Grace Interrupted Read Online Free Page B

a flying tackle, Davey giving a woof of shock as they hit the ground, their bodies skidding hard against the uneven brick pavers. Grappling, the two combatants grunted and rolled while Pierpont and I shouted. Jack dropped his clipboard and jumped in to wrestle the two apart. Davey, having quickly recovered from the surprise of being attacked, fought back with fierce desperation.
    I froze to the spot for three heartbeats before I thought to call for help. As I spoke into my radio, I realized I’d registered the look of utter surprise on Davey’s face. I got the clear impression he’d never seen Kincade before. But Kincade obviously had an ax to grind. In fact, he was grinding right now. Using his body to keep Davey immobilized, he smashed the younger man’s face sideways into the ground with one hand while punching him with the other, shouting something about “a long time.” Davey managed to pry an arm out from beneath Kincade and grabbed at his attacker’s shirt, straining to pull him off.
    Next to me, Pierpont threw his hands up. “Oh, oh, oh!”
    Unable to get between the two, Jack wrapped himself around Zachary’s back, struggling to immobilize the man’s arms. Though still punching and grunting, Kincade was tiring. He wasn’t able to both fight Davey and fend off Jack, and the moment Jack wrestled Kincade into an armlock, Davey writhed away and leaped to his feet. Blood dripped from his now-crooked and obviously broken nose. “What is wrong with you?” he shouted, wincing as he wiped his face with the back of his hand.
    Security came running. Behind them, a flock of nosy tourists huddled around the near corner to watch the mess. They were certainly getting an eyeful.
    I offered Davey a tissue from my pocket which he accepted. Jack, meanwhile, had pinned Zachary Kincade’s arms behind him and was shouting close to the man’s ear. As security took over and dragged Jack away from his captive, Pierpont, who had been stricken silent after his outburst, hurried over to me to apologize. “I am so sorry. I don’t know what got into Zachary.” He turned to his comrade, repeating Davey’s words. “What is wrong with you?”
    Rubbing his hand across his cheek and flinching, Kincade sat on the ground with one knee up and one arm draped across it—the picture of relaxation. Except, of course, for the blood dripping from his lip. With Terrence off escorting Rani and Tamara to the local police, our overtaxed and undertrained security guards looked at one another as if to say, “What now?”
    Kincade stared up at Jack, then looked to Davey, then back again. Squinting, he seemed to see Jack with new eyes. He wiped his lip and asked, “I got it wrong, didn’t I?”
    Ignoring him, Jack made his way over to Davey, whose nose was beginning to swell. Jack took Davey’s head in both hands and examined his brother’s face. “It’s broken, bro,” he said. “We’re going to have to get you to the emergency room.”
    Zachary Kincade shouted from the ground, “It’s you, isn’t it? Not him. You’re Jack Embers.”
    Jack spun. “Do I know you?”
    Kincade spit blood onto the ground next to him. “You shaved your beard,” he said. “Now I see. I forgot to take the years into account. Your brother looks just like you did back then.”
    Jack stared wordlessly.
    Kincade pushed himself to his feet and waved the security staff away. “Don’t worry, I’m done. Getting too old for this garbage anyway.” He brushed himself off and stepped forward. “You don’t remember me, do you?”
    Jack took his own step forward, inserting himself between Kincade and Davey. A protective move no one missed. “No. Should I?”
    “My name,” he said, “is Zachary Kincade.”
    Jack paled.
    Hatred burned in Kincade’s eyes. “Thirteen years ago, you killed my little brother.”

Chapter 3

    OUR SECURITY STAFF ITCHED TO TRUNDLE yet another guest off to the local police station, but Davey refused to press charges. Jack pulled his