Page 35 of Catch a King (Five Kings 1)

“Slade tells me he got to Billy before he took his last breath and that last breath delivered a name.”

“Go on.” Rose looks angry and I’m guessing it’s because she thinks Billy is being disrespected and I love that about her. So loyal even now, and I know she won’t hear a bad word said about him.

“Ryder King.”

I watch her closely for any signs that she knows something, but all I see is confusion. “Why would Billy mention him, it doesn’t make sense?”

“That’s why I’ve come to you.”

She steals a look at Mille and I know is probably wondering why I’m discussing family business with her beside me because Rose knows only too well the family rule about women and business. We may discuss things privately but never with others present, and I wonder if she is guarded because of Millie.

“Millie is a Reaper who was sent to find out why Ryder’s name is in the frame.”

Rose looks at her with interest and I can tell Millie’s surprise that I blew her cover.

Reaching for her hand, I grip it tightly and smile reassuringly. “You see, Rose, Ryder heard that Slade is asking about him and has sent Millie to find out why. That makes me curious because if he knew something, he wouldn’t need to send someone in his place. It’s been bothering me—a lot. This isn’t adding up, which makes me conclude that the Reapers know shit about Billy’s death, or why they are in the frame for his murder.”

Rose is a sharp woman and misses nothing, and I see her thinking from here. She looks deep in thought and I wonder if I did the right thing in involving her in this shit because I’m in no doubt at all, if Billy was into something, this woman would know and I think she trusts me enough to let me in on any secrets, especially now I’ve revealed my biggest one.

“Did Billy know Ryder—personally, I mean?”

Rose nods. “He spoke of him. He respected the shit out of him, I know that, and when he was asked by the Reapers to help stake out a building where a girl was being held hostage, I think that was the proudest moment of his life.”

Her eyes fill with tears. “He was an honorable man who respected that in others. He was so full of Ryder King and the way he ran his club. He told me he wished the Dragons would shape up and ditch the bad attitude and become half the unit the Reapers were but they weren’t cut from the same cloth and were more intent on ruining lives rather than saving them.”

Millie nods and I see her face soften at the mention of her club and my heart twists in agony. She has every right to be proud of them because she has experienced first-hand what it’s like to be saved by them, taken in and molded into a strong woman. I can tell she’s thinking hard and her next question surprises me because it changes the whole direction of my thinking. “Do you think he was telling us something else - maybe using Ryder’s name in a different way?”

She looks at me and I see a spark enter her eye. “Perhaps he was telling Slade to go to the Reapers, warn Ryder, maybe this has something to do with the Reapers but not what you think.”

Rose nods. “She could be right, honey. Maybe it was his last job as President—was warning you to go to Ryder for help, not retribution and Slade misinterpreted that.”

“Perhaps, but if that was the case, then why does Ryder appear to know nothing and sent Millie to find out. We’re going around in circles here. Ryder knows nothing, we know nothing, and all we’ve got is Slade’s word that Billy mentioned Ryder at all.”

“Are you doubting Slade?”

She looks interested and I shrug. “I’m doubting my own name right now because nothing adds up. It’s why I need to discover what the hell happened that night before someone else gets killed.”

“And Slade, how is he?”

Rose catches me off guard and I look at her in surprise. “He’s Slade, wrapped in shadows and mystery as always. Out of control and brewing on all this, conniving, plotting revenge and chasing his tail.”

Rose nods. “So different to Billy. You know, Sawyer, if I didn’t know better, I’d think he was more Axel’s son than Billy’s. You’re cut from the same cloth as he was but Slade, there’s a darkness there, a secret waiting to come into the light and he’s on a path to destruction. Perhaps your answer lies with Slade, not Billy. I’ve always wondered about that day. When Billy was last here, nothing seemed different and hell, I would have picked up on that in a heartbeat. We had plans, great plans as it happens, about his retiring and leaving Axel in charge; taking off on a road trip and seeing parts of America we always heard of but never knew. Why would he jeopardize that for club business?”

“Did Axel know he was planning on leaving?”

I have to ask because this is news to me. Billy loved the club, and I thought he would die in his cut, not hang it up. “Yes, Axel knew. Slade, I’m not so sure. You see, Billy kept his guard around Slade, he told me he was worried about him and wasn’t sure if he was the right man to succeed him.”

“Why not?” I’m surprised to hear this because Slade loves the Dragons. The fire runs in his blood and I can’t think of a better man to step into Billy’s shoes at the club.

Rose shrugs. “Billy thought he had too much ambition and wanted to take the club down a darker road than was good for it. He thought he’d end up destroying the Dragons with his recklessness and was afraid that he dealt so much in darkness, he would be burned by the light. Look out for Slade, Sawyer, because I’m guessing your answer lies more with what Slade has done than Billy. Perhaps Slade is the reason for Billy’s death and that day the intended target was Slade himself and Billy got caught in the crossfire.”

Milly grips my hand and I sense her mood has shifted and I know what she’s probably thinking. She screwed up in choosing me because all the answers lie with Slade. She will be blaming herself for not seeing this through and I know it’s up to me to sort this shit out because the thought of Millie anywhere near Slade causes a physical pain in my heart. If I know Millie, she will be planning her own solution to this and it’s up to me to shoot her down in flames before she gets herself killed. Slade is my problem and if anyone can find out what’s going on in his mind—it’s me.

Chapter 29

Millie

Sawyer’s right, we are going around in circles and I’m the reason for that. It’s all my fault. I should have chosen Slade and be on my way to finding out the information the Reapers need. I’ve failed them all. The Reapers, Ryder, Sawyer and Billy all because of fear. I couldn’t put my personal preference aside and chose Sawyer because at the time, he was the least dangerous option. Now I can’t imagine never choosing him because he has fast wrapped my heart in love and claimed it as his.

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