Page 141 of Stone

Chapter Thirty-Seven

Elise

The waiting room was packed wall-to-wall with leather cuts.

Studying them, I decided that they didn’t seem as scary to me anymore. As a teenage girl, these men terrified me, but when you lived with evil, it became easier to spot.

Evil didn’t live among the Speed Demons.

Evil lived in a big, white mansion near the Country Club.

When John, Bandit, and the other men burst into the waiting room, my gaze dropped to my hands. I hadn’t seen John’s dad since the day he threatened to kill me, and I didn’t quite know what to do.

I didn’t expect what happened next.

Bandit sauntered over, tagged my hand, and pulled me up into his chest. “Thanks for the tip, blondie,” he whispered. “She’d be dead if it weren’t for you.” He kissed the top of my head, turned around, and crowed, “I’ve settled on John’s road name.” He puffed his chest out proudly and announced, “Dagger!”

A cheer went up, and Bandit threw me a wink over his shoulder.

My broken heart warmed a little because I got why he did it there, in the most inappropriate of places. Bandit wanted me to be part of a pivotal moment for John. Though, I didnotwant to know why he chose Dagger.

Notever.

“How is she?” John asked me.

“In surgery,” I explained. “She had major internal bleeding. They need to fix it.” My gaze went to Abe, who sat on his haunches in a corner, his head in his hands. “Go to him, John,” I whispered. “He needs you.”

I watched John walk over, sit on the floor next to Abe, and comfort his friend, my mind going over the day and everything that had happened. I’d lied a lot. The house I’d directed John to, was where Scalp first examined me when I was pregnant. Until today, I didn’t know what a Burning Sinner was, but now I knew they were involved with Robert and his sick line of work.

I realized I had the perfect opportunity to speak to John. Then, something stopped me.

Constance.

If I told John about her, I knew he’d ride in and cause so much mayhem that I’d never see her again. It wasn’t that I decided not to. I just decided to think about it and weigh everything up. Robert would hear about today, discover I was at the hospital with John, and take action.

It would earn me another beating, but I didn’t care.

Finding Iris was worth it.

Meh, Robert hit like a girl anyway.

Iris would be in surgery for a while, so I decided to get coffee and check my blasted cell phone for any calls from Robert. I knew it wouldn’t take long for the grapevine to reach him, and it could be worth trying to appease him.

As I stood to head to the hospital restaurant, a kerfuffle sounded from the corridor, and Sheriff Webb strutted in, two deputies trailing in his wake.

He stood, hands on hips, studying the scene. “I’ve got warrants for the arrest of John Stone, Donald Stone, Abraham Decker, Phil Duggan, and Ken Chiswick on the charge of arson,” he announced gleefully. “Approximately two hours ago, a witness reported you all speeding away from a building thatminutes later went up in flames.” He grinned. “Need to ask you all to come down to the station for questioning.”

Bellows went up as the Demons protested, cursing the sheriff, who stood there with a smirk plastered across his smarmy face.

A fire lit inside my chest. “Sheriff,” I broached carefully. “Can I ask who your witness was?”

He turned to me, and surprise flashed across his face. “Elise!” he said warmly. “Good to see you. Tell Robert I need a golf rematch with him this weekend.” He smiled. “Now, dear, never you mind. Best you don’t get involved.”

I smiled sweetly back at him. “Thank you. You know I hate any form of criminality. It’s just… well. I’ve been with these men all afternoon at their clubhouse.”

Silence fell over the room.

“So,” I continued. “I was wondering what witness reported these men at the scene of a crime, when they weren’t actually at said scene.” I cocked my head thoughtfully. “Also, you say they were reported to be speeding away. How?”

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