No Easy Way Out

Chapter 10

Kayce returned home from Mexico feeling down. His attempt to get Jamie to come home & help them had failed miserably.

Beth was on the front porch sipping her coffee & doing work in her laptop when she saw her brother.

"Monica told me," said Beth.

"Did she?" asked Kayce sadly. Beth nodded.

"She told me when I stopped by your house with some food Gator cooked up for her & the kids yesterday," said Beth.

"Well, that was nice of him to do that. The doctors want Monica to rest as much as she can," said Kayce.

"So how did it go with Jamie?" asked Beth.

"Real fucking bad. He doesn't want anything to do with this place," said Kayce.

"Not surprised," said Beth.

"I'm sure you're not," said Kayce angrily.

"What the fuck is that supposed to mean?" asked Beth in surprise.

"You've always had it in for Jamie ever since you both were kids," said Kayce. "It got worse after he did what you told him to do."

"You fucking know why, Kayce," said Beth with tears in her eyes.

"I do, but you're still ultimately responsible because look at what has happened since that day," said Kayce. "No matter how hard he tried after that, you just can't forgive him, & I honestly don't think you want to."

Beth could feel the tears flowing down her face as Kayce's words hit her hard.

"Now you're probably wondering why I forgave Jamie," said Kayce. "It's simple. I don't give a fuck if he's adopted. He's still my brother, & I love him very much. I don't hold grudges like you do nor do I want to, & I certainly don't intend to take him to the train station like you do."

Beth looked at her younger brother with wide eyes. This was hitting her right in the heart.

Kayce, however, wasn't done.

"Now think about this, Beth," said Kayce. "What example are you setting for your daughter by hating Jamie as much as you do?"

With that, Kayce got into his truck & drove off.

As soon as he was gone, Beth went inside & started bawling.
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Back in Mexico, Jamie was at his office talking with Ted Lansky.

"You think Kayce came here on his own, or do you think your father sent him here?" asked Ted.

"If I had to take a guess, Teddy, I would say that the old man sent him here," said Jamie.

"It was pretty obvious to you, wasn't it?" said Ted.

"I wouldn't say that it was obvious, dude," said Jamie. "I would say it was a gut feeling that I had as soon as I saw him walk through the door."

"Talk about a good gut feeling, buddy," said Ted with a chuckle.

"I know, right?" said Jamie with a laugh.

However, in the back of Jamie's mind, he knew that it wasn't over yet concerning his family.