Breaking Conviction by Greer Rivers

Chapter Twenty

“Eat your dinner and watch your show, baby.” Naomi slid the grilled cheese with the edges cut off, with the dinosaur chicken nuggets on the side across the concrete countertop.

It hurt her inner chef to feed her child the fake orange cheese, but it was the only kid-friendly food in the refrigerator at that moment. Four of the BlackStone Crew lived on the second floor of the BlackStone facility and despite the fact that all four of them were jacked and fit, the fridge had been empty when she arrived except for beer and random snacks. She had no idea where they got their nutrition, but it certainly wasn’t from their kitchen.

And poor Wes, bless his heart. He’d taken it upon himself to go grocery shopping to surprise Naomi with “every kid thing” he could find. Which unfortunately meant fake cheese, just-add-water boxed foods, and frozen items, all with cartoons on them.

She lifted one of the cereal boxes and sighed. The green little guy on the front was touting how many marshmallows were inside an allegedly nutritional breakfast.

“Yeah, I’m definitely giving him a list next time,” she murmured to herself.

When they did need more groceries, she would either have to ask Wes again or be very cautious about going out herself. She wasn’t even going to work, instead putting down two weeks of vacation until she and Thea could get situated. Thanks to Dean, she was quickly running out of PTO.

Trying not to give that man another second of her worries, Naomi pushed the doom and gloom thoughts aside before returning the box to the counter. The colors on the cardboard were garish against the gray concrete countertop. In fact, the brightness was out of place in the whole damn facility.

Everything in the BlackStone Complex was concrete. The floors, the ceiling, countertops, walls. When they’d first arrived, she’d been afraid it would feel like a prison. But her fears had eased when she saw the well-decorated facades and accents on the walls and ceilings. Certainly not her style, but it was much nicer than what she’d expected from the warehouse the few times she’d visited.

Thea loved it all. But Thea loved anything new. Maybe that was why she hadn’t asked about her dad. Not once.

Naomi expelled a deep breath and tapped her nails on the cement. “T, baby, I’m not askin’ again. Come get your dinner. I’m not gonna bring it to you when the good Lord gave you two fine feet of your own.”

“Yes, ma’am,” Thea muttered in her mindless iPad-watching voice as she slid off her chair. The whole walk to the counter and back, her eyes were glued to the screen even though she’d seen the movie a million times. When she finally settled at the long dining table at the center of the kitchen in the floor’s open concept, she mindlessly started to eat her grilled cheese. Probably not even aware of what she was eating.

Just as well. It was trash.

Male whispers came from the living room and Naomi went to Thea and tapped the large headphones hooked on her neck.

“Headphones, T. And not too loud.”

Thea nodded, her eyes never leaving the screen as she clumsily placed the headphones on her head. Once on, Thea continued to eat the tiniest bites of her sandwich. It was a treat for her to watch a show while she ate. Naomi’s rule was that she could watch the show, but when Thea finished eating, it was bath time and bedtime. So naturally, T was making her dinner last as long as possible with the smallest of bites.

With Thea preoccupied, Naomi focused on the conversation in the living room, far enough away for the whispers to be heard but not discernible.

The BlackStone crew had a meeting after Wes and Assistant District Attorney Marco Aguilar finally got back from the hospital, and Naomi could hear Wes speaking with Hawk in hushed tones in the living room.

As soon as she stepped into the threshold that marked the living room in the open concept design, their whispers quieted. She paused and eyed them both.

“What’s goin’ on, y’all? Is there somethin’ I need to know?” They met her with silence and she felt a frisson of irritation. “I know I’m not one of y’all... but T and I are here for the foreseeable future. At least until I figure out what to do next. I don’t want us here if it’s dangerous. I also don’t want to hide out without doin’ my part. If I can help, I want to know. So, y’all don’t have to tell me everything, but anything would be appreciated.”

Wes and Hawk glanced at each other like two men who’d been working together for so long they could read each other’s thoughts. Their faces were expressionless, but apparently still saying enough in their silent code. Finally, Hawk dipped his head and Wes turned his gaze to her before clearing his throat.

“Is Princess T around?” he asked and Naomi’s heart skipped that he’d think of her.

Dang, Nay. Get a grip.

“She’s got headphones and Brave on.”

It was all she’d needed to say. Wes knew Thea’s obsession with Merida. His smile reached the crinkle in his eyes. “Can’t compete with that Mary-duh.”

Naomi snorted at the way he copied Thea’s emphasis on the Pixar princess’s name, but quickly sobered. She didn’t want to get distracted. Wes must’ve seen the seriousness in her eyes because his face cleared.

“Mitchell Strickland is dead.”

“Oh god. What? From when Devil shot him?” Naomi’s heart stuttered and she pressed her hand up to her chest.

Wes shook his head. “Ashland County officers were guarding the door, but we think someone helped him on his way to meet his maker, so to speak.”

Naomi clumsily felt for the back of the couch with her hand before collapsing onto a cushion close to Wes. “Shit. Then do y’all think it’s linked to Dmitri Rusnak?”

Hawk’s lips tightened, but Wes continued. “Yeah... we do. We think whoever is actually behind this bullshit is picking off the players one by one. The only other person we know for sure is involved is Andrew Ascot, the third partner in the law firm with Rusnak and Strickland. The police have a warrant out for him but they haven’t been able to find him.”

Worst-case scenarios ran rampant through her brain. “But what if someone else finds him first?”

Wes dipped his chin again. “Yeah, that’s what we were discussing at the meeting earlier. We think we’re gonna have to... um... help the authorities out.”

“Take this shit into our own hands. If you want something done right...”

At Hawk’s statement, Naomi nodded before realization about what he was saying dawned. “But what about the police? Don’t they need to be involved?” Even as she said it, doubt crept into her mind.

The same cops who’d help Dean in a heartbeat if I called them? The sheriff’s office that hid an officer who was neck deep in the entire operation.

Even though the Ashland County Sheriff’s Office had developed a lot of distrust over the years, she’d never wanted to give in to the rumors before. Despite Dean’s treatment and threats to sic his cop buddies on her, it had always felt like a betrayal to her father to not trust the police.

But now one of the most influential inmates in Ashland history had been murdered right under their noses.

Or by one of them.

She blew out a breath. “This is a mess.”

Hawk snorted. “Who you tellin’?”

Naomi closed her eyes, warring between the need to know everything and the peace of plausible deniability.

“I’d like to be kept updated... sort of. I don’t need all the details, just need to know for me and Thea to be safe.”

Wes nodded. “Of course. We’ll share what we can. Right now... we’ve got something in the works, but don’t stress, okay?”

A sardonic laugh escaped her at the absurdity of his statement. “I’ll try my best.”

A buzz in the room set Naomi’s nerves on fire and she patted around her baggy sweater and leggings for her phone but couldn’t find it.

“Hello?” Hawk’s deep voice resounded in front of her, silencing the alarm bells in her mind. “Yeah, hold on...” Hawk held up his hand to both of them as a signal goodbye and left the living room, talking in hushed tones on his phone.

She closed her eyes and took a relaxing breath in and out of her nose.

It wasn’t Dean. He’s out of my life. I’m safe.

“You okay?” Wes asked, concern furrowing his brow.

“What? Oh yeah. I’m fine—”

“Don’t do that.”

Naomi stopped and widened her eyes. “Don’t do what?”

“Lie. You’re safe with me, Naomi. You don’t have to lie with me.”

She bit back a growl. “What makes you so sure I was gonna lie to you?”

Wes groaned before swiping his face under his glasses and repositioning them. “How about this? Let’s just pretend for one second that I get where you’re coming from. And let’s also pretend this is a safe, judgment-free space and I’m a good listener. So in that world, if I asked you if you were okay, what would you say?”

Naomi bit the inside of her lips together, fighting back the habitual need to lie to protect her secrets. Instead, she trusted her instincts. “I was afraid it was Dean.”

Wes nodded. “Thought so.”

“But I don’t even know where my phone is...” The realization made her pause. “And I’m not sure I’ve been able to say that for the past five years. My, uh, Dean… He works security, too. With AIE—”

“AIE Securities?” Wes interrupted before widening his eyes and winced like he’d given himself away. “I might’ve, uh, run a background on him.”

Naomi snorted. “Honestly, I’d expect nothing less. Anyway—as I’m sure you know—he used to be a cop. I-it’s one of the reasons why I stayed so long. He’s got a lot of friends on the force still. Anyway, he is kind of obsessed with makin’ sure I’m ‘available’ at all times.”

A grim anger seemed to radiate from him, but to his credit, he closed his eyes and when he opened them again, they were clear. She noticed his hands tighten and the impulse to flee or fight tried to shout at her to get up.

But Wes wouldn’t hurt me.

The truth in the statement rocked her and she blinked back the sting in her eyes. She was close enough to see the calluses on his knuckles and without thinking, she reached to trace them. Instantly, he stilled as if she was a wild animal eating from his hand and he was afraid if he moved, she’d run away. Which wasn’t that far off, if she was honest.

“Where’d you get these?” She’d seen injuries on knuckles before, but she knew without a doubt Wes hadn’t gotten them from hitting a woman. “You been gettin’ in fights, troublemaker?” She forced a laugh as she teased him, hoping he hadn’t earned them actually hurting anyone.

He stretched his fingers under her hand and looked down at them before clearing his throat. “They’re, uh, from boxing.” Naomi felt her eyes narrow at his hesitancy before he continued. “Every crew member was military, special forces. We’ve all been taught expert fighting techniques. Boxing and mixed martial arts are the ones I’ve stuck with the best.”

She relaxed at his explanation and nodded, following the divots and hardened peaks of each knuckle. “See, I knew you were trouble,” she joked again, this time with a genuine smile of relief.

After a few more strokes, she felt Wes’s heated eyes on her. She stopped and reluctantly moved her hand so slowly that Wes had plenty of time to grab a hold of it and keep it between his.

He’d done that before too, held her hand in both of his. It felt natural, and an unexpected feeling of safety came from the simple act, unfurling something deep in her belly that she had been afraid to explore before she’d left Dean.

She’d ‘lost’ her engagement ring months ago, and ever since Wes had guided her and Thea to her car, Dean’s touch had felt like betrayal, not Wes’s. It was one of the reasons why she’d been so persistently against Wes for so long. If she’d given in to how good it’d felt when he was around, she would’ve done much worse than what they had in the BlackStone war room.

One of Wes’s hands left hers and stroked her cheek. “What’re you thinking over there, love?”

She rolled her eyes but couldn’t stop herself from smiling. “Just... I haven’t felt this way in... a long time.”

He tilted his head in question, but his eyes were intense and kind. “And what way’s that?”

“Mommy! I’m done.” Thea’s singsongy voice echoed toward them, bringing them out of the moment.

“Sorry, I have to go—” Naomi shot up off the couch, but Wes stood with her and tugged her elbow.

“Tell me, Naomi. Don’t run. What do you feel?”

Naomi thought through all the feelings roiling inside of her chest and chose the least risky one.

“Safe.”

Wes’s jaw ticced, but something told her he was mad for her, not at her.

“That’s a shame, love. You should never feel anything but protected.” He squeezed her hands and leaned in. His cedar-citrus scent cleansing and relaxing her nerves as he whispered into her ear. “Let me in and I’ll make sure you know what it feels like to be cherished.”

Then he kissed her cheek… and left.