Chapter 16 #2
I told them all about how I’d left Chicago and come to Montana.
How I’d reconciled with Jeremiah before Presley’s wedding.
How I’d come to Clifton Forge once, only to return after Jeremiah had begged me for another chance.
Then I told them how his behavior had changed.
How he’d become edgy and nervous. How’d he spent less and less time at the clubhouse.
Presley held my hand through every detail.
Luke’s palm never strayed from my knee.
Then I reached the end of my story and I shifted, taking the phone from the back pocket of my jeans. I opened it, pulled up the video, and handed it to Emmett as he stretched a hand across the coffee table.
The guys watched it twice. When Draven’s name was mentioned, Presley flinched and her eyes flooded, but she blinked them away.
“I’m sorry,” I whispered.
“You didn’t kill him.”
One day, I hoped I’d hear the story of Draven Slater. I hoped to hear how Presley had found him and who he’d been to her. For now, I was content knowing that she’d found a family here. She’d found people who would protect her.
When the video was over, Dash handed me my phone. “How many copies of that are there?”
“Two.” I glanced at Luke, earning a small nod. “It’s on this phone and we put it on a cloud storage site.”
Luke had written the username and password in a letter. That letter, along with Agent Maria Brown’s card, were currently in his gun safe. He’d assured me that his dad would know the code, and if something happened to Luke, his dad would know what to do.
Leo, who’d gotten up from his seat to watch over Emmett’s shoulder, began pacing in front of the mantel. “Who’s the guy in the chair?”
“Ken Raymond. The guy who washed up on the river this spring.” Luke picked up the file folder he’d brought home from work this afternoon. He placed it on the coffee table and flipped it open, greeting me with a gruesome photo of a blue, bloated body.
I cringed, both Presley and I looking away.
“Anyone recognize him?” Luke asked.
Emmett and Leo both shook their heads.
Dash narrowed his gaze, studying the picture before moving his scrutiny to my face. There was a glower to his features. A stern and threatening scowl that dared anyone to challenge him.
Yeah, I could see him leading a motorcycle gang. He had the same air of confidence that Tucker Talbot had always oozed. If not for Luke’s and Presley’s trust in him, I wouldn’t have told Dash a damn thing.
“Do you recognize him from your time with the Warriors?” he asked.
“No. I’d never seen him before this.”
“Did you ever hear the name before?” Emmett asked.
I shook my head. “No, at least, I don’t think so. Most everyone went by a nickname.”
“Who was he?” Leo asked Luke.
“According to his records, an upstanding citizen. Married. No kids. Worked as the manager for an indoor shooting range in Ashton. No arrests. No record.”
“Upstanding citizens don’t get mixed up with the Warriors,” Dash muttered. “It’s too clean.”
“Agreed. I did some digging this morning. I’ll do more tomorrow, but on the surface, everything looks normal.
Exactly how I was supposed to see it. But according to my database, Ken Raymond has no next of kin.
And his wife has left Ashton. After living there for ten years, she left ten days after he died.
No forwarding address. She’s just gone.”
“Well, her husband just died,” Presley said. “Can’t blame her.”
“Unless she’s running. Or dead,” Dash said. “Maybe they got tied up with the Warriors because of his job. He could have been selling them guns on the sly. They took him out. Took her out too.”
“Definitely possible.” Luke nodded.
Dash turned to Emmett. “Let’s dig. See if we can find out who Ken Raymond really is.”
Emmett nodded, then turned to Luke. “How far did you get?”
“Not far. I don’t have a warrant.”
Emmett grinned. “I don’t need one.”
Presley leaned closer. “Emmett does some hacking in his spare time.”
“Ah.” I nodded. “But how does this help me? The Warriors don’t know that I videoed them. I don’t like that this Ken guy had to die, but why is it important that we figure out how?”
“Information,” Luke said. “Right now, we’re coming to the table with more questions than answers.
We need leverage and the more we know, the better we’re positioned.
Because even if we convince the Warriors you had nothing to do with Jeremiah’s theft, the FBI is going to want you.
I don’t like walking into meetings with federal officials being the dumbest guy in the room. ”
“Exactly.” Dash nodded. “If we can figure out the connection between Raymond and the Warriors, it might give us a clue about what the FBI is after.”
“I’ve been thinking about this all night,” Emmett said, his fingers tented by his chin. “Why would the FBI want Scarlett?”
“Because they think I stole the drugs?” I shrugged. “Maybe they want to arrest me?”
“No.” Dash shook his head. “I’m on the same track as Emmett. They don’t want to arrest you. Jeremiah said he stole how much?”
“A hundred thousand dollars,” Presley answered.
“That’s nothing to the DEA,” Dash said. “They’re working to bring down cartels and gangs, not one small-time drug deal by a woman from the suburbs. They’re here because of this murder.”
“Here’s what I’m thinking.” Luke squeezed my knee, then leaned forward.
“The feds are going after the Warriors but they don’t have enough evidence to take them down.
They’ve probably been monitoring the Warriors for years.
They see Scarlett go in and come out a year later.
Days after she leaves Ashton, Jeremiah holds her hostage, then commits suicide. You’re a woman I’d want to talk to.”
“If she goes to the FBI, no matter what happens, the Warriors will think she’s a nark.” Leo tossed up his hands. “She’s dead.”
I flinched and Luke’s entire body went rigid.
“Leo,” Presley hissed. “The only person who’s going to die is you because I’m going to strangle you if you can’t keep a better hold on your tongue. This is my sister.”
“They already think she stole their money. If they think she’s turned informant, they’ll put her in the ground, Pres. Just saying it like it is.”
“Watch it, Leo.” Luke’s molars were grinding together. “Say it like it is but respect the fact that Scarlett is sitting right here.”
Leo held up his hands, then muttered, “Sorry.”
“How do we change their minds?” I asked, keeping the conversation on track. The important thing here was convincing the Warriors I was innocent. “I have no proof that I didn’t take the drugs. It’s my word against Jeremiah’s.”
“He hid it well, whatever he did with the money,” Emmett said. “After . . .” After he died. “I looked into his records to see if I could find an influx of cash. Bank accounts. Credit cards. All normal. There’s no sign of the money.”
“There wouldn’t be,” I muttered. “He lost it all gambling.”
Jeremiah had been so sure he’d strike it rich. He’d wanted to prove himself to the world. To his parents, who hadn’t bothered to give him any attention as a kid and had granted him even less as an adult.
The money was gone. With it, the proof of my innocence.
“We’ll figure something out,” Leo said, giving me a small smile to make up for his bluntness earlier.
It was an odd feeling, to be helped by strangers.
No one had ever come to my rescue until I’d come to Clifton Forge. Not even Jeremiah. He’d taken orders from Presley and gotten us a car, but when push came to shove, he hadn’t rescued me.
And I was woman enough to know that I needed a rescue. I simply hoped like hell these men knew what they were doing.
“Thank you,” I breathed.
Dash nodded and stood. “Let’s head out. Get the car unloaded. We’ll be in touch.”
Everyone made their way through the living room and kitchen.
Presley hadn’t let go of my hand, not since we’d started talking, and her grip was as strong as ever. She tugged my arm, holding back from the others.
“Say the word and we’ll get you out of here,” she said, her voice low. “Shaw and I have been talking and if you want a new life, we can make it happen. Europe. Australia. Wherever you want to go, we’ll figure it out.”
“No. Not unless I have to. I don’t want to give you up.” And I didn’t want to give up Luke.
“Good,” she breathed. “I was hoping you’d say that.”
If I was going to give up my life, then damn it, I was going to take some of the Warriors down with me. I’d go to the FBI. It was doubtful they’d set me up with a new identity as cushy as one Shaw Valance could afford, but at least there’d be some justice for those bastards in Ashton.
“Be careful.” I pulled her in for another tight hug.
“You too. I can’t believe you’ve been here this whole time.”
They had been the best months of my life. And if it all came crashing down today, I’d be grateful for every second. “Can I make a confession?”
“Uh . . . sure.” She let me go, her forehead furrowed.
“I thought I was brave enough. Like you.”
“I’m not brave, Scar.”
“No, you are. And I’m not. It’s true. I’m okay admitting it too.
When I finally left home, it was my chance to stand on my own and I blew it.
You took yours ten years ago and flourished.
I wasted mine on Jeremiah because I wasn’t brave enough to forge my own life.
And I’ve felt guilt for that for a long time.
I was jealous of you. I was disappointed in myself.
I’m not fearless or independent. I’m scared of the future. I was as a kid. I am now.”
“Why are you telling me this?” she whispered.
“Because I want you to know how sorry I am that my lack of courage hurt you. I didn’t want that. Will you forgive me?”
Presley’s eyes flooded. “There’s nothing to forgive. You don’t have to explain.”
“Yes, I do.”
Luke appeared at my side, his arm snaking around my shoulders.
I hadn’t realized he’d been listening. When I glanced past him, they were all listening. I blushed, embarrassment creeping in, but then I looked at Dash’s face. I looked up at Luke.
And there was respect there.
“Being unafraid isn’t what makes you brave, beautiful,” Luke said. “Being brave means you look that fear in the face and admit that it scares the shit out of you. But you don’t give up anyway.”
I gave him a sad smile. “I’m not giving up.”
“Me neither.” Presley nodded.
“We’ll fix this,” Emmett said, clapping Luke on the shoulder.
“Damn straight.” Dash nodded. “One of these days, that son of a bitch Tucker Talbot is going to get what’s coming to him. I want to be there when he does. We’ll do some research, then I’ll make the call. And we’ll do our best to get the bastard out of our lives.”