Page 102 of Ink's Devil

He frowns and stares at the VP as if trying to process the words he’s heard and clearly wondering about the implications. “I’m dead?” The lines etched on his forehead deepen. “I could start afresh?”

“Being dead gives you certain freedoms. But you’ll be dead for real if you don’t talk. This is my promise to you, Connor. We won’t make fiction fact unless your answers aren’t anything but the truth.” I step up closer to him, flexing my hands.

His swollen eyes close as he thinks. “If I were alive, they’d kill me for speaking to you. But if they think I’m dead, they won’t know I’m telling you anything.” Some of the tension in his face seeps away. “You said, I could start again somewhere new. Why would you do that for me?” He seems disbelieving, and his face tightens again. “From here it seems like you’ve done me a favour. Wouldn’t it be easier for you to kill me once I’ve told you everything I know?”

I chuckle. “Probably, yes. I can oblige if you prefer. Could still be the outcome if you don’t give us everything we need.”

He presses back into the pillows as though trying to get further away from me. “What I don’t understand, is why you’re involved?” he says after a moment. “Why were you at the warehouse? Why did you bring me out? Why did you let them think I was dead?” His brow furrows. “How you knew who I was when you found me? If you were after the drugs, there weren’t any there. But why would you be? You’re wearing Satan’s Devils’ cuts, but everyone knows Satan’s Devils aren’t in the drug business.” He sounds puzzled.

“Which was why you were dealing around our premises,” I put in. “Because we don’t touch heroin or anything else.”

“No, man. Not me. I wasn’t dealing. Never have, never will.”

My eyes narrow as I look at Beef. It dawns on me, Connor probably has no idea what went down Saturday night. Oh, he knows he asked Beth to deliver the drugs, but he doesn’t seem to know the outcome.

“What’s your relationship to Fender Childs?” Beef asks. I’m content to leave the questioning to the VP. I’m just here to enforce any answers which aren’t forthcoming.

“I haven’t one.”

I start to mentally prepare myself, certain he’s already lying.

“But you know him?” Beef probes.

Connor shrugs. “Met him. Why?”

Suddenly Beef is off the chair and diving forward so his impressive hands land on the bed either side of Connor. “Because that’s who you fuckin’ told your sister to deliver drugs to.”

“Beth? What’s she…” His eyes narrow. “That fuckin’ boyfriend of hers. He’s a Devil. He’s behind this, isn’t he? She went to you when I told her not to.” His eyes close then open. “No wonder they went so hard on me. I thought they’d ease off once I’d done what they asked, but no…” He grimaces. “Look, I was in trouble. I had to ask her. They… well, you can see what they were doing to me. Told me they’d kill me if I didn’t get the drugs delivered. I just knew a place and time, I didn’t know who’d be there waiting.”

“You haven’t even asked if your sister is alright,” Beef snarls.

Connor tries to sit up, not easy when he’s caged in by Beef. “The fact they darn near killed me suggests she’s alright. That she went to you and didn’t go to the meet.” His face falls like that of a little boy. “She didn’t care what happened to me.”

“She fuckin’ cared,” Beef roars back. “Though why she’d care about a piece of shit that got her involved in this business, I’ve no fuckin’ idea.” He pauses, glances at me for an instant and I see him shudder as he tries to get a grip on himself before turning back. “What if I told you the person delivering the drugs and Fender Childs have both been arrested?”

Even if there was a million dollars at stake, I wouldn’t have been able to predict Connor’s reaction. As far as he knows, Beef has just told him his sister had been arrested. Instead of horror, instead of regret, Connor… smiles.

Beef’s face glows, his shoulders straighten. He leans even closer. “What type of fuckin’ man are you? Getting a woman to do your dirty work for you? You might not think much of us, but we’d never, ever, put an innocent woman in the position of being hurt. Or arrested.”

“She’s been arrested?” Connor still doesn’t look upset. “She’ll be okay.”

“Okay?” Beef roars. “Fuckin’ okay? The person found with drugs on them is looking at thirty-plus years for possession with intent to supply.”

Connor frowns. He scurries up the bed as far as he can to get away from Beef. His groan of pain as he moves doesn’t affect me at all. “Look, it’s bad timing. That’s all. She must have gotten bail, first offence and all that?”

“First offence counts for fuck all in these cases. No bail.”

Beef’s not admitting it’s not his sister who’s locked up. Not yet. I’ll leave it to him to decide when or whether to enlighten him. Would it make Connor clam up if he knew just exactly what our vested interest in this was?

“What day is it?” he suddenly asks. I realise he’s been out of it for a while.

“Tuesday,” Beef replies. “You’ve been here since Sunday night.”

“I can sort it in a few days.” Connor looks hopeful. “She’s just got to hang on until the weekend. It will be fine,” he adds, sounding like he’s trying to convince himself.

“Ever been inside, Connor?” I ask, unable to hold back anymore.

He shakes his head.

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