The Bond (Unbroken Raine Falling 4)

“No one would ever think otherwise. Trust me.” Raine skewered Liam with another glance. “Anything else you want to tell me?”

“Nothing. Shouldn’t we focus on the problem, love? Someone else we should consider?”

Raine sighed. “No one in particular, but I think we’ve barely scratched the surface.”

The doctor stood and stretched. “She’s right. I’m sure there’s someone we’re just not thinking of.”

“I’ll scour the membership database while I’m at the club, see if anyone else pops out,” Raine said. “Maybe…I’ll come up with something. What about the security footage disappearing? Hammer fired the last tech, Bryan, for a reason…”

“Hitting on members.” Beck snorted.

Raine nodded. “Maybe he got mad and took the videos to blackmail Hammer?”

“Bryan has been gone a month,” Liam pointed out. “And he hasn’t sent Macen any demands. Besides, why would he have taken footage of you and me? Mum, you didn’t hear that.”

“Not a word. Just like I didn’t hear you this morning, either. Or last night.” She smiled faintly.

Raine turned four shades of red. Beck and Seth both howled with laughter.

“Your thief is still among you.” Bryn soothed Raine with a pat on the shoulder. “I can feel that. Proud of the deception, too. Be looking at the faces you least suspect.”

Raine couldn’t go through another round of conjecture just now. She didn’t want to look at any of her friends with suspicious eyes. Instead, she collected everyone’s empty plates and took them to the sink.

“Who has access to the security room?” Seth asked.

“The new tech, Lewis, is in there most.” Beck sat back in his chair. “He’s a snot-nosed nerd Hammer hired two weeks ago. Other than him, the DMs, including me and Pike. Dean. Donald. Hammer. Liam. Raine has a key. Am I missing anyone?”

No one with any reason to hurt Macen. “Sometimes the cleaning crew goes in there off-hours. We usually try to supervise them but…” Raine shrugged. “It doesn’t always work out.”

Liam shook his head. “So we have another bloody puzzle to solve.”

Raine put an arm around him. “We’ll do it. We have to.”

“I’ll help however I can.” River stood and smiled at Bryn. “Thank you, Mrs. O’Neill.” Then he turned and extended a hand to Liam. “Sorry if I’ve been a douche.”

They shook hands. “I’d have done everything I could to protect my sisters, too. And I’ve got six of them.”

“You poor bastard.” River smiled, then turned to Raine. “Call me if you need anything. I’ll do whatever I can to help you be happy.”

Monday, February 18

After spending the weekend climbing the walls in an isolated cell, Hammer was glad to be out of confinement. But having judge Arnold Ayers stare him down in a federal courtroom during his arraignment almost had Macen wishing he were still behind those bars. He sat beside Sterling, trying to keep a level head as his lawyer entered a plea of not guilty on his behalf, then waved off a formal reading of the indictment. Todd Wellington, the Assistant United States Attorney, strutted like a damn peacock, silently gloating, as if he had a million ways to malign Macen’s character. He gritted his teeth and resisted the urge to punch the asshole’s annoying face.

“Your Honor,” Wellington beseeched. “If you’ll look at the defendant’s extensive financial portfolio, you’ll see he has ample liquidity to flee the country. He’s a serious flight risk.”

“Duly noted, though it’s not a crime for anyone to be financially sound, Mr. Wellington.” Ayers raised his brows.

“Of course not, Your Honor. I’m simply stating that if the defendant is granted bail, he could easily charter a private jet and leave the country.”

“You’ve made your point.” Ayers nodded, an edge of annoyance in his tone. “Continue.”

“Thank you, Your Honor.” Wellington shot Hammer a victorious smirk. “Fleeing the jurisdiction of the court aside, we as civil servants, cannot in good conscience, allow a suspected pedophile to roam free. It’s our duty to protect innocent children.”

Hammer snarled at the AUSA before turning his silent rage on Wellington’s associates, seated on the opposite side of the room. The two ass-kissing minions in matching suits looked like bobbleheads, nodding at every derogatory remark.

Though his freedom was at stake, Macen found it hard as hell to focus on the proceedings. Behind him Raine and Liam sat, hands clasped. Beck, Seth, Bryn, and Duncan surrounded them.

If he were actually guilty—and single—it would be easy to leave the country and never come back. But could he really abandon Liam and Raine? He didn’t know. Asking them to upend their lives didn’t sound particularly fair, either. They’d be fugitives. If the law caught up to them, they’d all serve time in prison. Risking them and their child didn’t seem like an option.

As tempting as the fantasy might be at first glance, the reality…not so much.

Finally, Sterling stood and cleared his throat. “Your Honor, the AUSA’s claims are preposterous. My client poses no flight risk. Aside from being innocent of these ridiculous and unsubstantiated charges, Mr. Hammerman is an established business owner.”