His questions were wielded like daggers, but I wasn’t scared. Instead, I met his gaze head on and said what I wished I could have gotten out before the police arrived and took Ronan away: “Of course I love him.”
Owen nodded, apparently satisfied. “He won’t tell anyone anything. All he said was that Billy Richards was a threat to the family, and he handled it.”
I frowned. “So, it’s possible.”
Liam looked frustrated. “We’re not going to operate on speculation here. However, Laney, one of the reasons I did come here was to see if you could call Ronan and convince him to tell me the truth, whatever it is. I can’t help him if I don’t know the facts.”
Facts. Right.
I closed my eyes, digesting said facts as I could remember them.
Fact One: My husband might be a murderer.
Fact Two (and most recent): I wasn’t entirely sure that made me love him any less.
Maybe it should have. As I lay there in the hospital, my newly repaired heart beating steadily, I wondered if loving a man shrouded in darkness meant I was just as dark as he was. After all, we’d found each other in the labyrinth of Vegas, and I’d chosen to stay with him even when I knew it countered all logic.
Or maybe it just meant I understood that people were complicated. That Ronan could have been molded into a monster who killed for his family and also be someone who quoted Catullus and held me when I cried and sacrificed himself willingly for the woman he loved.
That brought me to Fact Three: Ronan Black only did terrible things if he felt they were absolutely necessary. And even then, he was more likely to hurt himself than others.
I opened my eyes. “I’ll talk to him. But only if you bring me to Las Vegas to do it in person.”
The door opened just as Liam was opening his mouth to argue with that idea all over again. Dr. Palmer walked and frowned when he caught sight of my visitors.
“I see we have a little party going on here. Laney, I’m leaving for the night, and I’d just like to extend a kind reminder that you do need your sleep to recover.”
I did feel incredibly tired. And incredibly stubborn.
“Dr. Palmer, when can I leave?”
He looked up in clear surprise. “Ah, likely within twenty-four hours, but I wouldn’t recommend going anywhere but?—”
“Can I ride in a car?” I asked, now looking at Owen and Liam.
Liam just shook his head. Owen remained stoic, though I thought I saw the corners of his mouth twitch.
Dr. Palmer just frowned. “Technically, yes. But I certainly wouldn’t recommend any long trips?—”
“How long to drive to Vegas?” I asked Owen.
He was already checking his phone. “Seventeen hours. Maybe twenty with stops.”
“Twenty hours—absolutely not,” Dr. Palmer put in. “Laney, you just had surgery. You need rest. You absolutely cannot drive for two days straight.”
“Doctor, I can and I will.” My voice was steady even as fatigue was starting to overtake me. “This is about my husband. I need to get to Las Vegas.”
Dr. Palmer gawked between me and the other two men. “Is she always this stubborn?”
Liam shrugged.
Owen, however, was almost smiling. “She’s definitely a Black.”
“No, I’m a Fisher,” I corrected him blearily. It was getting harder to keep my eyes open. “But I married a Black. And I’m not letting him face this alone.” I looked between Liam and Owen. I really needed to sleep. “You two can decide which one of you is driving me. Because we’re leaving first thing tomorrow.”
35
IT’S THE ONES YOU LEAST EXPECT
