Page 86 of Decoding Morse

Link sounded irritated but not angry about AJ’s reaction, making me want to dig a little deeper into Tank’s secrets. What the hell had happened between him and his ex? The grizzly old biker was one mystery I’d never been able to solve. Then again, I hadn’t tried very hard since the man had earned my respect before I’d gotten the chance to violate his privacy.

“And the daughter?”

“Now, that was a surprise. Brooke said she’s coming. She has to make some arrangements first, but yeah, she’s coming to see him. I don’t know how long she’ll stay, but she intends to be here in the next few weeks.”

“Wow.”

“Yeah. It’ll be… interesting.”

We finished our beers in silence, and then Link stood and set his bottle in the box for recycling. “I gotta get back to the office, but I’m glad you stopped. We need to talk.”

“What’s up?”

He cocked his head at me. “What the hell are you doing here, Morse?”

I narrowed my eyes at him, bracing for the tongue-lashing I knew was coming. He had that look in his eyes… the one he got whenever someone was being a dumbass.

I didn’t appreciate it being directed at me. “Where the fuck else would I be?”

“According to the schedule, you’re not due back to work until Monday.”

“Yeah? Well, plans changed. Hell, you were there when shit went sideways.”

“Yeah, I was. Which is why I asked in the first place. You’re scheduled to be off.”

Was he planning to force me to take my vacation? “We have been busting our asses off, uncovering the shit Eric Landry has been up to. My brothers need me.”

Link shrugged. “Maybe. But right now, your ol’ lady needs you more.”

“She’s busy with Carol. I don’t want to interfere.”

And she isn’t mine. Yet.

“Then don’t. But I bet she could use a hand.”

Did Amelia need help? The hit had been called off, so she was in no danger. A couple of my brothers were still watching Carol’s, erring on the side of caution.

She was safe, but was she okay? Sitting with a dying friend had to be fucking awful. Could I somehow help her with that? An idea struck me, and I stood and recycled my bottle.

“You know, you’re a lot wiser now that you’re married,” I said.

Link barked out a laugh. “Don’t I know it.”

I eyed the stairs, planning my next move.

Link stopped me. “Before you go, I’ve been meaning to ask… how’d you convince Landry to call off that hit so fast?”

I shrugged. “They put us in the back of the same cop car.”

“And?”

I eyed my president. “You sure you wanna know?”

He nodded, but understanding flashed in his eyes. He glanced at the fridge, likely considering another beer, but stayed where he was. “Give me the abridged version.”

“I explained that Amelia was under the club’s protection, and nobody fucks with what’s ours unless they are prepared to get raw dogged with every goddamn inch of our might.”

“Huh,” Link said thoughtfully. “Wish there was a way to put that on our website without alarming potential donors.”

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