nod, and stand. An officer escorts me back to the front desk of the station where I sign out and then leave.
The moment I’m out, I exhale.
That was harder than I thought, but I think I did the right thing.
God, I hope I did the right thing.
The quicker this goes away, the better.
21
WAVERLY
“What did they ask you?” Alarick questions the moment I arrive back at Mykel’s house.
I sit on the sofa next to Mykel, and he puts a hand on my knee, squeezing it.
“They just asked the basics. Do I remember what happened when Bennett was killed? I said no, I don’t remember. They asked how I knew Dax; I told them the truth. They asked if I had ever been involved with the club outside of working for Mykel, and I told them no except for one cookout. I also told them I’ve never seen any club members at Dax’s house. It was pretty basic questioning. I imagine they’re going to ask more later.”
Alarick nods. “Good. Keep it as simple as you can. They have nothing to charge you on, and you don’t have to give detailed information. Just stick with your story and we’ll worry about the rest.”
I nod and meet his eyes. Alarick is strung out and exhausted. His hands are all beat up, and I can almost guess he hasn’t slept.
“I’m sorry this happened, Alarick,” I tell him.
“Not your fault, Waverly. You did everything we asked of you. I should have known that Dax was onto it. I should have realized.”
“It’s nobody’s fault. Have you spoken to Kendric?”
“Waitin’ for his bail to be posted, and then he’ll be let out until his court hearing. That means we only have so much time to find Dax. We don’t want Kendric goin’ down for this. Once he’s had a trial and is locked up, it’ll be fuckin’ hard to get him back out. We need to make sure that it doesn’t get to that point.”
I exhale and my shoulders slump. Dax is smart, which means he’s not going to be easy to find. If we can find him at all. He would have made sure he had all his bases covered, and no doubt he’s going to ensure that he’s well hidden. Which means it’s going to be next to impossible to locate him.
“Have you any idea how you’re going to find him?” I ask.
“Aviana,” Mykel tells me.
I blink, looking to him. “Briella’s best friend.”
“Peter’s niece. Aviana is the only one left in Peter’s family alive and when we find her, we’ll be able to get her to help us find Dax. She is the only one who knows Peter inside and out, and she’s the only one who might know where he went.”
“Are you going to be able to find her? Briella said there was suspicion she might have been sold . . .”
“It’s goin’ to be easier to find her than Dax.”
I nod, pursing my lips. I mean, it’s not a bad plan, but it could take time to find her and then even more time to find Dax. Do we have that much time to spare?
“What if we get into his house, see if we can find something?” I offer.
“His house will have been raided, and he’s not stupid. He would have made sure there was no trail leadin’ to him,” Alarick answers.
“There have to be other people, people who are involved with him, people we can question . . .” I go on.
“Yeah, we find the fuckin’ rat in this club, and that’s a good lead. As well as people who were workin’ with Peter. We’ll find him, but we’re goin’ in on every angle this time, not just one.”
Makes sense. “Well, I’m here to help, whatever you need.”
Alarick nods and then stands. “Just keep your head down for now. Keep your name cleared.”
I give him a reassuring smile, and he nods once at Mykel before leaving.
I feel horrible for Alarick right now, because he’s got the weight of the world on his shoulders, and he’s on a time limit. Once that time runs out, he’s going to lose one of his club members. Kendric doesn’t deserve to be locked away, but if we don’t find Dax, that’s exactly what will happen.
I look to Mykel, and he leans forward, pressing his lips against mine.
It feels good.
A nice distraction.
“Do you think we’re going to get through this?” I ask him.
He nods, eyes locked on mine. “We always do, babe.”
I sure hope he’s right.
“WE’VE GOT MEN