“Did you see the news?” She pulled back, looking at me with horror in her eyes as she shrieked, “He was murdered!”
“Murdered?” I’d watched the news. At no point had anyone mentioned any sort of foul play. They certainly hadn’t said anything about the suspicion of murder. “Who do you think murdered him?”
“Those people who sold him that stupid bar! There was a gas leak, and they didn’t even have the decency to tell him about it!” She stormed past me and into the kitchen as she wailed, “Oh God, Marlie! I don’t know what I’m going to do!”
“You’ll be okay. You’ll get through this,” I replied sounding less than enthused. She dropped her head into her hands and started sobbing once again. A part of me wanted to tell her what a creep Eric was, how he’d threatened her life, but she wouldn’t have believed me. She had it in her head he was some wonderful guy who was going to love her until the end of time, and who was I to tell her she was wrong. It wasn’t like she would listen anyway. Eager to get her gone, I asked, “Have you talked to Mom and Dad?”
“Yes. I called them on my way over here.” She went to lay down on the sofa, curling into one of my pillows as she muttered, “They’re picking me up here tomorrow morning.”
“Here?”
“Um-hmm.” She looked over at me with her best pouting face as she said, “I couldn’t bear the thought of being alone, so I told them I’d be staying here tonight.”
Well, damn. After the way she’d treated me over the years, I was tempted to give her the boot, but as I looked at her balled up on my sofa, I couldn’t help but feel a little sorry for her and didn’t have it in me to force her to leave. I walked over and grabbed the blanket off the back of the chair. After I covered her up, I went to the kitchen and fixed us both a cup of coffee. By the time I made it back into the living room, Kate had cried herself to sleep. Relieved by the momentary silence, I placed her cup of coffee on the table closest to her, then went to my room and lay across the bed. As I stared up at the ceiling, I thought about everything that had transpired over the past twenty-four hours, and the more I thought it about it all, I found it less and less of a coincidence that a gas leak caused the explosion that killed Eric.
While I had no idea how, I felt certain Rafe and his brothers were somehow involved. It was a realization that should’ve bothered me, at least a little, but it didn’t. They’d done what needed to be done to protect not only me but the brothers. A smile crossed my face as I remembered how Country had referred to the brothers as a pack of wolves. He’d been very matter of fact when he said, “There’s a reason why wolves are at the top of the food chain. Live together, hunt together, and protect their own—to the fucking death.” Turned out, he was right. The Ruthless Sinners were on the top of the food chain, and I had a feeling they would remain there for years to come.
The more I lay there thinking about Rafe and his brothers, the more I found myself missing him. As much as I hated to bother him, I needed to know if he was okay, so I took out my phone and sent him a message.
Me:
Hey. Are you okay?
I waited several minutes, and when I didn’t hear back from him, I started to worry. As much as I hated to pester him, I sent him another message.
Me:
Hello? Is everything okay? I haven’t heard from you, and I’m starting to worry.
Rafe:
Sorry, babe. Tied up at the moment.
Me:
Tied up as in need of rescue or tied up as in busy?
Rafe:
Busy. I’ll be over to your place as soon as I can.
Me:
Okay, but be forewarned. Kate is here.
Rafe:
I take it she heard the news about Eric?
Me:
That she did. She’s planning to stay here tonight, and my folks are picking her up in the morning.
Rafe:
You okay with that?
Me:
Don’t really have a choice in the matter. And I thought you were busy?
Rafe:
I am, but this chick keeps messaging me. So ...
Me:
So, get back to it, and I’ll see you later.
He didn’t respond, but I didn’t expect him to. I knew how he and his brothers felt about the club coming first. It was one of the things Country tried explaining to Gladys a million times, but she never really understood. She never understood the secrets either. We all knew there were things going on at the clubhouse that no one spoke of, and it always got under her skin when she thought Country was keeping secrets from her. It was times like these that made me understand her frustration, but I trusted Rafe. I trusted Country too. For that matter, I couldn’t think of one of the brothers I wouldn’t consider to be a good man, so I’d give Rafe and Country their secrets. At the end of the day, none of it mattered as long as they were happy and safe.