She looked through the rain as he drove. “I don’t think it’s going to be a bad storm.”
But it was definitely going to storm tonight. It was hard to miss.
“I’m not sure.”
The tornado that had struck the TSP building a few years ago had been an F4. It had formed just south of Value, one county south of where they were now, and had just grown in strength. Until it was a supertornado. Instead of rotating away, it had almost hovered at full-strength above Finley Creek. There had been extensive damage to almost a fourth of the city. There were some places that were still repairing the damage. Over one hundred people had been killed.
She’d lost several people she worked with.Shehadn’t been out on scene. But Haldyn had been—and two women they’d worked with had been killed. Madison had spent the storm wrapped up in Dom’s arms in the hallway of the TSP. With dozens of their colleagues around them. They had barely made it to the hallway in time. Dom had wrapped himself around her. Protected her.
She would never forget.
There was probably no other man in the world she trusted as much as she did this one—with her personal safety. If she continued to spend so much time alone with him, though, her virtue was virtually toast.
“We’ll get you inside, soon. Your unit has a basement, right?”
Madison nodded. “Every townhome has a basement with storage room access. We tend to all end up down there during storms. There are common areas.”
Each unit had a small basement area of approximately one hundred square feet. Cinderblock rooms that opened into a narrow hallway. There was a boiler room at the opposite end from her unit. It was a nice complex. Houghton had made sure of it when he’d built it more than ten years ago, he’d said. He’d kept it upgraded, as well. “I feel safe there.”
Even though she knew…no one was safe anywhere.
He took her home and parked in front of her unit, right next to the car she hadn’t driven in that day. Madison unlocked the door and greeted Missy the Cat. Her precious baby was waiting for her like she always was. She’d gotten the cat as a baby, back after the shooting. She had just not wanted to keep coming home to an empty apartment. Madison had been so afraid to be alone back then. She’d almost panic if she was alone. And if she didn’t know where her friends were.
It had taken her a long time to just get to beokaywith living her life again. Trauma…didn’t just go away. It never would.
Thunder rattled the walls practically, as Madison turned on all the lights. That was something she’d probably always do—keep lights on. Dark…the dark night scared her more now than it used to.
And that fear had just deepened after Wilson.
Wilson.
Hope had been digging into Steve Wilson. And his friends. And since Kimball had done what he had done—they had names to go on. “One thing I’ve wondered about. Brianna Claireson’s statement the night at the Barratts…”
“What? That woman—I tend to avoid her whenever possible. I think she felt me up once. Damned near pissed myself trying to get away from her.”
“Lol. You are just her type. Tall, hot, strong, a cop, and not rich. Brianna likes to go slumming. We all know that. I seriously pity Samia, Summer, and Eden being related to that woman now. But…She said something…said Trey and all of hisfriends.Who are those friends? The guys he was with that night? But weren’t some of them just paid thugs? Heather said that specifically. And some were involved with Eastman.Bonnie’sstatement matched Zoey’s on that—they were hired thugs, too.Kimball said…the people out of Wichita Falls were using the TSP as foot soldiers, right?”
“Yes. Go on.” He crossed his arms over his chest and leaned against her kitchen island while she rocked the cat for a moment. Missy only tolerated that for so long at times. Madison had held Heather’s baby tonight,andheld Miguel’s. Hope had gotten her thinking: whatdidshe want from her future? Did she want a family some day? Kids? Haldyn and Powell were already talking about future children. Zoey and Powell were due within weeks of each other, Zoey had the two kids she and Murdoch were raising now, and Shelby had a beautiful baby girl already.
Her friends were entering different stages of their lives. Madison just kept…working. Maybe she didn’t want her entire focus to be on theTSP? It had been for years—and what had that gotten her?
Scars. Pain. Trauma. Nightmares. Fear she was going to lose the ones she loved at a moment’s notice.
Maybe…maybe she didn’t want to keep living like that?
Maybe…shedidwant her own family some day? Beautiful babies to hold close. Miguel’s baby girl had been babbling for hermamaagain. And Hope had been there. Hope didn’t even realize that shelookedlike she was that baby’s mother now. That Miguel’s kids came to Hope when they needed something first. That she and Miguel passed that baby girl back and forth like they had done so from day one.
They looked like a family. And she didn’t think Hope even realized that yet.
But…Hope would. Madison wondered if maybe it was trauma causing Hope to not see it, too. Hope was tunnel visioned on Heather. And from what she’d said tonight, she had been for a long, long time.
Steve Wilson. It all circled around him.
“Steve Wilson raped Heather. At least once. Hope told me that night…and he said…I think he slipped Heather something in her drink one night. What if he’s done that before—and it was never consensual at all? There are other women out there. And I think…I think Brianna’s statement…I have a copy of it here.” It took her a moment, but she found it. “Brianna said ‘Trey and Steve and Kyle and all their stupid school friends—they were friends with my brother forever.’”
“And? She and Trey are half-siblings.”
“But…Brianna’s brother wasalsoBankes Claireson. He was friends with Trey. What if…they were all friends? And the Kyle she referenced was Kyle Scott?” Bankes Claireson had almost killed several people—including the governor’s wife. And was responsible for some of the OPJ ring, to begin with. She strongly suspected he’d gotten his share of the supply from Trey Grundenman. It made perfect sense.
