Epilogue
I hate the fuckin’ city, and this place is just about as city as it gets. Since Felix has been ghosting me for a few weeks now, I had to go over his head. And now, I’m here in Manhattan about to meet with a man who I haven’t seen in six years.
“Noah.” Harvey Marston takes a seat at the table opposite me. To look at him, you’d buy his story and believe he was just another guy who got lucky, and filthy rich, from making good investments, but I know different. Harvey Marston is a manipulator of men.
“You said it was urgent.” He looks at me as if I’m wasting his time, and when I look at the barroom door, and see two of his men keeping watch, I get straight to the reason I’m here.
“I tried gettin’ hold of Felix, but he—”
“Felix is dead,” Harvey informs me with no emotion in his expression or tone.
“ What? What happened?”
“I’m working on finding out, but that’s not why you're here. What's the issue?”
“We gotta problem with Walker. He did somethin’ about five years ago, that I had no idea about. And when I tell ya what it is, I don’t think you're gonna be all too happy ‘bout it.”
“Well, don’t just sit there looking at me, tell me what it is,” he snaps at me.
“He got a girl pregnant. She was only sixteen and when she wouldn’t do what he needed her to… he killed her.” I knock back the scotch I’ve got in front of me and hope this goes the way I need it to. I do not want to be in the middle of a war between the Carsons and Harvey Marston.
“Stupid bastard!” Harvey shows his frustration when he slams his fist on the table. It gets the attention of the people around us, but he smiles politely at them and calms himself down.
“If it happened five years ago and he got away with it, why is this a problem now?” he asks, keeping his voice low.
“Because that girl's family just found out what he did, and I don’t think me, or half the men you got, are gonna be able to stop them from makin’ him pay the price.” I give it to him straight, knowing how ruthless the Carsons can be.
“And who are this family ?” he asks, getting more and more frustrated.
“The Carsons, they own a ranch in—”
“I know who the fucking Carsons are.!” Now, he looks really mad.
“Me and the boys have a good relationship with them. One we’d like to maintain. Bein’ their friend is far better than bein’ their enemy. I think you should let them have this. Let them take their revenge,” I suggest, maybe I’m speaking out of turn, but I need him to be on my level.
“How good is that relationship, Noah?” he asks, looking at me sternly.
“It’s solid,” I assure him, thinking about the brand I had singed into my skin to show my loyalty. I gotta lot of things to thank Garrett Carson for and I won’t let him down.
“Okay, I agree. Walker needs to pay for what he did. Power comes at a price and all I ask is for the men I gift it to, is to stay clean. I even give them people, like you, to do their dirty work for them.” I hate the smirk he looks at me, with.
“I guess George Walker forgot that. He did it once.
I can't trust him not to do it again. You go back to Garrett Carson, and you tell him there will be no retaliation from me, so long as the job is done clean and what happened never surfaces.”
“He’ll be happy with that.” All the weight from my chest lifts.
“But…”
Shit.
“I’m gonna need time to think of a replacement.
I need someone who has respect and is likeable, men like that are hard to come by these days.
The Carsons can have their revenge, but they will wait until I figure out who Walker’s replacement will be.
” Harvey looks pissed off, he’s put a lot of years, and a lot of effort, into getting Walker where he is.
“Will you be visiting your brother while you're in town?” Marston gets up from his seat and buttons up his suit jacket, ready to leave.
“No, and I’d prefer it if ya didn’t mention I was here. I’m flyin’ back tonight,” I tell him, not wanting to get into it.
“As you wish.” Harvey nods his head at me curtly and goes to walk away.
“So what do I do in the meantime?” I call after him, wondering what my role is now. I was sent to Fork River to protect George Walker and do whatever he needed of me.
“You sit tight, and wait for me to give your town a new mayor.” He taps my shoulder before he leaves.