“Fucking hell,” I snapped as I strode into the downtown offices of Sigma Squad Bail Bonds. There were no greasy blinds and overstuffed brown couches here. Our offices were clean and modern, taking up an entire four-story building, right in the pretty downtown area that was filled with brownstones and a Main Street that was picture perfect. One thing being a marine had taught me, however, was that it didn’t matter how pretty things were on the outside. The truth could be a lot different.
“Good afternoon to you too, brother dear,” Emily, my younger sister and co-owner of the business, called to me from her desk. Right now, she had her bare toes up on the polished wood and was painting them hot pink.
“Very professional,” Diesel muttered to her, coming in behind me. He was always the calm to my storm, and right now, I was stormy all right.
“Em, who’s the detective in charge of Laura Lavin’s case? I want to speak to them, and then I want all the info on that night you can dig up.”
My sister was used to my rapid-fire instructions, and merely nodded sagely, swinging her feet off the desk and getting to work, after sending a scowl in Diesel’s direction. Diesel had been my best friend growing up. He wasn’t from the same part of town as me and Em, and he’d already been tougher than nails on the day we enlisted at sixteen. Em and Diesel had always fought, though, lately it was getting only worse. I’d soon have to separate the two of them, to keep the office civil.
“Let me guess, you are regretting taking such a high-profile bond already? Well, can’t say I didn’t tell you so,” Emily sang as she shoved her feet into sliders and wandered around the office.
“Worse than that,” Diesel said, leaning a hip on his own desk and staring knowingly at me. “He thinks she’s innocent.”
“Shut up! No way. Really?” Emily said, all in a rush. Her eyes gleamed with excitement at the incoming drama. “She was caught red-handed though,” she pointed out, which was fair.
“I didn’t say I don’t think she did it. She did, probably, an impulsive act in the heat of the moment, born from fear.”
“So, self-defense? Why doesn’t she say so, then? She’s barely spoken this whole time,” Diesel pointed out, but his tone was resigned. He knew as well as I did why some people didn’t feel like they could speak out.
“That’s what we’re going to find out. I don’t think Laura Lavin was a prisoner in jail. I think she was a prisoner in her home, and I’m going to bust her out,” I said heavily, sitting down and opening my laptop. It was nuts, the feeling in my gut that had formed as soon as my eyes had met Laura’s. A surge of protectiveness so hot and real had shot through me, it had been all I could do not to deck her stepfather right there and then, when he’d put his hands on her in the waiting room. I’d seen her fear, her naked, vulnerable terror at the moment where he had whispered something to her. I didn’t know what had happened that night, but one thing was obvious. The case wasn’t as clear cut as the press were making it out to be, and as of this moment, getting Laura to show up for her court date was my responsibility. My money, and a great deal of it, was on the line, but more than that, I wanted the truth to come out. What had happened? Why was she so scared?
I’d find out the answers, whether or not she wanted my help. Laura Lavin was now, officially, my business, and I took my business personally.
* * *
The next day,I headed over to the Lavin house with a team of my most trusted guys. Diesel, Emily, Hunter, and Troy made up the group, and we stood on the doorstep to the million-dollar mansion looking like it was Purge night, and we’d come to play. I might have more zeros in my bank account than Brian Lavin, but I’d never belong in a neighborhood like this. I could feel eyes on us as dog walkers and yummy mummies in Lulu Lemon walked past the end of the drive, peering shamelessly at us, some even taking out their phone to snap a pic, or call the cops.The combined amount of leather and tattoos were probably too much for this neighborhood.
“Damn, I feel like a zoo animal,” Hunter complained, running a hand down his shaved blond head. The snake on the side of his skull was probably drawing the most attention, I told myself. Hell, if I was being honest, the lot of us looked like total misfits here, which was ironic, considering this was only a few blocks over from where Emily and I had grown up, under the senator’s watchful staff.
The door finally opened, and we went inside.
“Thank fuck for that. I thought some of those nosey neighbors were going to call the police,” Diesel said, narrowing his eyes as he looked up and around the fancy foyer. He whistled under his breath. “Nice to see how the other half lives,” he muttered.
“You could live like this too, if you spent less on your bike and adrenaline junkie trips,” Emily snapped at Diesel, folding her arms over her chest as he turned to her and grinned.
“Ems, I know your judgment and vitriol comes from a place of love. Don’t worry. When I break my neck in a bike accident, you can be my caretaker,” Diesel said to her.
She rolled her eyes at him. “Great. You wanted the plug pulled, right? Asap?”
Diesel narrowed his eyes. “If you want to off me, sweetheart, there are much more personal ways to do it. Give it your best shot.”
“Enough,” I snapped at them as Troy inclined his head toward the sitting room archway. Troy was a man of few words, and my most relaxing company. He didn’t say more than he needed to, and every one of his words, subsequently, had value, until like the constant shit show from Diesel and Emily.
Brian Lavin was walking toward us, a broad smile on his face, reminiscent of a used car dealer about to sell me a dud for a premium price. “You made it. Good of you to come out,” he said, trying to set the tone, as if this meeting was on his terms.
“I’d like to see the security cameras as discussed and speak with Laura.”
Brian blinked at me. “She’s sleeping.”
“Well, wake her up. I’ll wait,” I told him firmly. God, this fucker got on my nerves. Brian stared at me for a beat too long. His mask slipped a little, and I got to see underneath. I’ve had all sorts of clients come to me to bail out loved ones over the years. The driving motivation was usually out of concern or love.
Brian Lavin was none of those things. He was cold, reptilian almost. Then he blinked, and his person mask slid back into place. “Ok, I’ll get her,” he said and gave everyone a warm smile. “Make yourselves at home.”
He disappeared, and Emily whistled quietly. “What a creep,” she muttered.
“How can you tell after one interaction?”
“I can always tell right away. That’s why Diesel and I have never got on,” she said sweetly, tossing a smirk his way as he gave her the finger.