government agencies have been informed and they have hired third party organizations to try and bring him in before anything happens to him. he was caught once, he'll be caught again."

"He'll go to jail. We won't be able to help him this time." I whimpered. Tears flooded my eyes as Mickey climbed into my lap and peered up at me with an empathetic expression on his masked face. I hugged him tightly to my chest.

"It'll be for the best." My mom soothed. Her toned arm slipped around my shoulders and she pulled me against her side while she kissed my forehead, "The most we can do now is pray."