Chapter 15

Sullivan is in a foul mood, and he has been sitting on the sofa in my office for the last hour, typing away on his phone with a scowl on his face.

"If you don't want to be here, you can leave. The place is secure—we have men with guns in every nook and cranny."

He looks up from his phone and blinks at me. "Huh?"

I cross the room and straddle his waist. "I said you can leave if you want to. I don't need a babysitter."

He licks his lips and the horny devil inside me has me grinding against him, then he smirks at me in only a way Sullivan can, I swear this man makes me weak. "Why would I want to be anywhere else? Sorry I was distracted. Cian is sending me running commentary on the guy he is messing up and the pent-up aggression I have is making me jealous."

His phone buzzes again and I snatch it from his hand, my mouth falling open when I see the message. He wasn't lying—Cian has some greasy-looking man with blood dripping down his face in a headlock and has taken a selfie. I hand the phone back to Sullivan and press my body into his, placing a kiss on his neck, then slowly peppering kisses down his collar bone.

"Maybe I can take your mind off it," I purr, pushing back and getting to my knees in front of him and undoing his belt. He leans back, letting me unzip him and once I free his cock, I wrap my palm around his shaft, stroking him a few times before wrapping my lips around the head.

"Fuck, Love, just like that," he says as I take him deep in my throat. Hopefully, it will help him forget about what the guys are doing, and Sam having returned. He hasn't told me what went down last night, but I know it isn't good. My gut says Ronan ended her life, but I don't want to think about it, as did she deserve to die because she stole money from Sullivan and took money from Ronan. I shake the thought from my head, whatever they did they have to live with that, the same way we all do.

Taking my time, I lick and suck Sullivan's cock, keeping my eyes on his. He pulls his phone out, and I know he is going to send a video of this to Cian, so I seductively lick from the base to the tip, then I swirl my tongue around the top. He growls, then throws his phone down and rests his hand on my head, gently pushing me down. Sullivan is not the one to treat me roughly, so I reach up and place my hand on his, showing him I want him to apply more pressure.

"You want me to fuck your pretty mouth?" he asks, and I hum my answer. I see something in his demeanor switch, and he takes charge, bucking his hips upward as he pulls my head down, fucking my mouth hard. I want him to use me as he needs me, the same way I do with him when I need the gentle touch, as he's the one who will take care of me. Cian is the one I go to when I want to be fucked into a mattress, and Ronan is all power and control. Darragh is an added surprise I never would have sought for myself, but after Cian told me about his dream, I wanted to make it a reality for him. Honestly though, Darragh surprised me. The way he took care of me after they were done—I didn't expect it from him.

Sullivan growls and his cock swells in my mouth, followed by his warm cum sliding down the back of my throat. Sullivan helps me up from the floor and I curl into his lap. He wraps his giant arms around my body, pulling me to his chest and kissing my head.

"Are you okay?" he asks.

"I'm more than okay. Are you okay?... You know, with the whole Darragh thing?"

The silence stretches on, and I hold my breath while I wait for him to answer.

"I was caught off guard, but please don't think I'm pissed at you. He tried to throw it in my face."

"I honestly don't know what it means yet. It happened because I wanted to help Cian and him bridge things between them, but I wasn't expecting to like it so much. I still think he is a douche, though, so don't worry."

Sullivan laughs. "He sure is—he always has been. I don't like how rough he is with you."

"I promise you, he didn't do anything I didn't want. I love how gentle you are with me, Sullivan, but total disclosure: I do like it rough sometimes, and he could be that for me."

Sullivan sighs. "Could Cian please be in the room when you explore things with Darragh? I trust him to stop it going too far."

I nod. "I would do anything for you, Sullivan. I hope you know that."

He squeezes me tighter and we sit there together until the door to my office flies open.

"Sorry to barge in, boss," says one of the female security guards, "but there are cops about to bust in. Ronan gave us a run-down of what to do. We set off the silent alarms in the rooms, and the girls and Dylan are all getting dressed and telling their clients they will get a full refund."

"Thank you, Carter. When you let them in, please show them straight to my office."

Thankfully, a few years ago, sex work was legalized in the state, and there are very strict rules you must abide by, including not being allowed to work out on the street. In the entire time Lady Maine was in charge, not one cop on duty came through the doors as anything but a customer.

"No matter what happens, do not say shit to them. If one of us is taken in, call one of the other guys and they will send our lawyer," Van tells me.

I nod, my heart thumping in my chest. Both Sullivan and I stand and wait until Carter knocks and leads two men into the room.

"Thank you, Carter. Can you please make sure everyone is okay until we are done here?"

"Harper Daniels?" one of the men asks.

"Depends on who's asking," I say, crossing my arms over my chest.

The men introduce themselves, and honestly, I don't care who they are. Cops are cops. "Harper Daniels, you are under arrest?—"

"For what?!" Sullivan shouts, as he tries to step closer to me. "Get your hands off her!"

My eyes widen when he is tasered. I scream as I run toward him, but I am caught, and my hands are forced behind my back.

"Don't resist, or you will end up like your friend over there."

I ignore the fucker as he reads me my rights. Carter rushes to the open door, but the cops block the doorway, so I yell to her, "Call Ronan! Bells has the details."

I'm dragged from the room as Sullivan is placed in cuffs. Everything has happened so fast, and I don't know what is going on, but I won't tell the cops anything.

If they are arresting me, they don't know shit—I have done nothing wrong.

Huntersville Police Department is one place from my childhood I'm very familiar with for a laundry list of reasons, the main one being we used to pick my mom up from here so often. I'm placed in a room and left on my own. I wouldn't know for how long because the room is empty besides the table, three chairs, and a surveillance camera.

A female cop finally comes into the room with a bottle of water, and she places it on the table in front of me as she looks me over. Women do it all the time when they find out I work in a brothel, and it puts a nasty taste in my mouth.

"Are you ready to talk?"

I laugh. I have nothing to say to her, and even if I did, it would be helpful to know why I'm here.

The door opens and a man not much older than me walks in with a folder. Ah, here we go with the good cop, bad cop bullshit. He places the folder down on the table and takes a seat next to his partner.

"Is one of you going to enlighten me as to why I'm here? Last time I checked, sex work was legal, and we follow all the rules and regulations."

"We have a reason to believe you are helping Ronan O'Brien and his associates launder money," the female cop says.

I snort. His associates—that's one way to look at them.

"Let me get this straight. In the few weeks our doors have been open, you've concluded I'm helping them?"

"You expect us to believe he bought you the business from the goodness of his heart?"

I roll my eyes. "Would you believe me if I told you my pussy was just that good?"

Oh, that makes the guy mad. "Would you believe me if I said we could help you if you help us?"

"So that's what this is about. You want a rat. I want my lawyer."

Leaning back in my chair, I cross my arms over my chest. I should have expected something like this to happen. They are cops, and they know who and what Ronan is in this city. I'm taking a wild stab in the dark that they want to send him to jail for the numerous crimes he most likely committed. The thing is, these are Huntersville cops, and half are being paid off by one crime family or another. So the real question is, what did the O'Briens do to this cop specifically?

A female cop with an agenda of vengeance would make more sense; she is pretty, so Cian probably fucked her and didn't call. She gets up and excuses herself, probably doing her job and getting me my lawyer or my phone call.

Mr. Bad Cop just stares at me. "You know we could protect you."

Leaning back in my chair, I smirk at him. "Is that right? Where were you when I was raped last month, or when my best friend was raped over and over again throughout her childhood and teen years? Nah, you have already decided about me. I'm a whore from Huntersville, so I must be a crackhead, maybe an alcoholic, with three kids to three different men."

He narrows his eyes. In response, I lean forward, resting my elbows on the table. "I don't need your protection—I never have. Whatever blows life gives me, I take them on the chin and come back stronger. The real question is, why me? Why did you think you could get me to flip? Is it my age? Did you think I would be na?ve?"

The female cop slips back into the room. "Your lawyer will be here soon. He is helping your friend right now. While we wait, why don't you open the folder?"

I look down at the table where the manila folder sits in front of the guy. I'm sure they told me their names, but I have no interest in giving a shit.

Opening the folder, the first image I'm confronted with turns my stomach. I'm sure whoever it is—was—was once a human, not that you can tell from the picture.

"Every death or image in there is linked back to an O'Brien," she says.

Yet something is off with these images. Sullivan is the muscle, but he told me once he just roughs them up. Cian tends to gut them, so if the images were of gutted men, then I'd know it was him. Ronan is more put together, and a single gunshot to the head is more his style. The problem with these photos is there is evidence, and I doubt after an O'Brien was done with someone there would be any evidence left to find.

Closing the folder, I slide it back across the table. "Why show me these? Isn't that disrespectful to their families? If you had a scrap of evidence, you would have arrested them and not me."

"We will keep watching you, Ms. Daniels. We are going through everything related to the business, and I really hope everything is run by the book."

I gasp in mock horror. "Does this face not look like someone who follows the rules, officer? I'm an upstanding member of society. I pay my taxes, look after my grandmother, and service the upstanding men and women in this town. If you're ever feeling lonely, either of you, come down and the girls and guys at The Range will look after you."

The female officer smiles at me while the guy scowls. I would bet a good amount of money that someone he loves is a street whore—the hatred in his eyes says as much.

"Look, I don't know what preconceived notion you have about working girls, but let's get one thing straight. My workers are clean, and none take drugs, or they wouldn't be allowed to work with me. They are women and men who do what needs to be done. Some have kids to feed, others are putting themselves through school. No job pays what ours does, I mean, can you say you have ever made over two grand in a night, no? If you are happy to sit on your sixty grand a year, you can, but don't judge us for doing what we have to."

The door opens and an older gentleman in a suit, which looks like it costs more than my life, breezes into the room.

"Unless you're charging my client, we will be going."

Pushing up from my chair, I look over at the woman. "If you ever want a change of career, come see me." I wink at her and follow the lawyer to the door.

"Harper," the male cop says, and I turn back to face him.

"Just because you don't see something happening, it doesn't mean it's not. And when we prove it, your name is the one on the contracts."

These cops want Ronan's head on a platter—murder, money laundering, weapons—they will take what they can get. Surely Ronan wouldn't clean his money through my business.

Sullivan, Cian, and Darragh are all in the waiting area as I'm led out. Ronan steps out of an interrogation room ahead of me, whispering with a cop, his expression serious. We get out of there as fast as possible, and Darragh is the first to speak.

"So what did you tell them?" The accusation sits on the tip of his tongue.

"That they were idiots for thinking you lot would leave evidence behind." His face drops, and I laugh. "I didn't say shit, dickhead. This isn't my first rodeo. Were you all arrested as well?"

They nod as we pile into Kayne's SUV, and he gets into a second SUV driven by one of the other members of the security team.

"Can you take me back to The Range? I want to make sure everyone is okay."

"Hmm, something is going on. I have sent a message out to the inner circle, and we'll meet tonight at the house. The cops are not so sloppy to bring us in without concrete evidence. This seems like someone wanted to keep the cops busy, but why?" Ronan says.

Well, that seems a little far-fetched. The Feds would be the ones you would want to keep busy, not your local Huntersville police. "Or was someone trying to keep all of you busy? It would make more sense, right?"

"It's possible, particularly as whoever is targeting us has done enough to be annoying, but not quite enough to cause too many problems. An empty stash house, the bar, weapons—it's not enough to take us down." Ronan's thoughts trail off for a second. "Okay, we'll drop you at The Range. Carter is still there, and she will stay with you until we come back, but keep the doors locked and do not let anyone in. Something is going on and I don't trust they won't come for you."

I agree and reassure him I only want to see everyone and make sure they are okay. Hopefully, when the cops searched the place, they didn't leave a huge mess behind.

I also plan to have a serious talk with Ronan. If he is laundering money through The Range, I will sign it right back over into his name. I won't be the fall guy for anyone.