Epilogue
Paul
Paul hadn’t made it a habit of attending the funerals of bikers. This was a first for him, but something told him this wasn’t the way things went normally. For one, none of Snoopy’s so-called brothers dared to show their faces.
The man devoted his life to them, and they didn’t have the decency to pay their respects. A bunch of spineless derelicts.
Paul shook his head and wrapped an arm around Harper’s shoulders as he surveyed the turnout at the cemetery.
A priest stood over the grave. Harper’s mother, held up by her oldest son and Remi, sobbed. Beside them, the young Colt stared at the casket with a haunted expression. A few other relatives had shown up, but not one asshole clad in leather.
Such a disgrace.
He squeezed his woman as she dabbed her eyes with a tissue and listened to the words of the holy man.
It turned out, Snoopy suspected his brothers had turned against him and sent his sons out of town on purpose. Unbeknownst to Harper, Remi had gone with them. They were supposed to be talking to someone about a bike or something, and Harper’s sister was supposed to check it out. Harper’s mother had also been out of town, caring for Harper’s feeble grandmother.
Snoopy had actually taken care of his family before he died. Paul couldn’t believe it. The man wasn’t a total piece of shit. It’d been the reason it took so long for the funeral—they needed to get everyone back to Oklahoma.
He pressed a kiss to Harper’s temple before she stepped away. Sticking his hands in the pockets of his suit, he glanced around while she placed a flower on her father’s coffin, allowing a small smile to spread on his lips.
A few graves away stood his parents, brother, aunt, uncle, and cousins. They didn’t intrude on Harper’s family’s mourning. However, they’d showed up to provide her with support. This gesture, subtle as it was, proved they accepted her.
At the conclusion of the funeral, they turned without saying a word to anyone. Harper joined him with a tissue to her nose and red-rimmed eyes. Fresh tears wet her cheeks.
Paul wrapped an arm around her and gave her a soft squeeze. It’d been a few weeks since everything went down, so she wasn’t entirely healed yet, though her face had improved from the swollen, mottled mess it had been. She’d covered the traces of yellow-and-green bruises with makeup.
As the small group dispersed, and before Paul could lead his woman away, Harper’s siblings approached. Lifting his chin, he stepped back, allowing her space to speak with them.
“Paul,” Little Junior said as he stuffed his hands into his pockets.
Intrigued, he resettled himself at Harper’s side. Both of the men had left their cuts at home and were dressed in button-downs and slacks. They looked truly uncomfortable.
Little Junior glanced at his younger brother and Remi before turning his gaze to Paul and Harper. They stood on two different sides of an imaginary line. The divide between the siblings was palpable, and it hurt Paul’s heart.
There shouldn’t be distance between them. They cared about one another. None of the people at this funeral were responsible for how things went down, but it wasn’t on Paul to make anything right.
Little Junior scrubbed a hand along the stubble of his chin as though searching for words.
“Thank you,” he said with all sincerity as he met Paul’s gaze.
Paul dipped his chin. He knew it took a lot for the young biker to say that. He appreciated the acknowledgment.
Sighing, he glanced over his shoulder at the coffin. “Things spiraled so fast. I don’t know how everything got so bad.”
“Don’t blame yourself, Weston,” Harper said as she reached for his hand and gave it a squeeze. “Dad made his choices.”
He nodded.
Baby Boy shuffled from foot to foot. “It’s crazy to think it’s all gone.”
“Not all of it,” Paul offered.
The three siblings looked at him. “Dad kept the body shop out of the club’s name. It was his and his alone. So, as his kids, we get it,” Remi explained.
“Which means, if you want it, my family will ensure no one fucks with it,” Paul asserted.
Relief washed over all three of their faces.
“But that doesn’t mean Oklahoma is safe for you,” he admitted.
The men bristled, and Remi sighed. She wrapped her arms around herself and glanced over her shoulder as though watching their mother chat with the priest and the lingering family.
“That’s nothing new,” she said, returning her focus to the group before her. “No one is chasing me out of town. I’m taking the house, but I’m kicking Mom out.”
Harper balked. “What?”
Her sister faced her. “Mom’s been through enough, and Grandma is only getting worse. She should be there.”
“That makes sense,” Harper agreed, the tension leaving her body.
It seemed like things were falling into place.
She turned her attention to her brothers. “What about you?”
Baby Boy turned his attention to Little Junior, who lifted his shoulders in a shrug. “I don’t know. Stick around for now. Go legit, I guess.”
It was clear the words were sour on his tongue. These kids were raised on crime. They ate, slept, and breathed it. They wouldn’t have the faintest clue how to go straight.
Frowning, Harper peered up at Paul. She must have had the same thought he did. What was he supposed to do about it?
Ah hell… They looked like lost little puppies. They weren’t ready to be out on their own. They needed guidance. Their father had failed them. Left to their own devices, they’d wind up in jail in a week.
“I’ll see if Eddie has a few security shifts you two can do,” Paul offered.
The two of them brightened, and Harper bumped his shoulder.
“Thanks,” Little Junior said.
Remi rocked back and forth on her heels. “What about you?”
All eyes went to Harper.
Paul had the same question. They’d been tiptoeing around the subject for weeks—avoiding it like the plague. Honestly, he was afraid if he brought it up, he wouldn’t like the answer. Now, he waited with bated breath for what she’d say.
Refusing to make eye contact with anyone, Harper ran her hand through her hair and fidgeted with her bracelet. She chewed on her bottom lip as she surveyed the cemetery. The anxiety came off her in waves.
She wasn’t ready to answer.
“I don’t know yet. I’m still figuring it out,” she admitted as she faced her sister. “A lot of shit went down. There’s a mountain of things to consider, and I’m still sorting through it all.”
“Plus, her ribs aren’t healed yet,” Paul added, trying to be helpful.
Remi pursed her lips. “Well, keep us posted. Okay?”
Harper nodded.
The siblings embraced briefly and exchanged farewells before they parted ways. The heavy emotions in that moment were thick in the air. Paul could practically see them bearing down on Harper’s shoulders.
Once alone, he slid an arm around her and tugged her tight against his chest. She wasn’t ready to leave Oklahoma, and he wasn’t about to push her to decide. Obviously, he wanted her here, but it wasn’t his decision. She had to make it without his influence.
“You ready to go?” he asked.
Sighing, she nodded against his chest. “Let me just say goodbye to my mom.”
Harper
Sitting on the couch in Paul’s living room, still wearing her funeral clothes, Harper stared into the abyss. The blinking cursor of the laptop on the coffee table taunted her. Could she really do this?
If she were honest with herself, she’d admit that when she took the leave of absence to defend Dwight, she knew she wasn’t going back to North Carolina. No one took time off from prosecution to switch to defense in another state. It had earned her a thousand and nine stares, but she’d done it anyway.
She always thought she wanted to be on the other side of the law—the right side. The people who were supposed to be the good guys. She thought the grass was greener on the other side, and it sort of was—to an extent.
Her job meant she followed the law, no matter how much she disagreed with it. She had to build cases against people whose circumstances put them in horrendous positions. Harper had won cases that kept her up at night.
Life was a cruel bitch to people. They hadn’t deserved the consequences of their actions. Half of the people she’d had a hand in convicting deserved help, not punishment. The system was broken.
Sighing heavily, she faced the fact that she’d become disenchanted with being an assistant district attorney months ago. Coming back to Oklahoma and defending Dwight had been an experiment. She may not have known it at the time, but she did now.
“Hey,” Paul said as he entered the room.
Looking up at him, she smiled. “What’s up?”
“My mom’s hosting family dinner tonight.” He sat down beside her. “I don’t know if you’ve had your fill of people or not, but if you’re up for it, we should probably get on the road in like an hour.”
Paul’s family had been extremely gracious through all of this. They’d even shown up at the funeral despite everything. They were good people. Criminals, yes, but they had hearts. It must be where Paul got it from.
Leaning against him, she rested her head on his shoulder. “Sure.”
He cocked his head. “What’s that?” he asked, pointing to the letter she’d typed on the laptop.
“My letter of resignation,” she admitted.
He stilled.
“I can’t, in good conscience, go back to my job. After everything that happened, and how I didn’t report it to the authorities, how can I argue against other people who broke the law?”
He nodded. “What are you going to do?”
“There are a few firms around here that I’m sure could use my help,” she said and smiled. “I think I want to give criminal defense a shot.”
“Here?” he asked.
Looking up at him, she chuckled. “Yeah. There are a lot of kids getting records who should get help. I feel like Dwight, Weston, Colt, all of them could’ve had a different path in life if someone showed it to them.”
“Yeah?”
“I think I’ll do juvenile work. Be an advocate or something.”
He grinned and wrapped her in a tight hug. “Sounds like a plan.”