JUDE: Book 2 The Justice Brothers Series by Taylor Lee Page B

confirming her discomfort. Jude had the decency to be embarrassed, but knew there was too much going on between himself and the squirt to explain his rudeness to the Judge. He sighed. Fuck it all, he couldn’t explain it to himself . Instead he took control of the conversation and turned to the significant challenges ahead.
    Speaking directly to the Judge, he said, “I wish this visit was for any reason other than why Skylar and I are here. I appreciate how hard this has been for you, Judge. I also appreciate your astute suggestion that Blake and his sisters come here. Not only does it ensure that they are receiving the medical and personal attention they need, but it makes it easier for Skylar and me to interview them. I hated to drag them to the precinct or impose on them at their homes.”
    The Judge’s expression darkened perceptibly. He turned away from Jude, but not before Jude saw the tears welling up in his grandfather’s eyes.
    He stepped forward and put his arm around the older man’s shoulder and pulled his grandfather next to him. “Damn, Judge, I hate like hell that you have to face this hideous situation. I hope having the Parker siblings here hasn’t made it harder. Goddamn, I wish I’d thought—”
    The Judge shook his head fiercely. “No, no, Jude. Don’t do that. Don’t misunderstand. Yes, this is harder than I could imagine any situation to be. The fact that the Parkers were my friends, and that they were murdered, murdered in such a hideous way is beyond my ability to comprehend. And yes, the fact that they were your parent’s friends only makes my pain sharper, more difficult to bear.”
    The Judge swiped at his eyes and then grasped Jude’s hands. “Please know, son, that the only way that I am able to live with this dreadful situation is knowing that you and your brothers, particularly you, with the help of this young woman, are going to find the monsters who committed this horrendous crime. And when you do, Jude, I pity them.”
    Jude clasped his grandfather close to him and spoke softly. “I promise you, Judge. The evil men who did this will pay with their lives. They truly are dead men walking.”

Chapter 7
    Skylar had known her father had approached Jared, insisting that he convince Skylar not to go to Duluth. Sky could almost hear his compelling arguments. He’d made them many times over the years to Sky and anyone who had tried to take her away from him. Her father would start with how bright she was, how important it was that her powerful brain not be wasted on frivolous tasks. If that didn’t work, he would mention how sheltered she’d been, how vulnerable she was. Finally, if he got desperate enough, he would allude to her oddness, hinting that she was prone to doing unexpected things. Like not listening to her father who knew what was best for his remarkable but somewhat “unstable” daughter.
    Sky hadn’t known until she arrived in Duluth that her father had also approached the Judge. It was hugely embarrassing to her and so like her controlling father not to give her the courtesy of telling her what he had done. It also spoke to both Jared’s and the Judge’s strength of personality that they stood up to Professor Morton Hughes, something few people did. Jared and the Judge must have intuitively understood how hard it would be for Sky to break away from her powerful father. But they’d stood back and hadn’t pressured her. When she made the decision to leave the Northeast against her father’s strong objections, they stepped up and supported her, wholeheartedly welcoming her to Minnesota.
    Skylar was horrified when the Judge casually mentioned her father to Jude. Worse, he had revealed with an amused chuckle that her father had insisted that she needed to be reminded to eat properly. While the Judge no doubt meant the offhand remark as an example of Professor Hughes’s need to control his daughter, the comment clearly reinforced Jude’s dismissive view of her.