Page 155 of Gunner

Steering clear of the trio, I headed for the bar, where Saint poured a drink, which he handed to me.

“Thanks, man.”

“No prob,” he said. “Looks like you needed it. Gunner still down?”

My cheeks burned, and I mumbled, “Yeah.”

Saint chuckled. “Well, no need to be shy. You’re not doing anything the rest of us ain’t.”

“Still kind of awkward when everyone knows your business.”

“Hey, we’re close, brothers. No one will think anything of you and Gunner. The homophobic pricks all left when we swooped into town and took over.”

I frowned. “Why Smoky Vale?”

“Club was going downhill. No disrespect to your man, but Gunner didn’t have his head screwed on right for a while. In fact, fucker’s lucky he didn’t lose his life right here at the clubhouse.”

I sat on a stool and propped my arms on the counter. “Yeah? What happened?”

“He was drunk out of his mind, that’s what happened.”

“But that’s not unusual around the club. I mean, there’s a party here every week.”

“Nah, Gunner’s drinking was on a different level. He was drunk all the fucking time. One of his own men pulled a knife on him. Luckily…uh, nothing.”

I gave him a blank stare. “Why’d you stop? In case it wasn’t clear, I have no future in the police force.”

“Yeah, well, don’t take offense, but certain things only the members know. Even if you’re fucking the president. We keep our partners out of most things that would implicate them in any way. I figure Gunner will do the same. He’ll tell you what you want to know, but I’m saying way too much.” He pointed at the bottle of scotch. “I can’t even blame this. I’ve only had a glass.”

I chuckled. “What can I say? I have a charming personality.”

“When you’re not prosecuting us, you’re all right.” He topped off my drink. “What now? Do you and Gunner have things figured out? Not about you two. It’s clear where that’s heading. About the case.”

“Nothing concrete, but we have some theories.”

“Tell me.”

I took a sip. We still suspected someone in the club of betraying Gunner, but—nah, it couldn’t be him. He’d shown up today and saved my life. Leaning forward, I lowered my voice. “Someone in the club likely betrayed him.”

“Yeah?”

“Only way his patch could have landed on the crime scene. It also means that someone broke into my house last night and got Gunner’s knife as well to use to carry out the murder.”

“Why didn’t they just kill you?”

I shrugged. The question rested on my mind, but I could only come up with one answer. “From the get go, they’ve tried to connect the cases with Gunner.” I sucked in a deep breath as my brain fired. “In fact, they’ve never once attacked Gunner—only me. They don’t want to kill him. They want to pin the crimes on him. That’s it. They’re looking for a fall guy.”

“But Gunner?”

“Yes, Gunner. Everyone who’s been in Smoky Vale long enough knows Gunner’s violent history.”

“Rumored history.”

“That we all believe. With someone like Gunner who the public already casts as a villain, it would be all too easy to convince a jury he was capable of committing these crimes.”

“That makes sense.”

“You’ve got to help me,” I said.

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