The Bad Boy's Secret

-twenty seven-

Gabe's POV

Kale continued to work on an old beater that was brought in for us to fix up for some extra cash. He wasn't listening to me and it was the most irritating thing in the world right now. 

"I think you're just being paranoid," Kale finally muttered, still under the hood of the car. I grabbed the piece of wood that was holding the hood up and let the hood fall on Kale's head. I was still holding on to the hood so the weight of it didn't hurt Kale too bad. 

Kale shot up from under the hood, face red with anger and hands clutching the back of his head. "What the hell is wrong with you, man!"

"Are you going to listen to me now?" I asked, propping the hood back up with the piece of wood while Kale grumbled under his breath and turned his back to me, to look in the tool box. 

"Hurry up before I get tired of hearing your voice again," Kale called back, not bothering to look my way. 

"Think about it Kale, Macy's dad grew up around here, on these streets," I walked over to Kale, leaning up against the cool brick wall and crossing my arms, "He had Macy when he was 22 years old, making him about 39 years old now almost 40," 

"Do you have a point here or do you like just wasting my time?" Kale's cold glare cut into me but I wasn't bothered by it, my head was spinning too fast. 

"Acacio, Kale! Doesn't that name ring a bell for ya at all?" Kale stared back at me, expression and eyes blank. "Kamikaze's?"

The wrench that Kale was holding fell and loudly clanged against the others in the tool box. 

"You don't really think that Macy's long lost dad is the leader of the Kamikaze's?" Kale tried to regain his composure and continued looking for the right wrench in the box so I grabbed his shoulders and made him look at me. 

"Acacio's have ran the Kamikaze's for generations! How often have you heard the last name Acacio? Especially around here? There's only one family, Macy's family," 

Kale looked at me for a moment with squinted eyes, I could almost see how hard his brain was working to figure out all the information I had just dumped on him. Finally I saw the light turn on in his eyes. 

"That would explain Macy's features too," Kale mentioned, "and her feistiness," 

"We can't let Macy find out," Now Kale looked at me like I had just murdered a kitten with my bare hands. 

"Why wouldn't we tell Macy that we know who her dad is?" 

"Because Kale, I think Macy would be crushed if she found out her dad is in a gang. Worse yet, the leader of one of the most dangerous gangs in the state. It'd crush her," 

"Don't you think she has a right to know though and then she can make her decision?" 

I was staring at the old beater that had been dropped off a few hours ago. Macy hated this lifestyle, she wanted nothing to do with our side of town and honestly neither did I. If I could move away and be done with this town for good I would, but I have my siblings to worry about and my mom. If Macy found out her dad still lived around this area she might want to try to meet up with him. The last thing I'd want is Macy putting off her own plans to try to get closure from a dead beat dad. 

"Martez Acacio comes from a family where bloodline means a lot, obviously," Kale was giving me his undivided attention finally, "if he had wanted Macy, he would have had her already. More than likely his family didn't approve of Macy's mom or Martez didn't want her in the first place," 

Kale took a deep breath, soaking in the information. "Have you found out anything about her mom?" 

"No, I can't find anything on a Lyla, but I also don't know where Macy's family is from or if her mom grew up around here," While I was explaining Kale had gone back to working on the beater, still listening though, "I mean what if I find out something bad about her too? What would I tell Macy?"

"The truth?" Kale asked as if I was stupid. 

"How do you think she would take that? Macy won't even be able to handle the fact that her dad is one of the biggest gang leaders in the state, not to mention druglord as well?" Kale looked over at me after I was done speaking, thoughts running again. 

"And how do you think Macy would handle the fact that you kept the truth from her? Because you and I both know if Macy found out you kept this from her, you would lose the chance to be with her for good," 

Kale's words almost paralyzed me. It was as if Kale had just reached into my heart and tried to yank it out. Losing Macy for good made me feel sick to my stomach, not only because I would failed AP English my senior year of high school, but also because I had feelings for Macy. Deep feelings that I hadn't even fully accepted myself yet. But Kale saw it, he knew exactly how I felt and he knew exactly what I needed to hear. 

"How would you tell her?" I asked, grabbing the flashlight that Kale was trying to hold between his teeth and holding it so he could see what he was doing. 

"With this kind of stuff," Kale let out a long sigh, "I would have to just tell her. . . I don't know man, like, not just blurt it out or anything. You could take her to dinner or something?"

"And have her freak out in public? No way," 

"Well you definitely can't invite her over, and I doubt she'd invite you over," Kale's words stung a bit but he wasn't wrong. Macy wouldn't want to invite me over to meet her parents, I doubt I ever would meet her parents actually. 

"Why don't you take her to a lookout nearby? That way if she freaks out you're not really in public and she'll have to at least let you drive her home," Kale's plan might work but knowing how stubborn Macy was she would probably just try to walk all the way back to her house. No, Macy would definitely start walking back to her house. 

"That's not a terrible idea, but I don't know how I'd even start the conversation," Before Kale and I could continue this important conversation, my phone started ringing. It was Isabel and I immediately answered. 

"What's up?" 

"You need to get home, now," Isabel's voice was cracking and strained, she had been crying I could tell. My blood was already turning hot. Whatever Isabel was about to say, it wasn't going to be good. 

"It's. . . it's Marco," Isabel began to sob on the other end of the phone and I was already sprinting out of the garage, leaving Kale calling after me, "He isn't breathing, the ambulance is on it's way but dad. . . he. . . he's losing it, we need you,"

Her broken words and gasps between sobs ignited a part of me I didn't know existed. My little sister, my tough and hardheaded little sister who would one day rule the world was crying out for me to save her from our own father. I clutched the throttle of my bike a little too hard as I raced down the street towards home after hanging up the phone. 

I didn't know what had happened and I didn't need to know right now. All I needed to know was that my little brother was going to be okay. All I needed to do was get home and save them. Save him. 

Just save him.