by Dawn Doyle
“Are these cuffs really necessary?” I asked, lifting my hands that were attached to the table through a metal ring. “I like to play rough sometimes, but this isn’t the time or place to get kinky.” I was in the mood for something rough, but it wouldn’t be fun for anybody other than me.
Officer fat ass deadpanned. “Yeah, they are, Summers. With your choice of friends, and background, I wouldn’t trust you for a second.”
I leaned over the table, my head lowering but my eyes lifting. “Just don’t turn around, you might get a big surprise.”
“Are you threatening to sexually assault me?” he asked, his lip curling into a snarl.
I shrugged a shoulder and jutted out my bottom lip. “Hey, you’re the one that got out the cuffs, I’m just saying…”
“Look, I don’t give a rat’s ass how long this takes, but you’re gonna tell us what we want to know. How did you acquire Mr. Burnett’s keys in order to steal his car?”
Oh, the officer had no fucking idea how long I could drag this out for. That was the only good thing about putting up with shit for most of my life. Twisting it around had become a part of me, and I used it diligently. “What can I say? I’m nothing if not resourceful.”
The officer rolled his eyes again, and I wondered if that was the only workout he was getting that day. It was sure as shit he wasn’t going home to fuck anyone, not even his hand. He probably couldn’t find his dick under his enormous gut.
“It looks like you need another moment to yourself.” He got up and walked to the door.
“Well, I am in need for a little sweet love time, but as you can see—” I ran the chain through the ring—“I’m kinda unable to self-serve right now.”
“Dick,” he muttered on his way out.
Before the door could close, a hand reached out and pushed it open. “Good afternoon, Blaine.” A tall man walked in, a thick file in his hand and a knowing smirk on his mouth. “It’s good to see you again.”
“Hey, John,” I replied to Luca’s father, a detective with the force. “Aren’t you out of your jurisdiction? And isn’t this kind of thing below you now?” I gestured to the file. I knew whatever was in there didn’t have my name on it, because I didn’t fucking have one. I’d always been careful, clean, and never left anything behind to arouse suspicion.
He smiled and took the chair opposite me that had disappeared the moment the other guy had sat down. “Not when it comes to you, Blaine. Now, we’re going to have a chat, and you’re going to tell me everything, okay?”
Fuck, no.
“Come on, John, do you think I’m just gonna spill my guts because we have history?” He’d been the detective on Lucian’s case, hunting down Larry and slapping every fucking charge on him he could. He’d made sure Lucian had walked away without a record, and I was grateful for that, but this was a whole new ball game. Nobody was making me fight, and nobody had tried to kill me or threaten my girl to keep me from stopping.
Fuck…Robyn. This has to be them.
“No, but I know a smart guy when I see one,” John replied, barely pulling my attention from the possibilities of how Eddie’s crew could get to her with me stuck in this small-as-shit room. “So, here’s what’s going to happen.” He leaned forward, copying my posture, and lowered his voice. “You’re going to cut the bullshit because we both know you didn’t take that car.”
I quirked a brow. “Observant. Carry on.”
“Tell me how you came to be in this station, and why somebody is trying to set up your girlfriend.”
My jaw crunched as I ground my teeth together, John’s words confirming what I already suspected. “Spit it out, John. What are you really here for?”
“I’m going to ask you a few things, and I want the truth from you. This is for Robyn, Blaine, so I would appreciate it if you didn’t lie to me.”
“If you think somebody’s setting Robyn up, then why am I here? Surely I would’ve been turned away.” Yeah, bursting through the doors and practically yelling that I was a guilty man when I knew jack shit of the details, wasn’t gonna fly too well with the cops. I guess they were just humoring me.
John smiled. “See? Smart man. I released her, Blaine. A half-hour after you got here, we let her go. I wanted to make sure she was being honest. With her current record…”
My temper began to flare, and I yanked against the cuffs, the metal digging into my wrists as I struggled against the ring holding me down, the table shaking even though it was bolted to the floor. “She didn’t do a fucking thing!” I roared. I could still hear her voice screaming my name and professing my innocence. I’d barely held onto my fucking sanity when I heard her right next door, unable to see or touch her.
“Then tell me what you know,” John demanded, his smile disappearing, his mouth tightening into a line.
I blew out a long breath. “We were at the retirement party. We left to go somewhere…” I spilled everything, even Robyn kissing me. Fuck, I was desperate to feel her mouth against mine again.
John scribbled on his paper when I was done. “So, you were followed, and Mica didn’t know his car was taken, correct?” When I nodded, he continued. “And how did you end up with the keys?”
I clamped my mouth shut. I couldn’t tell him that right now, it would definitely fuck up my plans. His ass would be all over it right away. I didn’t care that he would be all over my ass, too, I just needed to finish what I started without him fucking it up before I could. I also had Robyn to think about. If Darcy and Eddie had any idea what was coming, Robyn would be in more danger than before. I had to keep going, though, to make sure I got exactly what I needed.
“Come on, Blaine, that car doesn’t have keyless entry, so you wouldn’t have needed a relay,” he said quietly, and I froze. I could hear my pulse pounding in my ears, the pressure of my increased heart rate making the room seem hotter, causing a bead of sweat to roll down my spine. “And there were no signs of forced entry, so we know for certain the key was used. So, I’ll ask again. How did you get the key?”
“You know as well as I do how I got that key, John,” I ground out between my clenched teeth. If I didn’t do it, the key was used, and then it ended up in my possession, there was only one plausible answer.
He closed the file and sat back. “So, what are we gonna do about it? You have your ways, and I have mine. I say we combine those resources and put them to some good. What do you say?”
I grinned widely, then sat back, my arms stretched out because of the restraints. I’d played my part, and now it was time for the final act. “I think I’ll say my safe-word now, John, cos these cuffs have been on long enough.”
“And what’s that?”
I held my hands up, exposing my wrists. “Deal.” I waited for him to get the key in the first lock before speaking again. “On one condition.”
Robyn
“You did this!” I wanted to murder that asshole. The shit he’d fucking caused, I wanted to beat the living crap out of him and dump him in a ditch. When he looked at me with his dark, flat eyes, I imagined all the ways I could get away with it. “You set me up!”
Nate had walked into Luca’s living room after Lucian had answered the door, his eyes landing on me with a scowl. It was right then that he leaned against the counter as though he had all the damn time in the world. Now I was facing him, no longer feeling intimidated by his size or his cold demeanor. All I could think about was Blaine and the fact he’d confessed to taking Mica’s car.
Damn idiot, why did he say he did?
Nate’s face scrunched up in amused confusion. “If I were the one who set you up, you wouldn’t be here right now.”
That threat ran all the way down to my feet, the chilly blades slicing right through me in their sharp iciness. “Then why the fuck was I arrested after you warned me to tell Blaine about my record?” I was beginning to see red with his blasé attitude to this whole fucking thing. “You don’t even care, do you?” I yelled, pointing toward the doorway. “Blain
e is in that fucking station, getting charged with something he didn’t do, and you just shrug your shoulders like you don’t give a fuck!”
Nate shrugged again as though goading me with his action. “Blaine’s a complicated guy,” he sighed. “I’m sure that whatever he did, there was a good reason for it.”
I stamped the few steps separating us and glared up at him. “To get me off the hook!” I screeched, jabbing him in the chest. “I assume you came here to help or did you come to revel in the fact that he’s in deep shit?”
The corner of Nate’s mouth curled up, and my last nerve snapped. I pulled back my hand, then sent it flying with as much force as I could, putting all my rage and frustration behind it. I watched as my hand grew closer to his face, then stopped dead by a tight grip on my wrist.
“Calm down, little bird,” Nate said quietly, his tone threatening, yet soft at the same time. His fingers tightened around my wrist as I tried to yank it away. He caught the other one when I swung with that, too. My frantic breaths blew my loose hair in front of my mouth, my wild strands covering most of my face. I growled out as I struggled against his grip with all of my strength, but only managed to tire myself out as I thrashed my arms to release them. “If you don’t relax, then how the fuck can we trust you with what you don’t yet know?”
Oh, yeah, that little bit of information nobody would tell me. The second the word thief had come out of Lucian’s mouth, he refused to comment further until Nate showed up.
“Trust me?” I snapped, still struggling against his hold. “The only thing you need to worry about trusting me with is not to kick you in the balls. Let me go, Nate, or you’ll be singing soprano for the foreseeable future.”
He laughed! The fucker threw his head back, and a deep chuckle came out of his mouth. “I see why he likes you so much,” he said when he finished. “Damn, girl, and I thought Luca was feisty.”
I whipped my head toward Luca, whose wide and worried eyes darted between us.
She chewed on her nails as she watched our interaction, her feet shifting while Lucian held her to his side. “Nate, can we just get this over with?” she asked, and Nate stared back at me. “Blaine needs us, but Robyn can’t go into this blind.”
“I need to trust that she won’t try to attack me again,” he said, his eyes dropping toward the floor between us, then back up. “If she so much as lifts a damn finger, I’m out.”
“Please, Robyn,” Luca begged. She looked past me as more people entered the room, but I didn’t turn to see who they were. “We need to do this together, okay?”
I ground my teeth together, then relaxed my fists. “Fine,” I snarled. “I won’t attack him, but if he says so much as one word against Blaine, he’ll be tasting his own nuts.” Nate smirked, then took a step away from me before releasing my wrists. I rubbed over the throbbing marks, cursing him for wasting my goddamn time. “See? Calm. Now, somebody tell me what the fuck is going on so I can figure out how to get Blaine out of this mess.”
“I think you should sit down,” a voice came from behind me.
I spun around to see Charlie and Brady. “Sit down?” I asked in disbelief. “Do I look like I want to sit down right now?”
Brady held his hands up. “You’re emotional—we get that, but, Robyn, if we’re going to out Blaine to you without his permission, you need to chill the fuck out.”
Charlie nodded quickly, holding his hands up too as though I were a wild animal that could go for their throats. And oh how I wanted to. “Okay, so don’t sit, but let us at least get some words out before you bite our heads off.”
I scrubbed my hands down my face and then dragged my knotted hair out of the way. The room had grown misty, tears building in my eyes, my vision clouding as I attempted to hold them back. I was losing it, about ready to break down and curl into a ball. My entire chest tightened, and my lungs constricted, cutting off my air. “Can someone just please tell me something?”
Lucian let go of Luca and stood in front of me. “Okay, here goes. Robyn, Blaine steals cars,” he said, then blew out a long breath as my jaw dropped open. “But, he always gives them back. He never keeps them, he just… joyrides, I guess.”
I looked left and right as the words sunk in, faint news on the radio station coming back to me about cars turning up after their trackers had come back online…
“The car borrower?” I asked, giving the name Aunt Joan had said while laughing about it. “That was Blaine?”
‘They should be called a car borrower, not a car thief,’ she’d said.
There’d been more thefts in a couple of cities, but not all were recovered.
“I guess so,” Charlie cut in, his eyes on Lucian. “Some people drink, some people take drugs, and others have a lot of sex…” My face flamed at that, the thoughts of how Blaine had made me scream out in pleasure over and over again. “Well, Blaine’s addiction is cars.”
“He has to get his fix,” Brady added. “He doesn’t go for long without taking a lady out for a ride.” When my eyes widened, he lifted his palms. “Not an actual lady, shit, sorry. He always talked about cars as if they were women.”
I glanced at the clock, the second hand ticking around and around, time going by while Blaine’s friends spoke to me like they were scared I’d fly off the handle with their next words.
“Look, this is fascinating and all, but can you give me the cliff-notes version? Standing here for story time isn’t helping Blaine.”
Luca stepped forward, her pretty face breaking out into a warm smile. “You’re okay with this,” she stated.
I threw my hands in the air, the movement causing Lucian to dart forward in protective mode. “All I care about right now is getting Blaine out of that station. Tell me on the way.”
I had no idea what I was going to say when I got there, but getting out of the house and on the road would help me think a little better. It always had, but it was usually when I was in the driver’s seat with a wild engine purring in my hands. But, I couldn’t think about that, Blaine was my priority.
Just don’t insist you’re guilty. I’ll get you out of this if I have to take the fall myself.
Thinking that should’ve scared me. It should’ve sent me spiraling with panic about being punished for something I hadn’t done… Again. However, all I felt was determination, because even though I now knew Blaine was behind the thefts, I knew for a fact he was innocent of this.
“Let’s get out of here,” Charlie said, leading the way out of the house.
I got into the first car that beeped as it unlocked. My car wouldn’t get us there fast enough, and I wasn’t about to have cops flagging me down when the black box wired to it alerted them when going over the limit. I clicked my seatbelt into place and waited for the owner of the car to get in.
Brady slid into the driver’s seat and closed the door. “Are you up for having your world turned upside down?”
I snorted. “Brady, my world turned upside down the second I picked up Blaine’s call.’ And it had. I just hoped that after all of this had been fixed, it was the right way up.
“Oh my God,” I whispered, but more to myself when Brady told me all about the night that changed their lives.
Blaine had wanted to boost a specific car he’d seen, and the others went along with it. All young teenagers, making their own fun without realizing what was in store for them. “This Larry guy, what did he do?”
“He gave them an ultimatum. He would go to the cops, or he got one fight in the pit. My brother took Blaine’s place, Robyn.”
I gasped, sucking in a sharp breath. “Blaine was supposed to fight?” I couldn’t imagine Blaine—my Blaine—fighting like that.
Brady shook his head. “Lucian has always been good with his fists, and he wanted to protect Blaine. We might not always show it, Robyn, but he’s family to us. We protect those we love and do whatever we can do to help them. Including his love of boosting.”
My heart skipped at Brady’s words, the way his
voice caught as he mentioned family and love. “Nate doesn’t love him,” I said quietly. “If he did, why would he be so mean?”
Brady blew out a long breath. “Nate…has his own way of showing how much he cares,” he said, lifting a shoulder. “What he said to you…” He paused to run his hand over his head. “Shit, I don’t know why he did, but if you think about it, it opened up a dialogue, right? What happened to you is all out in the open and Blaine was fine with it, right?”
Surprisingly, he was. I’d expected him to wipe his hands of me, and now that I knew what he’d done, it would make more sense to.
A thought occurred to me. “Nate said people would look at us closely because of me, and we’d both be fucked,” I said, repeating what I’d told Lucian. “Is this what he meant?”
Brady’s eyes bugged, his face paling so much I thought he could possibly hurl all over the car. “Oh, no,” he said, his voice filled with dread, a panic that only came from something that was worse than I had originally thought.
“Brady?” I asked, desperate for him to tell me what was going through his head. If it involved Blaine’s safety, I needed to know. My stomach dropped like a boulder going over a cliff, a million thoughts running through my head, but one sticking out more than the others. “What does ‘oh no’ mean?”
Brady tapped at the console on the dashboard, and a ringing noise came through the speakers until a voice spoke. “Hey, Charlie,” he said. “How many boosts has Blaine done in the past couple of months?”
“Uh, none to my knowledge,” Charlie replied. “If he’s been going alone, he hasn’t asked us for help on cleanup.”
