Deploy, Part One (Rawlings #1)(94)

“All I was doing was trying to talk to Justice and that fool hit me. I’m filing charges.”

The Sheriff glared. Charges had been filed. Attempted murder and assault. The MPs had been called. For a long while, Declan and his own would not be an issue. Long enough for him to get Murdock gone, long enough for no one to think the Souters were anything but slighted by the Roughneck Rawlings’ clan.

Out of his pocket, in an evidence bag, the Sheriff withdrew a baseball.

Murdock turned white as a ghost. “Get rid of it.”

“This one? This ball you flung at a vehicle causing an accident, and a death.”

Murdock shook his head. Nope. He was snuggling with Justice, tried to save her from a fire. That’s what happened.

“I can get rid of this one,” the Sheriff said.

Murdock dared to sigh in relief.

“But I can’t get rid of the one that Declan found in his truck, the one the federal agents have.”

Murdock lifted his brow.

“This one was in the bed, fell out on the tow truck. I thought it was odd, kept it for curious reasons. And then today happens.”

“You can’t say that’s mine.” In the one year of school he did pay attention, in all the time he had been raised by a lawman, he’d picked up a thing or two, things he thought long and hard about when he caught a buzz and thought of all the ways his dark secrets could be revealed and how he could get out of it.

Circumstantial—the very word was his best friend on long sleepless nights.

“Nope. But who would deny you’re a hell of a pitcher, or at least you were. How many people do you think will recall you throwing balls at both Declan and Nolan at the game years back? Or do you think Jacks would deny you and him, drunk as hell, threw balls at Nolan the night before he vanished.”

After a minute Murdock spoke. “What do I do?”

“For starters, not roughing up the girl who could alibi you out would have been a good idea.”

Murdock dropped his head.

“You need to vanish.”

“That will make me look guilty.”

“You are.”

Murdock shook his head. “I was with Justice.”

The Sheriff breathed out. He loved this kid, maybe not like his own son, because he wasn’t, but he did love him.

If this deal went south, if the Rawlings’ managed to kick up enough dust and point enough fingers, this kid, who’d been trying to destroy himself for years, could go up for a long time.

Seeing him go to jail—his trial—it would ruin their family, maybe their town. If Murdock vanished, or was never officially charged or tried...people would forget that.

This town already saw the Sheriff as the father that did his damndest to raise a good kid, and they still would as long as this lost its heat.

“You’re leaving. Vanishing. It’s this or jail.” He leaned forward. “You let a Rawlings take your girl and your life. That’s your f*ck up, son. Not mine.”

Murdock didn’t say a word. He had no job, no money, and a bad habit that he had to feed or he’d be in some serious pain. Running—it made no sense to him. His dad could fix this. He was just mad. And besides, he had been with Justice.

“Out, now. The MPs are on their way for Declan, for all I know they will turn him lose and Lord knows that boy could track you in his sleep if he has cause.” He glanced to his son’s arm. “He sure enough does.”

“What does that mean?”

The Sheriff grunted. “Get to the docks. Your mother has a ride set up for you.”





Twenty-Five


Justice was alone at home. Dawson was with her but she left, and she did so on purpose. She wasn’t far, just down the road, waiting, watching. Justice had told Dawson everything, every secret she had. If this was any other town, this would have been easy, tell the truth then and now. But it wasn’t. It was Bradyville.

“Get him to confess—to any of the shit he has put you through and anything he claims will never be taken seriously, no Sheriff can protect him,” was Dawson’s advice.

“If he confesses to the rape...and it’s on record, Declan will kill him. My son will not have a dad—they will lock him up.”

“They’re already trying to do that,” Dawson argued. “The charges they filed are bullshit but will not go away without a fight. You know that.”

Justice grimaced. She knew every demon from her past was about to surface.

Get him to confess... Dawson’s words kept circling in her mind. Justice didn’t know all the details, but she knew because of a baseball, the Rawlings were positive Murdock was the cause of Nolan going off the road. Hearing Dawson relay that to her after she spoke to one of her contacts had Justice seeing the night her father died and the years since then differently. She was seeing red...

Murdock was ridiculously predictable. The moment Dawson got the text that Murdock had snuck out of his room at the hospital, Justice knew he was coming after her.

Justice was in the backyard, pumping herself up, boxing with the dummy. She was so into it that it took her a minute to hear her phone. The text from Dawson read: just passed me.

Justice felt the blood drain from her face.

***

Leave, he said leave. Fuck that. No, Murdock was fixing this. He was going to drag Justice Rose into the station and make her tell them all he was with her. One car was at her house—a f*cking miracle, those f*cking Rawlings’ had surrounded her for months.