“You are not your father,” I remind her softly, speaking to her concerns spoken in the bedroom, on the topic of her father’s involvement with Waters.
“If your father just found out, Pri,” Adam says, “are we thinking the judge is dirty? You did just tell him about you and Adrian.”
“I don’t get that impression at all,” Pri replies, shifting her attention to Adam. “Quite the opposite, but I don’t want to go down a rabbit hole of speculation. I wanted to wait to talk to my father until I talked to my mother, but I’ll call him back and find out what he wants.” She grabs her phone, punches the callback, listens a minute, and quickly says, “Voicemail, so we’re back to speculation.”
“And the judge,” Adam replays.
“I’m on team Pri on the assessment of the judge,” Blake says. “I don’t believe he’s compromised. He called the man I recommended for his protection, who is now in place. If he wasn’t fearful for his life, I don’t think he’d have hired him. If he needed privacy to work against the prosecution, I don’t think he’d have hired him. And,” he adds, “his electronic fingerprint thus far is clean.”
“Then someone close to him has a big mouth,” I assume. “Is that loudmouth a safety issue for the judge?”
“I’ve already alerted his security team,” Blake replies.
“The judge called Waters’ attorney,” Pri says. “I’m sure of it.”
“They already knew about us,” I point out.
“Yes, but I don’t believe my father did or I’d have heard from him,” Pri counters. “The judge would have called the defense by now. I’d assume they felt they had to tell my father. Or maybe nothing we just talked about for ten minutes is accurate. My father was calling for another reason.” She tries his number again with the same results. “Voicemail yet again,” she announces, but this time there’s a hint of relief in her, almost as if she’d hoped he wouldn’t answer. She sets her phone down. “Moving on,” she says, and her energy is jagged glass falling in shards around her as she glances between me and Blake and asks, “What does the FBI say about Pitt?”
“We’re in contact and there’s some chatter about him being dirty,” he says, “but I find that hard to believe, considering he’s dead.” He glances at me. “What do you think?”
“I think Pitt was the only person who knew how to contact me while I was in hiding,” I reply. “He has a whole lot of family that could be threatened. And he did surveillance on me and my brother’s undercover operation. Maybe he heard my brother reference the cabin or even saw him go there. That’s one option I hadn’t considered. My brother went there while he was a Devil. And no one dealing with a Devil is ever safe, no matter what deal they’ve made.”
“Including my family,” Pri surmises. “I think I need to go by the office and keep the attention on me and Adrian, not my staff, thus my attire. Then I’d like to have dinner with my mother. However, I’d like opinions, please, from the people helping me navigate this while still breathing.” She gives me a pointed look. “And before you reply,” she adds softly, “everyone else before us. We agreed. Remember that.”
I’m not sure I ever agreed to put her safety anywhere but at the top of my list, but I can feel her need to act, to do something, anything to make a difference. That need claws at her in a way that’s all too familiar. “What do you believe you can get out of the meeting with your mother?” I ask.
Her reply is thoughtful and immediate. “The truly honest answer here is that she’s my mother. I think I need to see her for some peace of my mind and I’m not even sure what that means. And outside of that, I hope for answers. She’s no saint, but she’s not my father or Logan.” Her brows dip. “Actually, I sensed an urgency in her, almost fear. I didn’t recognize it at the time, but right now, thinking about the call, I think yes, there was fear. Maybe she wants to warn me and with that warning comes critical information. Or maybe she needs help. I just don’t know. The truth is, she could be afraid I’m screwing up her financial security.”
There is bitterness and pain inside her words, layered beneath the logic and intelligence. Her family is not the loving shelter families should be, and despite all my trouble with my brother, I don’t understand it. My family was a good family. Alex was an anomaly, troubled, and volatile.
“Then I’d say you should meet with your mother,” I say. “We’ll keep you safe. And her, sweetheart.”
“I know that,” she says. “I’m very lucky to be surrounded by all of you. She is, too, even if she doesn’t know it.” She clears her throat and straightens slightly, indicating the change of subject that comes with her announcement of, “I also need to meet Logan.”