Page 97 of Knight
I chewed over whether to brush it off as a random assault. Winslow was too smart, though. He’d never buy that.
“They were some guys from my old biker club.”
He leaned forward, suddenly concerned. “You made contact with them? The terms of your parole?—”
“No, I didn’t seek them out. You think I want this? They found me.”
He clucked. “Will, I don’t have to tell you that this doesn’t look good.”
“I know,” I said shortly. “It doesn’t feel great, either. But what can I do? They want me back, and this is their idea of an invitation.”
He winced. “Hell of a welcome home party.”
“Yeah.” I shifted, trying to ease the strain on my ribs. “I could handle it if it stopped there. But they’ll be back.”
He drummed his fingers on his desk. “Well, look, you can’t go back to that life. You’ll end up right back in prison—or dead.”
“Way to cheer me up,” I said glumly.
“Even if you get away with violating parole, that road isn’t going to lead anywhere good,” Winslow continued. Once he built up to a lecture, you had to let it run its course. “You’ve made a real effort to start over here. I’ve got only glowing reports from the Redemption Road director and your boss at the tattoo parlor. You can’t throw that all away.”
“I don’t want to go back to that life either. But I don’t know that I have a choice. They won’t give me a free pass to move on with my life.”
“I could make some calls, get your parole transferred for your safety. You’d be able to leave the state and get off their radar.”
My stomach clenched. “No. I can’t leave.”
“Why not? If it’s about the job, we’ll find you another one.”
“The other guys at Redemption Road need me. I’ve got a roommate. I can’t just flee.”
Winslow narrowed his eyes. “Will, we’ve talked about that savior complex of yours and how it got you into trouble.The other guys will be okay. They’re grown men. Your roommate will find someone else to live with?—”
I exploded out of the chair, unable to sit and listen to him dismantle my life.
“I can’t just up and leave Aiden!”
Winslow cocked his head, looking thoughtful rather than bothered by my outburst. “Aiden’s the roommate?”
I wet my lips. “Yeah.”
“Just a roommate?”
I hesitated.
Winslow waved a hand. “I think I get the picture. You need to think long and hard about this, Will. I know you don’t want to leave your boyfriend behind. I know you don’t want to give up on the life you’ve been building here. But if the Serpents kill you, none of that will matter, will it? You’ll be leaving them permanently.”
I didn’t need to think about it, though. I couldn’t leave Hollywood, Tex, and Ghost. Especially not Joyride. That kid needed me. And the thought of walking away from Aiden turned my stomach. No. Absolutely not.
We might not be dating properly, but he was the first bit of real joy I’d taken for myself in a long damn time.
I wasn’t giving up everything I wanted—everything I’d rebuilt—to the Serpents. I’d already given them too much of my life.
CHAPTER 21
AIDEN
Knight shiftedpositions on the sofa, stretching out with a groan while I finished rinsing our dinner dishes. The man had gotten jumped two days ago, was bruised all to hell, and what did he do?
