I wracked my brain trying to figure out who could have killed Craig. An old friend. Who could that be? The only person I could think of was Jimmy and he was dead. I may not have seen him die with my own eyes but he had to be dead. Hundreds of people witnessed it and Delaney had killed the man herself. She had nightmares and day terrors about putting a bullet through his brain so I knew he was gone. It couldn't be Jimmy unless a zombie apocalypse was going down in Santa Monica which I highly doubted. So, who could it be?

I didn't have many enemies. A lot of people liked, admired or tolerated me but I couldn't think of anyone who would want me dead. Even my past lovers still loved me, except my ex but who gives a damn what she thinks. She definitely couldn't have killed Craig. The craftsmanship was something of a professional. The way they gouged out his eyes were almost surgical and even the stab wounds were well placed as if they tried to stab him in places that wouldn't kill him immediately and then a final stab to the heart. It was torture. They probably took his eyeballs out while he was still alive. I grimaced at the pain he must've felt. Craig deserved better.

Whoever did this, they were somewhere enjoying themselves. They were playing a game and I was just one of the many pieces they could toy with. I couldn't do anything as of yet. I had to figure out who was behind everything before I took action and they knew that. Right now, they could relax and laugh and play the waiting game until I figured them out or they killed again. I could tell it was going to be a long and strenuous process trying to track them down. The assailant had to be intelligent to give out information about future plans. They had to be confident that they wouldn't get figured out.

But I'd take them down, no matter how long it took. I was the head honcho now and it was my job to protect the Family and that was what I was going to do. They could laugh now but soon I was going to make them pay for the pain they brought to both Craig and Kris.

The ride back to my place was quieter than the one to Craig's. Either everyone was thinking about who could've done something so gruesome or they couldn't get the image of Craig's body out of their head. Seeing a mangled, mutilated body was never easy no matter how many you saw. I was fearful that Delaney may have been traumatized. She had been silent about her nightmares about killing Jimmy but I knew she still had them. They were inevitable. Part of me wished I refused to bring her along to Craig's place.

It could've triggered her, but oddly, Delaney seemed to be taking everything better than everyone else. Everyone else sat in the car with a look of disgust, anger or fright but she seemed emotionless. She looked out of the window, tapped her fingers on her lap and even asked Lin to turn up the radio when one of her favorite songs came on. She seemed so detached from reality. I wasn't sure if it was because of killing Jimmy or because the body just didn't hit her like it hit everyone else. She didn't know Craig so I didn't really expect her to mourn. I wasn't even mourning. After having so many people die, death was normal.

"I'm going to go upstairs and talk to Kris. Make sure he's alright and settled in," I told Delaney when we walked back into my place. I let everyone else go home to get some rest. It was a long night and there was no need to continue investigating. We had time to figure this out and we were going to use every second of it.

"Okay. I'm going to go shower and head to bed. I'll see you in a few?"

"Yeah, I'll see you."

When I knocked on the guest room's door, I tried not to startle Kris. I cleared my throat before and knocked lightly. He had dealt with enough tonight and I bet he was on the edge. I didn't want to scare him. He probably thought someone was after him too after seeing his father so horribly mutilated. "Come in," he called out from the other side the door. His voice was deeper than when I left. It sounded like he may have briefly gotten himself together.

I walked inside and he stood up from the bed as if to acknowledge my entrance. "You just got back from my house?"

I gave him a simple nod and took a deep breath. I was never good at consoling people. I didn't cry much and neither did my friends or family. So consoling people wasn't something I grew up on or was used to. I never really had to do it outside of with Delaney or other small situations. "Yeah. I went and I saw everything. I'm sure you're frightened and worried about if something's going to happen to you next, but you're safe. I promise. Whoever did this had nothing against your father personally. They did it to get back at the Family and me. Your father was innocent, an easy target."

"It's f-cked up and I understand if you're angry at me or the Family. I know it's a hard time for you. He was the only person you had, but I want you to know that you have me now. You have me, Leo, Lin, Rafael and I'm sure other members of the Family who will take care of you too. And just so you know, kid, I understand you want to mourn but your father can't have a funeral. We can't give the sick f-cker who did this the attention they want. We'll do something for his memory but a funeral would be too much. You understand?"

"I understand. Dad always said he didn't want a funeral anyways. He said the Family would take care of everything the right way so I trust whatever you do. He trusted you and liked you a lot, Andy. So I trust you too." Kris eyes met mine and they were starting to tear up again. He sniffed and wiped at his eyes with his shirt.

I swallowed awkwardly. "Are you good?"

"Yeah, I'm okay. Just wish he could've gone peacefully, you know?"

"I know. I wish he did too. Craig was one of the best members and I'm sure he was an even better father. He always talked about you, ever since you were little. You know you can stay here for as long as you need to. I don't mind you living here. I understand you have nowhere else to go and I feel like it's my duty to look after you now. It's what Craig would've wanted."

I wasn't trying to be a parent to Kris. I was still basically a kid myself. There was still a lot of growing up that I needed, but I was more than able to take care of Kris and keep him safe. I had the finance, the power and the connections to make sure he lived a more than comfortable life.

For the first time tonight, Kris gave me a polite, short-lived smile. He scratched the back of his neck and shook his head humbly. "I really appreciate it. I really do but my girlfriend and her family is like my second family. They know the deal about my dad's profession and they're willing to take me in."

"Are you sure?" I laughed a little and gave him an unsure glare. "I mean, living with your girlfriend is a big deal especially at your age. What if you guys break up? Will you still be able to live there? There's a lot of uncertainty there." Delaney was my girlfriend and she didn't even stay with me. Living with someone was a big deal and moving in too early usually always ended a relationship. I didn't want that to happen with Kris and then he'd have nowhere to go. Of course, I would take him back in but I'd rather not have all of that happen.

"You're right, but I guess we'll see. If things go wrong, I trust you'll still be here willing to help me out." F-ck, why should I argue with a stubborn teenager? When I was his age, I already did whatever the hell I wanted to even when it wasn't the right thing. Might as well let him live with his girlfriend. He needed someone who understood him and could be there for him right now anyways.

"Yeah, of course. You have my number. Call it anytime and I'll be there to help out with anything."

Though I wasn't sure it was a good idea for Kris to live with his girlfriend and her family, I supported his decision and dropped him off to their place. They lived in a nice suburb so I guess it was good that he wasn't going to be around a bunch of criminals and he'd be well taken care of. Hopefully everything would go great for him and he wouldn't need my help, but part of me wanted him to take care of him. I guess it was the guilt of Craig's death. Even though I didn't kill his dad, I felt like it was partly my fault. The person that killed him did it just to f-ck with me and warn me that they were going to do much worse to me. That was messed up and I'm surprised Kris didn't hold some kind of resentment against me.

"Finally, you're back. How did things with Kris go," Delaney asked me as she snuggled into my body. She kissed my shoulder and I inhaled sharply. She smelled so f-cking good. Being close to her, put me at ease after such a restless night. I closed my eyes for a few seconds to enjoy the bliss but then came back to the real world.

"It went well, darlin'. I took him to his girlfriend's place. He's going to live there with her and her family. I didn't think it was a promising idea but he seemed to have his mind set. His girlfriend's family promised to take him in if his father ever died so I guess it's for the best." I wrapped my arm around her and caressed my hand up and down her arm soothingly. "He's going to be good, but what about you?"

"What do you mean, baby?"

"I don't know. I'm just making sure you're okay. From everything that happened to Jimmy to this Craig thing. I know it can all be too much sometimes. We just got rid of Jimmy and now someone else is on my back. So, I understand if you ever need to walk away for a couple days, take a breather and get away from all of this negative sh-t."

I stopped rubbing her arm and looked into her eyes. She looked back into mine unbothered and took my chin between her fingers. "No matter what negative sh-t is going on, you're always going to be the light within it. The thing that makes it so much better and worth it. I don't care what's going on I'm never going to wuss out or leave your side. I love you, silly. No crazy ass eye gouging killer is going to scare me away or anyone or anything else for that matter." I grinned and she did too. She always knew the right things to say. "I told you once and I'll tell you again, I'm a ride or die b-tch, b-tch."

I chuckled and my hand moved down her arm to take her hand into mine. "Is it bad that a man that I cared about and loved almost like an uncle died tonight, but all I want to do right now is make love to you. I really want to feel something. You know? Other than death and f-cked up sh-t, I want to feel something for once."

Instead of answering me with words, she answered me with an ardent kiss. That was the only answer I needed. Through that kiss, it showed me how she felt the same. She needed to feel something like I did. Something that was skin to skin filled with passion and pure love.

Soon, we were both in the nude, rolling around in the bed with our tongues dancing with each other in a rich harmony. My hands felt every inch of her mesmerizing body as she did the exact same. We would giggle every now and then between kissing from how spontaneous our love session began. It felt so good to be in this setting with her again. It had been so long since we were able to enjoy each other's company in this way. The wait was worth it. The drought was over and I was so happy to be fed again.

Tasting between her legs again, hearing her whine and cry out it was all enough to send me over the edge. When our bodies grinded against each other until both of our bodies writhed, it left us in ecstasy. The moment was tempestuous and fervid and it was something I realized I had never experienced. I had never made love. I had never felt this way for a woman in my f-cking life. She was the one. We were that true love that my father and mother had, maybe even better. She was the missing piece I needed, my everything, my ride or die b-tch.