Identical

Chapter 14 - Consequences (Part 1)

James POV

I find Robert in the office at the warehouse and slam him up against a wall. He smirks at me, and I pull my fist back and punch him in the nose. Blood starts running, and the sight of my friend bleeding takes a bit of my anger away. I release him and walk away, shaking my hand as I go. No matter how many times you punch a person, it still hurts, this time both physically and emotionally.

"Why did you do it?" I ask, not turning to look at him.

"Why did you do it?" he asks in response.

I finally turn toward him, and he's holding a rag to his nose. I know why he asked the question but I'm not sure I know the answer myself. We stare at each other before Robert continues.

"Come on, Boss. You know we're not normal. Hell, we're the farthest thing from it. So why bring someone like Cory into our world? Did you think you could have both? Both a normal life with a sweet girl and still leave her at night with a chaste kiss and promises of picnics and roses the next day while we slink into the night to do the things no one else will?"

I still don't respond, and Robert kicks a ash can in frustration.

"Fuck James! Don't you think we all want that? Some sense of normalcy? Well, I hate to tell you this, Mate, but that time has long passed. Guys like us don't get a happily ever after," he says, grabbing some ice from the freezer and putting it in another rag. He walks to the sofa and flops down, laying his head back with the ice on his nose.

I stare at Robert, thinking of his words. Guys like us? How did I become a guy like us?

*************

I'd served my time, and it was close to the time I'd be getting out. One more mission, and I'd be satisfied with the knowledge that I'd served both God and country. Sure, most of my missions had been clandestine, a few had even made me question what god and country I had served. Still, I was comforted in the knowledge that, even when I questioned my orders, I was doing right by my mates.

Robert, Chris, Stan and I had been inseparable since boot camp. We'd proved to be a strong team, able to get out of many a firefight and return to base relatively unscathed. That was until the last mission.

It was a nighttime foray into enemy territory.  Just recon, nothing to get our hands dirty. Then all hell broke loose.

Stan was down, a bullet wound to his gut. I'd managed to drag him to a dilapidated building, trying to figure a way out for both of us. Robert and Chris had scattered, something we'd been trained to do when things went ascue. I didn't fault them for that; hell, as the group leader, I had even drilled it into them that they should bug out at the first sign of trouble. Still, I couldn't leave Stan, alone and wounded so far from home.

Stan was the only one of us not English. He'd been born and raised to the age of eight in Ireland. His mum moved he and his sister to London after their dad died. Though he still had a bit of the Irish feist in him, he was a mate none the less.

"Jamie, you remember me telling you about my mam," he said, gritting his teeth through the pain.

"I do. Now stop talking so I can figure how to get you home so you can see her again," I said, pressing my shemagh into his wound to stifle the blood.

"No. You need to hear this, Mate," he said, his stare burrowing into my eyes.

So I listened. He told me of how he'd gotten in with the wrong group while on his last leave. Knowing he'd be out of the Marines like me after this mission, he'd made certain arrangements for his civilian life. That included promising to run an errand that was on the other side of the law. They'd paid him, which he had turned over to his mum, telling her it was a hazard bonus from the military. They also threatened him - if he didn't complete the errand when he returned to England, his mum and sister would pay the cost. He gave me details of the errand and when it was to take place.

"Fuck," I growled under my breath before Stan grabbed my hand.

"Please James. Don't let anything happen to mam and Jenny," he said, taking his last breath.

I stared at his lifeless body, wondering what the hell I should do and knowing what I had to do at the same time.

After the mission and I was home in England, I didn't go see my family straight away. Instead, I laid low until the errand was to take place. It was simple, really - meet some ne'er-do-wells to exchange cash for a shipment of drugs. Except I had no cash, and the only thing I was to exchange what my fist for their face.

I'd told Robert and Chris what I intended to do, and they backed me as they'd always done. We'd walked away from the encounter with the drugs and our lives. After that, we were introduced to the lead man, Kenneth. He didn't look the part of a kingpin, with his blond hair and soft eyes. Over the years I worked for him, I'd seen him turn ruthless from time to time, and I understood why he was in charge.

When Ken decided he'd had enough, he turned the business over to me, though he remained a silent partner. That's when I turned it from drugs to guns, and things really took off. Since then, I'd lived for the business, keeping my family and all others at arm's length... that was until Cory.

I sit on the sofa beside Robert, holding my head in my hands.

"What do we do now, Boss?"

"That's a great question," I mumble.

Cory's POV

I'm throwing my clothes out of my suitcase when my phone rings. I think it's James so I get ready to throw it too. However, when I look at my phone, I see it's a number I don't know so I answer it in case it's a new client.

"Hello, Darling. It's Tom. Tom Hiddleston."

"Hello, Tom. How can I help you?" I ask coldly.

"Um, well, I was wondering if you'd like to have dinner tomorrow night."

I cackle at his question. "No thank you. I've had just enough of the Hiddleston men," I say. He's silent for a bit before responding.

"Whatever do you mean?"

"I mean that your brother is a grade A asshole," I say then end the call.

Tom's POV

"Bloody hell," I mutter when Cory ends the call. I wonder what that was about, but I have a pretty good idea.

I'm surprised that James started something with Cory. I mean, since he's been back in civilian life, I've not known James to have a relationship. I mean, there was the bloody bitch, Stephanie, but I knew that wasn't a real relationship.

"Fuck, James. What have you gotten into now," I growl as I dial his number.