Page 132 of Devil's Dilemma

“For goodness’ sake, Melissa. Put the poor man out of his misery.” Rufus chuckles, making her start as if she hadn’t realised she was supposed to reply.

“Yes.” The word sounds shaky. She says it again, her voice getting firmer with each repetition, “Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes.”

I stand and slip the top of the box open, showing her the diamond ring inside. Big enough to impress, not too big to be ostentatious. “Will this do?”

She’s still as a statue as I slip the ring on her finger. Fuck me, I estimated well, it’s a perfect fit. The moment almost as good as when I gave my property patch to her.

Then she’s in my arms, and our mouths meet in a passionate display that's probably not appropriate in front of her parents.

Beside us her mom squeals and claps her hands. “Oh my! We’ve got a wedding to plan!”

I hadn’t thought as far as that. But now she’s said it, and the glow in Mel’s face as she turns to show the ring to her mother let me know that this is a good way of moving on from everything that’s happened.

The shit’s not over, I know that. But we can concentrate more on our future, and less on our past.

As Mel and her mom start talking a mile a minute, already discussing things like dresses, bridesmaids and cakes, Rufus’ hand rests on my shoulder.

As he leans in, he says quietly, “They needed this.”

“We all did,” I correct.

The next day we return to Pueblo. The main topic of conversation, particularly among the women, changes from Skull’s betrayal to planning a wedding.

Days pass, then turn into weeks. Mel and I settle into a routine that’s comfortable for us both. We find a four-bedroom house we both fall in love with and start the process of making it ours.

Having been determined to find the source of a rattle in a relatively new engine, I’d been delayed at work. When I come home, it’s to find Mel sitting in the dark.

I switch on the light, quickly noticing her face is streaked with tears. “Darlin’?”

She wastes no time in telling me, “The FBI have dismissed my complaint. Oh, they wrapped it up in legalese, but the essence of it is, they can find no evidence of wrongdoing on their agent’s behalf.”

I close my eyes. It’s exactly what I had feared, that they’d circle the wagons to protect their own. “What happens now?” I know Rufus won’t let it drop.

“He’s submitting a claim under the Federal Tort Claims Act.”

This I know, as we’ve already discussed, could result in her being awarded punitive damages, but won’t have any effect on what happens to Skull. It seems he’s going to escape without any disciplinary action.

“There’s more,” she continues. “With the letter, Dad received a file full of documents and photos. Skull was writing up every conversation I’d reported to him. Even Theo’s fucking teething problems. He documented everything—except for the fact several of those conversations were after sex.” She sneers as she says the last. “There were also photos of me with you, me with Vi, me with Demon… at the barbeque, or just in the club. He must have been taking photos all the time, and nobody noticed.”

We’re always on our phones, it’s just the way of the world nowadays. I can’t remember if Skull had his out more often than anyone else, but if he had, we probably wouldn’t have thought much about it.

“Dad said it was an invasion of my personal privacy.Iwasn’t the one being investigated. My God, Ro. Did he expect me to incriminate myself, pick up a gun and shoot someone?”

“I’ve no fuckin’ idea.” I realise I’m too far away from her. Crossing the room, I sit beside her and pull her into my arms. “Skull was getting desperate. He’d gotten no results. He was probably taking tons of images hoping to pour over them and find something he could use. Same with the documents.”

“Dad has asked for nine hundred and ninety-nine thousand dollars, Ro. He said if it’s under a million cases can get settled reasonably fast. My baby’s life is worth one dollar under a million.”

I hold her tighter. “It’s not just for him, Mel, it’s for everything you suffered, from the moment Skull walked out your door.”

“Even now they could dismiss that case too. What are the chances of anyone believing me when the FBI has closed ranks?” She pulls away from me, stands and starts pacing. “I can’t believe they had the balls to write he’d done nothing wrong. For all he suspected, he could have been putting me in danger. That bastard gets away with no stain on his character, and I have to live with the knowledge the FBI think I’m…”

“Living with a criminal and associating with an outlaw motorcycle gang. Join the club, sweetheart.” I stand, trapping her in my arms once again. “You’re marrying a biker. You wear my property patch. There will always be people who look at us that way, but we don’t give a fuck. We don’t give a damn for citizen laws. You know what’s at the bottom of why we’re hated so much?”

She gives a small shake of her head.

“We’ve got something everyone wants. Family, people who have our back, brothers who protect what’s theirs, as well as what belongs to their brothers. We’re a tribe, hon, and you’ve joined it.”

Her head tilts to the side and she presses her lips together.

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