Page 52 of In Hiding

Blank expressions stared back at him. Had Jake done it himself, or had he crawled back on hands and knees to beg for forgiveness and information? Erik hoped for the latter, knowing the groveling required could only do the former biker good.

“I don’t get it,” Erik confessed. “If she’s safe, why are you here?”

Setting elbows on the metal tabletop, Damien leaned forward and pointed a finger at him. “You.”

Lowering his voice, he grimaced. “There’s nothing you can do for me. I just have to bide my time, keep my head down and hope I get a decent Legal Aid lawyer when I apply for parole.”

Shaking his head, Damien disagreed. “No. You deserve better. Will you agree to let me help you?”

“I don’t know you. You could be yanking my chain for all I know.”

“True, though I’m not. But, if you want to wait another six months, I’ll oblige.”

How could this old man help him get out of lockup? “What’s in it for you?”

With a chuckle, Damien sat back and laced his hands over his trim abdomen. “That’s the wrong question.”

Erik growled under his breath. He never was good at head games. “Fine. What’s in it for me?”

“That’s half the equation.”

He rolled his eyes and saw Magnus smile. “What’s in it for... Sarah?”

“There you go. There’s nothing in this for me or Magnus, or our mutual friend. But reuniting you and her?” He winked. “Priceless.”

“So, what? You’re all about,” he lowered his voice again, “family?”

“I’ve become sentimental in my old age, Erik. My own daughter has started calling me a big softie. Do I look soft to you?”

Quite the opposite, really. For a man of his vintage, he looked like he could take on half the fuckers in this joint. “No.”

“Good.” He leaned forward once again. “It might take a week or two for the legal eagles to do their thing. I just have one condition.”

And there it was.

The catch.

Was his agreement worth the price? There was only one way to find out. “Which is?”

“You come work for me.”

Erik sat back and laughed. The idea that a guy like Damien would need the help of a used car salesman seemed ludicrous and the longer he thought about it, the harder he laughed. Across the table, neither man joined in and the sincerity in their eyes put an end to the amusement.

“You’re serious.”

“I am.”

“You need me? A hack of a salesman who barely scraped through to keep his job?”

“I do.”

His mind went blank at the thought before it dawned on him that it didn’t matter who he was or what he’d done in a previous life. If he accepted this offer, Damien McCafferty would own him and that could mean anything.

There’s your price.

~

Jake tightened the last screw to secure the camera to the underside of the veranda roof, his fingers numb inside his gloves. His whole body ached as a polar blast threatened to freeze Wills Crossing solid. From his vantage point on the veranda, he watched the whiteout engulf everything. Wind howled through the trees, swaying the thick trunks in great, wide arcs. Snow pummeled the ground, angling in from the south and settling on the ground to swallow anything it touched. His car had almost disappeared entirely, while the big Ford Raptor beside it still somehow showed patches of blue paintwork.

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