Chapter 66
Chapter Sixty-Six
ONE WEEK LATER
~Harlow~
I’ve been stuck here for a week now. Rhen and Leon keep telling me Thane will calm down and come to his senses, yet no matter how many times I try to speak with him, he won't hear me out.
He won't even give me a damn moment when he picks Rhen and Leon up for work each morning.
I tried to explain to Rhen, but he refuses to believe me.
He showed me video footage of the restaurant we went to, and I tried to explain that it was from before the accident happened, that it was when we left for lunch.
Yet her body was found in the garden on the other side of the restaurant, where she parked.
It shows the car driving off, but most of the visual was blocked by a moving van, and you can't see that his mother was driving the car and not me.
I can't explain it. If they had all the footage from the day, they would have seen who dumped her body there, because it certainly wasn't me. After that turned into a huge argument, I gave up trying to explain myself and trying to find a way to show them I’m not a murderer.
I honestly believe they just need someone to blame, and unfortunately for me, I am that person. Why would I kill a woman I had just met? I had no issues with her, so it made little sense that I would kill her just to escape them.
"Harlow?" Leon murmurs, gripping my shoulder where I lay on the bed.
"I am going to work. Do you need anything? I can grab whatever you need on my way back," he tells me. What I need is for them to believe me. Since that isn't happening, all he gets is silence.
Leon growls at me. "I could have left you. You do realize that don't you? Fuck, Harlow, just speak! It has been three days of nothing but your damn silence!" he snarls before turning on his heel and leaving.
Rolling over, I tug the blanket over my head and nestle beneath the covers.
I have a feeling that Leon is only here so he doesn’t lose his personal juice box.
Rhen hardly speaks to me. For the first few days, when I tried to explain my side of the story to him, it would always turn into a screaming match, usually ending with him leaving.
Raidon hasn't come to see me, and after hearing Rhen on the phone with him once, I didn't bother trying to reach out to him.
He is as pissed off as Thane. Some part of me knows I can't remain here in this hotel room.
One day, probably soon, Thane will order his mates back the house, and then what?
Partway through the day, I grow bored of daytime TV and decide to go see Bree. She will listen, or at least I hope she will. That is, if Talon will let me in after Leon told him what I had supposedly done.
Climbing out of bed, I pull on some jeans and a hoodie. I can't be bothered with a bra, so I skip it. I pull my hair into a messy bun and tug my hood up before slipping my feet into my sneakers. I leave the hotel with my key tucked in the back pocket of my jeans.
I have to walk because I don't have bus fare. I’m not even sure if Thane has paid me yet for the few weeks of work I did. Not that it matters. My handbag, wallet, and everything else are in his house, never to be seen again, probably.
Yet the walk does me some good, and the fresh air helps me clear my head. I didn’t leave the hotel room all week, so all I could smell was Rhen and Leon. I reek of them.
It takes me a little over forty-five minutes to walk to the seedy strip club. Stepping inside, all I can smell is Omega pheromones, sex, and bodily fluids. Gosh, I did not miss this smell.
Walking around the dimly lit place, I move behind the bar and toward the back where the staff areas are. It doesn't take me long to find Bree. She’s in back, getting ready to go on stage. She looks up when I enter, and a huge grin splits her face.
"Z! Please tell me you are here to work," she purrs at me. I wave to her and press my lips together in an awkward smile. She exhales loudly and sighs, patting the bench where she has her leg propped up, tying the laces for her boots up her legs.
"Talon told me what happened with your pack," she tells me.
"Where is Talon?" I ask noting that I haven’t seen him.
"He’s not here. You don't have to worry," she tells me, and I let out a breath of relief. "He’s away for the whole week. He’s opening a club in another city. I’m in charge while he’s gone," she shrugs.
We chit-chat for a bit before she has to go on stage. I watch her as she works, and when she comes off stage, I follow her out back while she yells at the girls who are dawdling and not where they’re supposed to be. They rush off, leaving us alone. I explain my version of events to Bree.
"And they won't listen," she clicks her tongue, annoyed. "Stupid, typical Alpha men! You can't tell them shit!" she snarls before pursing her lips. "So, what are you going to do?" she asks, and I shrug.
"I was going to leave, but I have no money, and nowhere to go," I tell her. She thinks for a moment as she gets into her next outfit.
"Are you looking for work?" she asks, and I sigh.
"I suppose I am. I am clearly fired as their assistant. But what about Talon?"
"He’ll be gone all week. Though we will have to drench you in pheromones. With that mark on your neck, you reek of them, but we can smother their scents."
"I can't work nights, though. I don't want them knowing and giving them an actual reason to hate me."
"That’s fine, I can move shifts around. Can you be here around nine in the mornings for this week?"
I nod my head, knowing they leave at 8 a.m. each morning. It will be tight, but doable.
"What about Talon?" I ask again.
"I will handle Talon when he gets back," she assures me.
"Okay, great," I tell her, and she smiles before giving me a hug and checking her phone. She digs through her bag before grabbing her wallet and slipping me twenty dollars.
"Catch a cab back. They knock off soon, and you won't make it back in time to shower before they get back," she says, showing me the time on her phone, and I gasp.
"Shit!"
"A cab should be waiting out front. I had Mila call one for you ten minutes ago. Go. I’ll see you tomorrow," she says, and I nod before pausing.
"Uh, where will I be working?" I ask her.
"Behind the bar, don't worry," she tells me, and I sigh in relief before rushing out to find the cab.