Chapter Four
Simon
I tried to nap but didn’t sleep well, so by the time Tony returned to my house to find me sitting at the kitchen table, I’d been up for hours, eaten lunch, and dressed.
He didn’t knock.
He walked into my house as if he belonged there. As if it weren’t only the second time he’d been inside. And the first time was only this morning.
I stared at my coffee cup, reminding myself that he didn’t want me. Not really. He wanted my body. He wanted to fuck me. He even let me fuck him occasionally. But only at the club.
“You ready to tell me what really happened?” he asked, his voice angry.
“I told you what happened.”
“Simon,” he snarled, and I looked up. “You think I don’t know Sadie called you last night? You think Declan can’t get that information? A simple fucking warrant and the phone company will have no choice but to hand over the records. Which includes your fucking location.”
The blood drained from my face. I hadn’t thought of that. Closing my eyes, I swore.
“You should have called me first!” he shouted.
“If your plan is to yell and berate me, you can leave.” I stood up and took my cup to the sink. The acid from the coffee churned in my stomach. “If I confess, there is no need to do an investigation,” I said as I walked past him.
He grabbed my arm and spun me around to face him. “You aren’t fucking confessing. Where is Sadie?”
“I told you—”
“I know what you fucking told me. I want the truth, Simon.”
I pressed my lips together and glared at him.
He was breathing heavy. It reminded me of how he sounded when he was fucking me.
I could feel my cock stirring. Now wasn’t the fucking time, so I said something guaranteed to piss him off and ensure that my dick got the message that he wouldn’t get to play with this man ever again.
“The truth, Tony? What the fuck do you know about the truth? You’ve been living a fucking lie since the day you were born.”
“Simon,” he warned.
“You want to know why I didn’t call you? Because I don’t know if I can trust you.”
“You trusted me to get you out of this mess,” he argued.
“Because I know you want to continue to fuck me. You’re a possessive fucking asshole. You want me, not Sadie. You have no motivation to keep her out of prison.”
He took a step back as if I’d slapped him. His tongue rolled in his cheek as he glared at me.
“Fuck you, Simon.” He dug his finger into my chest. “If you’d fucking called me first last night, the club would have taken care of this shit, and neither of you would need to be kept out of prison.”
“You don’t think I wanted to do just that?” I shouted. “If I’d called you, what would you have told King? That a man you have absolutely no fucking relationship with called you out of the blue to help him cover up a murder?”
“You could have called Gunner. He would have helped.”
I shook my head. “Fuck you, Tony. I never should have called you at all. Get the fuck out of my house.”
“Simon.” He took a step forward as I took a step back.
“No,” I said, taking another step back. “I’m done. I don’t need your help. I don’t care what happens to me. My sister is not going to prison. She won’t survive it.”
“You won’t fucking survive it!” he yelled.
“Well, at least the men who fuck me in prison won’t be hiding in the fucking closet.” I grabbed my keys and brushed past him. He could stay there as long as he wanted. I had a statement to make.
I climbed into my car, ignoring the sexy man in the suit who was still yelling at me. He didn’t seem to mind drawing attention to himself now.
I pulled into the sheriff’s station and groaned. Was he fucking serious right now? I climbed from my car and marched up to the giant man standing in front of the door.
“Why are you here, Goliath?”
“Not sure. Matlock called and told me, and I quote, ‘Get your giant ass down to the station and keep Simon outside until I get there.’ So you want to tell me why you’re at the station?”
“No.” I moved around him, and he sidestepped, blocking my path. “Gunner, I’m not in the mood.”
He pulled his head back, narrowing his eyes at me. “This is serious. You never call me by my name.” His eyes roamed over me, landing on my bandaged hand. “What the fuck happened, Simon?”
“He’s trying to confess to killing Alan.” I closed my eyes as Tony’s voice washed over me.
“Alan’s dead?” Goliath asked. “Where’s Sadie?”
“That’s what I would like to know.”
I spun around, crossing my arms over my chest. “Why are you here?”
“Because you need a fucking lawyer,” he growled.
“I don’t actually. I can represent myself,” I said smugly.
“A man who represents himself has a fool for a client.”
“Now I’m a fool? Boy, Tony, you’re really making me rethink my stance on firing you.”
“You didn’t fucking fire me!”
“Okay, you two,” Goliath stepped between us.
“Back to your corners.” Goliath’s hand on my chest had me closing my eyes, for no other reason than I was frustrated with Tony.
Was Goliath gorgeous? Absolutely. Did I have a crush on the giant?
Yes, I did. But the asshole in the suit was the one who held my heart in his grasp, choking me with it.
“Get your fucking hand off him, Gunner.”
My eyes snapped open as Goliath put his hands up. That wasn’t suspicious at all. I glared at Tony and opened my mouth to say something snide to him when I heard another voice.
“What seems to be the issue, Anthony?”
“Really, Tony? You called the judge?”
Judge Markham was my father’s best friend. I’d told Tony all about my relationship with him, and now he was using it against me.
“If you won’t listen to me, then you’ll listen to him,” Tony hissed. “Judge, last night Alan Sanders was found dead. Simon has to give a statement this afternoon and refuses to listen to the advice of his counsel.”
“I fired you!” I snapped.
“Anthony, Simon doesn’t need a lawyer to make a statement,” the judge pointed out.
“He does when he’s a fucking suspect!” Tony snarled, and I felt his angry glare deep in my soul.
“HE’S WHAT?” I winced at Uncle Alex’s bellow. “Simon Augustine Nelson! What is he saying?”
Great. Now I had three angry men glaring at me. Not just one.
“Can I please just go in and give my statement? The sheriff is waiting for me.”
“Not without a lawyer, young man,” Uncle Alex ordered.
“You have a law degree,” I told him, my hands on my hips. Tony growled beside me, and Uncle Alex’s eyes widened before he smirked at me.
“I’m a judge, and as the judge for this county, I am ordering Anthony to be your lawyer. And as your uncle, I am ordering you to let him.” I opened my mouth to protest when the judge held up his hand and shook his head. “I will call your parents.”
“Uncle Alex, it’s not—”
“I will call them anyway, if this becomes a bigger issue. Do not test me, boy,” Uncle Alex scolded. “Now listen to what Anthony tells you.”
The judge brushed past me and slipped into the station. Goliath stood behind Tony, his hand over his mouth. “Fuck off, Goliath.” Goliath stopped pretending and let his laughter ring out through the parking lot.
“My work here is done. I’ll update King; let me know what happens with the statement.” Goliath walked down the front steps, leaving Tony and me standing alone in front of the door.
Tony crossed his arms over his chest. The material of his jacket pulled against his biceps, highlighting the muscles I knew he hid beneath the expensive suit.
“Are you proud of yourself?” I asked.
“Yes.”
I rolled my eyes at his arrogant grin, ignoring the dimple that had the power to turn me into a puddle, and turned to go inside. Tony grabbed my arm, stopping me from leaving.
“Simon, please let me help you.”
“I will not sacrifice my sister, Tony.”
“Fine. But let me go over the statement with you before you talk to the sheriff.”
I blew out a breath and nodded. We walked into the station, and Tony asked for a room so we could go over the statement one more time. The sheriff didn’t have to know we hadn’t gone over it at all.
Tony helped me put together the statement, making sure it was within the realm of self-defense—which wasn’t easy to do since Alan had been stabbed in the back.
However, in Nebraska, self-defense only required that I feared for my life or the life of someone else. I could sell that. I’d been in fear for my sister’s life since the first time Alan had hit her.
We sat in the interrogation room for almost an hour before the sheriff was finally satisfied with the story I’d given him. We walked out of the room, Tony in front of me, ironing out a few minor details with the sheriff, when Tony stopped so abruptly that I slammed into his back.
“Sheriff, my name is Rosalind Winthrop.”
“What can I do for you, Ms. Winthrop?” The sheriff shook the woman’s hand. She was beautiful, in a pretentious sort of way. Tony hadn’t moved since I heard her voice, so I slipped around him.
“My office received a notice of the murder that occurred last evening, a...” She flipped a page on the stack of papers she held in her hand. “Alan Sanders. The county has decided to prosecute.”
“What!? It was self-defense!” I shouted.
“Simon, close your fucking mouth,” Tony snarled at me.
The woman looked over at my outburst and smiled. “Anthony Gallagher? Last I heard, you were living in Arkansas. I’m surprised to see you in a small Midwestern town like Diamond Creek.”
“I’m just as surprised to see you here, Rosalind,” Tony countered. His voice had a strange lilt to it. One I’d never heard before.
“Yes, well, I was looking for a change of pace, and a spot opened up.” She turned away from Tony, looking briefly at me before focusing on the sheriff. “Sheriff, please put Mr. Nelson under arrest.”
“WHAT?” This couldn’t be happening. It was self-defense.
Tony assured me. I was panicking; my hands trembled and my heart raced.
Tony stepped in front of me, his hands on my shoulders.
“Simon, calm down. Don’t say a fucking word without me there.
The judge will set bail. You’ll only be here a few hours. ”
“Given the nature of the crime, Anthony, I will be asking for no bail.”
“Judge Markham won’t allow that,” Tony argued.
“No, I won’t. There is no reason not to allow bail,” Uncle Alex confirmed.
“Judge Markham, hello. I’m sure, given your relationship with the perpetrator, you will recuse yourself,” the bitch said. And make no mistake, she was a bitch.
“I will not, Ms. Winthrop. The constitution entitles Mr. Nelson to a speedy trial, and having to wait on another judge to make time in his schedule is not speedy. I have an immaculate record and assure you I will be impartial even with Simon.”
Turning around to face me, Uncle Alex said, “I’m sorry, Simon, but you will need to spend the night here. We will convene and set bail first thing in the morning.”
“But, Uncle Alex...”
“Simon!” Tony’s stern voice pulled me back. “It’s one night.”
“I’m sorry, Simon,” the sheriff said as he read me my rights and led me to the cell in the back of the station.
As I walked down the hall, I heard the bitch purr, “It will be fun to be up against you again, Anthony.” When Tony growled, I heard her add, “In court of course.”
I couldn’t hear his response, and I wasn’t sure I wanted to.