Chapter 4

By evening, I come back with two men in worn-out clothes.

“These are Dad’s new bodyguards. Eight hundred dollars a month each, plus room and meals.”

Martin looks them up and down.

“Where did you find them?”

“The waterfront.”

His face changes.

I add quickly, “They’re professional fighters.”

Martin looks like he has questions.

But after the two men shower, change clothes, and come back downstairs, he looks much more hopeful.

I picked them using Mom’s standards for a husband.

Rule number one: broad shoulders, narrow waist, handsome face.

The next morning, they stand beside Dad.

The number above his head jumps to nineteen.

Perfect.

“Dad, meet Wait and Hold On. I picked them myself.”

Gabriel’s mouth twitches.

“Couldn’t you give them normal names?”

“No.”

I look up.

The number flickers again.

Twenty.

My eyes widen.

“See? Just saying their names bought you another day.”

Dad stares at me.

“So how long do I have now?”

I hold up two fingers.

“Twenty days.”

Wait and Hold On follow him to work.

They tell us they’re brothers who came to New York looking for jobs.

They eat a lot, but otherwise they’re easy to keep.

Whether they can actually fight doesn’t really matter.

Dad probably won’t live that long anyway.

They can be decorative.

And they’re handsome.

When Dad dies, maybe Mom can inherit them too.

Mom loves handsome men.

I didn't tell Dad, instead, I tell Martin that part.

His face goes pale.

He presses a hand to his chest and slowly lowers himself into a chair.