Banished (A Retribution Novel) (8 page)

“Sam, I want you to have constant eyes on Angel Hardy,”
Hunter said before he turned his gaze to Ryan. “You’re going to need to come up
with something more concrete on Guy Contreras. If your source doesn’t make it
back to town within the next couple of days, you’re going to have to go looking
for trouble. Stir up shit like we talked about.”

Ryan nodded, trying to focus on Hunter’s words and
stop replaying the scene with Violet on the sidewalk. Why had he followed her
in the first place? She didn’t want him in her business, and he certainly
didn’t want to be there. He had more important things to take care of, such as
clearing his name.

“Ryan?” Hunter waved a hand in front of his face.
“Are you with me buddy?”

He blinked and focused on the group who stared at
him. “Yeah. Sorry. I need to stir up some shit.”

“I think we’re missing a great opportunity if we
don’t start a feud between Hardy and Contreras right now, if you ask me.”
Christian shoved his dark hair out of his eyes. “We’ve been babying this
situation. We need to hit it hard and hit it fast. Shake their tree and see
what falls.”

Hunter shifted his gaze from Christian to Sam and
then Ryan. “What do you guys think?”

“I’m for it.” Sam turned to Ryan. “How about it,
buddy?”

“Yeah. The itch to nail Contreras has reached a
nuclear level, and I’m a hundred percent ready to knock him out of commission.”
He’d never have a normal life otherwise, and for some reason, meeting Violet
left him wanting something more.

“Then start planting the seeds. You still have
your connections, Christian?”

He grinned. “As always. I just need to say the
word.”

“Okay, good. Let’s plan to meet at my house next
weekend and see where we stand.”

“Sounds good,” Sam said. “Xander should be
available then, too, and the three of us will ride out from the city together
and meet you and Ryan in Tillamook.”

“You driving?” Christian asked Sam. “Cause I’m
planning on drinking afterward.”

“Sure.” Sam stood. “I need to head back to the
city. Janie has something special planned, and I don’t like to keep her waiting.”

Christian groaned as he slid back his chair as
well. “Damn, brother. Do you have to keep rubbing it in our faces that you have
a sweet little honey back home? I miss her cooking for me every day. Maybe you
could convince her to come to Hunter’s and cook for all of us.”

Sam grinned, obviously happy with his life. “I’m
sure she’d love to.”

Ryan shared a glance with Hunter, neither of them
wanting to hear about marital bliss, but they wouldn’t mention it to their
newly-wedded friend. He’d found a hell of a woman, not to mention a fantastic
cook, and Ryan couldn’t begrudge him that.

Still, he didn’t want to hear about it every
second either. “I’m going to help Tanna close.” He stood, and Hunter followed
suit.

“See you all next week,” Hunter said. “Tell your
mom thanks for dinner. As always, she makes the best fish along the coast.”

“Don’t forget the beer she serves,” Christian
added. “Best beer in the Pacific Northwest.”

“Only because you brew it.” Ryan grinned and
punched Christian in the arm.

His brothers against crime filtered out of the
restaurant, and he had a moment of gratitude for their friendship. Life had
knocked him on his ass, leaving him extremely grateful for what he’d found
after he’d picked himself up.

He wiped down the tables while Tanna counted the
cash, and then they both left together.

“You don’t need to walk me to my car, Ryan,” Tanna
said with a bright smile as they headed into the cool evening. He knew the
barely twenty-one-year-old had a significant crush on him, and he wished he
could convince her otherwise.

“No problem. I promised my mom I’d help you lock
up, and I know she never lets you walk alone.”

She gave him a wistful smile. “Yeah.” She dug her
keys from her purse as they neared her old Honda, and stopped as they reached
her door. “You should come around more often. I know your mom likes to see
you.”

“I’ll work on that.” He opened her door for her
and ushered her inside. “You have a nice evening, now, you hear?” He turned
before she could keep him locked into unnecessary conversation any longer and jogged
the couple of blocks to his mom’s house.

He knew he’d find Flo in the kitchen, and he was
right. She stood over the sink, washing a casserole dish. “Hell, ma. I sent you
home early so you can get off your swollen feet, and what do I find you doing?
The same damn thing.”

She laughed, the sound musical and happy. “I know,
I know. I’m a damn stubborn, old woman. I just wanted to clean this mess before
you came over.”

He grabbed the dishtowel from the stove and shoved
it into her hands as he dragged her away from the sink. “You know I don’t care
if the place is spotless. I’d rather you relax. Sit down, and I’ll cut us some
of that delicious pie you made.”

“All right.” She waved him away and took a seat at
the table.

He cut them both a generous slice, knowing she
liked dessert as much as he did. He added a scoop of vanilla ice cream to each
of their plates and then carried them to the table.

“You spoil me,” she said, but she was all smiles.

“You deserve it.” He cut off a bite of pie and
stuffed it in his mouth. “Excellent as always,” he said around a mouthful.

“What did you think of my new friend, Violet?” Flo
stabbed a cinnamon apple and ate it, not meeting his gaze.

“I don’t know.” Her intentions were more than
obvious, but this was one time when she shouldn’t interfere.

“She was pretty with all that long, dark hair and
beautiful blue eyes.” She gave him a tentative glance then.

“I suppose.” He held her gaze for a long moment
trying to send her a warning and then he looked away.

“I’m worried about her.” She heaved a sigh, and he
couldn’t resist looking at her again.

“Why’s that?” The odd cuts on her face and chest
had concerned him, too, but she’d effectively shut him out of her life.

“Her brother. I think he tried to hurt her.”

He set down his fork. “Why do you think that?”
Damn it. He didn’t want to know, didn’t want to care.

“Just the things she mentioned. She said he was a
violent man and that he’d done some illegal things. She was worried he’d hurt
someone. She said she couldn’t trust the police in Denver, but when I offered
to have her talk to Sam, she got the fear of God in her eyes and she clammed
right up.”

Hell. She’d mentioned demons, but she hadn’t
wanted to discuss them. “She told you all this?”

“Yep. Sang like a bird for the most part. But she
was scared, Ryan. I could see it in her face. Why do you think she’s here all
alone? She’s a runner. I’ve seen it time and time again, people coming to the
ocean. She’s running from something, and I think it’s her brother.”

His mom knew he had a soft spot for helping
people, especially those who hadn’t been able to gain justice on their own, but
he didn’t want to get sucked into this mess. Violet had shot him down. If she
wanted help, she didn’t want
his
help. “I’m in the middle of another
case right now, Ma. If she didn’t want to talk to Sam, then maybe we should
leave her alone.”

“Is that seriously your answer, Ryan Jackson
Atwood? You’re going to turn your back on this poor girl when she needs exactly
your kind of help?”

He met her gaze head on. “She doesn’t want it.”

“The hell she doesn’t. If she had everything
handled, she wouldn’t have told me about it. If we could get her comfortable
with you, I’m sure she’d open up and tell you, too.”

She’d been plenty comfortable holding his hand on
the beach before she stole his favorite shirt. “If you want to talk to her, let
her know that I might be able to help her and if she says yes, then that’s
fine. But I’m not going to hound her to tell me about her problems. That’s not
how it works.”

Flo laughed, always the happy soul. That was part
of the reason he loved her so much. “Don’t worry about anything, son. I’ve got
it all handled. We’ll have her pouring out her soul to you in no time.”

Ah, hell. Part of him prayed he’d see her again,
so he could take one more look in her beautiful eyes and search for the
connection he’d found with her that first night. The other half wanted to turn
tail and run.

*        *        *

Violet finished her late afternoon walk on the
beach and returned to her hotel. She’d settled into the small beach town like a
sand dollar washed ashore with the tide, all tucked into the sand, waiting for
the next wave to wash away her cares.

The town had seen a few hours of sunshine that
day, but mostly sat huddled under a cold, gray sky. She discovered she didn’t
mind. It had rained a few times, too, but she’d taken on the attitude of the
locals and had actually begun to enjoy the calming feel of rain on her face. If
she could forget about life back home, everything would be perfect.

She opened her laptop and brought up her email,
her heart pausing before it continued to thump away. Ellen had emailed her in
return. She clicked on the envelope icon and quickly read it.

Her brother-in-law lawyer had been no help. He’d
suggested going to the police.

She’d wired the money Violet had asked for, and
Violet could pick it up at the local supermarket. She put a hand to her chest
and breathed easier before she continued reading.

Kenneth had filed a missing person’s report on her,
and the police were investigating. They’d put out an APB in the hopes that
someone would have seen her. Like hell. Her brother’s intentions were anything
but honorable.

Apparently, her father’s doctor had ordered a drug
tox on her dad because he thought he’d died prematurely. Violet narrowed her
gaze as she read. The screening showed he had a lethal dose of painkillers in
his system at the time of death. The hospital had contacted the police
regarding the matter, but apparently, the report was lost on an officer’s desk
until two days after the funeral.

Violet’s throat tightened as she continued to
read.

Kenneth had told Ellen his dad had talked about
suicide several times as a way to end his pain, and the coroner had deemed her
father’s death an intentional overdose.

No way in hell
.

The lying bastard had killed their father, too
.

She buried her face in her trembling hands,
breathing through the pain that shredded her soul. Her dad. Her poor dad. He
knew he wouldn’t live much longer, but they still had weeks. Quite possibly months.

Months when she could have showed him he’d been
right to give her a chance.

Kenneth had been surprised when he’d learned their
dad had already given Violet half the company. He’d thought her dad had died
before he could.

No. He’d thought he’d killed him before he could.

She fired back an email telling Ellen her thoughts
and warning her to be careful.

She had to find someone to break the password on
the flash drive. Now.

*        *        *

Violet walked east down Broadway just before
dinner two days later. When Flo had called and asked if she could help out in
the bar and grill for a couple of hours, Violet had jumped at the chance. She’d
done nothing but walk the beach and sit in her hotel room trying passwords
since she’d read Ellen’s email. If she didn’t find some sort of a break,
she
would break from stress.

The familiar scent of fried seafood greeted and
comforted her as she ducked out of the sprinkle of rain and went inside. She
couldn’t wait to see Flo. She’d mulled over the idea of telling Flo everything
to see if she had any ideas. She was desperate enough that she might consider
asking if Ryan’s friend could help her.

Someone somewhere
had
to help her. Kenneth
could not be allowed to continue his activities. He had to pay.

The atmosphere was darker and cozier than before
because of the thick clouds hovering over the small town. She glanced around
the much larger crowd of people, looking for Flo, but she couldn’t see the
sweet, older lady anywhere.

She spied a waitress with spiky red hair taking an
order at one of the tables, and she headed in her direction. When the girl
finished and turned toward the kitchen, Violet stepped in front of her.

“Excuse me. I’m looking for Flo. I told her I’d
help out tonight.”

The waitress gave her an obvious once-over, and
the expression on her face told Violet she found her lacking. “Follow me.”
Without looking to see if Violet trailed her, she walked into the backroom,
right past the Employees Only sign.

“
Ryan
.” Her voice grated over the sound of
something sizzling in the fryer.

Violet opened her mouth to stop the waitress, but
Ryan appeared from around the corner, capturing her with his gaze. Her pulse
increased, and her instincts told her to run. “Flo asked if I could help her
tonight.”

He gave her the same once-over the waitress had.
“Grab an apron, and get to it then.” He walked around the corner without a
smile or any sort of welcome.

She swallowed, hating the way he’d dismissed her
so soon. She supposed she deserved his cool treatment, but she hated it just the
same. They’d been so in sync with each other that first night, and it seemed
wrong to be at odds with him despite her suspicions. He’d treated her with
kindness and respect, and she’d pushed him away. Did that make him the fool or
her?

She exhaled and followed him.

He rolled bits of fish in a flour mixture before
adding them to a growing pile next to a large deep fryer. He glanced up and
then continued working. “Is there a problem?”

“I don’t know where the aprons are.”

“Cami can show you.”