Chapter 14
Belle
Quinn’s just given a blow by blow account of what happened after Barrett sent me to Connecticut and she was left to deal with the Russian Bratva alone.
As she waits for me to respond to the grisly tale that ended in a bloody battle in the middle of the Nevada desert, all I can do is stare, and stare.
Her grey eyes flicker with uncertainty. “Belle, please say something.”
My lips open but my tongue is glued to the top of my mouth.
My cup trembles in my hand as I take a sip of coffee.
“I thought… Barrett said the Russians caught you helping the Griffins break into the estate to attack them. He said you put everyone at risk, and Ilya had no choice but to treat you as their enemy.”
“I was their enemy long before I set foot in Poulton Springs, Belle. And I was foolish enough to think I could go up against the Bratva on my own. I’m only here now because the Griffins took a stand.
” She casts a glance around the coffee shop.
“Can you imagine how different things would be in this town if Ilya and his men were still here?”
Chatter swirls around us as our fellow diners continue with their everyday lives.
It’s the perfect picture of small-town life on a leisurely Friday afternoon, except for the blacked-out SUV parked directly outside.
And the man sitting at a table close to the door with his back to the window.
Jake’s wearing a plain black t-shirt and jeans that could have helped him blend in if it wasn’t for the aviator glasses and earpiece.
I can’t see his eyes, but I know he’s not watching us.
He’s watching everyone else. I’m not sure if that makes me feel safer, or simply emphasizes the dangers I can’t see.
“And as much as Reid and his brothers planned their attack so they could rescue me,” Quinn continues, “they were already pitching themselves against the Russians. They’re not the kind of men who would ever turn a blind eye to human trafficking, especially if it was happening on their own doorstep.”
The implication is clear. It was Barrett who was turning a blind eye, and in a way, I was complicit. “I actually told Barrett he was doing the right thing working with Ilya,” I admit. “From the way he told it, he had no choice if he was going to protect us all from the McConkeys.”
“A man like Barrett always has choices,” Quinn says. “One of them being to hand the estate over to the Griffins so they could deal with the situation and stop the construction of the stable block.”
“I’m so naive. I was under the impression the buildings were going to be used to store drugs, or whatever else men like that deal in.” Did I presume that? Or had Barrett told me as much?
“People,” Quinn clarifies. “They were dealing with people, but please don’t blame yourself. You could never have imagined what was being planned, but Barrett knew. And he sent you and Tandy off to Connecticut because he didn’t want you to find out how low he could go.”
“I know he’s not perfect but–”
“Can you please stop excusing his behavior?” Quinn interrupts.
She huffs out a sigh, relaxes her hand and takes a sip of her herbal tea.
“I’m sorry. I can’t tell you what to think.
I know you have to reach your own conclusions, but for your sake and Piper’s, don’t take Barrett’s word for anything.
So much of what’s happened to you is by his design, Belle. ”
“Such as?”
Quinn smooths the fabric of her jersey dress over her growing bump. Her lips thin. “How many times has Barrett turned up unexpectedly in your life? And not just at random times, but during a crisis so he could steer you in a particular direction.”
I’m sure Quinn thinks she’s helping, but I don’t want more questions. I need answers. I’ve no interest in analyzing the past, I want to know what’s ahead of us.
When I don’t speak, she lifts her purse and opens it. “There are no hidden bugs. Ash isn’t listening in on this,” she says, assuming my silence is an issue of trust rather than abject frustration. “I’ve even left my phone with Jake in case Mace hacks into it.”
It’s as if she’s speaking a different language. What kind of life do they lead? “Is that normal?”
“As normal as Mace gets,” she says, rolling her eyes. Her features soften. “Talk to me, Belle.”
The invitation to speak sounds harmless enough, but it’s not that simple.
“Ash might not be listening in, but you’ll still report back to him.
You’re not going to put our friendship before your loyalties to the Griffins.
You’ve already proven that,” I say as we lock eyes.
She’s the reason Ash knows about Piper, and while I do want to forgive her, it’s a conversation still to be had.
Quinn’s brow furrows, but she doesn’t show a hint of guilt. “My loyalties lie with my family, and the Griffins are my family. You might not appreciate it yet, but they could be your family too, which means there should never be a conflict of interest.”
“They’re not my family,” I insist. Quinn must be delusional if she thinks Ash and I could ever get back together.
“They’re Piper’s family,” Quinn clarifies, and now it’s my turn to feel guilty.
I press the back of my hand against my burning cheek. “I’m all she needs,” I mumble.
“And I know you’d go to the ends of the earth to protect her, but so would Ash. He’s worried about you, Belle, especially when there are still so many unknowns about how we got here. If you can just explain how your life became so entangled with Barrett’s, it might put his mind at ease.”
I doubt there’s anything I could say that would make Ash back off now. He’s not going to go away. Would I want him to? I don’t know. I can’t decide.
“Let us help you protect Piper,” Quinn begs.
So many of my decisions have been based on what’s best for Piper. And this is another one. I take a breath…
“I was the one to reach out to Barrett after my dad died, not the other way around,” I explain.
“He’d sent a condolence card, and that’s when I found out Dad had been in talks with him about a possible investment.
I’d contacted Barrett to see if he was still interested, but all of my emails went unanswered. ”
“He could have been biding his time,” Quinn suggests.
“If he was, he left it too late. And to be clear, I stopped trying to get in touch with him once Ash arrived on the scene.”
“So it was Barrett who made contact again?”
“Yes, we swapped a couple of emails while Ash was in Las Vegas, but we didn’t talk properly until Ash went home to see his dad. By that point, I’d lost the distillery.” And gained the baby I was carrying.
Quinn flicks invisible crumbs from the table. “I bet Barrett still offered to help.”
Before I can reply, a waitress is there to refill my coffee. “Would you like anything to eat, ladies? Some cake? Tandy’s told us to take special care of you both.”
“I might get some donuts to go,” Quinn says, her gaze shifting to the blacked-out SUV.
“Maybe you could send one over to Jake too,” I say to the waitress, tipping my head to the surly man who has faithfully appeared every single time I’ve come into town. “He always looks like he could do with cheering up.”
“Jelly donuts are his favorite,” the waitress says with a conspiratorial wink. Jake’s clearly become a regular.
When the waitress disappears, Quinn prompts me to pick up where we left off. “Barrett.”
“Yeah, he offered me a job in his firm,” I say. “But I’d just found out I was pregnant.”
“And you didn’t tell him about the baby?”
“Not after he’d told me how he and Ash were related. There was no way I was going to risk Barrett spreading the news before I’d told Ash.”
“So, you were going to tell Ash?”
I rub my forehead, obscuring my face with my hand.
Whatever my justification at the time, I’m always going to feel guilty about keeping my pregnancy a secret.
“I hadn’t taken a pregnancy test while he was away working for the McConkeys, but I was pretty sure I was pregnant.
I thought we’d find out together, but then he got the call about his dad and left before I had the chance. ”
Quinn pulls my hand away from my face. “And let me guess, you were still intending on telling Ash until Barrett turned up and told you some horror story that made you see Ash differently.”
“Ash was different,” I try to explain. “When he came back from Vegas, he had this haunted look in his eyes. It was as if he could see the blood on his hands. And yes, Barrett might have filled in some of the detail, but it was Ash who told me he’d been working for the Irish mafia and taking their drug money. ”
“Ash is no angel, but he’s done more good than bad,” Quinn insists. “A lot more good. And he hopes one day, with his help, the McConkeys’ legitimate businesses will take over from their old ways completely.”
“He still seems comfortable enough moving in those circles though,” I counter. “He went on a date with Ilya Barkov’s sister. Or did Barrett get it wrong?”
“He had his reasons,” she says. “And you might have been one of them.”
I’m not even sure what that means. How could flirting with Katarina be about me, unless it was to make me jealous? And damn it, I suppose I am jealous, but I’m not going to admit that to Quinn. Not when it would get back to Ash.
“I know all I need to know about Ash. I saw the good, but he was the one who forced me to acknowledge there was a darker side to him,” I tell her, more softly. “There was no way I was going to raise a child in his world.” When Quinn quirks an eyebrow, I wince. “Sorry, I wasn’t judging you.”
“No offense taken. And just so you know, I wouldn’t want to raise a child in the Griffins’ world either if the pros didn’t ridiculously outweigh the cons. The biggest risk this one faces,” she says, patting her stomach, “is being kidnapped by his uncles and spoiled rotten.”
It’s my turn to raise an eyebrow. “His?”