Page 62 of Benji

“Did he ever report me as missing?” Benji asked, his voice quiet and detached. “Did anyone?”

No. They hadn’t. None of them had.

Even Dom didn’t need to answer that.

“The men chasing you,” Dom said, changing approach. “Are they your father’s men?”

Benji took a few seconds to answer. I didn’t think he was going to say anything at all, but he let out a quiet sigh. “Yes.”

“Why?” Dom asked. “Is he just tying up loose ends? Or did you see something you shouldn’t have? Do you know things you shouldn’t?”

Benji looked at me then, a storm of emotions raging in his eyes before he stood up and tried to pull his hand from mine. “I need to go,” he mumbled.

I stood up, and when he got his hand free from mine, I grabbed his arm instead. “Benji, please. You’re safe here. He can’t find you here. No one knows you’re here.”

He shot Dom a filthy glare. “Yes, they do. You do.Hedoes.” He tried to yank his arm away from me. “You wanna hand me back to him?—”

“No!” I cried, holding onto him. “No. Never. I wouldn’t allow it.”

“Nolan,” Dom murmured.

I spun to Dom. “Absolutely fucking not. I will declare involvement and this will be a mistrial before it even begins.”

“I don’t want to hand him over,” Dom snapped. “Jesus Christ, Nolan. But this is already complicated enough. We cannot jeopardise this trial. You have a conflict of interest?—”

“Fuck the case,” I replied. “Fuck it all. I’m off the detail anyway, effective immediately.”

“No,” Benji said, still trying to get free. “Nolan, please let go of me.”

I hadn’t even been aware I was still holding onto him. I released my grip and he stood there, his chest heaving. “You don’t know who you’re dealing with. Whatever you think, however bad you think he is, it isn’t even half of what he’s done. The shit you have on him—whatever it is—won’t matter.” He shook his head. “He’ll get off. He always does. He gets away with whatever the fuck he wants. You think him being in prison awaiting trial is stopping any of his business deals?” Benji laughed. “He’s never been richer, more powerful. And my brother...”

He put his hand to his forehead, pale and on the verge of tears.

“Benji,” I tried.

He shook his head and his eyes met mine. “I can’t stay here. I can’t put you in danger.” He took a step back. “I’m sorry. I need to go.”

“You’re safe here,” I tried.

“I’m not safe anywhere.”

“What did you see?” Dom asked as he stood up. “What do you have on him? Your brother. Where is he in all of this?”

Benji took another step back from him, scared, and that just pissed me off.

“Enough, Dominic. Jesus fucking Christ.”

“We can’t help him if he doesn’t tell us,” Dom snapped.

“You cannot threaten him,” I hissed.

Dom sighed. “I’m not. That’s not what I meant.”

Benji slipped behind me and went down the hall into my room. I shook my head at Dom. “This was not the plan.”

Not that we really had a plan.

Maybe Dom’s plan was to question Benji, but my plan was to make sure he was okay.

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