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“I’ve had worse. ” She shrugged. “The absolute worst hit I ever had was given by a woman. She was with a small biker club a couple of years ago. She gave me a concussion with her fist. That wasn’t fun. ” She smiled back at him and gave him a wicked little wink. “Come on, Zeke, stop glaring at me, I’m fine. ”
“Yeah, you’re fine. For now. ” He shook his head as he released her jaw. “What about the next time, Rogue?”
“Well, I’ll deal with the next time when it comes around,” she told him quietly, then asked hesitantly, “Are you worried because of what happened to your wife?”
Rogue watched as all emotion cleared from his face with her question.
“What did you hear about my wife?” he finally asked.
It was a good thing she wasn’t frightened of big men like her sister was, or cared who she pissed off.
“I heard your wife died during an investigation you were conducting in L. A. You were posing as a SWAT member interested in the BDSM lifestyle to expose another member that was involved in drugs. It’s amazing the information you can get if you dig enough. ” And evidently, she had dug just enough.
Zeke felt his jaw clench. Hell, his entire body tightened with furious tension. He’d been able to cover up most of the talk his father had instigated when he first arrived home.
The rumors his father had started had only one purpose in mind. To protect the League, because he had known damned good and well who had killed Zeke’s wife. And it wasn’t anything Zeke had done.
“My wife died because of an investigation,” he agreed. “But it wasn’t the investigation I was involved with in L. A. It had to do with something more personal. ”
He let her see his eyes and what was reflected in them. Shame welled inside him, and that same fury that had followed him for so many years.
“Meaning?” She watched him intently for long seconds.
“Meaning, what happened to Elaina had more to do with the reason my mother left with me for L. A. ” Staring into the fire he fought to hold the full truth back from her. She deserved to know everything; unfortunately, Zeke couldn’t tell her everything.
“That was a long time ago,” she whispered.
Zeke nodded. “Long ago and far away, I’d hoped. It followed us though when Mom decided to threaten Dad with something she knew. She was killed first. When I began investigating things myself, Elaina was killed and I was warned off the investigation. ”
His jaw tightened with the memories. “I had Shane to think of. I backed off then. When I returned here, I started checking into it again. I’ve been tracking the same man ever since. A man that killed for the Freedom League. The same group Dayle and Nadine were a part of. ”
He heard her hard, indrawn breath and glanced back at her.
“Dad was a part of the League,” he told her then. “And I think it goes without saying that this stays between the two of us. ”
Her violet eyes flashed with anger. “You can be an asshole, Zeke,” she accused him. “Of course it stays between us. ”
He almost grinned at her vehemence. “I figured it would. ” He had known it would.
“So you blame yourself for your mother and wife’s death?”
Violet eyes darkened. Zeke could see the conflicting emotions that raged in her eyes and felt his heart clench. There was no recrimination in her gaze, only acceptance and trust.
He shook his head at the sight of it.
“Damn, you’re too trusting,” he said mockingly. “I was the reason for it, Rogue. I fucked up, it’s that simple. Somehow, I managed to ask the wrong question of the wrong person. They found out what I was doing and they struck back. The head of the League is behind bars now, but that killer is still out there. I don’t have proof yet, but I know in my gut that he killed Joe and Jaime, and I suspect he killed Callie Walker.
There are too many similarities to their murders and the murders that man has committed over the years. ”
“Then this has something to do with what happened last year as well? When the Mackays and Cranston arrested the homeland terrorists?” she said. “I’d wondered. I knew Joe and Jaime were close with the Mackays, but I wasn’t certain if they were supplying them with information or not. Jonesy and I wondered about it, but they never said anything and I didn’t ask. But I knew they had connections to some of the suspects.
They worked for Dayle for a while, and they were friends with several of the men arrested. ”
“And Jonesy isn’t to know anything else,” he warned her. “Not until I know for certain who is who and talks where. ”
“Don’t piss me off, Zeke. I know how to keep my mouth shut,” she warned him.
“And I know how to protect you now,” he promised her. “I won’t let you get hurt by this, Rogue. ”
