“I just got to town, and I saw all the sheriff’s cars headed out here. But that shit doesn’t matter.” Bailey came to my side and jutted out his chin. “I love Flynn. He’s a good man. I won’t stand by and let you condemn him!”
“I’m not?—”
“He protected his brother!” Bailey insisted, cutting off Holden’s words. “You’d all do the same for me, wouldn’t you? If someone was hurting me? He’s not akiller.He’s a protector.”
“Don’t sugarcoat it,” I said quietly. “I committed a crime. I went to prison. I’m not a hero in this story.”
Bailey turned. “But you are. You’re a hero inmystory.”
My chest grew tight, and I drew Bailey close, burying my face in his neck, touched beyond words that he’d fight for me like this.
I didn’t know if his brothers would see it his way, but it meant the world that he’d try.
“You’re the hero in ours too,” Holden said finally.
His voice was quiet, but it carried on the wind, firm and unyielding.
I lifted my head, stunned. “What?”
“You stopped that asshole from robbing us,” he said. “Hell, you warned us about him from the start. You’re loyal, Flynn. You had our backs.”
“Even when he had leverage on you,” Gray added. “You could have let him go, and we wouldn’t have known.”
“I couldn’t do that,” I said. “He’d come back.”
Gray nodded. “Still, it took guts to face us, to own that truth.”
Axel crossed his arms, eyes bright and angry. “You could have told me. Why didn’t you trust me, Flynn? I thought we were like brothers. Itoldyou we were fucking family!”
My breath caught in my chest. Shit. The betrayal on his face damn near killed me.
“I’m sorry,” I rasped. “I was going to tell you. All of you. I just…I was waiting for the right time.”
“And what about Bailey?” Axel challenged. “Did you tell him before or after you?—”
“Before!” Bailey cut in. “He told me before anything happened, and before you ask, he tried to warn me off. I just wouldn’t listen.”
“That tracks,” Holden muttered.
Bailey leaned in against my side, squeezing me tight. “I’d trust him with my life. That’s the truth. You canalltrust him. You already have. This doesn’t change anything. If you think it does, you can fuck right off because I’m not going to stop seeing him. Ever. And I won’t let you drive him away. You hear me? If he goes, I go.”
“We hear you, brat,” Gray said. “Calm down. No one is running anyone off.”
Holden nodded in agreement, expression too neutral to read.
Axel was anything but neutral, though. He still looked pissed as hell. Of all the brothers, I thought he’d be the one who’d take the news easiest. Maybe he would have if I’d told him weeks ago. I’d let it wait too long. I’d known, deep down, that I should trust them with the truth.
I’d been a coward, too afraid to act, and now they’d found out in the worst possible way.
“I’ll go check with Dalton for an update,” Axel said, voice short. “He’ll probably want the video footage for evidence of B&E.”
“Make sure they charge him with animal endangerment too,” I said. “He tried to poison the dogs.”
“What?” Axel growled, dropping to his haunches to examine Sugar. “Did they eat any? Why are you just now telling me?”
“I got here in time,” I said. “They didn’t eat anything. But there’s a piece of tainted meat a few feet that way. I kicked dirt over it, but I can’t promise they won’t eat it.”
Axel turned on his flashlight and started sweeping it in arcs over the dirt as he moved.
