13. Blayne

THIRTEEN

BLAYNE

I kept my mouth clamped such as I cursed Tate in my mind. He'd pulled that shit out and tossed it in my face. The logic of it was, of course, infallible. There was no way I could actually be angry at him. Every word he'd said was true. My panther had recoiled when Tate had talked about Ava getting hurt. Even if I'd had the strength, I couldn't have put my panther in pain again by denying I cared about Ava's safety.

My feud with the Francis family was warranted, but Tate was also right on that account. Liam was gone. Had been gone for a long time. Ramming my head into the wall and refusing Gio's help wouldn't bring my brother back. Tate had a family to protect. Steff had April, and Miles had Celina and a baby on the way. I'd be the most selfish piece of shit in the world if I refused the help Gio was offering. If I pushed the issue, the others would go with me on it, but what would happen if someone we cared about got hurt?

Images flashed through my mind. Celina, eyes sightless lying in a puddle of her own blood. Harley, screaming as she held the dead bodies of her children. April, lying broken on the side of the road . It was too much. I shut my eyes tight, trying to force the images away. If any of that happened, the guys would never forgive me. I'd be shunned and cast out of the pack. If something happened to Ava, my panther would be even more devastated than when she'd rejected me. I'd be at risk of going feral.

I couldn't do that. Any of it. No. I had to let Gio help us. He was powerful and had the money and manpower we didn't. This was a deal with the devil, but sometimes the devil you knew was better than the devil you didn't.

"What can you do to help us?" Miles asked.

Gio turned to look at Ava, then back to Miles. He looked a little uncomfortable when he spoke. "I'm battling cancer. Doctors say they caught it soon enough, and if everything goes well, I should be okay in a few months. As for actual physical assistance, I won't be very good to you. What I do have are the resources to help you all go after Antonio. Information-gathering and whatnot. We can help you paint him into a corner.

"My resources aren't technically legal. Does that matter to you all when your lives and the lives of your loved ones are on the line?"

Even I couldn't say it did. What did laws matter when there were people rich enough to circumvent them? Our pack was more important than any law. We all knew that, and none of us gave any indication that we would say otherwise.

Gio pointed at me. I stiffened, wondering what he was going to say. "Blayne, I know how you feel about my family. That doesn't change the fact that we all promised Liam we'd look out for you. Whether you like it or not, we are going to stand by that."

I stared back at the man and held his gaze. I hoped he saw what I wanted him to see. I would work with him to save the people I loved, but forgiveness was not on the table.

After a few seconds, an understanding passed between us, and I finally nodded. "Fair enough."

"All right then," Gio said. "Where do we go from here?"

"Good question," Tate said. "How would you go about taking down someone like Antonio?"

"Well, when you've gotten to the level he has, there's really only one place to hit first. Tarnish his name. He's this big, shiny smiling philanthropist right now. He leans into that squeaky-clean image because it makes it easier to negotiate deals, lobby and get around certain inconvenient laws. We rub a little shit on that name, and suddenly no one wants to get into bed with him."

"How do we do that, though?" Steff asked. I had the same questions.

"I know a few guys from back in the day. Men who greased some wheels for Antonio. He paid them to make some of his past go bye-bye. From what I hear, Antonio did pay them back for their help. The only reason they haven't turned heel and sent word to the press is that they're afraid of what he'll do to them and their families."

"Can you flip them to our side?" Tate asked.

Gio nodded. "I'm certain I can. All I need to do is give them my word that the Francis family will provide protection to them and theirs. It'll take some time to work out the deals, but I think my brothers and I can get something together in a week or two. Once these folks are set, we can release whatever dirt they have to the press." Gio looked at me, and then everyone else in the room. "I need your permission before I make the first call. Because once this ball starts rolling, there's no going back."

None of this sat well with me. Why in the name of God would Gio Francis be so gung-ho about helping us? We couldn't give him money or power. We were nothing to him.

"What do you get out of this deal?" I muttered.

Gio looked at me with look of a disappointed father. "Blayne, you may not believe this, but I loved Liam. Loved him like the son I never had."

I opened my mouth to call him out on the bullshit, but a look from Ava caused my panther to leap forward and force my mouth shut. I couldn't remember it ever being this forceful and almost taking control of my body. I gritted my teeth, and let him go on.

"I tried to get him out of the field. Begged him even. It was no secret that he wanted to marry my Ava. That's part of why I wanted him off the dangerous jobs and out of harm's way. He was supposed to come under my wing and learn the other aspects." Gio shook his head and smiled sadly. "Boy, he talked about you like you'd hung the moon. My brilliant brother this, my amazing brother that. All the time. He wanted better for you, especially after you'd lost your parents to those hunters. Liam loved you like he had loved his parents. He told me once that he wanted to go after the hunters who killed them and get his vengeance. I think that's part of why he never wanted to come out of the field. He wanted to hone his skills so he'd be able to take them on."

It felt like Gio had slapped me. Liam had never told me that. We knew hunters had killed our parents, and the only reason we'd been spared was because we were at a sleepover with our other packmates—the only other family who was part of our pack. He'd never told me that he planned on going after the hunters.

"He wanted to find the hunters?" I asked dumbly.

Gio gave an affirmative bob of his head. "He did. Still, I tried to get him to stop. I told him I'd pay him more if he quit doing the dangerous stuff. He refused. Looking back, after hearing what you've all told me? I think the hunters who killed your folks were an early iteration of what Antonio was starting to build. I have no proof of that, but the timing suggests it's around the time he started going into legitimate businesses. What I'm saying is, I'm not doing this to protect you and your buddies, Blayne. I'm doing this also as one last gift to Liam."

My mind was reeling. I had no words. Even if I had, my throat was constricted with emotion. I could see in Gio's eyes he was telling the truth. He believed what he was saying.

I jerked out of my stupor when a hand slipped into mine. Ava had come to sit beside me. I hadn't even seen her move, I'd been too caught up in my own thoughts. She squeezed my hand, and when I looked at her, there were tears in her eyes. I squeezed back to comfort her as her body began to tremble with silent sobs. I had to look away before her tears brought out my own.

Miles looked a little uncomfortable, but he went on with the meeting. I only heard every third word, too focused on what Gio had said. My brother hadn't died for money—he'd died trying to learn how to avenge our parents. To become some sort of warrior. From Ava's reaction, she hadn't been privy to that information, either.

My whole world was upside down. I'd hated these people for so long, it had almost become part of my DNA. Hearing Gio talk about my brother like a son turned my emotions into one massive swirling storm.

I couldn't let go of Ava's hand. She seemed to be the only thing anchoring me in reality, holding me steady as everything else went flying around. I couldn't process the information. I simply didn't have the energy or capacity. It would take days to come to terms with it and sort through my emotions.

The meeting ended, and I managed to snap out of my internal struggle. Gio walked over to Tate and shook his hand.

"Thank you, Gio. You have no idea how much we've needed someone on our side," Tate said.

Gio cocked an eyebrow. "I'm glad I found out when I did. Antonio has always been an asshole. I'll look forward to knocking him off that little throne he's built for himself."

Miles shook Gio's hand next. "I hope you get well soon, Mr. Francis."

Gio chuckled. "Oh, it's a bitch, that's for sure, but cancer won't be the end of me. It'll take more than that to put this old dog in the ground."

He turned to me, and his eyes slid down to see Ava's hand still clutched inside mine. Instinctively, I jerked my fingers away from hers. For a moment, I was filled with shame, like someone had walked in on me doing something terrible. As soon as I pulled away, a different kind of shame washed over me—a mournful tug from my panther.

Gio's lips twitched into a faint smile. "Ready to go, Ava?"

She stood and glanced back at me. "See you later."

I didn't move as I watched them walk out and close the door behind them. I blinked several times, head still spinning. How could things change so suddenly?

Tate sighed and leaned back in his chair. "Well, that was unexpected."

"I know, right?" Steff was smiling. "We might really have a chance."

"Antonio talked about Gio Francis once," Jared said. "Only once. I only remember it because it was the one time I ever heard him sound even remotely afraid of anyone. This is big."

"I guess we have Ava to thank for this," Miles said.

I narrowed my eyes. "How do you figure?"

The rest of them stared at me with open-mouthed wonder. Steff raised his brow and laughed. "Bro, seriously?"

Tate waved a hand at me. "Guys, let him figure it out on his own. Nothing we say will get through that thick skull of his."