Page 60 of Shattered Hearts

“He’ll give me the same as everybody else. Nothing,” I say.

Shrugging, Guthrie says, “Then you’re up shit creek without a paddle. All I care about is keeping Nora safe in prison. That isn’t going to happen, but I won’t stop trying to get her moved into a woman’s ward, or somewhere that won’t get her knifed in the back. You wouldn’t have any pull, would ya?” he asks Zane.

“She helped Black sell my fiancée. I hardly think that even if I could pull some strings that I would. She should’ve known better than to suck his dick. I think she deserves everything she gets.”

Guthrie wilts, leans against a stone fireplace, and stares into the flames. “Like you didn’t do the same all those years, on your fucking knees. You’re looking into Quiet Meadows. What for? Trying to find some absolution? Like maybe if Cook hadn’t been running the place, your sister could have gotten some real help? Or maybe if you hadn’t trusted Black, you would have looked at what her doctor was doing long before Stella Mayfair called in that bomb threat. Like maybe, if you had cared about anything but shoving your cock into that hooker, your sister would still have a brain in her head and not be a walking, talking vegetable.”

Zane clenches his fists. “That’s enough.”

“Is it, though? My Nora isn’t the only one who fucked up. She’s not the only one to believe the lies Black told her. Help me get her out of there. I’m not too proud to beg.”

Zane and Guthrie stand off, and I sit, watching them. I don’t get involved. I can’t. This is Major League Baseball, and I’m still playing t-ball.

Finally, Zane says, “I’ll see what I can do. I don’t know if I can do any more than you.”

“That you try is enough. And you better be fucking taking care of my dogs.”

Sitting rigid behind the wheel, Zane fumes on the drive back to King’s Crossing.

“Are you really going to help Nora?” I ask, slouching in my seat.

The news Guthrie gave us doesn’t sit well with me. If Rourke owns Quiet Meadows, even a slice of it, that could mean he knew what Ash was doing to Zarah. Maybe he didn’t, maybe he was a silent investor and let Dr. Pederson do whatever the hell he wanted, but that’s wishful thinking on my part. She’s scared of him and I don’t think I have to wonder anymore where he had the opportunity to hurt her.

The question is why, and what was in it for him.

“Relocating her isn’t the same as trying to get her off. I couldn’t do that no matter how much Guthrie begged, but I can see if I can move her to a women’s prison somewhere. Out of the state would be better. I doubt anyone follows what we do here in Podunk, Minnesota.”

“She knew what she was doing, Zane. Black killed Nathalie and she was standing right there. Black dumped Stella and Quinn on that cargo ship, and she wasstanding right there.”

“I know. I know that, but no one here is guilt-free. Guthrie was right, and I’ll be paying for the rest of my life, even if Zarah can come out of this somehow. I can have a little sympathy, a little empathy.”

He pauses, looks at me as he speeds by an older gentleman who shouldn’t be driving anymore. “Are you going to talk to Cook?”

“What for? I wasn’t lying to Guthrie. Rourke won’t tell me a goddamned thing. Besides, the more I question him, the more I clue him in that we’re on to something. No, it’s better I keep my mouth shut and we check things out on our own.”

“You’re smarter than I am. I’d be in his face the second we hit town.”

“Last night Zarah asked me if I wanted to quit seeing her because she’s scared of Rourke. I’m telling you right now, I will never choose him over Zarah. I never want you to doubt where my loyalties lay.”

“What would Max have said if he’d known his father was the real owner of Quiet Meadows?”

“Max had integrity to spare, and he loved Zarah. There’s no way he would have let something like that slide. Even for his own dad. I don’t think I’ll ever understand how much he loved your sister, how badly he wanted a future with her.”

“She wasn’t ready then, and she’s not ready now. I tolerate you because she’s in love, as much in love as she can be right now, and I don’t want to hurt her any more than I already have. It may not seem like I do, but I watch you like a hawk.”

“That’s fair.”

“I don’t care what you think is fair. Max was a good guy, but the woman Zarah is under the drugs would have squashed him like a bug. I liked Max, and I still have nightmares about him dying in my arms at the fundraiser, but Jesus Christ. You’re a better match for her than Max ever would have been.”

This surprises me. “Yeah?” I try not to sound too grateful but after all this is over, having Zane on my side will be a helluva lot easier on me.

“I saw the way you were with her at the gallery showing.”

“Gallery showing? The photographer?”

“Yeah. I know she had a panic attack and that you helped her through it. I know that afterward, you showed her the real emotions behind the photos. The love and passion those couples had for each other. The one you asked her to look at is downstairs in our entertainment room. You made her see. Understand. Max would have brought her home, and she never would have stepped forward that night. You don’t let her hide. Max gave her whatever she wanted. Back then, that was probably a good thing, but he wouldn’t have changed as she got better, and she would have ran right over him.”

I’m stunned, and my mouth hangs open.

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