A/N: Thanks to those who reviewed/alert/favorited. I hope this chapter is good. Please review and enjoy.

Chapter Two

Bobby looked at me as if he didn't believe a word I said. Part of me was glad, if he had his suspicions I wouldn't have to keep feeling the way I was. The other part was angry that he didn't trust my word. He didn't have a chance to press the issue since both Green and who I assumed was his partner, came walking toward us.

"Well if it ain't little baby Mercer." Green chuckled opening his arms up for a hug. I glared at him. He knew I hated being called that but I embraced him. He gave me an extra tight squeeze. He was a good friend to the family having been around long before he became the cop he was today. He helped me a bit too, like everyone else. If he happen to catch me out a night, he'd bring me home before anything happened. He was usually the one there when my brothers weren't. Hell he was my fifth brother at times.

Bobby and Green embraced each other, patting the other on the shoulder. They broke apart, Green's partner standing beside him, giving us all a glance. I didn't like him at first glance. He gave off this weird...vibe. May sound strange but that's how I based all relationships and first impressions on. If I 'liked' a person at first glance, I could get used to being around them but if I sensed something was off, say goodbye because I was not going to try to be nice.

This guy was the same. I leaned against Jack, resting my head on his arm for a while before he decided to put his arm around my shoulder, pulling me into a hug. I sunk into his huge frame allowing him, for the few times I did, to give me protection.

"Thanks for coming, Green. Ma would've been happy you made it to the service." Bobby told Green, speaking in an even tone. I swallowed the lump forming. Jack held me tighter, holding in the pain he felt too.

"Shit, your mom would've been happy you made it back for her funeral!" Green exclaimed and I winced. Funeral. Death. He was only trying to lighten the mood but it didn't help. He took notice of that.

"I didn't come back for no funeral." Bobby replied in a rough voice. He was hurting just as much as us, I could tell, only he refused to show his pain. That was Bobby.

There seemed to be some hidden meaning behind Bobby's words. A meaning I couldn't understand, but the others sure seemed to. Green's partner spoke first, "Thanks for the offer but we got this under control." His voice held no emotion. Blank and bored, emotions not needed today especially when Evelyn was just buried. Jack held me tighter when I tried to pull from his side to go to Bobby's. He knew I overreacted sometimes.

"Yeah I know I can tell by the looks of this place." Bobby started, sarcasm in his voice. "Place looks completely different. Detroit's finest clean it up, huh?" He asked and I smirked.

"Hey be easy Bobby." Green told him with a slight smile. I looked between the two, watching their expressions as they spoke. "We got these punks." He laughed glancing between him and his partner. "Kids playing basketball across the street saw these two gangbangers shootin' up the place-."

"Oh come on Green." Bobby interrupted with an irritated sigh. "I used to make a good living out here 'cause cops like you couldn't find tits in a strip joint." I couldn't help the snicker from coming it. The words he used were funny, tits in a strip joint. Now that's calling someone stupid. Bobby smirked after I snickered, Jack grinning too at the words. Only one not to find what Bobby said at all funny was the man I was starting not to like for some reason. "Just come inside, have some coffee and donuts, then take him and get the fuck out of here."

Jack was shifting side to side now, standing around for some reason during the whole conversation. I buried my face in Jack's side, inhaling his smell of smoke and something else. "Come on Jack." Bobby was already walking away as he said this. Jack went to follow, about to pull me along but Green's partner just had to talk again.

"We need to question Aidan about the murder." And I knew I wasn't going to like him. Everything would have went fine, I didn't have to tell anyone what happened. Didn't have to share the anger and pain of that night. I just wanted to put it all behind me but this...this man just threw the plan out the window and then me.

Both Bobby and Jack stilled, Jack pulling me from his side. He had both his hands on my shoulder, making me stand in his line of view while keeping a tight grip so I couldn't slip away. "What the fuck did you say?" Bobby asked him, stepping closer to me with confusion in his eyes. Confusion and anger...or was in pain?

Green sighed. "She was there Bobby." I met Bobby's gaze, avoiding Jack's hurt. Bobby's anger had me shrinking away. He looked so...not like Bobby. "She was the only other witness to the crime."

God these two motherfuckers just threw me under a bus.

Did they not see I was already hurting? Or did they not care at all? What Green and his partner just told Bobby was going to cause so much tension between us. It was no secret that me and Bobby had similar tempers. No secret that we butted heads so often, people were wary of us in public. In school I had few true friends, most kids not willing to get involved with another Mercer. It was all around how to have a normal life when I wasn't a normal kid.

Yet, I tried so hard sometimes. Maybe too hard.

I did know one thing. It wasn't normal for a kid to witness their mother murdered.