Page 82 of The Trust We Broke
He nods.
Thoughts fly through my head. What this means for my mother. How it affects me. What it will mean for my father.
Then, I remember something Zach’s mom always used to say. Not my circus, not my monkeys.
But I can’t resist a final question. It’s a leap, but it’s the only link that makes sense. “Was it the Rebels who were blackmailing you?”
My father’s shoulders sag and he nods, pathetically.
“So that’s how the Midtown Rebels Motorcycle Club know who I am. You’re not a good man,” I say, disgust dripping from every word. “This is karma. And Mom stayed loyal to you. Even now, she wants to protect you and your reputation. Fix this yourself. I want no part of it. I don’t owe you. Close your law firm. Use your illness as the reason. Then, when I get Zach’s record expunged, and you lose your license and a judge gets tossed, the media flurry won’t be as interested because your firm no longer exists. As for the affair, be honest with Mom. Tell her what happened. Give her the choice to stay or not. Or go find whoever that is in the photograph and see if she’ll take care of you, now. And when you’re all alone after this, with no friends or business or prestige or status or family, you can ask yourself if it was worth it.”
Dad shakes his head. “No. No. No.”
He scribbles furiously and shoves the paper in my direction.
Help.
“You’ve got some fucking nerve asking me for it after everything you did to me. You took my happiness away from me, Dad. And, worse, I let you.”
“No!” The single word is yelled, filled with anger and frustration.
I take one last look at my father and see the ever-changing faces of him. From the proud and arrogant prosecutor to the pathetic man before me. Not pathetic because of his stroke and aphasia. Those two things alone have nothing to do with it.
Instead, I see a man with no moral compass, with the inability to do the right thing and stand up for what is right.
“I hate you,” I say, before I spin on my heel and leave the room.
And now, I have to figure out how to make everything right.
Which means returning to the only man I was ever able to trust.
24
GRUDGE
“Iwant Wes Granger, and when we find him, I want him brought here so I can kill him slowly,” I say, making eye contact with each of my brothers sitting around the table.
Wraith leans forward. “Given what you just told us, I understand and agree with why you feel the need to kill him. But I think you should speak to Lucy, first.”
My brain spins at the thought of her. How good it felt to have her back in my bed, and how she destroyed me immediately after. How I left her in my room hours ago.
“There’s no need to speak to Lucy about this,” I say, finding it hard to keep my frustration at bay. She doesn’t need to know what I intend to do to him.
Wraith raises an eyebrow like I’m an idiot. “Think about it. You said Lucy was going to get you justice. She can’t do that if Wes Granger is suddenly missing.”
Catfish nods. “He’s right, Prez. There’s gonna be a timeline for all this happening. Lucy finding the paperwork, her telling you. If the next thing on the timeline is that Wes Granger goes missing, you’ll be suspect number one.”
“Not sure what you’ve all been smoking, but you’re being really fucking optimistic about the legal process,” Smoke adds. “It’s not a slam dunk, yet. ‘WG’ won’t mean shit as proof in court. If I was Granger’s lawyer, I’d simply present a long ass list of every other person in Colorado with the same initials.”
Jackal shakes his head at that. “Maybe, but from what Grudge said, it mentioned the Rebels. So, he’d have to find another fall guy in the club with the same initials. And who wants to be in a motorcycle club where the president throws you under the bus.”
“Former,” Shade says. “Granger’s the former president. Not the current one. Because Hooper is still inside, right?”
“He is,” I say. “Dad gave Hooper a beating. But it does make me wonder what Granger is doing. Like, Butcher has gone nomad, but is around if we need him. Do we know Granger’s deal?”
Wraith shakes his head. “Let’s figure that out, first, because it all plays into this. Right now, Granger doesn’t know you know, so, isn’t doing anything different in his routine.”
Atom coughs to clear his throat. “Lucy should get your record expunged and fight for any compensation you’re due. You should sue De Bose for everything he has. And then, some night, months later, when Granger isn’t expecting it. Some night, when you’re out east visiting King and the New Jersey guys, Wes Granger is involved in a hit and run on a deserted road.”
