Page 21 of Brick (Chosen Few #5)

B rick propped his feet on the coffee table and pulled out his phone. He’d finally wrangled Bray, gotten his teeth brushed, and read him a story in the rocking chair in his room. Once the boy started getting sleepy, he began to fuss and ask for Natalie.

She’d taken him to the main bedroom, explaining that they’d both be more at ease sleeping together tonight. He didn’t expect her to come back downstairs after such a mentally exhausting day, but they’d soon have to discuss how they’d make shared custody work.

He’d move to Detroit if he had to, but that’d mean he’d be out of work. Backcountry could give him travel jobs, as they often obtained contracts outside Washington state, but jobs might be limited. Besides, the whole point was to be close to Bray and create a consistent schedule, not work away.

Looking at his phone, he saw he had a message from Zain asking him to call when he got the chance.

Zain answered after two rings. “Hey, man. How’s the little guy?”

Brick sighed. “Wild, but good. Happy.”

“I bet.” Zain’s tone was grave. “Do you have a minute?”

“Yup, he’s in bed. What happened with the gang?” He hadn’t asked in the vehicle, not wanting to upset Natalie and Bray.

Zain guffawed. “Had a chat. Might’ve roughed ’em up a bit. Justin didn’t want to talk, but his friend, Clyde, sure did.”

“What’d he say?”

“Apparently, Keetan’s working with them. They’re paying him to give names whenever a Club East snitch goes to the police department.”

Brick whistled. “That’s pretty bad.”

“I’m sure it’s just the tip of the iceberg. Keetan must be pretty chummy with them to ask them to hide Bray.”

Rage made his blood simmer. This was far from over. Keetan would pay for every minute Bray had been scared and for every mark on Natalie’s face. “I want to know what he planned on doing with my kid.”

Zain blew out a breath. “That’s where things get murky.

I asked Clyde, and he said Keetan just asked them to keep the kid out of sight for a few weeks.

I can’t say for sure, but I bet they figured Natalie would be in jail by then and they could just hand the kid over to the system, possibly separating them permanently. ”

“That bastard,” he said, exhaling. “I fucking swear—”

“I know, dude. You’ve got them now. Maybe you should consider moving them to one of our safe houses until this is over.”

It wasn’t a bad idea. Until now, he hadn’t thought that step would be necessary, but Dammit, he didn’t want to move Bray again so soon. He’d just extended their stay from two nights to four. Uprooting the child after such a traumatic experience would be tough on him.

“You there?” Zain asked.

“Yeah, just thinking. We’ve gotta catch Keetan.

” But doing so could hurt Natalie. He swung his gaze to the staircase, and a surge of protectiveness came over him.

He couldn’t let Natalie take the fall for Shelby’s death.

He wouldn’t. She might have hurt him more deeply than anyone ever had, but this wasn’t about him. It was about Bray.

And goddammit, it was about Natalie, too. He needed to start being honest with himself. Something was there. Call it an old flame, call it the same spark that’d hit him when her angelic face appeared above his outside that bar in Fargo—or hell, maybe just call him weak.

He had a thing for Natalie. He’d had a thing for her three and a half years ago, and he’d had a thing for her when he found her in the parking lot. So whether he liked it or not, she was as much his priority as Bray. And that was about all he was mentally prepared to admit right now.

“I’m down. What do you have in mind?”

“He’s got something I need. Evidence on Natalie.”

There was a long stretch of silence. “What kind of evidence?” Zain finally asked, full of hesitation.

“The kind that could put her on trial for something serious. If Keetan’s not lying. He told Natalie he recorded her when she was upset and saying something that could amount to a confession.”

“Fuck,” Zain spat. “Well, let’s pay him a visit. If he’s got evidence, we’re gonna find it.”

New determination rushed through him. “Come back to our place. One of you will need to stay with Natalie and Bray while we find Keetan.”

Zain snickered. “Taschen’s going to hate being left out, but I call dibs on this one. Be there in twenty.”

Brick hung up. Movement at the corner of his eye brought his gaze to Natalie, who stood in the doorway of the living room. Her arms were pulled tightly across her waist, and concern etched her makeup-free face. “Care to tell me what’s going on?”

He got to his feet. “I need to head out. The guys will be here soon. Taschen’s going to stay with you.”

She glowered at him. “I heard that much. Tell me what I don’t know.”

He took two steps closer to her, bringing himself right into her personal space. He placed his hands on her hips, not giving a damn that his touch would show her more than he was ready to right now.

Her full, pouty lips parted, but she didn’t step out of his reach. Once again, her gaze hung on to his, her baby blues searing right through him.

“I’m going to find out if Keetan has the recording. And if he does, I’ll get it.”

She widened her eyes. “No. I don’t want you to do that.”

“Honey, it has to be done.” Well, hell. When had endearments become a thing? Maybe it was the result of having seen her holding his kid, or maybe just the pained look in her eyes right now.

She shook her head. “There’s no point,” she whisper-wailed. “If he has evidence, he’ll have more than one copy.”

Brick caught a lock of hair that’d escaped from her ponytail and swept it behind her ear. “Why do you think Keetan took Bray to that gang leader’s place last night?”

She furrowed her brow and shrugged. “Because he’s a useless piece of shit.”

He smirked. “True. But why is he hanging out with those guys at all?”

She lowered her gaze. “Yeah, I know. I’ve been thinking about that. But it’s not like we have proof he’s done anything illegal. Being friends with criminals isn’t a crime in itself.”

“No, but being paid by them is.”

Her gaze turned to ice. “What are you talking about?”

“Keetan’s been collecting bribes from Club East. He alerts them when allegations are made against the gang, and gives them the snitch’s name.”

She made a giant O with her lips, and his sex-deprived brain went south.

“But can you prove that?”

“One of the guys who was hiding Bray, Clyde, told Zain. Didn’t sound like he even had to put too much pressure on the dude. He sang pretty easily. I bet if he was brought in for questioning, he’d share even more.”

She bit her bottom lip. “This is dangerous.”

“It has to be done.” He set his shoulders.

He wanted her to feel safe with him, to speak her mind, but he wasn’t budging.

This was the one and only way he could help Bray and Natalie—to finally break her of this hold Keetan had over her.

The same hold that’d made her run from him in Fargo. “Trust me, okay?”

Tear-filled eyes met his. “You asked me that earlier today. And I did.”

His heart stopped. “You don’t trust me now?”

She let out a weak guffaw. “I trust you even more now. It’s the best thing I’ve ever done.” Tears snaked down her cheeks. “I wish I’d done it three years ago.”

He slid his thumb beneath her eye. “Don’t do that, okay? We’ll talk about everything later. For now, we just gotta end this mess.”

“This isn’t your problem. It’s mine.” Worry creased her eyes.

Protectiveness coursed through his veins again. He placed his hand on her side, cradling her to him, and his other palm moved to her cheek. “Well, I guess that means you’re my problem.”

Her eyes glittered, and that delicious pink tint that’d touched her cheeks in the bathroom crawled up her neck once again.

Her slim fingers circled his wrist, near her face. “I’m scared. I don’t want Bray to lose you now that he finally has you in his life.”

“I won’t let that happen.” Fierce certainty vibrated his throat—not only because he meant every damn word, but because Natalie cared. About him. He slid his hand up her side, reveling in her slightness. “I—”

Her face twisted, and she let out a hiss and flinched.

He froze. Concern spiked his blood pressure. “What’s wrong?”

She placed her hand on top of his. His fingers were lightly grazing her ribs. “Nothing. It just hurts there.” She lowered her face, but not before he caught the glimmer of shame in her eyes. Near that damn green mark on her cheekbone.

He remembered how stiffly she’d moved that morning when they left the motel. He caught the material of her shirt. “Can I see?”

“It’s just a bruise.” But as she said the words, she peeled up the material, giving him a view of her smooth skin and tight abdomen. A deep blue bruise covered her ribs. “He kicked me.”

He ran his fingertips over the marking, wishing he could erase it. “That fucking bastard,” he snarled.

She pushed her shirt down. “It’s fine. Doesn’t hurt as badly as it did last night.” She turned from him, but he caught her hips and spun her gently to face him. Surprise widened her mouth.

Ever so gently, he placed his hand on her opposite side. “What about here?”

She shook her head.

“That’s the only spot?”

Her throat moved on a swallow. “Just the marks you see on my face and the bruise on my side. That’s all he did.”

“Too much,” he whispered, over the constriction in his chest. An overwhelming sense of urgency filled him. All day he’d been consumed with finding their son. He hadn’t slowed enough to really pay attention to Natalie.

He brought the tip of his thumb to the cut at her mouth. “I hate that he hurt you.”

Her bottom lip wobbled, but she didn’t take her eyes off him.

“I don’t know what that means, to be honest with you,” he continued. “But it really, really fucking bothers me.”

She lifted a shoulder. “Most men don’t like when guys hit women.”