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“Your temporary clothes are on the beds. Once you’re cleaned up, please use these phones,” says the staff member and hands one to each of us. “The home line is already programmed. You’ll be escorted to the main living room, where Austen will likely join you.”
Though the woman expects us to stick to our separate rooms, I grab the clothes on my bed and head to Goose’s suite. We strip out of what we’re wearing and take turns in the shower. Goose and I often run around naked at our clubhouse we affectionately refer to as “the Pigsty.”
While waiting for my turn in the shower, I send a picture of the lawyer’s card to Ruin and explain what Bear told me about hunting down the ranch hands.
“Can you talk freely?” When I say yes, Ruin dials me up immediately. “What the fuck happened?”
“Do you really want me to go through it all again?”
“Yes.”
“Well, I’m tired, boss. You’ll just need to piece together some of it yourself.”
Ruin doesn’t reply, and I hear his son making baby noises in the background. His teenage daughter, Joie, calls out for the family dog. Ruin’s clearly in the mix of family time.
“How are Selene and the kids?” I ask, trying to get his brain back in order.
Ruin exhales hard. “They’re okay. How are you?”
“It went sideways fast. I don’t know why I didn’t consider they’d burn down the clinic.”
“These guys have nothing to lose. They came up with this dumb fucking revenge plan. Maybe they thought they could take over once we were all dead. Now, they’re in too deep to walk away.”
“This local outfit seems to be on top of shit. They might kill the remaining assholes for us.”
“What will this help cost us later?”
“I don’t think they care about us. They’re more focused on playing nice with Suzanne Knutsen.”
“Banta City isn’t a good place to fuck about in, Walla Walla,” Ruin grumbles as his worries inspire him to treat me like a moron. “It’s just as likely they’ll disappear Goose and you along with the ranch hands. It’s no skin off their ass.”
“From what I can tell,” I explain while Goose spends an excessive amount of time in the shower, “Austen’s mom knows important people around here. If Peter had just called and left a damn message, Suzanne could have handled the problem. I think we both know why he didn’t.”
“And you think this important woman will protect you because you saved her kid?”
Knowing Ruin won’t like what I have to say, I take my time picking the right words. Finally, I just go with, “Austen’s a good-looking woman.”
Ruin doesn’t reply immediately. I notice the background noises change on his side, and I think he’s gone somewhere private.
“Don’t let your dick get you killed,” he growls, sounding ready to go berserk.
“Austen isn’t like her brothers. She’s a sweet chick who stopped in the middle of a fire to save cats.”
“You’ve got to listen to me here. I remember Austen from around town. I saw her file. I get how she’s attractive. She is nice, too, okay? But you are in the middle of a storm and can’t see clearly how no one in that fucking place cares if you live or die. They’re working their own angles. Even if this chick means well, she’ll be just fine if you disappear into a shallow grave. But we won’t be okay. You and Goose need to survive this.”
“We’re fine. You should see the fancy fucking room they’ve got us in. These people aren’t planning to ice us.”
“Not yet. They just found out you exist. But there are players in Banta City above those bikers. The place is mobbed up. Your death warrant might already be signed,” he says and adds, “Can you slip out of there unnoticed and get back here?”
“Our rides are trashed, remember?” I point out as if that’s the reason I won’t bail. “Besides, I have no idea of the layout of this place we’re at.”
Ruin goes quiet again. I feel him plotting. Goose finally gets out of the shower and struts around naked. I imagine Austen cleaned up somewhere in this house.
“Maybe I can send Hobo and Eagle to get you.”
“No, man, that’s unnecessary.”
Before I left, I got a sense Hobo wanted nothing more than to hide out at the Pigsty with his new woman and her cats. He’d been in the wild for a long damn time. Living in the bush of McMurdo Valley is rough. Now, he’s got a soft woman loving all over him. No way should he be forced to leave that comfort to help us here.
