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Bryce shifted the paper over so Cole could see, and threaded their fingers together as his man froze.
“Holy shit.” Cole pulled the paper closer, his fingers tightening their grip on Bryce’s. “Maxwell Denyer, partner at blah, blah, blah, was arrested late yesterday evening after police executed a search warrant on his Bellevue Hill home last week. Officers allege that detailed evidence was found of dealings with both public officials and private organizations spanning decades. These dealings, it is further alleged, are evidence of extortion resulting in the commission of various crimes, including corruption at multiple levels of government, across numerous states and territories. Denyer is expected to apply for bail—”
Cassie called out, “Knock knock,” and Jake rushed over to open the door for her, relieving her of the tray of muffins and freshly baked bread.
“He’ll be out of the country within hours if they grant bail,” Bryce mumbled. “Hey, Cass.”
“Morning.”
Phoenix smiled, a cold smirk that was pure vengeance. “Read to the bottom. They were monitoring his emails and found evidence that he’d booked a ticket to non-extradition country. There’s no way the courts will approve bail without a surrender of his passport.”
Cole blew out a breath and rested his forehead against Bryce’s shoulder. He reached back, hugging Cole to his body. He grunted in pain as he twisted, pulling at his bruised ribs.
“Bloody hell, Bryce, were you hit by a car?” Jake asked.
He brushed off their concerns. “Felt like it, but it’s from the game last night. I took a knee to the ribs. I think it’s only bruised but it’s sore.”
“Are you okay?” Ava asked as she touched his arm before doing the same to Cole. “Seeing this? I mean, does it feel like justice?”
Bryce thought on it for a moment. He was shocked more than anything else. He’d believed Ava and Cole when they’d said Queen was looking into Denyer. He couldn’t believe how quickly she’d dug up information on him, and her promise to take it further seemed genuine. But he hadn’t really believed it would happen. It seemed like an impossibility. Surely if he’d done all those horrible things, if he truly had friends in all the right places like Cassie, Jake and Phoenix’s experiences were with him, he’d be untouchable. Or maybe all those so-called friends were like rats abandoning a sinking ship.
“I’m… kinda shocked that it’s actually happening to be honest,” he settled on. “You know how you’re told something is true, but you don’t believe it until you see it? It’s kinda that for me.”
“Hope the bastard rots in jail,” Cole huffed.
“Yep,” Jake agreed.
“And you three?” Ava asked. “He’s caused you a lot of pain, but he’s your—”
“Don’t say family,” Jake said quietly. “My family are here with me. He’s my sperm donor, but he was never my dad. Cassie’s and Phoenix’s fathers are both more my dads than he ever was. But yeah, for everything he put us through, I’m glad he’s going to jail.”
“Assuming he doesn’t get off somehow,” Phoenix added. “I won’t get my hopes up until the sentence is handed down and appeals are exhausted.”
“We should crack open a bottle of champagne. Have some mimosas,” Ava mused as she looked over her shoulder to check on the bacon sizzling away in the frypan. “Do you have any, Bryce?”
“Thanks, we won’t have any,” Jake said, raising his hands up to stop her from ripping the kitchen apart to find some. Jake gentled his rejection with a small smile tilting his lips and a blush that stole across his face. “We’re going dry for a few months.”
“Yeah, too easy to drink too much when you’re around liquor all the time like I am,” Phoenix added smoothly.
“But feel free to have some,” Cassie interjected as she finished slicing the bread and putting four slices in the toaster.
Cole shook his head. “Phoenix is right. Let’s leave it until the conviction. Anyway, I’ll drive Bryce to the recovery session today, and he shouldn’t drink in case he needs some painkillers.”
“Yes, Dad,” Bryce teased, dodging to the side when Cole playfully bit him.
Cole sobered and cupped his face, pressing a soft kiss to his lips. He rested his forehead against Bryce’s and whispered, “I just want you to be okay.”
Bryce smiled, his cheeks hurting with the grin and the swoopy feeling in his belly from the millions of butterflies doing somersaults. “I know. Now that you’re both here, I’m perfect. But I’m also starving.”
Twenty-five
Ava
December
P
rivacy had never been a big concern for Ava. It was always something that just existed in the background. Something she expected. But since their lives were turned upside down, they craved it. They wanted peace and quiet. They wanted to be as far from prying eyes as possible.
