1. Eric
ERIC
A nger burned through me as I watched the Theriots mow down every man between them and the shack where Dax’s boyfriend was being held, including the men they’d promised to leave unscathed.
I’d intended to arrest those men, knowing they might just be pawns—not pure evil like the ones I’d reluctantly agreed to sacrifice—knowing they’d never get what they deserved in our justice system.
I charged toward the fight, shouting, trying to stop them, even though I knew it was pointless. I’d made a deal with a known mafia family. What the hell had I expected? That they’d actually keep their promises? I’d be lucky if I made it out of there alive.
I didn’t think anyone had heard me yell, but Ambrose turned and looked at me. His expression was completely blank, but he called out, “Go back where you were and wait for me.”
I shouldn’t listen to him. I should leave and pretend I was never there, maybe just keep on driving and disappear, send my resignation from wherever I ended up, but I retreated to the trees, then stayed rooted to the ground, gun still in my hand, staring at the carnage I’d allowed.
I snorted. Allowed? I wished I had that much power. If I did, I’d still be back in Baltimore, and my former chief of police would be in jail.
The men the Theriots had killed were evil bastards, and I didn’t truly think they deserved a better fate. Even the ones they were supposed to spare had been holding an innocent young man prisoner.
So, yeah, I could justify everything that had happened.
I was protecting my new home by ridding it of drug dealers who were pushing their wares at kids.
All this killing was in the name of protecting the citizens of my parish.
The problem was, I’d sworn to uphold the law, and I’d moved here because I was no longer able to do that in Baltimore.
“Winston,” Ambrose called. “You better still be there.”
I looked up to see Ambrose striding toward me.
I forced myself to hold his gaze, even though I wanted to look away.
But not because I was afraid of him. He was a fucking crazy recluse from a mafia family, but I’d had a few days to move past that.
What bothered me about Ambrose was how goddamn attracted I was to him.
“What the hell was that?” I allowed my anger to show on my face.
The last thing I needed was for Ambrose to get a hint of anything else I was feeling toward him.
He probably wouldn’t kill me for wanting him since his brother and cousins were all in relationships with men, but Ambrose hadn’t given me any reason to think he shared their interests.
As far as I knew, he was completely straight.
Even if he wasn’t, I was safest sticking to my initial impression that he was still very much off-limits.
Then there was the fact that he’d betrayed me. Why did I still find him sexy as hell after that?
The bastard grinned at me. “What you just witnessed was justice.”
“It wasn’t what we agreed to.”
“Those assholes were holding Travis in a fucking cage. Do you really think Dax was going to let them live after that?”
Dax was Ambrose’s twin brother, and Travis was the young man Dax had fallen for. “You shot them before you entered the shed.”
Ambrose’s grin grew wider. Before that day I’d been convinced he never smiled. Maybe killing made him happy. Another reason to stay far away from him.
“You’re observant. Most cops out here in bayou country aren’t so interested in the details.”
I hated how right he was. “I’m interested in everything that goes on in this parish.”
“Some things are better off ignored.”
“Like vigilante justice?”
Ambrose nodded, his expression more solemn now. “Yes, just like that.”
“I could bring you up on murder charges.”
His smile returned. “No, you couldn’t.”
I had no doubt he was right. His family had connections everywhere.
Any charges brought against them would be dropped.
The best thing I could do was get out of there and pretend to be shocked when the call came in about the dead bodies.
My last year in Baltimore had made me an expert in pretending not to know things.
I turned to leave, but Ambrose grabbed my arm. “Where the hell are you going?”
His touch sent sparks shooting over my skin. His grip was firm and determined. I could free myself if I needed to, but it would take a fight.
“Since I don’t have anyone to arrest, I’m not needed here until a call comes in.”
“No one’s going to make a call. We’ll get this cleaned up, and these men will simply be rumored to have disappeared.”
He’d told me the day before that his family would take care of things, but I hadn’t actually believed they could go that far.
When was I going to learn to stop underestimating people?
I’d known the Theriots could cover things up by making it appear these men had killed each other or something, but Ambrose was certain they could just wave a hand and make it all disappear.
How could anyone in my department fight power like that?
I shook loose from Ambrose’s grip. “Why the fuck do I even bother?”
“We’re not the bad guys here.”
I raised my brows and glared at him. “Six men are dead. “
“Six evil bastards.”
“They were, but that shouldn’t matter. I was supposed to give them the chance for a fair trial.”
Ambrose held my gaze, and the intensity in his eyes made me dizzy. “It would never have been fair. You know we did the right thing.”
I couldn’t argue with him when, deep down, I agreed with him. “You still lied to me.”
He frowned. “I protected you.”
His words hit me hard. He looked so fucking sincere, but I didn’t want to be taken in by him. “Lying to me is not protecting me.”
“You didn’t know what would happen. That’s what was best for you in your position.”
“What would have been best for me was you not forcing me into this bullshit.”
“And then LePlatt would have continued to prey on the citizens of Albertine Parish. Is that what you wanted? Because you weren’t going to bring him down by yourself.”
“You don’t know that.”
Ambrose growled. “Yes, I do. If you’d tried, you’d be dead. This way, you’re alive, and you won’t be affected by any of this.”
My hands clenched into fists as anger burned in my chest. “Not affected? I just watched you slaughter those men, and now I’m supposed to pretend I know nothing about it?”
“Those men deserved what they got, and you won’t need to do any pretending. No one is going to mention them again.”
It was never that easy. “Maybe not the ones from out of town but the local guys? Someone is going to miss them.”
Ambrose nodded. “Most people will be glad they’re gone and those that miss them will know better than to talk. You don’t ask questions around here, not when someone disappears under these kinds of circumstances.”
I shook my head. “I’m never going to understand this town, am I?”
His lips quirked up. “You will. You just need someone to teach you.”
“You?”
He laughed, but it sounded bitter. “No. I’m going back to my bayou. I’ve been around people way too much over the last few weeks.”
“What are you hiding from?” As soon as the question was out, I knew it was a mistake.
Ambrose’s expression went blank, and he stilled. It was like a switch had been flipped. The only sign he felt any emotion at all was the fact that he was flexing his hands.
Was he going to hit me? I’d almost welcome it.
A good fight might be just what I needed to bring me back to reality, a reality where I’d let a criminal family railroad me into sanctioning their version of justice.
But peacemaking was in my blood. “That’s none of my business. I shouldn’t have asked.”
Ambrose gave me a curt nod. He seemed to relax a little, but his smile didn’t return. Rare as it was, I missed it.
“I assume you know the consequences of revealing anything you saw today.” His voice was grim, but his expression remained neutral.
“You’re telling me you’d kill me?”
Ambrose shrugged. “You’d leave me without a choice.”
“How would you do it? A bullet through my head or something more personal like a knife between my ribs?”
The color drained from Ambrose’s face, and he stepped back. He brought a hand to the back of his neck and rubbed it as he stared around like he didn’t know where he was.
Fuck. He looked like my first partner had when his PTSD pulled him into the past. Ambrose had been a Green Beret. There was no telling what he’d seen.
“Ambrose?” He didn’t respond. I fought the instinct to touch him, knowing that could easily go south.
I glanced toward the shed where Ambrose’s cousins were directing men to do their bidding, wiping the area clean of evidence and loading up the bodies.
I wondered if I should yell for one of them, but I didn’t want to risk calling attention to myself, and I would have to walk past Ambrose to approach them.
“Ambrose. Are you with me?”
This time he blinked, but when he took a step, he wavered.
“Why don’t you sit down? Do you need some water?” I reached for the bottle I’d left on a stump when the action started.
Ambrose turned to me, a look of confusion on his face. “What?”
“Water. You should drink some.”
He took the bottle from me and drained it. “Thanks.”
“Sure. Are you all right?”
“I’m fine. As far as anyone else is concerned, this didn’t happen.”
I nodded. Who was I going to tell? Surely his twin knew how he’d been affected by his time in the army, and if not, it wasn’t my place to share.
He glanced my way, then turned his attention back to the water bottle. “None of this happened. We’ve never met. We’ve never worked together. None of it.”
I frowned at him. “You fucked me over today. You think I’ll just forget that.”
I was sure he would argue. Instead, he held my gaze. “I’ll give you one favor as repayment. Call me when you need it.”
He rose to his feet and walked off through the trees.
A shout drew my attention back toward the shed where the Theriots’ men had already done a fantastic job cleansing the area of all evidence of the day’s events.
When I glanced back toward Ambrose, he was gone. If he’d run, surely I would have heard him, but he hadn’t made a sound. He’d been walking away, moving through the trees as if following a path only visible to him. I’d only looked away for a second, but he’d disappeared.
I walked in the direction he’d been going, looking more carefully. There was no one there. He’d dissipated as if he were no more than a ghost.
“He’s the scariest one of us all,” Dax said.
I jumped at the sound of his voice. How the hell had he snuck up on me?
Because you were too busy hoping you’d get another glimpse of Ambrose’s hot ass.
“How does he do that?” I asked, gesturing toward the woods.
“I wish I knew. He makes no sound when he moves, and he can melt into whatever is around him.”
“It’s fucking impressive.”
Dax grinned. “Yeah, it is. Good of you to notice.”
“I may not like your methods, but you and your brother are excellent at what you do. I’ve never said otherwise.”
“No, but I get the impression you think Ambrose is especially good at his job… and possibly other things.”
Oh shit. I did not need Dax picking up on the tension between me and Ambrose, especially not if Ambrose hadn’t revealed he wasn’t straight to his brother.
“I think you’re mistaken about that.”
He laughed. “You’re not a very good liar. That must be a hindrance in your line of work.”
“I’m not the one who’s a criminal.”
“Aren’t you, though? You were certainly an accessory to what we planned.”
“That’s…”
“For the good of the community?”
I let out a long breath.
“So is a lot of what we do,” Dax said.
“Stealing cars helps the community how?”
“I didn’t say we were angels, but really, who are we hurting? Some other assholes who can afford a Ferrari?”
“That’s not the point.”
Dax tilted his head, studying me. “Isn’t it, though?”
“Crime is fine when the people getting hurt aren’t someone you can sympathize with? So you’re like Robin Hood?”
He snorted. “Hardly. But we’re not like Carlotti.”
Eric sighed. “Fine. I’ll give you that. You’re not the monster that man is.”
For the first time since I’d met him, Dax looked uncertain. “Let’s just say I don’t treat my friends or family the way he does.”
“Your enemies, though?”
He ran a hand through his hair. “My enemies get what they deserve.”
“But aren’t I your enemy since it’s my job to enforce the law?”
“If you come for me or my family, then you will be, but for now, you’re…”
“A friend?”
Dax wrinkled his nose. “Jesus, don’t get too excited.”