Free Maximum Risk by Jennifer Lowery

next to it.
    Everyone was here.
    Quinn pulled in beside Chris’s bike and turned off the engine. The moment of truth upon them.
    His chest heaved.
    A hand touched his where he gripped the wheel. “Quinn?”
    Avery’s voice penetrated the ringing in his ears, propelled him out of the truck. Rigid, he strode toward the house, heard the soft click of a door as Avery followed. He crossed the low deck and pushed through the door.
    Everyone he loved in the world turned at his abrupt entrance and he knew they would never look at him the same again. After tonight they would always be reminded of what he’d done.
    His mother came forward, a questioning smile on her lips. “Quinn, dear?” She leaned in for a kiss. “Is Ryan with you?”
    Quinn stopped her before she could deliver, holding her at arm’s length. His mother frowned until she looked in his eyes, then the color drained from her face.
    “No,” she whispered, shaking her head. “Oh God, no.”
    “I’m sorry, Mom.” He spoke past the lump in his throat.
    Everything he knew fell apart after that. His mother let out an anguished cry. His dad caught her when her knees buckled.
    “What…” Dani asked, watching. Her gaze riveted on him. “Quinn? Where’s Ryan?”
    He lifted his chin then shook his head and demolished what was left of his world.
    ****
    From the doorway Avery watched a pretty young woman walk up to Quinn and slap him across the face. The sound echoed through the silent room and Avery flinched. The woman stepped back, tears streaming down her cheeks.
    “You promised,” she said in a broken whisper.
    Avery waited for Quinn to defend himself, to tell this woman that she was the reason Ryan was gone, not him. But Quinn only stood there, shoulders heavy beneath the burden he carried, head held high. A red handprint colored his cheek, vivid where the color leached away. He looked so proud, so strong, bearing the burden of his brother’s death, holding it so no one else had to.
    Avery shook her head, willing him to do something. Tell them the truth. Put the blame on her. But he stood there, tall and proud, accepting her fate.
    No one noticed her lurking in the doorway and her legs wouldn’t carry her into the room to do what Quinn couldn’t. Why wasn’t he defending himself?
    A man, dark-haired, smaller in stature than Quinn, but with the same strong, stubborn jaw, wrapped an arm around the woman and steered her away. He spoke quietly to her and she went willingly, her shoulders wracked with grief. The blond woman who shared Quinn’s eyes held tight to the burly man who wrapped her in his arms. Her hands gripped the front of his shirt where her tears fell silently. Avery saw tears shining in the big man’s eyes, but he didn’t let them fall.
    Her gaze flew to Kell, standing alone across the room, his face a hard mask. His eyes met hers, seeing her for the first time, and she silently pleaded with him not to let Quinn do this. Kell simply shook his head.
    A striking blond woman crossed the room from where she had been hanging in the background and wrapped herself around the woman Avery could only assume was her mother. The same tall, slender figure and hair color.
    The man who’d slammed a fist on the hood of the classic muscle car stood off to the side, face pulled tight as he watched the two blondes. Yet another dark-haired man watched rigidly from his position by the fireplace. A muscle jumped along his stubbled jaw.
    And in the middle of the nightmare stood Quinn, rigid beneath the weight he carried on his broad shoulders. Alone.
    Anger built in Avery’s chest as her gaze bounced from one to the other. She burst forward into the room and planted herself in front of Quinn, startling those that hadn’t seen her. “What is wrong with you people?” she demanded her voice shrill. “How can you let him do this? Ryan’s death is not his fault! It’s mine!”
    Nine pairs of eyes turned to her and she continued, addressing all of them.