I gave her my best impression of one of Drew’s smirks. “How did I know that was coming?”
“I already told you, honey. You’re a smart girl.”
I’d left the safe house the moment I’d chained Helen to the bed again, although she was clean and in new clothes, resting on fresh sheets. She looked much happier and satisfied, and she even seemed to enjoy the salad I’d brought for her. I hadn’t made her any promises about what would happen, but I had offered to put the plan in front of Drew and let him make the call. We’d spoken for a while longer, both of us layingdown the ideas and conclusions we’d come to. At the end of it all, we found that our thoughts weren’t too dissimilar. She’d attributed that to being around hardened men, and though I disagreed with her, I didn’t dispel her of the notion. She saw this as a connection between the two of us, a link of some kind, and I wanted to let her keep thinking that until I heard Drew’s thoughts on the matter.
I went over everything I’d discovered on the drive back to The Hut, words spilling over themselves in my head as I tried to get my thoughts in order enough to put into sentences. Helen was more than happy to talk to me, and she wanted to hurt Jon as much as Drew did. She was an anomaly that seemed willing to work with us on this, and after her story, I could see why. Jon Taylor was a goddamn monster, and that ran deeper than even Drew could have possibly known.
I pulled up outside of The Hut and slid into my normal space, ignoring the surprised looks on some of the faces on the porch when I hopped out and pushed the door closed with too much force. I spotted Eric’s confident lurch, stepping outside with a beer in his hand and his usual smirk fixed in place. I hopped up the porch steps and ignored the tip of both his beer and his head in greeting. I didn’t hate him quite so much after our confrontation, but I still didn’t like or trust him. He hid too much. Hisunavailableanswers bothered me.
I blinked the moment the darkness swallowed me when I stepped inside The Hut. The darkened contrast to the bright sunshine outside was startling. I heard the usual grumblings from the whores lounging around waiting for something to do, and I waved at the greetings that came from the bar as my eyes finally adapted. I managed to make it through the open floor plan, only to come to a dead stop when I saw Libby rushingfrom the room she shared with Tate, her face scrunched tight and tears in her eyes.
“Lib?”
She only stopped long enough for her steps to falter and trip her momentarily. With wide, wet eyes she took me in and gazed back at the room Tate was in.
“I just need some time,” she said, moving from a walk to a run as she blew by me. As much as I wanted to follow her, to make sure she was okay, I now had to make the club a priority more than I ever had before. So I let her go, and with a quick glance at her retreating back, I made my way to Drew’s office.
The door was standing open when I approached and leaned inside. Drew was sitting behind his desk looking lost in thought, his handsome face smooth of the worried lines I’d acquainted myself with over the past couple of months.
“You busy?” I asked, slapping my palm against the doorframe to announce myself.
He looked up quickly, his smile slow and inviting.
“Yeah,” he answered smoothly. “Way too busy for you.” He grinned.
I made a face and stepped inside, pausing for only a second as I considered closing the door behind me. I left it open, figuring there was nothing to hide right now, and I crossed the room, slipping into Drew’s lap unapologetically.
“I think I may have something of interest for you,” I said. “I’ve just come back from the safe house.”
He wrapped his arms around my waist, leaned back in his chair comfortably, and looked up at me with a raised brow. “Did you take anyone with you?” I could see the subtle flash of panic in his eyes, even though he tried to fake it with a nonchalant approach. “Were you safe? Not followed?”
Running my thumb over his bottom lip, I smiled down at him. “I followed your protocol to the letter. No one followed me. I made three wrong turns before I made the one to the safe house, and there were no cars close to me at any time. I was also very safe, and I had my gun with me. I listen to you.”
“Get naked right now.”
I moved my hands to the button of my pants and popped it open with no hesitance. “Do you want to know what I found out now, or after you’ve fucked me on your desk, oh mighty, powerful fiancé?”
Pressing a hand over mine, he stopped me in my tracks, his eyes soft but somehow commanding. “As much as I’d love to bend you over and hurt you in ways that would make you beg for more, I know how this goes. We screw, we lose track, we forget why you came in here, and then we happen to be one step closer to that football team I’m wanting. So, for the sake of all our brothers… tell me what you know.”
He was right about the distraction, I was already allowing my head to take me down the path he’d just opened up, and I wasn’t really sure this was something that could wait. Helen had given me some food for thought, but I was also pretty sure she was holding shit back until she had the deal she wanted. Time was important.
“Did you know Jon Taylor beat his wife?”
“A man like him? It was a given.”
“He almost killed her. He beat her in front of her kids, controlled her every move. He was an animal, and she was stuck.” I looked down at him and offered a small smile. “It also made her hate him. She wants to live, Drew, so she’s willing to make a deal with you. I think she knows more than she told me just now. I think she’s waiting for you to bewilling to talk to her.”
He was looking straight into my eyes, but I could tell his head was somewhere else. He was more capable than he realized that way. The man’s mind was a maze of thoughts, structure, strategies, plans, and motives none of us could ever navigate.
“You think we can trust her?” he asked quietly.
“Honestly?” I paused, not really needing a response. “I think we can trust how much she loves her kids and hates Jon. She mentioned conditions to her cooperation, but the most she would give me was that she wanted to disappear with the girls. I believe she’s willing to stay dead in the way she’s dead now.”
“A cover-up?” He frowned. “Helen wants the world to think she’s dead?”
“She’s scared. She wants to get as far away from Jon Taylor as she can get, and she wants her girls to be free, too. It could be worth at least talking to her.”
“If people think she’s dead, they’re going to look for her killer. That shit’s going to lead straight back to us. After Harry, The Hounds are under the spotlight. The only way I can make Helen appear dead is to make sure she is.” He pulled his chin back, inhaling through his nose before he released it slowly. “The only person who thinks she’s dead so far is Jon Taylor himself. We’ve been keeping our noses and ears to the ground. Sutton hasn’t reported any missing persons, and… wait.” He stopped, tilted his head to one side and narrowed his eyes. “First Eric came in here talking to me about Helen. Now you. I’m repeating myself here. Are you two working together to convince me—?”