family.”
She was right. It was the thing that had been nagging at me through all of this. Uncle George wasn’t returning my calls. I hadn’t spoken to my father or mother either, and they didn’t have my new number since Amy gave me the burner phone.
“I’m not asking you to do anything unethical,” Shannon said. “I just want to know what’s happening. You deserve to know too. Torch is out there. Why won’t he talk to you?”
I let out a breath. “The same reason Sticks won’t talk to you. He thinks shutting me out keeps me safer.”
“It’s bullshit,” she said. “It’s one thing for Amy and Nicole and the wives. They’re talking to the lawyers. We’re out here on our own. Torch loves you. We all know it. So whatever he said to you was a bunch of bullshit. Sydney, I know what he was like before you came to town too. Something bad is going to happen. I can feel it. None of us can afford to have Torch off his game. He is the club now. He needs you. You have to make him let you in.”
Shannon gave voice to the things I knew in my heart. But did it matter? Torch had peeled off the layers he’d tried to hide from me. He wanted me to think he was a monster. That he was capable of not just murder, but torture. I saw a devil in his eyes. I can’t deny that. But I knew the angel too.
“Just talk to your uncle,” she said. “That’s all I’m asking. And don’t let Amy try to put you off. He’s your uncle.”
She was right. I’d been paralyzed in a way since that awful day on the bridge with Torch. The more we talked, the angrier I got at Uncle George. He’d thrown me out. He’d thrown me to the wolves. And he hadn’t once reached out to see if I was okay through all of this.
I made up my mind. A phone call wasn’t going to cut it. I still had a key to my uncle’s law office. I could go there in the morning.
I told Shannon my plan, and her shoulders sagged with relief.
“He can get a message to Sticks. If nothing else, can you promise me you’ll take it to him?”
“What do you want me to say?” I asked.
“You know what to say. Tell him to tell Sticks what you know. About the baby.”
“Shannon ... are you sure that’s such a good idea?” I didn’t say what my real fear was. If Sticks was even remotely flippable, wouldn’t the idea that he had a son or daughter in the mix make him more likely to cut a deal for himself, not less?
Then I realized maybe it wasn’t my call to make. Shannon may have a point. Sticks had a right to know.
There was something else niggling in the back of my mind as well. Thomas Anthony. I couldn’t find a thing about him on the internet. I knew Uncle George would have the full story. I just hoped he’d be willing to tell it.
Chapter Twenty-Four
The next morning, I woke up before Shannon. She slept on the couch because she’d been restless all night. I changed into dress pants and a blouse, the only ones I had left packed in my little overnight bag. I hadn’t been to Uncle George’s office in weeks. I had no idea what he’d told the rest of the staff about my departure. But I would show up ready for work.
I took the bus. A pang of longing went through me. Torch hated me riding the bus. It was just a two-block walk to George’s office from the bus stop. There were no cars parked in the back, which meant the support staff hadn’t yet come in. But I saw George’s Mercedes out front along with another vehicle I didn’t recognize. Probably a client. Though it was strange that he’d meet someone with no one else here.
I heard voices. No. I heard one voice. My Uncle George. He sounded furious. I had every intention of calling out and announcing my presence, but something made me stop cold.
“Do you have any idea what kind of position you’re putting me in by showing up here?” he asked.
“I don’t give a shit about your position. You should be more worried about mine.”
“You can’t come here. Not to my office.”
“I’ll make this clear,” the other man said. I was in the back kitchen. Uncle George’s office was