“Have it your way,” he said. “You know how to reach me.”
I headed back into the bar.
“What was that all about?” Talon asked.
“I wanted to know how he’d come to be Marj’s trainer. Whether it was part of the whole thing.”
“And?” Talon said.
“It was. He’s been watching her for a while because Cade has. Probably watching all of us.”
“But only Marj and our mom were his targets for safety?” Talon said. “And Colin? How does that make any sense?”
“I don’t know.” I shook my head. “If your dad is—”
“He’s not,” Ryan said, cutting me off. “He’s dead. I watched my psycho mother put a bullet in his heart.”
“I watched it too, Ry,” Talon said, “but he’s come back to life before.”
“Not possible.” Ryan took a long drink from his glass of wine. “He’s dead. Just like I would be if Ruby hadn’t saved me.”
I nodded. No use arguing the point. Brad Steel was most likely dead. If he wasn’t, we’d find out eventually.
“What do you think?” Ryan asked me.
“About what?”
“Dominic.” Apparently he’d put the issue of his father possibly being alive to rest.
“I don’t get the sense that he’s lying,” I said.
“Me neither. I really should have brought Ruby along. She can sniff out a liar a mile away.”
“I don’t think he’s lying either,” Talon said, “but I also don’t think he’s volunteering any information.”
“I need to talk to Joe,” I said.
Both of the Steels nodded.
What they didn’t know was that I needed to speak to Joe alone. The whole family might know all about Justin Valente and Colin Morse and my father’s involvement with each, but they didn’t know their brother was acquainted with Cade Booker because of his membership in a leather club.
I wasn’t about to divulge that tidbit.
My phone buzzed with a number I didn’t recognize. Since we changed phones every twenty-four hours, I’d learned to pay attention to all callers.
“Yeah?” I said into the phone.
“Bryce,” Marjorie said. “You need to come home. Now.”
Chapter Thirty
Marjorie
Bryce stared at the document I’d handed to him as soon as he walked through the door.
“It’s a payoff,” I said. “
It has to be. This Bert Valente must have been Justin’s dad. Your dad paid him off to keep quiet about Justin’s murder.”