Drew didn’t look surprised. “Not quite how it went,” he answered.
“You knew where the body was.” I always wondered how they put those pieces together. Where the weapon came from that happened to have his fingerprints on them.
“Yes.” Drew studied the surface of the table. “Lorne understood the game better than most people. But he underestimated me.”
“And he just… accepted going to prison?”
“Of course not. Lorne doesn’t believe in taking the fall. He thinks I already proved my loyalty.” Drew’s mouth curved slightly. “I’m heading up the legal team.”
The phrasing made something cold slide through my chest. A memory surfaced. Drew at the scene that night Lorne was taken into custody. The aftermath he’d quietly taken control of.
The word landed with quiet certainty. The air between us shifted. “He arranged the meeting,” Drew continued calmly. “Darren thought he was negotiating leverage.”
My pulse slowed. “And Lorne wanted something else.”
“Yes.” A pause lingered over the table. “Sometimes powerful men don’t give you a choice,” Drew said quietly. “They just make sure you understand the consequences if you fail them.”
“What did he threaten?”
Neither of us moved. Drew’s eyes finally met mine again. “You.”
The pieces aligned with brutal clarity. Drew had been there. Lorne had orchestrated it. And when the moment came… Drew hadn’t been given a choice.
The truth hung silently between us. No confession. No denial. Just understanding.
Across the table, Drew watched me carefully. There was nothing detached about it—just steady certainty. He’d made the decision a long time ago—and never questioned it.
Finally Drew leaned back. “You got out, Luke.”
The statement carried something close to relief.
“Don’t come back. Not to the company.”
I thought about everything our family had built. The power. The influence. The quiet corruption that had lived beneath it. Then I thought about the girl painting in the house two blocks away.
“I won’t,” I answered.
I understood what my brother meant—don’t go back to the company because it wasn’t what I wanted from life. He knew that. Even if he was creating something I could also be proud of, it was about pursing a future I wanted, not one that was mandated.
“Drew.” My voice came out rougher than I intended.
“Yeah?”
I held his gaze. “I know what you did. Thank you.”
Drew didn’t look away. “You don’t owe me anything”
“Doesn’t matter.”
A faint curve touched his mouth. “I’ve got you.”
“I know.”
He finished his drink before standing. When he passed me, his hand landed briefly on my shoulder. Not light. Not casual. Then he was gone.
The house was quiet by the time I returned.
Jax’s SUV sat crooked in the driveway. Theo’s gear bag rested by the door where he’d dropped it after practice. Somewhere upstairs a floorboard creaked—someone still awake, probably Chase finishing a late workout.
