Page 4 of Furious (The Six Six Six Rule #2)

He points a finger at me. “Don’t fucking act as if you don’t know.

First, he tried to get Bridgeport PD to charge me for the incident because whoever invaded the racetrack stole one of my team’s bikes.

When those charges wouldn’t stick because he couldn’t prove negligence, he used his influence as a sports agent and NHL hall of famer to blackball me.

I lost all my sponsors, and my team owner fired me.

No one else would even look at me sideways when I was released. All thanks to your father.”

My knee-jerk reaction is to call bullshit on that. Fox is just trying to rattle my cage.

Dad is still a huge name in hockey. How would his reach extend to racing?

Then I rethink the situation. The billionaire who owns the Hartford Heroes—the NHL team Dad won four Stanley Cups with—also owns one of the most successful MotoGP teams. That’s just the tip of the iceberg. That guy has stakes in F1, golf, soccer. You name it.

I used to hate how much influence my father has. Atlas and I weren’t happy when we found out that the MotoGP team we were under contract with belonged to Dad’s old boss.

Of course, we knew that we got hired because we outperformed every other racer who tried out.

You don’t win MotoGP titles by hiring racers based on nepotism.

We also knew that many talented racers never get noticed and that our father’s connections gave us an opportunity many people have to grind for years to get.

So my father used his connections to make sure someone paid for what happened that day in Bridgeport.

I’ll thank him when he comes back from his honeymoon.

“You know what, Fox?” I smile. “Good fucking riddance. You’ve always been a piece of shit on and off the track.

I’m sure it didn’t take my father’s meddling to get everyone to see that.

Just count yourself lucky that we couldn’t prove that you had something to do with that incident by either staging it, or at the very least by not watching your equipment diligently enough that anyone could have hopped on one of your bikes and gotten on the track. ”

That’s why I became a cop. To be able to do what Bridgeport PD was too busy or too incompetent to do.

“I don’t know what you’re doing in my town, but watch your fucking back.” I scowl.

This asshole has never known when to walk away from a situation.

“Is that a threat?” he cackles. “Ooh scary.” He mocks me, pretending to shudder with fear.

I push him, flattening him against the gas station’s glass paned walls. “Give me one reason.” I growl, my forearm pressing against his throat. “One fucking reason to handcuff you. Or even better, to get my gun out.”

“Hunter.” My partner steps in, grabbing my shoulder with a firm grip. “Step away.”

I know Olivia is right.

It costs me everything I have in me to do the right thing, though.

“You’re a fucking psycho.” Fox sputters, his face red as he rubs his throat with a tattooed hand. “You’re my witness. I’m going to pay a visit to the sheriff's office and press charges. Police brutality is not a joke.”

What the piece of shit doesn’t know is that Dad was elected by a landslide. And since he’s taken over the mayor's office, he has been doing a lot to help Star Cove’s small businesses.

He has the support of pretty much the entire town, Dan included.

“I have no idea what you’re talking about, son.

” He says, looking Fox straight in the eye.

“I haven’t seen anything other than two friendly cops coming to help me with a few problems. Now if you need gas, pump number one is open.

We also have coffee and a great selection of hot and cold snacks.

Beer and liquor too, as long as you can show valid ID.

If you don’t need any of the above, I suggest you get on your way.

I don’t like loitering, we even have a sign right outside that says it. ”

Fox grabs a can of chewing tobacco and throws a twenty-dollar bill in Dan’s face. “Keep the change. Fucking shitty Podunk town. If I weren’t desperate for a job, I’d be out of here faster than the fucking wind.”

My shoulders sag when he leaves. He climbs into a beaten up El Camino truck and drives off toward the old interstate that goes to Shell Cove.

I’m grateful to Dan for not mentioning the ugly confrontation between me and Fox.

I have no such luck with Olivia, though.

“Care to explain what that was about?” she says the second we leave the gas station headed back into town via the college campus.

My fingers clutch the steering wheel of our police car with white-knuckle force.

“That asshole and I have history.” I grind out, hoping that my scowl is enough to deter anymore questions.

“Clearly.” Olivia rolls her eyes. “But losing your cool like that isn’t like you, Ares. You know you can talk to me.”

“Can I?” I snort. “We’ve been partners for six months and this is the first time you call me by my first name.”

She sighs. “I’m sorry, ok? The last year has been rough for me.

I moved here following my ex-husband’s job.

He was promised a promotion if he came here to open a new branch for the accounting firm he worked for.

It turns out once he got his promotion, Star Cove wasn’t the only thing he left behind.

Our marriage apparently was ‘as boring as this sleepy little town.’ I’m quoting him, by the way. ”

“Fuck, that’s rough. I’m sorry.” I say, turning to look at her long enough to meet her gaze.

Olivia pulls on the collar of her shirt, clearly uncomfortable.

“Yeah, me too. On a deputy's pay, I could no longer afford to rent our house. So I had to move while I was dealing with lawyers and court fees. We had very few assets, but would you believe that my ex was trying to go after my car and two antique mugs my grandmother left me? Anyway, I didn’t use to be a bitch, just so you know.”

She takes my silence the wrong way.

“What?” Olivia huffs. “I’ve had a lot on my mind and I’ve been struggling making ends meet on a deputy pay.

I applied for a promotion at the beginning of the year, but Pullin told me promotions and new hires were frozen by the city council.

The new mayor had other priorities for the town’s budget, since we have an exceptionally low crime rate. ”

Now Olivia’s cold demeanor toward me makes total sense.

“So you couldn’t get your promotion because of my dad?” I turn to look at her as I stop at a red light.

“It sucked. I’m not gonna lie. But then a couple of months after I got shot down, he hires you. The mayor’s son.”

I can see how that must look. Is it possible that Dad got the council to cut the sheriff's department budget when I dropped out of college to attend the police academy? When Pullin told me the department wasn’t hiring, I started applying to other sheriff and police departments all over the state.

A month later, the sheriff miraculously found some budget for one trainee deputy.

“I didn’t ask my father to help me get this job, if that’s what you think.”

“It doesn’t matter if you did.” Olivia shrugs. “We’ve been partners for six months and you’re a good cop. You’re knowledgeable, conscientious, even a little too much if you ask me. I apologize for taking my frustrations and my problems out on you.”

If I weren’t too pissed off by my run-in with Fox, I would smile at her. “Does that mean that you’re not going to be completely quiet the next time we have a twelve hour night patrol?”

The corners of her lips curl up as she smiles. “It depends.”

It’s my turn to roll my eyes. “On what?”

“Are you going to tell me the whole story between you and that guy just now at the gas station?”

My first instinct would be to brush her off with an excuse. I don’t talk about that day. And I don’t talk about why that’s the reason I became a cop.

“My twin brother and I used to be motorcycle racers. Fox was the captain of a rival team based in Shell Cove. A real pain in our butts. He wasn’t just an asshole on the racetrack. Two years ago, we came to blows when I caught him trying to force himself on his girlfriend…”

I tell her everything.

From the way I kicked his ass to protect Zara, to the way he didn’t stop racing when my brother was slung off his bike and the race was suspended.

“The investigation was a bust. The person on the bike that hit Atlas was never identified. But it was one of Fox’s bikes. I tried to speak to the police, even after my father said he had tried everything. There were no leads. My brother might have as well been killed by a ghost.”

Olivia isn’t stupid. “That’s why you joined the department? You’re looking into your brother’s case?”

I’ve kept the reason I wanted to be a cop close to my chest; even when Dad was furious about my decision to drop out of college to pursue a career in law enforcement.

Olivia is smart and at this point, I see no reason to lie to her. “I know if a case isn’t solved within the first week, the chance of it ever being solved plummets. It’s been two years, but I’m not going to stop until I get answers.”

She’s quiet until I park our police car in the parking lot in front of the sheriff's station.

“Now the guy who was on the tarmac when it all went down pops up in town.” She says. “You were rivals and had come to blows right before that race. Do you think there’s a connection?”

I’ve been racking my brain about it for years. “I don’t know for sure. But Atlas was hit by one of Fox’s team’s bikes. There has to be a connection. Even if I’m wrong, that guy is bad news. I want to know why he’s here and what the fuck he’s up to.”

She considers my words before nodding. “Fine. We’ll keep tabs on him.

But Hunter,” she lowers her voice despite the fact that there’s no one else in the parking lot, and we’re still in the car.

“You have to be smart about this. That confrontation at the gas station wasn’t your finest moment.

You need to lie low, pretend that everything is business as usual.

If Fox is up to something, now he knows you’re watching him.

He’s going to be extra careful. We need to make him feel safe, so he’ll get sloppy and show us his hand. ”

I know Olivia is right. Patience isn’t my strong suit, however.

“You said we.” I smile.

“Shut up.” She rolls her eyes and punches my arm. “What kind of partner would I be if I didn’t make sure you stay out of trouble?”

I chuckle.

“What?” she tries to glare at me, but she’s struggling to keep from smiling.

“Nothing. It just hit me how this is the most words you’ve said to me since the day I started working here.”

She turns to look at me before opening the car door. “Fuck off, Hunter. I thought we covered that. Now, get your ass in the office and let’s go see Hank about that CCTV footage.”

There’s no heat in her tone and as I follow her inside the station, I feel like I’m not completely alone in this for the first time.