“I don’t know what to do, Mum. I can’t fight the law.”
“Think on it, as I know you will. You’ll see the way. Be Raine’s rock—and Macen’s, too. Together, you can find what others only dream of.”
He stared into his teacup. “I don’t have a choice. As soon as I met Hammer, I knew he was the brother I never had. And Raine…the first time I kissed her, it was so powerful, Mum. Looking back, I see my gut was telling me she was meant to be mine. Funny, that.”
Bryn smiled. “I was like that with your father. The moment his lips touched mine, I found myself thinking, ‘Oh, there you are. I’ve been waiting for you.’ You ken?”
“I do. Even when I thought I should walk away from them both, I couldn’t. Since Hammer and I put Raine between us, I’ve been happier than ever. What we share now is…beyond. I’d do it all again in a heartbeat.”
A smile played at her lips. “I did tell you before you left New York for your ‘vacation’ that you’d be starting a whole new adventure.”
She had. And despite being vague at times, his mum always ended up being right.
The following morning, Hammer lifted his heavy lids to find his face buried in Raine’s neck and his hand wrapped around her hip. Grudgingly, he eased away from her, then stood and stared while she and Liam clung together in a cocoon of love. At least Hammer knew that if he couldn’t disprove River’s accusations, they would survive without him.
In fact, he’d already devised a plan to ensure that.
While showering and shaving, he steeled himself for the dark day ahead. Hammer trusted Sterling Barnes, but he wasn’t a fool. He intended to follow Dean Gorman’s advice and clean house. Well, clean the dungeon. Nothing at home could incriminate him, but scrubbing Shadows squeaky could mean the difference between prison and freedom.
After donning his suit and tie, Hammer forced himself to leave the bedroom and padded downstairs. Bryn was waiting for him, coffee cup in hand, by the doorway near the kitchen.
“Thank you for knowing I needed this.” He forced a chuckle.
“’Tisn’t all you need, to be sure. I know you think you’ll better serve the ones you love by stepping back. But it’s not true, Macen. Fight for your family and find your path.”
Hammer gulped his liquid caffeine. “I just hope my path doesn’t lead to a jail cell.”
“Nothing is set in stone, but I suggest you watch your back.” She patted his cheek.
Hammer had already figured out someone had a knife poised between his shoulder blades. He had to fucking deduce who held the hilt.
“I gathered. Thanks for everything.” He held up his mug before he chugged the rest. “I need to go.”
Hammer pressed his lips to Bryn’s temple, then handed the mug back to her, palmed his keys, and left.
On the way to Shadows, he rang Beck, who answered on the first ring. “Everything okay?”
“At the moment. Can you meet me at Shadows in an hour?”
“Yeah. I had a full day scheduled but it’s looking like my surgery might be delayed.”
“I’ll only need ten minutes. Can you bring an empty toy bag when you come?”
“If you’re cleaning out your stash and want to pass on used equipment, no thanks.”
“I won’t give you anything that needs to be sterilized, I promise.”
“You can trust me, Macen.” Gravity filled Beck’s tone. He understood.
“I know. Thanks.”
After the call, Hammer arrived at the club and arranged a meeting with Sterling in two hours. Then he combed through his devices, saving documents and photos onto a thumb drive. Wiping away all traces of Raine from his computer lodged a hollow void in his chest, but he refused to share their private moments with anyone. Thankfully he’d never have to erase her from his heart and soul.
After doing the same to his phone, he reset the memory on all his devices and restored them to their factory settings. Hopefully, nothing could be retrieved or recreated by any law enforcement tech.
Then he dove into his physical files, extracting any paper pertaining to Raine prior to her eighteenth birthday that might seem incriminating—receipts, medical records, the agreement he’d drawn up and forced Bill Kendall to sign once Raine had come to live at Shadows. From his safe, he extracted the receipts for the money orders he’d bribed her father with, in addition to the original photos of her beating at the shitstain’s hands.
After storing it all in a box, Hammer strode down the hall and stepped into Raine’s former room. Her spirit still lingered. If he closed his eyes, he could almost feel the girl she’d been before maturity and sex and the love they shared with Liam had changed her.
The scattered pictures still lay strewn across her dresser where River had left them. Furiously, Hammer gathered them up, pausing to stare at an image of Raine in the kitchen, making him her famous apple spice muffins for the first time. When he’d taken a bite, he’d teased her by gagging and grimacing as if she’d fed him poison. When horror filled her face, he’d choked with laughter. She’d stuck her tongue out at him, and he’d snapped a picture on his cell phone, capturing the moment.