Go Full Circle (A Go Novel Book 5)

by Scarlett Finn

Killing her brother, involving herself in the illegal Pothos operation, everything Ophelia had done was intended to win Ryske’s favor. She’d had her own best friend beaten, only to bury her resentment of the woman believing it would gain her points with the object of her affection.

  Ophelia had demanded Harlow work for her as a way to separate Ryske from her. Although it had worked, Ophelia still had to look at the face of a woman who’d had Ryske’s love. That couldn’t be an easy pill to swallow.

  Harlow missed Ryske. Lying on her bed on Tuesday, she gave herself a break from thinking about SweSec and Jarvis Hagan to let thoughts of the man she loved seep in. Their relationship hadn’t been smooth sailing. They were both volatile. There was always a chance of them pushing each other’s buttons. But she’d do anything for him. Anything in the world.

  Did that make her much different from Ophelia or Anwen? Harlow was the lucky one, she had Ryske’s love. But if he hadn’t fallen for her, would she too be concocting strategies to win him and coming up with ruses that would force them to spend time together?

  She was still thinking about him when her bedroom door opened and Brash came in. Sitting up, Harlow was quick to leap off the bed when she realized who’d intruded. She wasn’t going to give him any opportunity to take advantage of the moment.

  “Ophelia wants you upstairs,” he said, without venturing further into the room. “Me and the guys are going out, so move.”

  Good, if he was going out, she didn’t have to worry about his mood. Though, it did mean being stuck with Ophelia. Brash stormed out of the bedroom and she grabbed her shoes before running out after him.

  Given it was late on a Tuesday afternoon, Harlow expected she’d have to get Ophelia ready for a dinner date or something. After not seeing the woman for almost two days, she was sorry to have to deal with her again.

  On the elevator ride up, Harlow wondered if she should’ve grabbed the other pack of sedatives Bale had given her. Brash was going out, so she could use them on Ophelia again. Except he’d warned her about the different dosages. The last thing she wanted to do was kill Ophelia and make Bale an accessory to the crime.

  At the beginning of her relationship with the doctor, Harlow had promised to keep his association with Ryske’s crew a secret. At the time, she hadn’t known the truth of that association—that the two men were brothers. Now that she did know the truth, it only heightened her need to protect him and all of the men on her crew.

  Taking a breath as she departed the elevator, Harlow told herself to keep her cool no matter what Ophelia said. Even if she was mean or rude, Harlow wasn’t going to rise to the bait.

  The living room was empty when Harlow went inside. She took her time about going through the apartment, delaying the moment she’d have to deal with Ophelia again. It came when she opened the bedroom door and found Ophelia seated on the edge of her bed, bent over, buckling a sandal.

  “Oh, good, you’re here,” Ophelia said, more jovial than she’d been since before Friday night. “And you’re dressed.”

  Harlow didn’t make a habit of wandering around naked. Given that her nighttime attire consisted of Ryske’s underwear, and nothing else, she didn’t tend to walk around in pajamas either.

  “I am dressed,” Harlow said. “Are we going somewhere?”

  An excursion could work out for her. If Ophelia wanted to go somewhere in the city, Harlow could find an excuse to slip off, or even a moment when Ophelia was distracted. She could go to SweSec and work fast. If Ophelia noticed her missing, Harlow could make some excuse about being separated and meeting back at the apartment. All she’d have to do was ensure to be back in the building before Ophelia returned.

  “Yes,” Ophelia said, bouncing up off the bed. “You’re going to take me to him.”

  That statement stalled Harlow’s optimistic planning. “I’m going to take you to… who?”

  Widening her smile, Ophelia came over to lay her hands on Harlow’s shoulders. “You’re going to take me to Ryske.”

  Standing in front of Ophelia, absorbing her mistress’s glee and anticipation, Harlow waited for the punchline.

  When Ophelia didn’t come up with one, Harlow smiled and laughed. “I’m sorry, I thought that was a joke. Obviously, I misunderstood what you said. Say it again, explain it to me.”

  The tension in Ophelia’s jaw betrayed her true feelings. She masked her anger by widening her smile. She was asking for something after all; she wasn’t going to hurt the person she needed help from.

  “You know where he lives.”

  “So do you,” Harlow said.

  It didn’t matter that it hadn’t been acknowledged. By now, Harlow had no doubt that Ophelia knew about Floyd’s. If Animal hadn’t told her, Anwen would have. It would’ve earned beaucoup brownie points and cemented her attempts to reconcile the friendship.

  “That may be, or not,” Ophelia said. Playing coy might work for her with others, but Harlow wasn’t buying it. “You know the way in.”

  “Oh, you want the entrance to the bat cave,” Harlow said, folding her arms. “I think I’ve forgotten the secret code… Yeah, it’s definitely slipped my mind.”

  Breathing out, Ophelia seemed more confident than she should. “We both know you have no choice. You might as well just do it. Ryske is out there somewhere; he may be hurt or need help. He hasn’t returned any of my messages. I just don’t believe he’d do that to me without good reason.”

  “Maybe the good reason is he’s not interested.”

  “Or maybe he’s in trouble. Maybe Anwen is hurting him… I know that you are probably devastated about losing your relationship with him.” Cupping Harlow’s face with a condescending hand, Ophelia pushed out her lower lip, pouting in apparent sympathy. “But you did care for him once, didn’t you? You can’t be happy to know that she’s manipulating him.”

  “How is her manipulating him any different from you doing it?” Harlow asked, forgetting what she’d thought outside about keeping her cool.

  Ophelia actually had the audacity to appear taken aback. “I… I don’t manipulate him.”

  “He doesn’t love you,” Harlow said. “Shit, Ophelia, if you had the first clue what he’s like when he’s in love, you would know that what he is with you isn’t it. I’m sorry. I am. I know you really want him to feel for you, but he doesn’t.” Pushing Ophelia’s hands away, she stepped back and clasped her own hands to her chest. “You are a tenacious woman, I will give you that. But you cannot make him fall in love with you.”

  Offense began to crackle around Ophelia whose expression tightened. “You don’t know. You don’t have any idea what we are. You don’t know what he says to me in private. You don’t know how he touches me.”

  Raising her brows and her hands, Harlow took one step back. “And I don’t want to. But I do know that if he loved you, he would’ve returned your messages. If he wanted to be with you, or he cared about you, he would never leave you hanging.”

  Though, she had to admit, she was sort of swinging in the wind at the moment, which contradicted that statement. Still, if Harlow got in touch with Ryske’s messaging service, or called the cell number that only she had, he’d pick up. Even in a scenario where he didn’t have the phone, he’d find a way to get in touch with her if she reached out.

  Ophelia had been calling since Friday night and it was now Tuesday. In that time, Ryske hadn’t offered her a crumb of reassurance.

  Blinking and maybe a little stunned, Ophelia didn’t react for a score of seconds. Eventually, she smiled. “I understand… You’re jealous.”

  “Oh God,” Harlow said, driving her fingers through her hair and giving in by throwing up her arms. “Okay, yes, Ophelia, I’m jealous. I’m crazy out of my mind jealous… Do you think that will make me more or less likely to bring the two of you together?”

  “Like I said, you don’t have a choice. You will take me to his home.”

  Ophelia began to cross the bedroom, but Harlow didn’t move. “No, I won’t.”
Ophelia stopped. “If you want to go there, you can. You can show up. You won’t get in.” Because the building would be locked. “You can go and make a fool of yourself, screaming at the windows. I wouldn’t recommend it, but I can’t stop you… Though, I can tell you that Ryske won’t take kindly to anyone invading him like that.”

  “I’m a concerned friend. It’s not an invasion.”

  “Says you,” Harlow said. “Did he give you his address himself? Did he invite you over? If the answer to either of those is no, I’d say it’s a mistake to interrupt his life.”

  Ophelia whirled around to stalk over, her amiable façade disintegrating. “Did he invite you into his home? Did he give you his address? No! You injected yourself into his life!”

  Seeing the woman frayed had a calming effect on Harlow. “Ryske did take me to his home. He invited me into his life. From that moment, he’s refused to let me out of it.”

  Ophelia took a chance to sneer. “Until I put a stop to that.”

  “Did you, Ophe?” she asked and leaned in closer when she whispered. “How sure are you about that?”

  Letting out a long growl, Ophelia snapped and brought her hand around to slap Harlow’s cheek. The stinging pain made her eye water, but the hit was the wake-up call Harlow needed.

  Like she’d been wrenched out of a haze, Harlow stepped back and made her own move. Instead of a slap, she threw a punch, just like Costello had taught her. One that sent Ophelia flying to the floor.

  The sprawled woman didn’t move. After panting through her surprise, Harlow went to check for a pulse. Ophelia was alive but unconscious.

  Harlow only had a second to make her decision. Stay or leave. She needed to get to SweSec. Passing up this opportunity would be insane. And that was her decision made.

  Running through to the kitchen, she grabbed the key for the office and seized both Ophelia’s journal and the SweSec receipt from the secret box. She also grabbed the money that she’d discovered, just for incidentals.

  By the time she locked the office, there was groaning coming from the bedroom. Time was running short. Putting the key back, she left Ophelia’s apartment and ran down the stairs, thankful that Brash and the others were out. Even if Ophelia regained her wits, she’d have no one to call for help. No one who could prevent Harlow from leaving.

  Grabbing an empty sports bag from Brash’s closet, Harlow went to her bedroom and stuffed all of her things into it, leaving nothing behind. Depending on what happened at SweSec, she might have to come back, but there was an equal chance that she wouldn’t.

  Her evidence, her drugs, the clothes she’d acquired or been gifted, they could all be important. She wouldn’t take the chance of forgetting anything.

  25

  Harlow’s mind raced with the fear of being intercepted by Ophelia. Fueled by potent adrenaline, her heart hammered faster than it needed to as she departed the apartment building. Facing the woman one on one wasn’t a problem, as she’d already proved. But Harlow didn’t know if the doormen were in her mistress’s pocket or if there were other security men nearby. A gang wouldn’t be so easy to take on by herself.

  Ophelia wouldn’t care what lengths her men had to go to. If Harlow had to be dragged back kicking and screaming, bruised and bloody, Ophelia wouldn’t hesitate to issue those orders.

  Relief came when the fresh air and daylight flooded her. Even though she’d made it out, Harlow kept her head down and walked fast, aware that she could still be spotted. If any of Ophelia’s people saw her, they would know that she wasn’t supposed to be alone and might try to subdue her for brownie points.

  With every step she took, she relaxed a little more. By the time she got to SweSec, she was almost giddy. Freedom had never felt so good. Never. Not even after jail. It was important to hold onto the truth that she may not be completely home free yet. If it came to it, Harlow would return to Ophelia’s, though she was hopeful that wouldn’t happen.

  Only the need of her crew, or disrupting Ryske’s claim to the club, would take her back. Ryske’s claim should be legal some time that week, so she couldn’t see how it could be stopped or reversed just because Ophelia had a hissy fit.

  Going back wasn’t a tempting prospect. When being there had a purpose, she could suck it up. But she’d searched every place Ophelia could be stashing anything. Windsor’s was almost Ryske’s. There was no point to Harlow being at Ophelia’s any more.

  The SweSec receipt was her last hope. Finding a link to her family in a box of Hagan’s possessions was significant. Jarvis Hagan had been at a SweSec function, so she knew that he was aware of the company. But Harlow was ignorant to any business dealings between her father and Hagan.

  SweSec was a sanctuary. Harlow had never been so pleased to see the place. The sight of bustling people in this familiar space warmed her. Life had gone on, as it always did, and there was comfort in that.

  Harlow knew SweSec like the back of her hand and didn’t hesitate to head straight for Rupert’s office. His door was open. She tapped a knuckle on it, drawing his attention up from his work.

  “Harlow!” he said after he identified her.

  She didn’t blame him for taking a second to recognize her, it had been a while. “Hi,” she said, moving into the office. “I hope this isn’t a bad time.”

  “No,” Rupert said, leaping up from the desk to rush over and greet her, giving her a hug and a kiss. “No, of course not. Wow, it’s amazing to see you.” With an arm around her, he guided her over to the chair at his desk and sat her down. “Ryske said you were sick… How are you feeling?”

  “Oh, I’m over it now,” she said, sitting down and holding her bag on her lap while he went around to his side of the desk to seat himself.

  Rupert glanced at the door again. “Is he with you?”

  “Ryske? No,” she said and shook her head. “He’s… elsewhere today.” Doing what, she had no idea, but he was definitely elsewhere. “How are things? How’s Lena?”

  “Good,” he said, linking his fingers and bobbing his head. “She’s really good. Up to her eyeballs in wedding stuff. It’s a lot… I thought it was a lot when we did it, but… wow… Things are moving fast.”

  It wasn’t a lot when they did it because her heart hadn’t been in it. Harlow had been eager to slow things down as much as possible. Lena was pregnant and no doubt eager to get the wedding planned. With both mother and mother-in-law helping her out, she was probably like a runaway train.

  “At least you have plenty of help,” Harlow said. “I’m sorry I haven’t been around.”

  He blew out a dismissive breath. “Oh, don’t worry. You have been ill; you can’t help that.” That wasn’t exactly true. She didn’t like being dishonest, but the truth would be near impossible to explain. Rupert didn’t need that burden on his shoulders, not with everything else he had going on. “I did think that maybe Ryske was misleading us… It’s not like you to be out of contact for so long.”

  Misleading them like she’d run off with another man or that he’d slaughtered her and buried her body? Rupert and Ryske weren’t the best of friends, so his suspicion was almost expected. She could be offended and demand an apology, but she was about to ask a favor. Ophelia’s tack of being amiable seemed the smarter choice.

  “I know, I’m sorry. It was awful. Ryske looked after me though, and he can always speak for me on family things. He kept me in the loop.”

  His smile thinned, but at least it stayed. That was a sign of progress. Rupert was biting his tongue; an improvement over him leaping on the defensive or telling her what to do. Maybe fatherhood, even on its approach, was having a calming effect on him.

  “He does seem to be making an effort with the family.”

  “He is,” she said. “It means a lot to me that you all make the effort to include him too.” Discussions of her current relationship weren’t what brought her to SweSec, but she had to ease in. “And how is my little niece or nephew?”

  His smile grew and he leaned back
to open a drawer. “Lena knows the gender, but she won’t tell anyone. She says she wants it to be a surprise.”

  Retrieving a small rectangle, he passed it over the desk. Harlow gasped when she saw a more recent scan picture.

  “Oh my God,” she said, tears springing to her eyes. “Oh, look how big he’s gotten… or she.”

  “Mother and baby are both healthy,” he said.

  Touching her chest, she smiled at him and examined the picture some more. “Rupe, I am happy for you… This is what you wanted.”

  Though she didn’t really want to, Harlow returned the picture. He slipped it back into his drawer. “It is… I’m lucky.”

  His tone made it obvious that the situation wasn’t quite what he wanted it to be. That probably had more to do with the way it happened. Harlow didn’t want to dwell on either or to guilt him about it.

  “Are you happy, Rupert?” she asked, looking into him. “Seriously, I want to know. Are you happy?”

  He thought for a second and then flattened his hands on the desk. “I think so… It’s a lot right now,” he said. She nodded in understanding. “With the wedding… Oh, and we sold the apartment, so we’re staying with your parents at the moment… It’s just… constant. There isn’t much time to breathe. But… I’m not unhappy and…” His gaze drifted toward the drawer. “There is going to be a prize at the end of the trial.”

  It made her happy to see him happy. She could understand that it was stressful. Getting married, moving, and having a baby, were stressful things to deal with at the best of times. Rupert was handling all three at once.

  Their mothers could be intense, and with Lena in the mix, the poor guy probably wasn’t getting a break.

  “I know you’re going to do great. I know it… I can’t wait to meet your little one.”

  He seemed to appreciate her support. After a moment of eye contact, he leaned back and straightened up. “Maybe you and Ryske will be next?”

  “For which? Marriage, moving, or babies?” she asked. “It’s unlikely to be any of the three any time soon. But you never know, I keep him on his toes.”