Chapter 24

CHAPTERTWENTY-FOUR

Wilson and I walked out of the police station in silence.

That morning Stone Phillips had turned in his badge and gun and told his captain he was quitting effective immediately. After a month of nothing. No more visits to whores, no runs for Zeus, nothing. The man went to work, went home to his wife. It was like he’d had a complete about-face. IA was scrambling. Brasco was on edge. River had looked like he wanted to put his fist through a wall and that was putting it mildly.

“What’d we miss?” Wilson muttered when we hit the parking lot.

“Yo!” Brasco yelled from behind us and both of us turned in unison to see him jogging out the door. “River just got a call from Letty.”

Cold started to infuse my spine.

Letty calling River wouldn’t cause Brasco to run out and get us unless something was wrong with Letty or Maverick.

“Letty okay?” Wilson asked, thinking the same as me.

Brasco shook his head.

“Mrs. S called her when she couldn’t get ahold of you.”

“Me?” I asked. “Jane need me?”

I reached into my pocket and pulled out my phone. I’d silenced it before our sit down.

Eleven missed calls.

Ten from Mrs. S, one from Letty.

No texts.

That cold turned arctic.

“Davis,” Brasco started. “Come back inside a minute.”

I felt Wilson get close knowing that if Brasco wanted me back inside whatever he had to say wasn’t going to be good.

I ignored Brasco and pressed Mrs. S’s contact.

“Davis,” she answered.

“What’s—”

“Jane’s brother has been in an accident. I’ve been trying to call you to tell you.”

Fuck.

“I’m on my way.”

I was lowering my phone when I heard Mrs. S yell.

“Repeat that, Mrs. S?”

“She’s not here. She went to the hospital with a police officer.”

The ice in my veins crystalized.

“She left with a police officer? Did he give a name?”

“No, just that it didn’t look good for her brother. I told her to go and I’d call you. He was taking her to Kootenai Health. They left about ten minutes ago. Meet her there.”

I disconnected without a goodbye and looked at Brasco.

“Do you have any reports of Zeus being in an accident?”

“No, but I wouldn’t. River’s calling the hospital now.”

“Mrs. S said that Jane left with a police—”

“We’re checking on that, too.”

He was checking on that.

Fuck.

I turned to Wilson who had his phone up to his ear.

“Do we have anyone on Phillips?”

Wilson shook his head but held up his hand when he started talking.

“You called,” Wilson spoke into his phone.

With each second that ticked, Wilson’s shoulders got tenser and tenser. And seeing that, my gut started to roil.

“Right. Good. Send us your location and we’ll follow you.”

Wilson lowered his phone and angrily stabbed at the screen.

“What the fuck—”

“Cole, I’ll be sending you a location. I need you and Asher to kit up and roll out. Send Reese to Smutties to sit with Mrs. S. Armed and alert. Rhode stays at the office with Mia. Tell Jack to go to the compound. Do not approach, just wait for my call. Out.”

Wilson turned to me and ripped the Band-Aid off. “That was Butch. Zeus just tore through the common room of the compound, yelling on the phone. He went to his office, came back with a big black duffle. Butch says that’s where his safe is. He also heard Zeus say, ‘If you touch my sister I’ll kill you.’ After that he ran outside, jumped on his bike, and hauled ass.”

“I’m gonna kill them both,” I seethed.

“Good news for us is, Butch has a tracking device on Zeus’s bike. Butch is on his bike following Zeus, and he’s shared his location with me. We’re following.”

“Hold up and I’ll—”

“No,” I cut off Brasco.

“Davis—”

“You can stand here and piss me off or you can turn around and let me leave so I can go get my woman.”

It took a moment, one that felt like for-fucking-ever. I knew the reason Brasco paused was because he was a good man, a good cop, and he knew if he turned his back that was him letting me loose on Zeus and Phillips. A good man would struggle with this, the knowledge that I was going to commit a felony then later deny it. My team would cover for me, Shep would be called in to help with the cover-up. Brasco knew it and he’d be put in a position to have to come clean and rat me out or live with knowing I killed two men and not say anything.

Brasco turned his back.

Then he flat-out ran back into the building.

“Giving us a head start,” Wilson mumbled. “Let’s go.”

We were in the company SUV rolling out of the parking lot when Wilson tossed me his phone.

“You navigate.”

I went to the Find Me app, tapped on people and only saw one name: UNKNOWN with a location in Hayden.

“Make a right. Stay on Government Way.”

I focused on the dot slowly moving on the map and watched the phone shake in my hand.

“Hold it together.”

I clenched my jaw to stop myself from lashing out at Wilson and kept my attention on the dot.

“He turned onto Honeysuckle.” I glanced up at the traffic in front of us then looked back at the map. “Next light, turn right.”

“Davis—”

“It’ll take forever sitting in this traffic. Turn right on Hanley, it’s all residential.”

“Brother, I don’t give a fuck how we get there, but you need to breathe.”

I was breathing.

“I am.”

“You’re jittery as fuck. Breathe. You need to be on point when we get there, not vibrating.”

Wilson made the turn, the traffic subsided, and we were finally moving faster than a snail’s-fucking pace.

“At the roundabout you’re exiting on 4th.”

If the first three are all boys, we’re going for another in hopes of having a girl.

I heard Jane’s soft voice come at me.

After Mav was born she’d changed her mind.

Seven might work.

She’d said that while lying naked on top of me after we’d visited Letty, River, and Mav the first time.

We’re back to only three, with the option of the forth. Babies are a lot of work.

She’d told me that when I’d gone to Smutties to pick her up after work and Letty had spent a few hours in the store with the baby.

And finally…

Last night with her on her side, me behind her with my arm around her holding her close.

Thank you, honey.

For what?

For giving me this.

She was finally settled, her and the girls were tight, she’d made my house our home. We butted heads, we bickered, we made love, we laughed, she smiled all the time.

Finally.

She got it.

All of it.

And Zeus’s bullshit had to go and fuck her up again.

Oh, yeah, I was going to kill him.

This was going to end for him.

“Where to?” Wilson pulled me from my thoughts.

Shit.

I looked around then back at the map.

“Stay on 4th until you hit Honeysuckle, stay right.”

I zoomed in on the map.

“Butch is stopped. It’s a residential neighborhood right before the beach.”

I thought about the one and only time I’d gone to Honeysuckle Beach. I’d taken my mom there when she was visiting. Nice houses, close together like in my neighborhood.

Wilson’s phone rang in my hand.

I didn’t bother asking him if I should answer. Unknown caller meant it was Butch.

“How far out are you?” he asked as soon as I answered.

“Maybe two minutes. Do you have a house number?”

“The situation has deteriorated. You better make it one.”

I was struggling to get oxygen into my lungs.

“House number?”

“You’ll see the bikes.”

With that he hung up.

“He says we have a minute.”

“We’ll—”

I felt my chest vibrate.

Wilson didn’t finish.

But thank fuck he sped up.

The SUV wasn’t even at a full stop when I jumped out and ran.

Neither Zeus nor Butch bothered to hide their bikes. Phillips’ black Ford Explorer was parked next to a detached garage.

When I got close I heard Phillips’ angry voice shouting.

The first gunshot rang out and I pushed harder. The second shot went off and fear ripped through me so violently I stumbled.

I got to the door, opened it, and without care or concern for anything but getting to Jane I ran into the garage.

The sight before me sent bile rushing up my throat, choking me.

Jesus fucking shit.

Jane was on her back in a tipped over chair, Zeus haphazardly on top of her, blood covering his back. But it was Jane’s wide-open eyes that held my attention.

“Go.” Wilson shoved me out of his way and I went to Jane.

“Close your eyes, baby,” I whispered.

“Get him off of me.”

Her voice was clogged with emotion.

I wanted this done for her but I didn’t want her to see any more than she had.

“First, close your eyes.”

“I already saw. I saw everything.”

Fuck it.

My hand went to Zeus’s neck. I felt for a pulse, found none, and it was only by a miracle I was able to contain my urge not to toss him off of Jane like the piece of garbage he was.

Once I had Jane free, I noticed the angry red swelling on the left side of her head.

Whatever control I had was slipping.

“He’s dead, too,” she said.

“Who?”

“The cop who took me. He’s dead, Davis. Just please untie me.”

She’d seen them both die.

I made fast work of cutting the zip ties off her ankles and then cut the rope that held her to the chair. The handcuffs would have to wait until I found a key.

“I’m gonna lift you up.”

Jane nodded.

I reached down, scooped her up, and as soon as I had her in my arms she shoved her face into my neck, and it was then she let out an unholy wail.

“I got you, Jane.”

From head to toe she shook.

“I got you, baby.”

Without a word I walked out of the garage.

Jane sobbed.

“You’re safe.”

I heard sirens in the distance and I knew Jane did too because she went stiff in my arms.

“Jane?”

“He’s a cop.”

“He was a dirty cop who your brother was blackmailing.”

“You knew?”

My step faltered.

“I knew,” I confirmed.

I opened the back of the SUV and maneuvered into the backseat without letting go of Jane.

“As soon as I can get a key I’ll uncuff you.”

Jane nodded but didn’t speak.

Zeus was dead.

The gratification I thought I’d feel was absent.

The anger, the fear, the knot in my gut, all gone.

Jane was in my arms and breathing.

“Love you, baby.”

“I love you, Davis.”

I closed my eyes and savored the feel of her words.

“Everything’s gonna be okay.”

“I know, Davis.”

“I’m gonna make sure you’re okay.”

“I know, honey.”

* * *

Wilson and Colewere still in my living room sitting on the couch when I came back from laying Jane down. The sun had come up and both men looked like shit.

“Thanks, but you—”

“You good?” Cole asked.

Fuck no I wasn’t good.

I’d sat next to Jane at the hospital while she had to relive the whole fucking nightmare—from being taken from Smutties, punched in the car, coming to and hearing Phillips threaten Zeus, to being gagged while she waited for her brother to arrive. Then I had to watch her break down when she got to the part about how Zeus died. And that fucker was still fucking her over even in death. He’d taken the bullet meant for Jane. Stepped right in front of it and took one to the heart. It was a damn lucky shot seeing as Butch opening the door startled Phillips so his shot went to the side—just enough to catch Zeus while he ran at his sister like some superhero jumping on top of her to protect her.

Butch had turned on Phillips and shot him.

The rest I knew because I was there.

The rest being nothing since Zeus and Phillips were both dead and I didn’t get to take out either one.

“I’m good,” I lied.

Wilson tipped his head and studied me.

“Tell me Davis, what part are you more pissed at; Phillips taking out Zeus, Butch taking out Phillips, or that the villain in this story died a good guy?”

All of that and more.

I ground my molars together.

“Be grateful. The two times she needed him, he stepped up. Let her have that. Give her that piece of her brother.”

My jaw stated to ache.

“And get her to talk to Letty. She knows a thing or two about complicated siblings.”

Fuck. I hadn’t thought about that.

“Take tomorrow but I’d like for you to make the meet with Butch before he leaves.”

Butch needed to get out of Idaho before his cover was completely blown and the Horsemen found out he was undercover DEA.

“I’ll be there.”

Wilson took a breath and when he exhaled I braced.

“No doubt he was a piece of trash,” Wilson said softly. “But he emptied that safe and went to her. It wasn’t enough, but he tried.”

Wilson spoke the truth. Zeus had shown up about twenty grand short of what Phillips wanted. I wasn’t feeling like giving him a pass on this. The jumping in front of a bullet and dying for his sister, I was grateful for that.

Him rushing out of the compound like a fucking outlaw asshole, no.

“He should’ve called me. I would’ve gotten the money and he knew it. He was being his normal stubborn, jackass, blowhard self. But, he’s dead, so I have no one to get pissed at. It’s a wasted emotion and I’d rather stop thinking about him and go take care of my wife.”

It was a polite hint to leave.

One they both took without offense.

I locked up the house, didn’t bother making coffee for the morning because I had no plans of letting Jane out of bed until dinner time.

She’d been checked over at the hospital—no concussion, but she did have a nice sized goose egg and some bruising.

So, yeah, she was sleeping all day tomorrow.

My head had barely made it to my pillow before Jane turned and cuddled into me.

“Thank you, honey.”

I closed my eyes and breathed deep.

“Baby, I didn’t do—”

“Yes, Davis you do. Every day you make me feel loved. Every day you teach me how to love myself. Every day you make me happy. I know I’m going to be okay because you’re sleeping next to me and I know you like it because you tell me you do. You’re open and honest and too damn perfect but that makes me feel safe. I know you’ll never lie to me.”

“You never have to thank me for loving you.”

“Well I just did.” She snuggled in. “So just go with it.”

On a day as shitty as the one we’d had, I could not believe I was ending it roaring with laughter and Jane giggling in my arms.

Once again Wilson was right.

I had no choice but to be grateful.