Chapter Eight

Cullen

C RICKET LIVED IN a condo in Portland’s trendy Pearl District owned by one of Hatch’s club brother’s wives, Kim. She rented it to my sister for well below its worth because she wanted someone in who wouldn’t wreck it. It was secure with a twenty-four hour doorman and overlooked the water. Cricket loved it.

I met Hatch in the garage of her building, and we rode up the private elevator, heading to her condo and letting ourselves inside.

“Christina Catherine Wallace!” Hatch bellowed, and an ear piercing scream echoed through the building.

“I think that got her attention,” I murmured, locking the door behind us.

She came rushing out to the foyer, fuzzy slippers on her feet, a green mask of goo on her face, her head wrapped in a towel, and she was pulling a robe sash around her waist. “You scared the shit out of me! What are you doing here?”

“What’s this about you making a visit to Helena Bridges’ office?” I demanded.

“She called you?” she asked hopefully.

“Buzz did,” Hatch countered, which was good, because it meant I didn’t have to lie.

She frowned and let out a little huff. “Well, damn. That sucks.”

“Christina,” Hatch warned.

“Don’t come at me with ‘Dad Voice,’ big brother. I was just trying to find out what she knew and see if she was in love with Cullen. And if she’s worthy, of course.”

I threw my hands in the air. “We don’t know each other!”

“Yes, she tried that line with me too.”

“It’s not a line,” I ground out.

“I’m just gonna wash my face real quick. Grab a couple of beers.”

She walked back into her bedroom while Hatch and I were left in the foyer in irritation.

“I guess we’ll grab a beer,” Hatch said.

“Fratricide’s still frowned upon, right?”

“All illegal in this state.” He chuckled shrugging off his jacket and setting it over the sofa. “Let’s just see how the rest of the day pans out.”

I followed him into the kitchen, dropping my jacket on top of his, then once our beers were procured, we settled ourselves on Cricket’s sofa in the great room.

She joined us a little while later, robe and fuzzy slippers still on, but towel and green goo gone. “Make yourselves at home,” she droned, strolling past us into the kitchen.

“Come have a seat, Christina,” Hatch ordered.

“Until you take the level down a notch, I don’t think I will,” she sassed.

“Cricket, just sit your ass down,” I breathed out.

She huffed and stomped her little feet as she made her way to us (hard to do in fuzzy slippers). “I will not apologize,” she said, flopping into her oversized chair across from us.

“Well, I think you should,” I said. “At least to the lieutenant, but not right now, because if you do that, it could put the investigation into even more murky waters.”

She rolled her eyes. “Don’t be so dramatic.”

“We are being investigated for arson, Christina,” I snapped. “We are way past fucking drama!”

She slapped her hands on the arms of the chair. “You didn’t do it.”

“I know that, and you know that, but Lieutenant Bridges doesn’t.”

“Yet,” she said.

“Yet,” I agreed.

“Well, we need to help her—”

“Stay out of it!” I bellowed. “Jesus!”

“Enough,” Hatch growled. “Both of you.”

“I’m just trying to help,” Cricket said.

“Do you get that by trying to help, you might make things worse?” Hatch asked.

“How?”

I threw my hands in the air and rose to my feet. “Are you purposely being stupid?”

“Okay, brother, let’s not start with the name calling,” Hatch warned.

“Fuck, sissy, I’m sorry,” I rushed out. He was right. We’d always had a rule. Fight clean. Especially when it came to Cricket. No low blows, no name calling, always speak the truth, but always be kind, and calling her stupid was not only mean, it was untrue.

“No, it’s fine,” she said. “I’m not being stupid, but I am being purposely obtuse.”

I snorted. “Same thing, baby sister.”

“Yes, but it makes you sound smarter than you are.”

“You need to stop,” I warned.

“I know,” she bit out. “But she needs to figure out you didn’t do it.”

“Then you need to let her do her job,” Hatch said. “If you try to interfere, you could blow this whole thing open and create more problems. Just let the woman do her thing.”

She huffed. “Fine.”

“Cricket,” I pressed.

“I said fine! I’ll leave it alone.”

“Thank you,” I said, taking my seat again.

“Do we know anything that she knows?” Hatch asked.

“Yes,” I said. “She interviewed me yesterday, and there is some evidence, but I don’t really know what any of it means.”

“Way to bury the lead,” Cricket squeaked. “Why didn’t you say anything yesterday?”

“Because it slipped my mind with all the other shit swirling around. I met with her before you came over. I think she’s going to interview Cade and Cameron next week.”

“What did she find?” Hatch asked.

I filled them in on what I knew I could, then shrugged. “But I can’t think of how any of that could have gotten to the scene. It’s not like there’s been any overlapping employees.”

“Yes there has,” Cricket countered.

“What?” I asked.

“Katya Lebedev.”

I frowned. “Who’s that?”

“She’s Cam’s cleaning lady. Or she was. Remember her? Young, twenty-three, from Russia. Her brother’s in some facility in Gresham. He has a TBI from a car accident a few years ago.”

“One of Cam’s conquests?” I asked.

“No, she’s way too innocent for him, but I think she put a few moves on him, which is why she’s no longer his cleaning lady, but Cade had her cleaning the offices, and doing the finished build cleans, so he kept her on. He felt bad for her, and she does really good work.”

“She’s never been to my place.”

“But she has.”

My blood ran cold. “What? When?”

“Like, three months ago. Your normal gal was sick, so you asked me to find someone to fill in for a few weeks. I sent Katya. She went twice. Then Daria was back, and you never said anything, so I figured no news was good news.”

“You think Katya set those fires?” Hatch asked.

“I have no idea,” I said. “But it’s a start.”

“I highly doubt it would be Katya,” Cricket said. “She’s, like, the sweetest thing on earth. There’s no way she’d do something like that. Why would she jeopardize everything, especially her freedom, when there’s no one else to look after her brother?”

“Desperate people do desperate things,” Hatch said.

“What motive could she possibly have to set fires to the buildings of her employers, though,” Cricket pressed. “She needs all the money she can get to take care of her brother’s medical bills.”

“Well, I think maybe Booker could do a little dive into her and see if he can find out,” Hatch said.

“Please don’t blow her life up unless you know for sure she had something to do with it,” Cricket begged.

Hatch leaned forward setting his elbows on his knees. “Have I ever done anything like that, sissy?”

“Um, Jase Vincent, big brother.”

“Jase Vincent was not the man for you, Cricket, trust me on that.”

I didn’t miss the sheen of tears as she dropped her head. “Whatever.”

“You want me to order food?” I asked.

“You’re staying?” she asked.

“I am.” I cocked my head. “Chinese?”

She shrugged. “Sure.”

“You joining us, Hatch?”

“I need to head back,” he said, standing. “I’ll get Booker on the Katya thing.”

“That’d be great, thanks.”

After hugging my sister, he headed out, then I knelt in front of her because I could tell she was processing something. “Hey.”

“I’m sorry I barreled into your thing, Cull.”

“It’s over now. What’s going on in that head right now?”

She shrugged, wringing her hands in her lap. “Nothing.”

I laid a hand over hers. “Cricket.”

She burst into tears. “Sometimes I miss him like I’m missing my other half.”

“Jase?”

She nodded. “He just disappeared. The Burning Saints sent him somewhere, but only Hatch and they know where, so to me he’s gone without a trace, and I have no idea where he is.” She met my eyes and asked hopefully, “Do you know where he is?”

“I don’t, sweet girl, I’m sorry. Hatch didn’t disclose anything about that to me.”

And my brother probably did that on purpose because he knew that Cricket would eventually grind me down to nothing and I’d figure out a way to get the man she loved back to her. I could not handle my sister being sad, and right now, she was wrecked .

“Do you know the worst thing about it though?” she rasped.

“What?”

“He hasn’t reached out. Like, at all. I get that the Burning Saints are a one-percent club, so they’re less, um, legal than the Dogs of Fire, but he could at least reach out.” She burst into more sobby tears. “Unless, everything he told me was a lie, and he didn’t really love me. But I’m not stupid, Cullen. I can read people. He loved me. I loved him. We were it for each other. I just didn’t think he’d choose his club over me. And I would never have asked him to choose me over his club. He knew that.”

I pulled her out of her chair, and we stood together so I could hold her while she continued to cry.

“I wish I could find him so I could kill him.”

I smiled as I gave her a squeeze. “Me too, baby sister, me too.”

“But then I’d kiss him.”

“Okay, I didn’t really need that visual,” I admitted.

“And then we’d both kill Connor.”

“But then you wouldn’t be able to verbally eviscerate him on a regular basis,” I pointed out.

“Okay, fine, we’d just maim him,” she conceded.

I chuckled, giving her another squeeze. “Are you ready to eat your feelings?”

“I’m going to need wine and ice cream if we’re going to do that.”

“Okay, how about we order all of that too.”

“That sounds good.” She squeezed me back. “Cullen?”

“Yeah?”

“I love you to Jupiter and back.”

“Love you too, sweetheart.”

After one more squeeze, she released me and we went about ordering way more food than either of us could eat, but what made my sister feel better made me feel better, so it was all good with me.

* * *

Helena

Saturday afternoon, I turned off my phone, parked at a park and ride, then took a bus to the closest bus stop I could find before walking the two blocks to Cullen’s home (despite the threat of rain) all the while laughing at myself internally at my attempts at subterfuge.

Arriving at Cullen’s duplex, I rang the doorbell, and he pulled open the door within seconds, tugging me inside and kissing me before I’d even had the chance to say ‘hello.’

“Okay, I would like that to go on record as the appropriate way to greet me every time we see each other,” I breathed out once we came up for air.

He chuckled. “As soon as all this shit is over, I’ll happily oblige.”

I wrinkled my nose. “I’m working on it.”

“I know, baby.”

“Okay, Hooch, tone it down with the endearments, huh? You’re drooling all over me.”

“What?”

“Turner and Hooch? The Tom Hanks movie,” I prodded.

“Haven’t seen it,” he said, scrunching up his face in horror.

“What?” I gasped. “It’s a classic.”

“It has a dog in it. Ergo, it’ll be sad. Nope, no, niet. No way in hell am I seein’ a movie about a dog that probably, maybe dies. I’m sappy enough as it is, don’t need more of a reason for my man card to be revoked.”

I frowned. “Hmm. I’ve seen it, like, three times and didn’t cry.”

“Are you a monster? Everybody cries at that movie.”

“Prudence says yes.” I grinned. “On the monster thing.”

He chuckled, glancing out the window. “Where’s your car?”

“I didn’t bring it,” I said, and filled him in on my travels.

“Why the hell did you go through all of that? I could have picked you up.”

“Ah, no you could not have. We have to keep this quiet, so I did all that so if anyone goes digging, they won’t know I came here.”

He sighed. “I hate that you have to do that.”

“Me too, but it’s fine.” I cocked my head. “Did you grab my list?”

“I did. Are you really going to cook all that? Sounds like a lot of work.”

I patted his chest. “To you it sounds like a lot of work, because you like to order in, but it’s easy peasy. My nana’s bolognaise is quick and delicious which is why I chose it.”

He leaned down and kissed me again. “Can’t wait. Now, tell me how I can help.”

“Show me where everything is first, then I’ll put you to work.”

Once I’d removed my jacket and hung everything up, he led me into the kitchen and we washed our hands and got down to cooking (after he poured us each a glass of wine, of course, because, priorities).

“Can you chop onions?” I asked him.

“Wow, you really want to see me cry, don’t you?”

“Hmm, onions don’t make me cry. Maybe my tear ducts are just broken.” I grinned. “But I can handle it if you can.”

“Any excuse to get you in my arms,” he retorted and pulled out the cutting board.

“So smooth,” I teased as I started to brown the meat.

“Glad you think so.”

“Did you talk to your sister?”

“I did.” He sighed. “She won’t bother you again.”

“It’s no bother, honey, really. We just have to be careful.”

“Cricket gave me a name.”

“She did?”

Cullen nodded. “Yeah, Hatch is having one of his guys check her out, but I can give it to you as well in case you want to do the same.”

I bit my lip. “Let’s wait and let one of your brothers give me her name. Have Cade or Cameron do that, sound good? That way it won’t seem like it’s coming out of left field.”

“That’s actually a good idea.”

“I know,” I retorted. “I’m a genius.”

He laughed. “Yes, yes, you are.”

“Okay, time for the onions,” I said, and he slid them into the meat.

“Where’d you learn to cook?” Cullen asked. “Grandma?”

“My step-dad, Barry, actually,” I said. “He used to joke that before he came along we subsisted on ramen and boxed mac and cheese, and he was kind of right.”

“Your mom doesn’t cook?”

“She has a couple of staples,” I said as I drained the meat. “This for example, and she makes a mean lasagna, which she’s preparing tomorrow, both my grandmother’s recipes. But for the most part, she just didn’t cook. She can, but she hates it and was a busy working mom of two kids, so when Barry came along, he took over. He loves to cook.”

“And you?”

“I love it even more, I think.” I smiled as I continued with the sauce. “He taught me everything I know, and then when I got hold of Nana’s recipe box, I was in heaven.” I nodded to the pot of boiling water. “You can drop the pasta in now.”

He did as I instructed, then slid onto a bar stool. “Why is your uncle a pain in your ass?”

I stared at the sauce for a few seconds.

“Helena,” Cullen pressed.

“Brent was his guy.”

“What do you mean, ‘his guy’?”

“Skip hired him, trained him, mentored him. He saw him going to prison as his failure and the fact I sent him there as a personal insult to Skip.”

“Are you fuckin’ shittin’ me?” Cullen hissed.

I shook my head, continuing to stare at the sauce.

Before I could say anything further, Cullen had turned off the stove, taken the spoon from my hand, and wrapped his arms around me. “I’m sorry he’s a dick, sweetheart.”

“Dick might be a bit harsh.” I slid my hands up his back. “He just doesn’t get it.”

“Some asshole attacked you in your home, Helena. If your uncle didn’t champion you, then he’s a dick.” Cullen pulled back so he could meet my eyes. “If he didn’t tell every man he knew that he’d ride with pitchforks and torches at midnight, then he’s a goddamn monster.”

I melted against him with a sad chuckle. “Well, he did neither of those things.”

“Then he’s a goddamn monstrous dickhead.”

“That I have to see tomorrow at family dinner.” I burrowed deeper into him.

“Can you bow out?” he asked.

“No. And I honestly don’t want to. I love my family, and I can tolerate Skip for the most part.”

“I wish I could go with you.”

I smiled up at him. “Me too.”

“Soon,” he said, leaning in to kiss me.

I nodded. “I’m doing everything I can.”

“I know, baby.”

“One more kiss, then let me finish dinner.”

He obliged and I went about finishing dinner.

* * *

Dinner was over and Cullen had just handed me another glass of wine after ordering me to ‘sit my sexy ass on the sofa’ while he took care of the clean-up.

I watched him while he cleaned, admiring the way he worked. He was graceful in a way and highly efficient. Although, I noticed he fit half of what I could in the dishwasher. I decided not to mention it, because it wasn’t my home and I didn’t have to worry about dirty dishes in the sink in the morning, but I didn’t know what it was about men and their inability to Tetris the fuck out of a dishwasher rack.

Cullen closed said dishwasher and started it before grabbing a fresh beer and joining me on the sofa. “You okay?”

“Yes, why?”

“You just looked like you were deep in thought.”

“I was just watching you clean.” I smiled. “It was magnificent.”

He chuckled. “You’re easy to please.”

“Can I ask you something?”

“Anything.”

“You can say no.”

“Anything, honey.”

“Will you tell me about your wife?” I asked.

He gave me a sad smile. “What do you want to know?”

“Whatever you want to tell me. I just want you to feel like you can talk about her with me. I don’t want you to hide that side of your life.”

“I think we need to go back to how we ended up in the Pacific Northwest.”

“Yes, please,” I breathed out. “I want it all, Cullen. I want to know everything about you.”

Cullen took a deep breath and leaned heavily into the sofa. “We were living in San Diego when we found out our mother had cancer.”

I bit my lip. “Oh, god. How old were you?”

“Thirteen.”

“I’m so sorry.”

“It was really rough,” he said sadly. “What was worse, though, was my dad lost his mind when Mom died. He killed some guy at an underground, illegal open fist fight. He got caught. They used him as an example and we didn’t have the money for a decent defense, so he got the max. Dad died in jail a couple of years ago. When Dad got locked up, CPS was gonna farm us out to foster homes, but Hatch fought for us. He gained custody of all of us in order to keep everyone together.”

“Wow, so your brother’s kind of a superhero.”

“You’ll stop thinking that immediately.”

I chuckled. “Yes, sir.”

“The saving grace in all of that had been Bethy. High school sweethearts, the whole deal. The second she turned eighteen, we got married. She was a sweet, shy, didn’t rock the boat kind of girl. She was just… easy. Cade and I’d gone into construction, Cameron straddled the line between going to school, working for us, helping out at Hatch’s auto repair shops, and then fucking off whenever the mood struck, and of course, Cricket was still in school.”

“But then Elizabeth got sick.”

He nodded. “It started with headaches, but then one day, she woke up and couldn’t see. Not completely blind, but she said it was like snow on a television, so I rushed her to emergency where they gave her an MRI and discovered the brain tumor. She was gone less than a year later. I made her a promise on her deathbed that I’d never be with anyone else.”

“Ever?”

“Ever.” He shook his head.

I reached over and squeezed his arm. “I’m so, so sorry.”

“It sucked. Big time.” He smiled. “But then you came along and…”

“And?”

“At the risk of sounding cheesy, the world seems like it’s back on its axis for me. No pressure or anything because we’re gettin’ to know each other, but I’ve never met anyone I feel so comfortable with.”

“I get it.” I smiled. “I’ve never met anyone I feel safe with.”

He frowned. “I don’t like that.”

“Let me rephrase. I’ve never met anyone I feel so emotionally safe with. I mean, other than Roman, but since he’s more like a brother to me, it’s not the same.”

Cullen ran his thumb gently down my cheek. “You will always be safe with me.”

“I know that.” I set my wine aside and sat up on my knees. “Thank you for sharing about Elizabeth.”

“You’re welcome.” He tugged me onto his lap where he promptly pulled me in for an epic make out session.

The night ended far too soon for my liking, but I did have to get home in order to rest up for family dinner the next day, but he insisted on dropping me back to my car so at least I didn’t have to retrace my steps and walk the two blocks back to the bus stop.