Everything at Once -- (Animal Kingdom -- Craig/OC)

Chapter 4

CRAIG
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I felt like shit, the worst thing I could have done and I did it. Right after swearing up and down about how I wouldn't step out on her I did. I sat there on the bed playing with her hair after Pope had carried her into my room. I was definitely up there in pieces of shit in her life, right up there next to whatever this clowns name was. I had to make this right without losing her, and really needed to figure out how this even happened. I stood up and stormed back to the living room where everyone but J was still seated or standing thinking about what we were going to do.

"Someone explain to me right now how she went from smiling to that in a matter of two hours." I growled out to everyone as Baz stood up.

"Smurf asked me to pay a visit to her dipshit boyfriend, who was ironically with hooker. I told him to give me her house key and leave her alone and he swung at me." Baz started, "Well... I didn't like that so I beat him to the ground... took the keys and left. The fuck was I supposed to know he would do this to her."

"Sweetie, if it's anyone's fault it's mine. I sent Baz, should have sent Pope."

"If... no you should have sent no one and let me go with her to deal with him." I protested. "Seriously though Craig, if she wasn't so hyped up on pain meds she would smell Renn all over you... insult to injury right... I fucking told her not to deal with you again." Daren chimed in.

"You know what, fuck you Daren." -- "No, Craig. You don't get to be self righteous in this. She's a good girl, you never deserved her." Pope told me, "You come clean to her about Renn, and you never go back to her again. Or I'll tell her."

"She has the best shit though..." I mumbled, "Yea fine... I'll tell her. Smurf can I talk to you?" I asked her as Daren had left for his room, Baz for him and Pope stood there staring me down.

"Of course sweetie, come with me." She said as we walked outside. We walked out and sat on some of the lounge chairs as she looked over at me. "You're an idiot. You know that right." She told me as I just nodded. "Yea... I know. Ma' I couldn't help it... she offered me a line and I just kinda-" Smurf shook her head at me.

"Do not give me bullshit, Craig. Caterina is a great girl and you are lucky she came back after what this whole family put her through, you almost killed her, I am basically the reason she lost her mother...so let's just cut the shit alright hun?" She told me as I nodded.

"I want that piece of shit dead for what he did to her, Smurf. Not just beat, dead. If you don't find someone to do it. I will do it myself." I told her as she looked back at Pope before looking back at me, "Go get some sleep with your girl. I'll sort out Rafael." She told me before walking back towards the house and out of sight.

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CATERINA

I woke up to loud banging noises and found myself in Craig's bed, and my entire body ached. I stood up and went to the washroom taking two T3's before walking back towards the living room only to see the kid standing aimlessly in the hallway. I made my way closer to him and saw that his room, Pope's old room. Was just utterly trashed, He looked back at me before turning back to his room. "Thanks for protecting Nicky, though I'm really sorry that happened to you." He told me as I just smiled softly.

"It was no problem. So, what did you do to piss off Pope?" I asked him as he just shrugged.

"At this point, I'm thinking being born was what set him off." He told me. "Pope's not a bad guy, he takes a while to trust people. Once he does trust you, he's amazing. They all are really." I told him as he nodded. "Guess I can wait that out." He told me with a half smile.

"You don't really have a choice." I smirked before I continued on my way to the living room, sitting on the couch. I picked my purse off the ground where everyone had left it when I pulled out my phone. I instantly blocked Rafael's number and on all social media. How could he have done that, why would he do that? To send a message? What was he all of a sudden some sort of gang member... he wasn't even really Spanish, he wasn't even Mexican. His whole family was originally from Oklahoma. I don't know why I even cared or dwelled on this still.

Pope walked into the living room and sat down on the chair across from me. "You were out almost the entire day and night. Smurf wrapped everything up to have the big dinner tonight instead. Said it wouldn't be a family dinner it you were out cold, Craig watched you like a hawk all night too." He told me as I smiled.

"Yea, I figured he would... Thanks again Pope, that honestly meant more than I could ever show you." I told him, "You would never have too...I will always have your back." He told me.

"Are you ever going to leave the kid alone?" I asked him as he just smirked, "Some day. Haven't decided." He told me as J walked out from the hallway. "I'm taking them to school." He told me.

"Behave." I told him before looking at J, "Stay safe!" He just smiled shaking his head before he left with Pope. Leaving me to wait for Smurf to get back from dealing with the watches with Baz, which didn't take long as she walked in and smiled at me. "Want to go for a ride?" She asked me. "Let me get changed, I'll meet you at your car?" I offered as she smiled quickly heading to her office herself.

Throwing on a pair of jeans and a black tank top I grabbed a beige cardigan and ran out to greet Smurf at her car. "Where are we headed?" I asked her as she smiled. "Did you think of my offer?" She asked me.

"I would be glad to help, I'll start looking into some jobs for you... see if I can't look into anything else too." Smurf just smiled at my answer before playing with some of my hair, "This makes me very happy, sweetheart."

She drove us halfway around the city before pulling into a storage, she pulled into a spot and turned off her engine before looking over at me. "You never came here, and you never saw anything. Clear?" She asked me as I nodded to her.

"Why though?"

Smurf let out a long drawn breath before turning to face me in the car after undoing her seatbelt. "There are just some things I can't trust my boys with. Can't trust Baz with he's already showing me signs that he is becoming unhinged." She told me as I nodded. "Fair enough, he was always like that though. What does that have to do with me being here right now?" I asked her.

"There's going to come a time when I need someone I can trust to run things in the shadows. I'll always have one of the boys think they are calling the shots. Likely J if he ever joins us, Daren is to sensitive and I can never trust Craig to not be fucked up." She explained. "You already know how I run the money to clean it out for the boys...that I pay them small amounts over time to curb them from being idiots. Come with me I'll explain." She told me as she got out of the car and headed to the back. "Come on sweetheart, we don't have all day. We have to start dinner soon." She told me as I also exited the car and followed her as she went to a specific unit.

"In here, is everything. All of it." She told me with a smile. "Sure that's a safe place for whatever everything is?" I asked her.

"Boys don't know this place and I put the unit under a false name." She told me as she opened in letting me in first shutting the door behind her she turned on the light. Safe, after safe, after safe lined the whole unit and I could only imagine the amount of cash that was in each of them. She was showing me the side of the business the boys didn't even know about, which clearly showed me what her intention was the whole time with inviting me to talk in the first place.

"I can't take over for your Smurf. I'm not nearly as strong as you are... I don't have the guts for this." I told her as she just stared at me, "Then start getting them." She said flatly.

"Look, I know I can trust you. I know you are invested in this family regardless if you're with Craig or not. Until J shows his worth, I need to know there's someone strong and trustworthy around to back him up if Baz or Pope ever lose it and one of them will lose it." She told me.

"Is someone after you Smurf because the boys would never betray you." I told her.

"Someone is always after something, baby girl. This is called forward thinking, when is your next modelling adventure... because I need to start showing you the ropes." She told me as I just let out a deep breathe. "I have a shoot tomorrow in San Clemente, I should be back a few hours before dinner." I told her.

"Perfect." She said as she opened the one safe filling it with the stolen watches. "What did Baz get rid of today?" I asked her.

"A box with five dollar watches that I bought in bulk." She told me as I couldn't help but laugh softly. "

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Smurf drove me home before leaving the house again to go run some errands as I went back to Craigs room to change into a bathing suit before heading out to the pool with a towel. I wasn't long before Pope came back and moved the umbrella so it was completely covering me in shade. "The heat and sun aren't good for your wounds." He told me as he instantly walked over to the brick stove.

"Hello to you too." I sassed as I sat up. "Pope?" I called to him as he looked over at me.

"Am I making a mistake coming back?" I asked him as he walked over to me sitting on the lounge chair next to me. "All mistakes are lessons. I certainly like knowing your around. You kept things like and jovial before." He told me as I nodded.

"You don't think that's going to change now, with everything that's happened?"

Pope shrugged, "Honestly... probably not. I don't really see the same girl you were when I look at you."

"What do you see then?"

Pope placed a hand on my leg as he leaned in, "You're broken, damaged, lost, and hurting. That won't be fixed overnight, but at least you have us and you know we won't leave you. Smurf loves you, Daren loves you, Craig is Craig... I'll always love you." He told me, "As strictly friends." He added.

"I have a lot of work to do there's no denying that... I'm just scared this is a bad idea." I told him.

"Well, if shit hits the fan. I'll kill whoever hurts you and make sure you're safe in your apartment how does that sound." Pope told me with a smile as I laughed. "Thanks." I told him as he nodded. "You can go back to making your mess." I told him, as he stood up and walked back over to the brick oven.

It had been awhile since Smurf came back and I had moved inside to the living room to read a book while Smurf was getting the house ready for the dinner we were all having tonight. Pope however was still outside taking about the oven. Still smashing away at it, it had been almost four hours. "Cat?" She called me over, as I walked in I saw Baz walking up to the back path to the kitchen.