Page 96 of Devil's Dilemma

I shake my head, not knowing who she’s talking about.

“She’s one of our club girls. She’s curvy, and much in demand. When visiting members come to the club, it’s often her they head straight for.”

“Bet she’s young.”

Rosa shrugs. “I’m forty-eight,” she offers. “I met my man at twenty-eight. Didn’t put him off none. You’re thirty-four which isn’t over the hill. And, under those tears, you’ve got a really pretty face.”

“Didn’t make Skull stick around though, did it?” I should start calling him by his real name, but Donavon, or even Don, doesn’t seem right, even in my head. “I work for the local government, Rosa. I could have been a cop’s wife. But he never gave me the chance. If he thought half of what he’d led me to believe, he would’ve never just walked out.”

“He already had a wife, Mel, so that wasn’t an option. He was in a tight spot, albeit one of his own making.” Rosa plays devil’s advocate. “He obviously wanted to keep his career choice away from the club. If he’d told you, you might have told them. He couldn’t take the chance.”

I can’t contradict her. I’ve gotten close to the club. I couldn’t risk Vi’s man being sent down without warning them. Skull admitting he was undercover would have had to have led to an explanation that he wasn’t free to pursue a relationship with me. Yeah, my loyalties may very well have switched to my new friends, instead of the man I professed to love.

“They’d have been out for his blood.” Rosa continues, “He probably wouldn’t have made it out alive. This betrayal is too great.”

“But he’s protected…”

“He is now, but then? If he’d told you, he’d have never gotten out of town.”

Stubbornly I tell her, “But he could have contacted me and explained after he left…” I remember the despair I’d felt when day after day passed and I’d heard no word.

“Same thing. There was a risk you’d tell the club, and they’d never have given up searching for him.”

I still can’t get my head around how he walked away earlier without even a backward glance. “Rosa… he was so cold. Even when I told him about the baby. He,” again the sobs rise, “he, he asked me to do a DNA test.”

“You probably shocked him.” She snorts. “That’s probably the last thing he wanted to hear in front of his wife. Fuck, that has probably destroyed their relationship.”

“You sound like you’re on his side, Rosa.”

“The only side I’m on is yours. Look. What he’s done is despicable. Looking at the cold hard facts I’m not surprised you’re feeling as bad as you are. I’m trying to help you. Right now, you’re looking at black and white.” As she says the colours, she holds out one hand then the other palm facing up. “Somewhere there’s the truth, and it probably sits more to one side than the other.”

I shake my head. “The truth is, he lied to me then deserted me. Can’t get any plainer than that.”

She purses her lips, and a moment passes before she speaks again. “Yeah, try as I might, I can’t find a way to soften that blow.”

“He raped me, Rosa. I’d never have consented had I known I was being used. He violated me. Took my trust and gave it back to me in tatters. He broke my heart when I thought he was dead, then, when I found he was alive, I had to mourn all over again, this time because he’d knowingly left me. Now?” I put my fist to my mouth.How the hell do I go on?

She tilts her head to one side while she examines me. “What’s Pyro like?”

Shaking my head, I tell her, “I don’t know. I thought I knew him, but I didn’t know Skull, did I?” I pull up my knees, link my arms around them, and start rocking back and forth.

“Pyro’s been with the club a long time,” she tells me. “I’ve met him a few times before, when he’s come here with the club. He’s a good man, Mel. What you see with him is what you get.”

Stubbornly I again shake my head. “How would I know? I’m the dumb ass who believes anything anyone tells them.”

“Do you think Demon is stupid? Or Red?”

“Demon patched Skull in.”

“Yes, that’s true.” Her brow creases. “Or was it when Hellfire was still prez? Anyway, to the best of my recollection, I think Pyro’s been in the club going on ten years. If he had any failings, I think they’d know. Skull, though, he’d only worn his patch a few months. Talk to Pyro. You need someone on your side, hon.”

“I need my mom and dad,” I suddenly cry out, feeling like a little kid all over again.

Rosa’s arm reaches around my back, and her fingers press in. “That’s probably a good idea, hon.”

“I need to book a flight. I’ll go back to Pueblo as soon as I can.” In fact, I might go straight to Denver. What would it be like going back to the club? Will they view me as part of Skull’s deceit?Would they think I knew all along?I had been pressing Vi for info.How would they treat me?Without Skull, without Pyro, I could never return.

Her shoulders rise and fall. “Club will sort that for you, hon. Right now, you shouldn’t be travelling alone. You’re upset, and, well…”

---