Page 95 of The Murder Club

“Murders? Me?” Eric made a strangled sound, looking shell-shocked by the accusation. “No. No way.”

“I just don’t want you to get caught up in something that might ruin your future,” she continued in soothing tones. “Logan Donaldson isn’t worth going to jail, is he?”

The color drained from Eric’s face, emphasizing the jaundiced hue to his skin. “The bastard swore I wouldn’t get in any trouble.”

Bailey released a small sigh of relief. Finally.

“In trouble for what?” she asked.

“For Nellie.”

Bailey’s relief was shattered as she gazed at her companion in horror. “You . . .” She was forced to clear the sudden lump from her throat. “Did you hurt her? Maybe by accident?”

He gasped at her stumbling words. “Of course not. I can’t believe you would even ask me that.”

“I’m sorry.” Her apology was genuine. Eric appeared deeply hurt by her words. “I was trying to work out what Logan forced you to do,” she managed to continue. “And there was something, wasn’t there?”

Eric shot a quick glance toward Dom, as if he was wishing the large man wasn’t there. Dom folded his arms over his chest, silently warning him that he wasn’t leaving. Eric heaved a loud sigh.

“Yeah. Okay,” he conceded. “There was something.”

“You can tell me,” Bailey urged.

“It wasn’t my fault. Logan more or less threatened to fire me if I didn’t help him out.” He waved his hand. “And you know my mom would freak out if I lost my job. She threatened to kick me out the last time it happened. Where would I go?”

Bailey glanced around the living room with a tiny shudder. It was weirdly sterile and lifeless. No pictures, no flowers, not even a television. Just unused furniture and a Bible set on the low coffee table.

Bailey returned her attention to Eric. “I’m sure you had no choice.”

“I didn’t. Really and truly.”

“What did he make you do?”

“He made me steal from the residents.”

Chapter 20

Bailey was braced for Eric’s confession. She had no idea what he might say, but she assumed it would be something shocking. It wasn’t until the words left his mouth that she realized she wasn’t surprised. Probably because so many awful things had been happening that a little petty theft didn’t seem like a big deal.

How sad was that?

“What did you steal?” she demanded.

Eric hesitated, his expression hovering between defensive and sulky. Like a child forced to admit what he’d done wrong.

“Nothing big.” He glanced away, reluctant to reveal the truth. “At least not at first. I’d take their credit card out of their wallet for Logan to use and then return it the next morning. And occasionally I’d take some cash that was lying around. It was harmless.”

Bailey frowned, no longer dismissing the theft as petty. The residents depended on Eric, not to mention Logan, to keep them safe. That included their meager belongings. The fact that they would abuse that trust and take what little they had was disgusting.

For now, however, she had to bite back her words of condemnation. She had to know what Eric was involved in.

“You said it was nothing big in the beginning,” she reminded him. “What changed?”

“Logan said he needed more.”

“More what?”

“Money.” Eric glanced back at her, his expression wary, as if he could sense her disapproval. “He told me to start taking anything of value.”