“Honesty isn’t always for the best,” Eric said calmly.
Drew growled in frustration, his head bobbing from side to side as he walked, like each side of the scales were tipping over every few seconds as his thoughts rattled around. “What’s fucking infuriating is that I know you’re right. The more men who know, the more chance we have of tipping Owen off that we know he’s not loyal to the patch.”
I knew they were both right. There was no way in hell that a lot of the men out there could hold themselves back when faced with the rat. Owen would walk in here like he always did, head high, looking down his nose at us all, and someone would snap. Probably me.
“Agreed.” I finally murmured, knowing there wasn’t much more I could do. “What about Helen? You think she knew?”
“Helen? Why would she know?” Drew asked, confusion creasing his brows.
I blinked and shifted. “If Jon Taylor had information on you and the club, my first thought is he heard it either from the rat himself, or someone the rat was working with. Eric said this was going on while you were still locked up, right?”
Eric glanced between the two of us, his body still as he assessed the situation and nodded. “Harry suspected eyes had been on the club for a long time.”
“It might be worth asking her if anything stood out. Helen may not know anything. I’m sure someone as corrupt and arrogant as Jon Taylor paraded people through that house without a consideration of what that would look like to his wife. I doubt he really cared what she thought, but if she can confirm this… if she can confirm who she saw…” I trailed off. “We’d know for certain. No more guessing. We’d have all the proof we needed for you two to take it to the table.”
“She has a point,” Eric muttered, surprising me with his agreement.
“Fine. We’ll go to her.” Drew continued to walk back and forth, eyes fixed on the carpet beneath his feet. “I need Sutton here,” he said suddenly. “I want him involved.”
“Sutton?” Eric asked with an edge of surprise, but that man was well rehearsed in keeping his face straight.
Looking up, Drew stopped in his tracks. “You said yourself—he’s clean. He’d lay down his life for me. If we’re going to out this fucker, I want Sutton involved. I want someone from the law on our side. He’s our man.” He shook his head, his mouth parting to speak. “I can’t believe these words fall out of my own goddamn mouth these days.”
I nodded my agreement with Drew. Sutton had proven himself lately, taking risks to make sure Drew, me, and all of the guys were safe from the Mayor and the ATF agents sniffing around. I figured it probably went much deeper than that, but I only had the knowledge I’d been given to go on.
“I can call him in if you need me to. Probably look less conspicuous coming from me. I’ll mention Sloane. Anyone monitoring him shouldn’t question that too deeply, and if they do, he’ll be here. Hopefully out of their reach enough to keep them in the dark.”
“Do it,” Drew said softly.
I pulled out my phone and dialed his number. Howard answered on the second ring and immediately said he’d be right here. From the moment I hung up to the second he walked through the office door, it had only taken twenty-five minutes. I hoped this meant his new shadow hadn’t given him any problems. Not one of us had been able to sit still while we’d waited, and I had a beer waiting for him by the time he strolled in.
“Sloane?” he asked with no preamble.
“... Is absolutely fine,” I said, handing Sutton the beer and moving to perch on the edge of the desk. “It was the fastest way to get you here.”
“Sutton,” Drew said, making Howard turn on his feet quickly. Everyone knew that tone coming from Drew was never a good thing. It set everyone on edge. “You might want to take a drink of that beer.”
“Oh, hell. What’s going on?” Sutton asked, his face falling.
“Better yet, you might want to sit down,” Eric added.
Sutton eyed each of us, before Drew carefully moved closer, resting his hand on Sutton’s shoulder.
“We need to talk to you about something, chief, but first, I need you to be able to assure me that whatever’s said in this room stays between the four of us.”
Sutton frowned, the question on his loyalty clearly irritating the hell out of him before he looked up at Drew. “I ain’t never talked about anybody’s crap to other people, Tucker, and I ain’t about to start now. What’s going on?”
Drew looked up at me, looking like he needed me again.
I started us off, explaining about Dallas and Clint’s family—all of which was new to Eric, too. Drew and Eric took over on everything that had happened between then and when Sutton arrived, while I watched the color slowly drain from the chief’s face.
By the time they were through, Drew was agitated again and pacing another rut into the floor, Eric looked as though he’d finally figured something out, and Sutton looked like someone had run over his puppy.
“Jesus Christ,” Sutton said, dropping onto the couch and draining half the beer in one mouthful. “What a fucking mess.”
That was an understatement.
“I’m taking Owen out, chief,” Drew said matter-of-factly.
Sutton dropped his face into the palm of his hand with a heavy slap. “The population of Babylon decreases with every new dawn that rises around here.”
Eric smirked, finding that amusing, while Drew remained stony-faced, his hands tucked into the depths of his jean pockets, his chin raised in defiance.
“We need your help.”
Howard spread his fingers and peeked through them, glancing at Drew with worry dripping from his every pore. “Do I get a choice?”
“Sure you do.” Drew rocked on the heels of his feet. “You can leave. You don’t have to be a part of this if you don’t want to be.”
“Why do I feel like there’s a but coming?”
It was Drew’s turn to smirk now, and standing side by side, it was clear to see just how alike he and his father really were. Their faces mirrored one another’s, their stances strong and assured in the midst of a raging battle going on all around them.
“Ah, come on, brother. You know you’re part of the pack now in some weird, twisted way. There’s no but. Just a little bit of judgment if you walk out that door without helping us get rid of our nasty vermin problem.”
Sutton turned to look at me, dropping his hand to his thigh.
I met his glance head on as he studied me, looking for some semblance of my being the rational one, but I knew the moment he saw I was on board. When he finally realized that this was my life, that this club was and would always be the choice I made from now, his shoulders fell in resignation. Maybe what he saw in me was a reflection of his own feelings, too.
These guys weren’t the bad guys. They never had been. He saw the evidence of that with every passing day, and he’d already known his answer the moment he’d walked through that door. The moment Drew saved his life in that warehouse.
I gave him a small nod, and he reciprocated, turning his glance back to Drew and Eric.
“I’m in,” he said firmly.
* * *
The din of chatter in the bar relaxed me. I’d spent hours with Drew, Eric, and Sutton talking about what we needed to do to move forward. We were forbidden from talking about the situation with anyone outside of the four of us. The truth was, I didn’t want to talk to anyone else about what we’d discovered, anyway. Though we were pretty damn sure, we still needed a full confirmation before we decided what to do about Owen completely. There was so much to think about that my head had begun to hurt, and I had a full headache by the time Drew and Eric left with Sutton.
I chose to go into the bar, where Deeks was giving Kenny a hard time about locking doors, and Tate and Rubin were talking smack to one another as they played pool. Moose was content behind the bar in his usual, quiet stoicism, just watching and laughing like the friendly giant he was. He slipped me a beer over the counter, and he winked
when he pulled his other hand away, revealing a pile of headache pills.
These men looked after me as much as I looked after them, and after a day of hell, I finally started to settle down again and feel happy surrounded by my unconventional family. Especially as Owen was nowhere to be seen.
Kenny finally got tired of Deeks’ constant ribbing and dropped into a stool next to mine, grabbing the beer that Moose slid over the surface to him.
“I’m never going to fucking live it down, am I?”
“Nope.” There was no point in sugar coating it. The guys still made the ‘V’ with their fingers and flicked their tongues in the gap when he entered a room, and I couldn’t see an end to that. At least not until someone did something more stupid.
“You can’t help me out?”
I swung my head in his direction and raised my eyebrows in question. “And why would I do that?”
“C’mon Ayda. If not for me, for Sloane.”
“Kenny, I don’t think you really get it. Every guy in here had his face buried between a woman’s legs at some point during the night. Believe me, I know because I’ve seen it. Your problem started because you boasted about being able to wait until she’s eighteen. Bragging on how you’re a gentleman.”
“We haven’t fucked,” he said, draining half his beer. “I’m still waiting.”
I shook my head. “That’s like saying women can’t get pregnant if you pull out.”
Kenny started to laugh. The look of guilt on his face telling me he’d used that line more than once in his lifetime. That didn’t surprise me in the slightest. He was a smooth talker when he wanted to be.
“You men,” I grumbled playfully. “Have you ever told a woman that being taken anally doesn’t mean she’s losing her virginity, too?”
“No, but thanks for the tip.” Kenny polished off his beer and made a three-point shot into the closest trashcan before holding up his hand to Moose, who quite happily obliged him. “Hey, Moose! You ever told a chick anal ain’t the same as losing her virginity?”
Before Moose could respond, a hand came from nowhere and slapped Kenny on the back of his head, forcing his body to rock forward.
“You’re in the company of a lady, you ignorant little dipshit.” Deeks huffed, pushing Kenny from his stool and parking his ass there. “What the hell is wrong with you?”
“I don’t see any ladies around here, Deeks. Just Ayda.” Kenny punched Deeks in the arm and danced out of reach before Deeks could smack him back. Not to be outdone, Deeks grabbed an empty soda can from the bar and flung it at Kenny as he retreated to the boys over at the pool table.
“I’ll smack him around later,” Deeks said with a chuckle, taking the beer meant for Kenny and handing it to me. He swiped the warm one from my hand and trashed it. “When you gonna give the boy his bike back?”
“No beating around the bush then?” I snorted.
“It’s been days.”
“I told him two weeks. I can move it if—”
“Don’t get your feelings hurt, sweetheart. I just hate seeing that kid mope. Since… well, he’s had a hard time of it. We all have.”
“And he’s gotten away with it for too long. Did he tell you why I confiscated his bike?”
Deeks looked at me, his ruddy cheeks pinking. Yeah, Tate had told him.
“Did he tell you he’s been suspended for a few games, which will be reinstated at the beginning of next season? That he’s on academic probation?”
“Point made.”
I smiled. “Just trying to imply some consequences.”
“Rightly so.” Deeks looked across to where Rubin, Tate, and Kenny were locked in conversation before he yelled out to them. “Tater Tot, you failed to mention the game suspensions, kid. I got money on that homecoming game.”
The song on the jukebox was suddenly the only sound in the place. Tate looked around and met my eyes. Apparently, Deeks wasn’t the only one with a bet on the Bulldog’s games.
I started to laugh. I couldn’t help myself. Tate had fucked himself over in a way I could never have.
“You know what, Deeks? I may give him his bike back after all.”
“Why’d you go an’ do that?”
“He’s going to have to get away from y’all’s grumbling somehow.”
“He can wash my bike for a month.”
“With a toothbrush,” Moose added.
I started laughing again.
These were the times I loved most being in The Hut; when the guys I’d come to love surrounded me. These guys were a large part of my world. They were my family, and they were being threatened by one of their own. I couldn’t allow that on my watch. This was my life now, and I would do anything to protect it and the people in it. Even from one of their own.
Chapter Thirty-Two
DREW
Sunday was turning into the longest day of my sorry fucking life. I had a headache on top of my headache, and I knew that would only go away the moment I took Owen’s last breath from his slimy little body. Pete was dead. Harry, too. Clint, a man I’d not known but was mourning anyway, had lost his life because of the club—because of Owen.
Who next? Me? Sutton?
“Ayda,” the word fell from my lips in a breath as we walked up the steps of the porch to the safe house. I hadn’t realized I’d said it aloud until I felt her pause on the steps, her eyes meeting mine with a look of concern that I brushed off with a shake of the head.
“You guys ready?” I asked Eric, Ayda, and Sutton. The only one to respond was Sutton, and he didn’t seem all that thrilled about having to be here with us or the fact that he was now on the wrong side of the law again.
“Lord help me in my next life,” he muttered.
“You’ll need his help in this life now,” Eric said smugly.
I pushed the door open and led them inside. Helen was sitting upright on her bed, her face passive and unconcerned as she watched me walk in, followed by Ayda, Eric, and lastly, the chief.
She was about to look back down into her lap when she did a double take at Sutton, her eyes widening and her mouth falling open.
“Howard?” she breathed.
I turned to look at Sutton, who was mirroring her surprise. “Helen?” he croaked, glancing at us with confusion all over his face as he stepped forward. “Helen Baker?”
I frowned hard. “This is Helen Taylor. Jon Taylor’s wife.”
Howard glanced back at Helen before he began to walk towards her, his movements steady and slow.
“You’re with them?” Helen asked the chief, her eyes frantically searching his face. “You?”
Taking a look at Eric and Ayda, I saw they were just as confused with this whole exchange as I was. I rolled my eyes, seeing another impending kink in the plan before I held up my hand and looked back at Sutton and Helen. “You two know each other?”
“Untie her right now,” Sutton demanded roughly.
“Chief…”
“I said now, Tucker!” he yelled, his tone full of authority as he spun around and glared at me like I was no longer a friend.
“Not until you tell me what the fuck is going on.”
“I swear to God, Drew, if you don’t untie her from this bed and set her free, I’ll…” Howard reached for the gun in his holster, the heel of his palm resting there as he stared straight at me with nothing but a promise of death if I didn’t comply.
Raising both hands in the air in surrender, I took a step closer. “We’re here to release her anyway. You know that. It’s what we discussed, right?”
Sutton stared at me, unblinking as he waited for me to go on.
Helen sighed, her free hand rising to rest carefully on Sutton’s forearm. He flinched and looked down at her, the two of them staring into each other’s eyes with nothing but familiarity. Whatever the hell was going on, I wasn’t privy to it, which really pissed me off.
“We went to high school together,” Helen told us all, her eyes fixed on Sutton as she spoke. “We haven’t se
en each other in… years.”
“What the hell have you got yourself tangled up in, Helen?” Sutton asked softly.
“I could ask you the same thing.”
“You don’t want to know what mistakes I’ve made since I last saw you.”
I glanced back at Ayda, my eyes wide with what the fuck? If I was picking up the right vibes, and admittedly, I was shit at that, Helen and Sutton weren’t just familiar with one another—they’d been fond of each other at one point, too.
Ayda made a shrugging motion, her face holding as much surprise as my own. She nodded toward Helen’s bound hand and took a slow step forward, trying not to startle anyone.
“Helen?” she said quietly, pulling the woman’s attention from Sutton. “Like Drew said, we’re letting you go, but we have some new information and a couple of questions for you first, is that okay?”
“What questions? I’ve told you everything I suspected.”
“Did Jon ever…” she trailed off, unsure how to ask it delicately. “I assume Jon met people at your home while you were there?”
Helen looked between all of us, the panic growing in her eyes. “What’s this about?” she asked quietly.
I was done with fucking games. Stepping forward, ignoring the way Sutton tensed, I stood close enough and looked down on her. “It’s about the rat in my club that I think you know about. The one I think your husband Jon was cozying up to while I was serving time inside, trying to protect my club and that rat’s ass.”
Helen blinked slowly, staring right at me. “You know about Owen,” she whispered.
“Sounds like you do, too,” I ground out through gritted teeth, folding my arms over my chest. “Which would have been real fucking good to hear about when you gave us all that other information just the other day.”
I was pissed, and she knew it. Everyone in this safe house knew it. If Sutton hadn’t been glaring at me like he was ready to put a bullet in my leg, I was pretty certain I’d have been reaching out to Helen and shaking some fucking sense into her.
WITHOUT SHAME: Babylon MC Book 4 Page 26