“Anything,” Elias said immediately.
“Including submitting to your father’s demands?”
He turned away from Iona, hands covering his face. Guess that was answer enough.
“Do you have any updates for us, Zane?” Iona asked as she wrapped her arms around Elias from behind without saying a word to him. What was there to say? Elias would sacrifice himself for those he loved without a second thought. Because Eddie viewed that as his son’s weakness, he’d use it to control Elias.
She rested her forehead against his back. Iona couldn’t condemn Elias for his choice. Faced with the same decision, Iona would have chosen the same self-destructive path to save her friends and the man she loved.
“Find me proof, Zane,” Elias said. “I need irrefutable proof, my friend.”
“Give me a few hours. I’ll see what I can find.” He paused, then said, “Would your mother know anything that might help?”
“Doubt it.”
Z remained silent. So did Elias.
Iona rolled her eyes. “We’ll talk to her. From what Elias shared about his parents’ relationship, it’s more likely his mother is as oblivious as we have been.”
“It’s time to wake up.”
“Copy that, sir.”
“Check in again when you report to Maddox. Murphy out.”
“She knows nothing,” Elias insisted, turning to face Iona. “I know her, Iona. Naomi Crane is the sweetest woman on the planet who looks for the best in everyone. My stepfather treats her like a princess, a world away from how Eddie treated her.”
“Let’s find out. Call her.”
“I’m telling you, we’re wasting our time.”
“I wish I had time to waste with my mother.” Her voice was gentle. “Call her, Elias.”
After dragging a hand down his face, Elias grabbed his phone and made a call.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
ELIAS CLENCHED HISjaw as he waited for his mother to answer the phone. Zane and Iona had to be wrong.
But what if they weren’t? His stomach twisted at the thought of his father manipulating his life to force him back into the MC. Nausea surged. What if they were right? What if his friends had seen what Elias was so reluctant to face?
After the fifth ring, Naomi Crane answered the call. “Elias, what’s wrong?”
Leave it to his mother to know when something was off. Why did mothers have a sixth sense telling them the truth before their child spoke a single word?
“Maybe I called because I wanted to hear your voice.”
“As much as I’d like that to be the case, I know you too well, baby. Let’s have it. What’s wrong?”
Elias closed his eyes for a moment. “Would my father set a trap to force me back into the Reckoners?”
She gasped. “Oh, Elias. I thought Eddie had given up that crazy scheme when you joined the military.”
His heart skipped a beat. Oh, man. Talk about his worst nightmare coming true. “What’s the point of forcing me back into the fold?”
“Power.”
He gave a bark of laughter. “Must be a boost to his power, because he’s never done one thing to help me in my entire life.”
