They sound selfish—not that I’m going to tell him that because that would be rude. “I’m sorry that happened, but I’ll try to help you solve this the best I can. God knows I need the distraction.”
He studies me, his eyes intense. “You shouldn’t be goin’ back in there, Waverly. It’s dangerous.”
“Yeah,” I say softly. “Yeah, I know.”
“You don’t owe the fuckin’ club a thing.”
“No, I don’t, but I made them a promise, and I’m going to keep that promise because they need me to do that. Not only do they need me to do it, but the girls whose lives are being destroyed by Dax need me to do it.”
“There’s always a monster out there, Waverly. Can’t save them all.”
“No, but I can sure as hell try.”
He studies me and then exhales and murmurs, “You need to get some rest.”
He takes a few steps toward the door and I take one more look at the board. I zone in on a picture of his mother and only then do I realize something so incredibly obvious. She looks a lot like Briella. It’s in that moment that I understand something, something incredibly huge—Mykel thinks he’s in love with Briella because she reminds him of his mother.
Not in a twisted, weird kind of way.
He doesn’t love Briella in a sexual way. That much is clear.
He loves her in a compassionate way, in a way that makes his heart feel a little better.
It’s not twisted, but rather beautiful.
And it helps everything suddenly make a whole lot of sense.
I press a hand to my heart, and I know one thing is for sure . . . I’m going to help Mykel find his family, because he deserves that.
I STARE AT THE GROUP of bikers sitting around the table in the shed at the compound, and I know they’ve come up with something, something that’s going to end this once and for all. I’m not sure I feel good about it, but it has been a few days since I helped Dax and since then, he’s been calling me an insane amount. He’s losing it. His footing is getting shaky, and because of that, he’s in the perfect position to have something bring him down.
Something being this club.
Zariah is here, and has informed us that the police are now actively looking for Bennett, who was reported missing when he didn’t show up for a shift. That means this is going to blow up in a big way really, really soon.
I’m scared. I’m scared because my DNA is all over that crime scene, and while Zariah assures me she’ll keep me safe, there’s only so much she can do without risking her career also. She’s a cop, and she shouldn’t be working with the club, so if anyone finds out she is, she’s going to end up with no job. All because of me.
So, really, what can she do?
“We’ve discussed it,” Alarick says, standing in front of everyone, his jacket firmly on his shoulders, his presence powerful.
Beside him sits his father, King. I don’t know King very well, but I do know that he spent many years trying to undo what Dax has been creating all over the countryside. He’s been trying to get vengeance for his woman, Briella’s mom, who has now passed. He’s been trying to fix what has been broken, and in doing so, has nearly lost his life.
He’s dedicate a whole fucking lot to this.
“The plan is simple, but complicated in the same breath. We could just leave it to the cops, but we’d be riskin’ Zariah’s career, and we’re not willin’ to do that after she’s helped us so much. We need to make sure that neither Zariah, nor Waverly, will have any fallout from this. The problem with that is that Waverly’s DNA is all over Bennett’s body, so we have to get rid of it.”
I blink.
Say what?
Get rid of it.
What does he mean, get rid of it?
Before I can open my mouth, he goes on. “We’re skilled, so to speak, in removing people without a trace, and that’s exactly what we’re goin’ to do. If we don’t, there’s no way Waverly is goin’ to get away with it. Her DNA is everywhere. In the house is one thing, because she’s been in the house as part of the attempt to bring Dax down, but on the body is a whole different playing field.”
“How?” I ask, my voice a little squeaky. “How are you going to get on Dax’s property, dig up the body, and remove it without leaving a single trace of anything?”
“That’s where you’re going to come in,” Alarick tells me. “You’re going to figure out how to disable that security system. Know it’s a big fuckin’ ask, but if you can do that, and then distract Dax, we’ll be able to find our way onto the grounds and do what we have to do.”
I shake my head. “I don’t . . . even if I can do that, you’ll never find the body . . .”
“You’re goin’ to tell us where it is, and we’re goin’ to have to risk it.”
“So what happens if you do get it out, how are you going to leave no evidence? There’ll be a big goddamned hole in the ground with Bennett’s DNA all over it. The cops will see that and that’ll be the end of it.”
Alarick holds my eyes. “You gotta trust us, Waverly. We’ll clean it up so that nobody ever fuckin’ finds it.”
“Even if they do find it,” Zariah says, adding her two cents in, “without a body, they’ll simply not have anything to go on. They might get some DNA if they’re lucky, but if we’re careful about this, we’ll make sure that Dax looks guilty and if anyone can be taken down for it, it’ll be him.”
“I helped dig
