Page 101 of When He Protects

And there seemed to be no way out of the situation.

Fuck.They pushed him in the rear of the vehicle, behind the ancient cage because Asylum’s patrol cars wereas old as dirt, and then the deputy slammed the door, sealing Kane inside.

Through the window, he watched as the deputy took the Jeep and drove it back toward Asylum. Clay stood in the middle of the road as the deputy vanished. When the deputy was no longer visible, Clay pulled out his phone and made a quick call.

Kane’s eyes narrowed. He couldn’t make out Clay’s low words. The conversation was short. Straight to the point.

Then Clay was headed for the patrol car. He climbed into the front seat. Cranked the car and got them out of the middle of the road. He didn’t drive far, though. Just turned the car…

Not in the direction of Asylum.

Instead, Clay began driving the patrol car…the way I just came.

“Never would have thought that you’d pull a gun on me,” Clay said. “Doesn’t friendship mean anything to you?”

It meant plenty. With people who wereactuallyreal friends. “You’re going the wrong way.”

“Friends don’t do that stuff. Friends look out for each other. Theyhelpeach other.”

Sure. “Would ithelpif I said that I was coming back to apologize?”

“You were coming to check my alibi.”

That, too. He pulled against the handcuffs. Esme had sure shimmied out of her cuffs fast enough at the blast site. If only he’d gotten her to show him exactly how she pulled off that trick. “Can’t we talk about this?”

“You pulled a gun on me.”

“Not like I was gonna fire.”

“You think I’m guilty.” Anger seethed in his words.

Kane’s head turned as he watched the trees pass in ablur because Clay was driving far too fast. “Want to explain to me how you’renotguilty?”

“I’m helping a friend. Don’t you get that? I’m trying to protect Tyler. To save his life.”

Tread carefully.But Kane had never really been the careful type. He was more of a bulldozer. “You have no alibi, do you?”

No answer.

Hell. “Who did you just call on the phone, Clay?”

“Tyler is going to be all right. I made sure of it. He’ll be clear. She was the problem.”

His eyes closed. “You went back to gambling, didn’t you? Hard.” Gambling had always been Clay’s addiction of choice. No matter how much help they’d given him, Clay had gone back to the games again and again. He’d never seemed to get that some games could completely screw your world to hell and back.

“You don’t know what my life is like! Don’t you judge me.”

“Did Vanessa find out? Did she dump you because she couldn’t handle what you were doing?” He’d picked up whispers of gossip about them in town. About how Clay kept wanting to make things official, but Vanessa was delaying.

“Vanessa doesn’t know. Leave her out of this.”

Clay slowed a bit—finally—but just so he could turn the vehicle. To the right. The tires still screeched. Kane tensed.How had Clay known to take this path?

“I’m a sheriff, dumbass. You think I didn’t have my own car secured? That I couldn’t track it every moment? I could see exactly where you took my ride. I knew when you stopped long enough to let Tyler and Esme out. I know where they are.”

Kane strained against the cuffs. “You already gave up their location.” That had been what the short and sweet phone call was about.

“We’re going to be met at their motel. Esme will be taken into custody.”

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