“Why?” Torren asked.
Torren was a good man, as was Kettle, but I had a feeling if I told them they wouldn’t be as calm as I needed them to be when we got there.
Having four hours to stew about something wasn’t a good thing, and in this situation it would be a really, really bad thing.
I was afraid if I didn’t have someone along, I wouldn’t be able to prevent myself from doing something I’d regret later.
And I was really worked up.
After letting go of everything I had on my chest to Sawyer last night, she’d fallen asleep in my arms.
And it had been perfect.
Absolutely and utterly perfect.
I’d not had a night where I’d slept the entire night through for ages, but last night, I did.
Sawyer was quickly becoming a very important piece of my life, and I was really contemplating bringing us into the light.
Especially after how she’d reacted to her mother bringing me lunch two days before.
Sawyer wasn’t stupid, that much I knew.
She knew there’d been something between us, she just didn’t know what.
And although it’d only been mostly innocent, two lonely people spending time with each other mostly because of proximity and convenience, I knew it wouldn’t be a small matter to Sawyer.
It’d be huge.
And I needed to talk to her about that.
I’d intended to talk to her about it this morning.
But then Sawyer had cried out in her sleep, startling me out of my contentedness so dramatically that I’d jackknifed right up in bed.
Then she’d started moaning about some guard named Officer Donner, and I knew that I had to take care of this for her.
Not just for her, though, but for me, too.
Something inside me didn’t sit right, knowing that she was abused in that jail.
And I’d learned all that I needed to know from her former cell mate, Ruthann Comalsky, as of twenty minutes ago.
***
“What are we doing here?” Torren asked as he took in the prison.
I got off my bike.
“I’ve been seeing someone,” I said, hoping they wouldn’t get into who just yet.
But, of course, it was Torren who was the ever so curious one.
“Who?” He asked quickly, a smile tugging at the corner of his lips.
Rolling my eyes, I didn’t answer.
It wouldn’t be long before they figured it out anyway, I just didn’t want to be available for questioning when they did.
Because I knew they would offer their opinions, whether good or bad.
And right now I was already pissed, I didn’t want to have to defend my choices to them, getting more upset in the process.
When I didn’t answer, they went on to the next question.
“If you won’t answer that, then how about you tell us what we’re doing here,” Torren asked.
Sadly, I couldn’t answer that, either, without telling them.
So I just sucked it up and said, “Sawyer Berry was sexually assaulted for eight years while she was here. I want to speak to a few of the guards.”
They both blinked.
“So she wasn’t just a passing fuck for you?” Torren asked carefully.
I nodded. “No, she most certainly is not.”
“She’s the one?” Torren asked.
I shrugged, this time not answering with a yes or a no.
They must’ve realized that it was a sensitive subject right then, and they let it go.
“Well then, by all means, let’s go talk to the fuckers,” Torren said.
I smiled.
That was the good thing about having a club at your back.
They were a band of my brothers, and no age gap between us would change that.
They knew me just like I knew them.
And they realized that if I was protecting Sawyer, treating her like my own, then they’d treat her like family as well.
They’d protect her just as I would.
“Right on, brother,” Kettle agreed, propping his helmet on his handlebars.
I followed suit and made my way to the front doors, where Walker was waiting for us with the door open.
“You made good time,” Walker observed.
I nodded. “Roads were clear.”
He raised his chin at Kettle and Torren, waving us in to follow behind him.
“Warden?” A male guard raised his brow, gesturing to us.
Walker shook him off. “No, they’re feds.”
Well…not technically.
The guard nodded and went back to his post at the front door, eyes scanning the wall of computers in front of him.
“I’ve got to say,” Walker said as we walked down a narrow hallway. “When you called I was surprised to hear from you. Haven’t seen, nor heard, from you in over five years.”
No, he hadn’t.
I tried not to wear out my welcome lest he think I’m only there because I want or need something.
Which I guess was technically true, I just didn’t want to burn a bridge that I might need in the future.