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My head snaps up as I look at Zeke. “It’s fine,” I say in a rough voice. “I’ll go to St. Louis. I just wanted to … to make sure Rax was out.” My voice cracks on the last few words and I fight hard not to let any tears drop.
Rax scoffs. “Yeah, go to St. Louis.”
“Enough!” Zeke yells and I jump. He points a finger at Rax. “I understand you feel like shit and like Finn fucked you over, but he was trying to help you. He risked everything to help you. You know he can go to prison for this, right? For you. That’s fucking loyalty.”
Rax shakes his head. “You don’t understand.”
“It’s fine,” I tell Zeke again. I finally look at Rax. “I didn’t mean to hurt you. It wasn’t my intention. We needed …” I look at Zeke to make sure I should say what I need to. Zeke nods, so I continue. “We needed to make sure you stayed put so we could find a way to get you out. The only way I could think of was using your feelings for me against you. I’m so fucking sorry about that.” His face blanks as he glares at me. “You don’t know how much that day haunts me.”
“Bet it haunts me more. I was the one in prison for months.” He grinds his teeth with an angry expression. “While you were out here, plotting against me.”
I nod in understanding, knowing I more than deserve this. “I know. I just … I wanted you to be free. That’s all.”
“Fuck that,” Zeke says, making Rax snap his eyes over to him. “You can be mad at Finn all you want, but you’ll have to be mad at Prez and me too. We were in it together, so either you’re mad at us too, or you forgive us all.”
Rax stands quickly, his chair banging against the wall. “Did no one trust me? Did no one think I could pretend long enough for this plan to happen? Did y’all assume that I wanted to be on fucking death row bad enough that I wouldn’t be down with any plans?”
I wince. I thought of that, wanting to bring him in the loop. Rax is a vault. Prez said he wanted to tell him as well, but we couldn’t trust any form of correspondence to let him know.
Zeke answers all of Rax’s questions. “And how would we have told you? Huh? A phone call that was recorded? Or letters the guards would have read to make sure no plans like this one were exchanged? Or the recording devices they have set up in all of the visitors’ room? Please, tell us how we would have told you any fucking thing without all of us winding up in prison because of it. Tell us how the fuck we were supposed to let you in on anything.”
Rax looks between the three of us, not talking for many long moments. Then he storms away.
I can’t let him go. Not like this. I chase behind him into the kitchen.
“Rax please,” I beg, reaching out to him, but not touching him. “Just … I’m sorry.”
He spins around and stalks over to me. He grabs the side of my head and pushes me against the wall. “You’re sorry?” My back hits it with a thump, but I don’t make a noise, staring into his eyes. A slice of fear courses through me, but I don’t shrink away. “You broke my fucking heart, Finn. I know why you did it, but fuck. It hurts.”
“Rax, I’m so sorry. I hated hurting you. It broke my heart too. I thought I was helping. I really thought I was doing the right thing.”
“You did, but you ruined me.” He lets me go and steps away, walking backward as he looks at me before walking up the stairs.
My legs aren’t able to hold me up any longer and I slide down the wall until my butt hits the floor. I wrap my arms around my knees, fighting to keep the tears away.
What do I do now?
One week later…
The search is on for the body of Raxel James, a man convicted of attempted murder before he escaped prison and was captured a few short weeks later. He was sentenced to death in the connection of murdering a correctional officer and was being transported to a maximum-security prison in Texas.
According to the guard that was escorting him, as he was driving James to his new facility a week ago, a deer darted in front of the transport van, causing him to swerve to avoid a collision. The van then traveled down an embankment and into the river.
The guard, who suffered a severe concussion, along with fractured ribs, tried to drag an unconscious James from the van but was too overwhelmed with his own injuries and unable to move James due to his large size. As we know, James was six five and two hundred and twenty pounds. He said James slipped from his hands and was dragged away with the current.
The dam has been closed to aid in the search for James’s body. Authorities are not hopeful he will be found. It has now been switched from a rescue mission to a body recovery mission. We’ll keep you up to date on any developments.
I turn the television off, sitting back on the couch, soaking in that information. Looks like our plan worked. The correctional officer transporting Rax has a spotless record and can’t be connected to the MC. Even though he’s married to Prez’s cousin, it’s a distant cousin that he was able to help get into the states shortly after Prez immigrated himself. No one will connect those dots.
Even though I’m sad that Rax hasn’t spoken to me in a week, I’m glad they won’t ever look for him. He’s out. He’s free.
I stand up, looking around this beautiful home I’ve practically fallen in love with and know I need to go. It was a stupid idea to think that he would want me after what I did to him. I was stupid. But I won’t continue to be.
Jace looks over at me from the magazine he has in his hands. “What’s up, Huck?”
Shaking my head, I stuff my hands in the back pockets of my jeans. “I’m gonna go.”
“Where? Food run?”
