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But even in the mix of shadows, she could see both hands firmly gripping the steering wheel and his brow pulled low.
“Whose van is that?”
Huh? She glanced in the direction he was staring. An old Chevy Astro Van way past its prime was parked in one of the end spots up against the building. The hubcaps and large patches of paint were missing, leaving behind bare steel and plenty of rust.
“I don’t know. This is the first I’m seeing it. I didn’t notice it when I came in earlier.”
“Everybody’s gone, right?”
“As far as I’m aware. I did a walk-through to make sure the building was empty.”
“Sapphire?”
“She was going to lock up the front and leave as soon as your friends left.”
“It’s not hers?”
A half giggle escaped her as she tried to imagine Sapphire tooling around town in that old rust bucket. The woman had a closet full of shoes worth a lot more than that van. “No. She parked out front tonight.”
“Did you lock the rear door?”
“It locks automatically. But I double-checked it since, as soon as we’re done here, I’m getting in my car and leaving.”
His head twisted toward her. “Do they have cameras back here?”
This line of questioning was making her heart thunder in her chest. “Yes.”
“How long do they keep the files?”
“Normally thirty days. After that they’re automatically deleted unless we want to save them.”
“Do you have access to them?”
This had to be what an interrogation felt like. Or someone planning something nefarious, like a break-in. “I do. Or I did. I haven’t had a reason to check them recently.”
“Is it an NVR system?”
“An NVR system?”
“A network video system, where the footage is stored either on a hard drive or in a cloud.”
“Yes, it’s stored electronically. Laura had some sort of account set up that’s password protected.”
“And you have that password?”
“If Taint didn’t change it. But should I be worried about the van being parked there? If so, I can call the police or have the van towed.”
“No.”
She frowned. That wasn’t the answer she was expecting with the way he was acting. “Well, no matter what, it can’t stay back here if it doesn’t belong to one of my employees. I don’t understand your concern about it, though.”
“You just said everyone is gone. So, no vehicles except for ours should be parked back here.”
“Right. If it doesn’t belong here, then I’ll get it towed if it’s still here in a couple of days. That doesn’t mean you’re not making me a little worried.” More than a little. His paranoia about the van was ramping up hers.
“You’re safe with me.”
What did that have to do with the price of beans? “I’m not worried about you.” She wouldn’t be sitting alone with him in a dark parking lot if she was. “It’s the way you’re acting about that vehicle. Like someone could be in it just waiting to kidnap me or something.” Or something.
Truthfully, she didn’t put anything past those fucking Demons. They were really turning the job she loved into a job she now hated.
He pulled in a breath. “I’ll explain my concern in a minute. It’s partially what I wanted to talk to you about.”
“The van you didn’t know about until now is partially what you have to talk to me about?” That didn’t even make sense.
“Not the van. The Demons. Do you want to do something about them?”
What power did she have? “Of course I do. I wish they never bought the club. But I didn’t, and still don’t, have a say in that. I don’t have the money to buy them out and even if I did, I doubt they’d sell it to me. They worked long and hard to rip it from Laura’s fingers.”
“If you had a way to rid your life of them, would you do it?”
That seemed like a trick question. “Yes, but that would mean finding a job elsewhere and I’m already keeping an eye out for an opportunity. Do you know someone who could be an investor? Is that why you wanted to talk to me? Is it you? Are you independently wealthy and one day you decided you were bored and that’s why you joined the Peckers?”
He huffed out a breath. “I hate to crush your hope, but unfortunately, I’m not rich and I don’t know any investors. However, there may be another way to go about it.”
This whole conversation was putting her on edge. From the van obsession to getting rid of the Demons.
She was a woman who put her head down and worked hard. Taking down a dangerous outlaw MC was not on her life’s agenda. Especially after seeing what they did to Laura. Mel had no idea just how far they would’ve gone if Laura hadn’t given in.
“In a legal way? I don’t want to lower myself to their level by using intimidation and scare tactics. Or doing anything illegal.”
