CHAPTER 6 #3
“Girl, I’ve known Striker for years. Hiding this is like setting a bomb and waiting for it to go off on its own.
” She shakes the picture at me. “This is also proof that this person was on Striker’s property.
I recognize his cigar smoking area. He and I have had many shots back there over the last few months. ”
“If you think Jude is in danger, I’ll back away.”
“I think you’re in serious danger. I think this person is locked on you. I think it’s time to work on solving your accident. First and foremost, you need a team.”
“I can’t have a team. Can’t we do a panic button or something? Lia told me about that.”
“Shit. Give me a moment.” She stands up and moves to the doorway, then hollers out. “Commander, come here, please.”
I jump up and race to her side to grab the picture still in her hand. “No. You can’t show him. Please. I’ll walk out,” I beg as tears roll down my face.
Jude looks out from the conference room, where he’s talking to a guy. He sees me crying.
“Auntie?” he asks and starts to walk toward me.
“No, Jude. I’m okay. It’s fine. I’ll talk to you in a bit.”
I step back into the room as I feel a panic attack starting. I normally struggle with anxiety, but I’ve had full-blown panic attacks before. Right after the accident, they’d hit me whenever I thought about getting back on Raine.
“Whoa, deep breath, Andi,” Ridley says, wrapping her arms around me. I try to ground myself, but I can’t.
A candy is shoved at me, and I pop it into my mouth.
It’s a Lemonhead, and the tartness makes me pucker, snapping me out of the panic attack that was starting.
It shouldn’t have worked, but then I feel the dog leaning into me.
His long, curly fur brushes against my bare legs, and I reach down to slide my hands through his coat.
“Candy doesn’t always work, but it snapped you back with Murtaugh too,” she says, pointing to the dog. I move back to the chair, and he follows, resting his head on my lap once I’m seated.
The man she calls Commander steps into the room and closes the door. Ridley turns to me as I put the picture of Callum and me back in my bag. She nods, and I’m hoping that means she’ll keep my secret.
“Hello, I’m Julian Black.” He holds out his hand, and I shake it.
“Andrea Forbes, but you can call me Andi. I’ve seen you around over the years.” Before Lia and Striker got back together, Commander, or Julian as Lia calls him, would come around and help her out.
“I know who you are. You were an amazing racer. Lia was so proud of you. That was a messed-up accident.”
Julian takes the seat next to me and crosses his long legs. He’s quite handsome, but not like Callum. Part of me wishes I could tell Callum what is going on.
“It wasn’t an accident,” Ridley tells him.
“Well, fuck. Sorry,” he says, elongating the word.
“It’s okay. I have more choice words, but my grandmother would wash my mouth out with soap if I said them.” I try to make light of the situation. “I need to know if that is a real threat and if I should worry.” I point to the letter.
Julian leans forward, grabs the items off the desk, and looks through them.
“I’d like to say it’s nothing, but it isn’t. I think you should tell Striker to put a guy on you,” he says as a knock sounds on the door.
We all turn as Ridley says, “Enter.”
In walks Butcher.
“Hello, sorry to interrupt, but when I realized you were here and it was becoming more than a friendly visit, I thought I’d make myself known.
” He walks over to the desk and, without asking, looks down at the pictures and letter.
“Yep, I wondered. When I saw what happened at campus, I figured something was up.”
“Are you following me? Why?” I want to ask if Callum asked him too, but I doubt it because Butcher would tell Striker. I know it in my gut.
“Striker asked me to follow you. Said Amelia’s little sister deserved more than a prospect.”
My stomach rolls as I realize what this means.
“Oh my God.” I glance around, searching for something.
Ridley jumps up, grabs my arm, and guides me to the bathroom. I slam the door closed and dry heave into the toilet. My stomach is empty from earlier. Between the panic attack and now this, my nerves are shot.
When I finally get myself under control, I walk to the sink to splash water on my face and rinse my mouth.
Stepping out of the room, I find them all discussing me. I’m at a loss for what to say or do right now.
Butcher stands to his full height and walks toward me. He leans down and whispers in my ear.
“I’ll confront Cowboy later about why he hasn’t said anything to Striker, but I’m here for you, nothing else. I will protect you. Got it?”
My heart slams against my chest, and my eyes mist. I look up at him and nod. “I didn’t want to hide our relationship. It just happened.”
“It’s his place, not yours.”
“Okay.”
He walks me back to the chair, and Murtaugh lays his head on my lap. I listen as they talk around me.
“I’ll have Browser get us the Vegas file. In the meantime, I always want Nox on her.”
“Nope, that’s me. If you don’t want anyone else to know, then it’s me.”
“Okay, we can put Nox on Jude. If Striker questions it, we’ll just say it’s a baby gift. Just in case,” Ridley offers, and my heart pounds harder.
“You think Jude is in danger? I’ll figure something else out. I can go back home. I need to finish the next couple of months of classes, but then I’ll go home for the summer.”
“That won’t make you any safer. This person must know you from somewhere. It could be there. What about other opponents? Were they investigated?” Julian asks, and I shake my head.
“I don’t know. I think so. I was told it was under investigation.
Um…” A thought crosses my mind. “My ex was one of the ring crewmen. But he’s been with Starla for a while now.
When Beau and I parted, it wasn’t a big deal.
He might be able to help you figure out who had access to the tack rooms and such. ”
“Your tack was kept in an open area?” Julian asks.
“It was a common tack room, but it was only in there the day of the race. Each night, it was removed.”
“That means it was tampered with that day. Who moved it to the common room, and was it locked up?”
“Yes, it was under lock and key. I had a key, but so did my groom and our team vet. I didn’t have a loper for that run.” A memory runs through my mind, and I pause to think it through. “My loper quit right before we went to the finals.”
“Why?” Butcher. “And what the fuck is a loper?”
I take pity on him.
“A loper prepares Raine and would’ve watched her tack, plus put it on her.”
“Then who did it for you that day?”
“Um…” I press my lips together as I remember exactly who did it. “My ex. He offered to help.”
“Shit. He should be our first stop,” Julian states, and I shake my head.
“I just don’t see him doing that.”
“What about your groom and team vet?” Julian asks.
I can’t stop the guffaw that leaves my mouth. “Are you kidding? My groom has been with me for years. He’s like a little brother to me. Cory wouldn’t hurt me or Raine. Ultimately, I’m sure I was the target, but Raine got hurt too. So no, Cory wouldn’t do that. He loves Raine as much as I do.”
I shake my head. “As for my vet tech, it was my best friend since kindergarten, Ty. He has Raine with him now. He would never hurt me. As a matter of fact, my accident brought our relationship to a head. He was finally able to see there would never be anything between us, and he admitted the only reason he thought there could be was because he was denying his true self. He’s gay. He didn’t want his parents to know.”
Ridley takes a deep breath. “Okay, so we’ll look at the accident. Are there any riders you had bad blood with?”
I work my lip again. “Honestly?” They all nod at me.
“I wouldn’t know. I never mingled with them.
I didn’t have relationships with any of them.
The racer behind me ended up winning, but only barely.
I’d won so much over the season that it still put me just behind her, even though I couldn’t complete my run.
Some of the judges wanted to call it without our second runs just so I’d win, but I told them that wasn’t fair to her.
Starla Perry is her name, and we’ve been racing against each other for years.
I think…” I pause. “I think we were friends. She came to the hospital to check on me. Cried over Raine getting hurt. The other racers, I have no clue. I was just focused. My mother and grandmother always said they were competition, not friends.”
“That’s fucked up,” Butcher says.
“Starla, the ex, and Ty,” Ridley says, “I want a deep dive into them, just to rule them out. And the other racers, and anyone else around her.”
“The others around me are my family. They wouldn’t have done this. They’re mad I’m not racing right now.”
“Why aren’t you?” Butcher asks the million-dollar question.
I look down at my hands twisted into Murtaugh’s fur.
“Every time I think of getting on a horse…” I choke and swallow back the bile in my throat. “I see Raine’s hooves coming for my head. I’m scared,” I admit.
“I would be too. You’re tough for just making it through everything,” Julian says. “I’ve ridden before, and I couldn’t imagine being where you were and not having some trauma.”
“Are you seeing anyone?” Ridley asks me.
“I was in Indiana, but I’m starting with a new counselor on campus soon.”
“We better get you to the house before Striker figures something’s wrong. He’s probably watching the cameras,” Butcher says, and we all decide to call it for now.
When we get outside to my truck, Butcher waits until Jude is buckled in and keeps a hand on my door so I can’t open it.
“What’s the status with you and Cowboy? I know you had lunch with him.”
I shake my head. “I don’t know anymore.” I wave my hand toward the building we just exited. “I should end it because of this, but I doubt he’ll let me. I could try to push him off for a bit.”
“Do it.”
“Okay.”