Page 43 of Walker

“What’s wrong? You look like you’ve been through the wringer today.”

“Feel like it, too.” There was no point in denying it. “Let’s go in the living room and get comfortable. Want something to drink?”

“I have water,” he said as he shook his refillable bottle at me.

“I’ll be back in a minute then.” When I came back out into the living room, Walker lounged on the couch and waited for me. He patted the seat beside him, and I gladly took it. Then, I explained everything that happened that day.

“Well, shit. Need you to give me the names of all the assholes Josh used to run with before he died. I’m going to have Quickshot look into things for you. Need access to that DNA shit you guys did, too.”

“Why?”

“Easiest way to find out if that bitch is lying is to get a hold of that girl’s DNA and send it in, since your husband is already on file there.”

I nodded my head. That made sense. “How will you get her DNA?”

“Eh,” he hedged. I gave him the look that said I meant business and he shrugged his shoulders. “Don’t hate me, but I figured I’d get Griff to work his magic and charm the girl into cooperating.”

“I want to be mad at you for involving him, but if it answers the questions my daughter has, then so be it. She deserves to know.”

“So do you.”

I shrugged and then leaned into Walker’s side. “I suppose, but it doesn’t really matter anymore. He’s dead. I can’t yell at him or change things. If that girl is his daughter, I feel sorry for her because she had no clue. Imagine finding out the man who was coming around your house – if that part was even true – was your dad and no one told you? That is so sad.”

“It’s fucked up, but we’re still going to get to the bottom of it, otherwise Ariel will always question shit where her dad is concerned, and it isn’t fair that all this was laid at her feet, and she doesn’t get some kind of resolution.”

“You’re right. Thank you for caring enough to want to help us.”

“Anything for you and your kids, Ree.”

“Thank you for coming over. I had started to worry.”

“Yeah?”

“Not about us, but about you. I know there’s a lot going on in your club right now, and I worried that it was too much when I hadn’t heard from you.”

“It was enough that I threw my fucking phone and busted it.” Walker admitted that as he chuckled and shook his head. “Let’s just say that shit hit the fan when the rest of the club heard that Sweet would no longer be our president. Fingers were pointed and blame was cast, but Ghost stepped in and set everyone straight. I think a few people are going to be shifted to other chapters and we’ll get some different members in as well who are looking for a change of scenery.”

“I hate it for you guys that everything seems so up in the air.”

He ran his hand up and down my arm in a comforting gesture. “It happens sometimes with clubs. The Tallahassee Chapter had a complete overhaul years ago after their old Prez stole from the club and left them near bankruptcy. The old guard down there, including my father, were thrown out on their asses or told to get in line.”

“Your dad was kicked out?”

“Nah. He chose to go nomad for a while but decided to settle in south Florida and gave up on paying his dues to the club. He quietly quit the club without taking the official steps necessary to truly quit. Got word a couple years ago that he washed ashore after working on a shrimp boat for a few years. Guessing he pissed someone off and they tossed his ass in as bait.”

“That’s awful,” I yelped.

“That’s life when you live it being an asshole to everyone.” I was truly indifferent to the bullshit after growing up with my dad. “Whatever other kids he managed to father over the years were lucky that he never stuck around for them as far as I was concerned. Then again, the women he tended to fuck around with weren’t model citizens either, so the kids were probably still fucked.”

“He sounds like a real gem.”

“Yeah, hate to tell you, but there will be no in-laws to deal with if things ever get that far between us.”

“Well, it’s just my mom on my side. My dad took off a long time ago and Tillie’s dad doesn’t acknowledge her at all. He’s the mayor a couple towns over and everyone knows he’s her dad, but they all pretend they don’t know. It’s crazy.”

“It’s always Tillie here with your kids. What’s up with your mom?”

“She travels too much. Every six months or so, she’ll flutter back to town and tell us about her latest adventure. She loves up the kids and enjoys her G-Maw time then she sets off on a new adventure. My mom was never one to be tied down by anything. She did right by my sister and me and raised us here, in the town where she grew up because she knew it would be better for us. Whenever she was able, she took off again for another adventure. Since I got pregnant and graduated high school, I’ve pretty much been on my own.”

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