Page 6

Riot

I could count on one finger the number of times I’d been in a judge’s chambers before. It hadn’t turned out so well before. I hoped this time wouldn’t end with me back in prison.

“Have a seat, Mr. Devereaux.” Judge Whitmore gestured to a chair in front of her desk while she took off her robe and hung it on a hook beside her chair.

She wore a crisp, white blouse and a dark suit skirt.

Then she removed a suit jacket that matched her skirt from a hanger next to her robe and put it on.

The woman really was freakishly formal. She sat on the edge of her seat, her forearms resting on her desk.

“Why don’t you tell me your plans now that you’re rejoining society.

” She phrased her question congenially enough, but there was no doubt she expected an answer.

“I’ve only been out three days, Your Honor. I’m still trying to get used to sleeping in an actual bed.”

“I imagine there is some adjusting to do.” Her smile was genuinely kind. This woman was tough as nails, but she wasn’t cruel or unreasonable. “When I said I was familiar with your situation, I meant I know you were brought here today as part of your parole agreement to offer support to Mr. Caleb.”

When she didn’t continue, I realized she expected a response. “Uh, right. Though, I’d like to point out I had no clue what I was walking into. Ms. Thompson’s instructions were to be here at a certain time.”

Judge Whitmore raised an eyebrow. “And would you have come if you’d known the situation?”

I scowled at her. “Of course! I’m a killer, Your Honor, but I’m not a monster.” When she continued to stare at me, I sighed. “Fine. I’ll admit, when I figured out what was going on, I balked. Hard. But there’s no way I’d have refused. If you know my situation, you know why.”

She gave me a satisfied nod. “I just wanted to hear it from you, because I have a favor to ask.”

It was my turn to give her a look. “A favor. As in I have the right to refuse to grant said favor, but you’d advise me not to?”

Judge Whitmore chuckled. “No, Mr. Devereaux. This is fully your choice. I can promise you that I’ll write a formal letter to your parole officer about how helpful you were in cooperating with unreasonable requests without complaints.”

“This must be some favor.” I waved my hand at her. “What is it you need, Your Honor?”

“I want you to keep an eye on Mrs. Violet and Mr. Caleb. Escort her to and from work, and Mr. Caleb to and from school. Check in with her throughout the day.”

“You want me to be her bodyguard?”

“No. I want you to be a friend who’s concerned about her safety, given she has a narcissistic soon-to-be-ex-husband who has allegedly been violent toward her in the past and is very likely not too happy with her at the moment.”

I had to replay her little speech over in my mind to make sure I’d heard her correctly. “You want me to worm my way into her life so I can protect her?”

“Exactly.”

“I’m not going to pretend to be something I’m not with her. I’ll tell her I can count my time with her as part of my community service or something, but I’m not going to pretend to be her friend just so I can be a bodyguard on the down-low.”

“Who said you had to pretend? Have you talked to her?”

“I think you know I haven’t said much to her. And I get where you’re going. But I don’t think a woman as vulnerable as she is right now needs a man like me in her life. Not even as a friend.”

“So you won’t do this?”

I snorted out a laugh. “Didn’t say that.

I’ll keep a very close eye on her and her son.

I’ll protect them to the best of my ability.

If she reaches out to me, I won’t refuse to spend time with her, but considering what she’s about to go through, are you sure it’s the best idea that she associates closely with a convicted killer? ”

“Considering the nature of the charges against you and the account of events from the trial transcript, I’d say you’re the perfect man for her to be closely associated with.”

“Puts Violet in her husband’s crosshairs. I don’t know much about him but sounds to me like he’s got deep pockets and spreads the wealth where it benefits him. He could use me against her.”

“You worry about keeping Violet and Caleb safe. I’ll take care of the legal aspects of your concerns.” I had other concerns but nothing Judge Whitmore could help with, so I kept them to myself.

“I’ll watch over them and keep them safe.”

“Good. I’ll let you get to your charges.

Make sure to check in with Ms. Thompson regularly.

I want her involved directly, especially if you have concerns with Mr. Doug.

I try to be as impartial as humanly possible.

Pride myself in my ability to be willing to look at both sides of a situation with equal weight.

That being said, I can’t ignore basic human decency.

That woman and her son need a strong support system.

Not just to handle their current situation, but to survive.

She doesn’t have anyone to help her at the moment.

What I’m asking is for you to be her support.

You and your club. And yes, I know about Gavin Ferguson and Gage Bohannon. Your president and vice president?”

I shrugged. “Honestly, I just got there. But I think the men you’re talking about, Torpedo and Bohannon, left to go back to Kentucky. Knuckles has taken over again.”

“Ah. Yes. I wasn’t sure when they’d turn the reins back over to the locals. Surprising, but not unexpected.” She smiled. “A few of us are working independently together to help women and children in abusive situations.”

“Are you saying you manipulate the law? Turn it to benefit you or someone you know?” I couldn’t help the little dig. Old grudges die hard. Besides, Judge Whitmore was too perfect to be believed.

She didn’t flinch. “If I have to.”

We regarded each other for several seconds, neither of us willing to flinch. Finally, she stood, extending her hand to me. “Try to get Caleb to talk to you, Mr. Devereaux. He’s holding some big feelings inside him right now and it’s not good for him.”

I shook my head. “I’m not a psychiatrist, ma’am. I don’t want the kid scarred for life.”

“He already is, Mr. Devereaux. Tell him about your experience. Caution him to think about his actions before he commits to them.”

“I know what you’re asking, ma’am. Not sure I’m the one to have that conversation with him because, begging your pardon, Your Honor, I don’t regret one Goddamned thing I did.”

She squeezed my hand but nodded sadly. “I figured as much. I’d still like you to consider telling him your story. He’s an intelligent young man. Give him all the information and he’ll come to the right conclusion.”

I let go of her hand. “I’ll think about it.”

“Thank you, Mr. Devereaux.”

As I exited the judge’s chambers, I thought about what she’d said. I wasn’t sure if I was ready to talk about my past with anyone yet. Sure, it was a long time ago, but that wound was still raw and aching. The less time I spent thinking about everything that had happened, the better.

Lana was speaking quietly with Violet, who looked shell-shocked and grief-stricken. Caleb sat next to his mom holding her hand. I zeroed in on where their hands were connected. Violet clung to Caleb, her knuckles white. Caleb patted her hand with his other one while Lana continued to speak.

Caleb let his mom take what comfort she could, but it was easy to see her tears were hurting the young man.

The only other person in the courtroom was the bailiff, and he looked like he was getting ready to leave as soon as the four of us did.

Harrington and his lawyer were nowhere to be seen.

I had a feeling he’d turn up again sooner than I wanted.

When I approached, Lana stood, meeting my gaze. “Everything all right?”

“Yes.” I did my best to smile and be as non-threatening as possible, but I was a big guy and the very reason I was here was because I was physically intimidating.

“Judge Whitmore thought it would be a good idea if I stay in touch with the three of you.” I glanced from Lana to Caleb, then Violet. “I agree with her.”

Caleb stood and put his shoulders back. “I can take care of my mom.” His gaze darted to Lana then back to me.

“But I don’t believe it’s possible to have too many people looking out for her.

I know I’m just a kid so I won’t have much weight with adults, so I’d appreciate it if you’d help keep Mom safe from Dad. ”

OK, I could work with this. I could tell he was suspicious of me, and I didn’t blame him. “You know both Lana and Judge Whitmore believe I can help you. Right?”

The young man nodded at me. “I know you were in jail and that means you did something bad.”

I nodded. “Yeah, man. I did.”

“Do you regret it?”

Christ! This is what I wanted to avoid. As a rule, I tried never to lie.

This was the most delicate of situations and the kid had just steamrolled his way straight to the heart of the matter.

If I told him I regretted what I’d done, then he found out how thoroughly I did not regret my actions, he’d never trust me again.

Not for lying about this particular subject.

But if I told him the same thing I’d told Judge Whitmore, I knew better than anyone what kind of trigger that confession could be for the kid.

Instead, I took a deep breath, taking my time before speaking. “I don’t lie, Caleb. Not intentionally. So before I answer that question, will you let me think about it a while?”

He gave me a confused look. “Why would you have to think about it? Was it worth going to prison for or not?”

“I want to think about it because…” I trailed off. “Christ, I’m fixin’ to sound like a fuckin’ shrink,” I muttered, scrubbing the back of my neck then over my face with my hand. “Because I’ve always thought about what happened one way, but I need to think about it… the other way.”

The women both blinked up at me, then looked at each other. Violet gave her a look like “the fuck?” Lana just shrugged.

“You don’t sound like a shrink,” Caleb offered.

“Thanks, kid,” I muttered.

“No,” Caleb continued. “You sound really, really confused.” He tilted his head to the side. “Are you having a stroke? You kinda look like you’re having a stroke.”

“What?”

“You know. Like old people do sometimes. Your words aren’t slurred, but are you having trouble finding your words or something?”

“I-I’m not…”

“Mom, we might want to call an ambulance for him. I don’t think he’s all right.”

Lana snorted, then tried to cover her laughter with a cough. Failing miserably at covering her amusement, she finally outright laughed. “I’m sorry, Caleb. It’s not you. Oh, God, Riot! You should see the look on your face!”

I glared at Lana, which didn’t seem to faze her at all. A quick look at the fucking bailiff caught the smile he tried to hide when I turned my gaze on him. “You’d think us guys could stick together.”

“Sorry, man, but I’m looking forward to you explaining that one myself.”

“Which part?” I muttered. I don’t know why I set myself up like that, but there it was.

“All of it. ‘Cause, honestly, you do kinda sound like you’re having a stroke.”

I heaved out a long-suffering sigh. Then I noticed something that absolutely sealed my fate.

Violet looked up at me and she was… smiling.

There were tears in her eyes and staining her cheeks, but the smile was genuine and absolutely fucking breathtaking.

I had to brace myself on the court gallery banister railing or I’d have fallen to my fucking knees.

The filly was a fucking angel. Never had I seen such a beautiful smile, or such a beautiful woman.

Even with tears still falling and dark circles under her eyes, likely from stress and worry, that fucking smile was more than I could take.

There was no defense to mount. I’d lost the war before I even fired a shot.

Hell. I’d lost before I knew there even was a war.

The tiny woman in front of me, terrified, beaten, but determined to fight for her son, stole my heart, planted a flag, and claimed my fucking soul.

The second I acknowledged I now belonged to Violet, my insides settled and something clicked into place. This was where I was supposed to be. This place. With this woman and her son. In a way, I suppose my whole life had been heading toward this moment.

Maybe Judge Whitmore was right. I had to really, really think about what these feelings inside me meant for my future.

More importantly, what would it mean for Violet and Caleb’s future?

I knew I’d always watch over the two of them.

There was no question about that. I also knew there’d never be another woman for me.

The only question was, could I protect her from afar while she lived a happy life with some stupid motherfucker who didn’t deserve her and would never give his whole entire being to her the way I would?

Fuck. There was definitely something wrong with me, because there was no way this woman wasn’t going to be mine. No matter what it took, no matter who I had to kill, Violet was going to be my woman.