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“I’ll call you if she shows.”
“I’ll ring you tomorrow.”
And that’s how the conversation had usually gone. Mia had always said her relationship with her dad had been estranged from the moment her mum died. My faith in humanity was slowly dissolving with each passing day. It had always been Mia against the world, but now it was the two of us against them. She had me, and I hoped it would be enough to save her.
My resources were limited, coming straight from a reformatory school without many friends. Jinx swiped Ethan’s address from Lynch’s office out of the goodness of his heart, but I still wired his mother funds to keep food in the fridge. He said it wasn’t necessary, but I couldn’t let his family go hungry either. Jinx was a good man. He worked hard and stayed away from trouble for the most part. But like every other bloke, his biggest weakness was girls. And Jinx liked to drink from a tall, white glass of milk. His words, not mine.
A few days ago, I’d driven past Ethan’s house to find no one home. I’d even peeked through the windows and challenged every lock, but nothing. Only a nosy neighbor who wanted to know what I was doing loitering around Ethan’s cookie-cutter home. After striking a conversation, the polished older lady had mentioned she hadn’t seen him or his car in a week, which wasn’t unusual for him. He’d always leave for weeks at a time. I’d also tried his mobile, but the number was disco
During my last visit with Lynch, he’d informed me that Ethan resigned by email, and he’d taken off on release day, which also wasn’t unusual. Lynch only had him in contract until that day. None of it made sense. It was all too easy—too clean.
The rap at the door grabbed my attention.
“It’s Travis. Your mate. Remember me? Pretty blond hair. Irresistible blue eyes.” I made no movements to get up, but then … Another knock. “C’mon, mate. It’s cold out here, and I need to talk to you.”
I stood and walked to the door to unlock it. Travis sauntered in and plopped over a navy armchair, making himself comfortable. Regarding my shirtless chest and joggers, he raised a brow. “You can’t go to Thurrock like that.” I paused and narrowed my eyes, waiting for him to drop a laugh or a line to indicate he was joking. For two and a half seconds, we had a stare-off. “I’m serious,” he added.
“No, no, no, no …” I shook my head and dropped over the edge of the mattress with my head in my hands. My chin fastened between my fingers, and I peered up at him. “I left that place two years ago, Trav. I’m never going back.” My main focus was on finding Mia. There was no reason good enough to go back to that shit-hole. None.
“Summer’s receiving calls. Threats. The Links are looking to collect. I only need you there to back me up.”
Except for that.
I groaned. “I thought you were past the Links and moved on from that life. What about Summer? The baby?” Guilt ate at his features as he ran the pad of his thumb over the flint wheel of the lighter, igniting and watching the flame fade away. Over and over. “What do they want?” I finally asked with my hands in the air.
The vein in his neck popped, making the angel wings tattoo come to life. Trav’s eyes moved from where the flame disappeared to me. “They want me to finish the job I was arrested for.”
“How much?” I’d rather pay them off and finally get him out of this mess. There wasn’t an amount I wouldn’t pay for Summer and their baby’s safety. He’d finally got his life in order. How long has he been keeping this from me?
“I’m not asking you for money.” The lighter disappeared inside his fist as he leaned closer. “I’m meeting them at Jack’s. The pub in Ockendon. It’s an hour from here—”
“I know where it is,” I seethed.
“You can stay in the car. I just need someone there in case the conversation goes south.”
“South …” I laughed incredulously, “South. You’re walking in and saying what? Thank you but no thanks, I’m out. You can’t be serious, Trav. What direction are you expecting this to go? East? They’re not going to let you out until you get the job done. And even then, I’d be shocked it would ever be over.” Travis had asked me because he knew I’d never say no, taking advantage of my humanity. However, my main focus was on finding Mia.
Travis answered my turbulent thoughts, “You’re right. I’m sorry for dragging you into this. I don’t know what else to do. I can’t let anything happen to Summer. To the baby. I’m desperate here. It’s like no matter how hard I try, I can’t escape the past … I. Can’t. Run. Fast. Enough.”
In the face of my boundless heart, Travis and I had piled into his banger. Though the hour drive was silent, my head, heart, and soul screamed for Mia. It was painful being this far from her. I understood Travis’s fear, the reason I’d gotten into his car, to begin with. No matter how hard I tried, it was as if the entire world was against the two of us being together, our love tested. I was desperate but had no direction on which way to go. Lost. I was fucking lost.
“You staying?” Travis asked from the driver’s side once we pulled up to the white standalone building. We couldn’t see in through the blacked-out windows to Jack’s, but there were numerous cars out front. Expensive cars. They were here—the Links.
I shook my head, climbed out of the car, and stretched my legs. Travis was my friend, and the hour drive gave me time to think this through. His head popped from over the hood on the other side. “I have a plan, but you have to follow my lead.” I pulled my hood over my head and peered back over at him, resting two hands over the top of the car. “Do you trust me?”
“With my life.”
My hands tapped the hood once, and we took off inside. The bell chimed, acknowledging our presence. Travis stepped around me and nodded his head over to the bar, where a group of three men huddled. I’d been around intimidating men my entire life between the business Oscar was in, and the johns Mum used to bring home.
“Travis, you brought a friend,” the smallest of the three greeted Trav with a grip on the shoulder and nodded in my direction, “How was your time?”
Patrons of the bar eyed our interaction before going back to their day drinking. This was the norm around here in Ockendon—at Jack’s. Five men with tattoos in black at this hour only meant dodgy business. I stood behind Travis with my arms crossed over my chest.
The Links were just that, links made up of petty crimes and drug deals to fund a more prominent trade at the top—a pyramid scheme. If a bottom link snapped, the organization still held strong.
“Have a seat,” a voice stated from a stool behind the other two. “Doris, a round for my friends.” The bartender dropped two glasses over the bar in my peripheral. My eyes stayed glued to the man who radiated arrogance, legs parted, posture relaxed. Most likely packing behind his excessively loose jeans and jacket. “Are you going to introduce me?”
Travis stepped to the side to reveal me, and that’s when his eyes found mine.
Dex Sullivan.
He chuckled and ran a palm down his face. “Baby Oscar, is that you?” Dex stood, and the other two men backed up, giving the king room. He placed both hands on my shoulders and searched my eyes. “It is you,” he gri
“Not long enough.”
Dex gripped my chin to get a better look, and I narrowed my eyes. Oscar and Dex were mates growing up, always in competition with one another, racing up the ladder of crime. Oscar put together White Fox, losing his best mate in the process. Because of envy and greed, the two had a falling out. It seemed Dex went to the competition. “I’ve been meaning to thank you for slamming your brother. Tosser deserved it, yeah?” Dex swiped the drink from the bar and shoved it into my chest. “To Oliver!”