Page 76 of Petty's Crime

I’m not man enough for her. I was right to let her go.

CHAPTERTWENTY-FOUR

RoseLyn

On leaving Petty’s room, I pause outside his door, relishing the quiet of the hallway for a moment as I try to work out whether I’ve fucked up by coming here. If I hadn’t… I shudder. Petty might not fully appreciate his escape just yet, but hopefully he will in time. I have no doubt his brothers will accept him, and what he thinks is his weakness, they won’t see as a crime.

But I betrayed him. I’m not sure we’ll ever get past that. How could he trust me again? My hands clench. I’d wanted nothing more than to go to him, hold him, comfort him, but he wouldn’t want me to do that. I’m probably lucky he allowed me to see him.

I sigh, pushing away from the wall and the man who a big part of me wishes I wasn’t leaving. With a heavy heart, I descend the stairs. At the bottom, I find Red waiting.

“Come into my office.”

It’s an instruction not a request, so I can do nothing more than follow him. From the stiffness of his posture, I feel like a schoolgirl about to be chastised, and I’m not far wrong, as I find out only moments later, when I’m seated one side of his big desk with him on the other.

He steeples his fingers under his chin, and his green eyes stare into me. It’s at that moment I see why he’s the prez of the MC. He’s got the intimidating look down just fine. In the brief ensuing silence, I find it hard to stop myself from fidgeting.

When he does speak, it almost takes me by surprise. “I don’t appreciate being threatened.”

“I…” I clear my throat and inject some strength into it. “I don’t like issuing threats, but I couldn’t allow Britney to get away with what she had done.”

He continues to focus on me, and I try to stop my hands twisting together. While I make every attempt to meet his eyes steadily, I’m the first to look away.

“We liked having your business, RoseLyn, but we don’t need your recommendation, whether you want to give us one or not. I do, however, hope you wouldn’t lie when we resolved your problem for you.”

That puts me in my place. “I’m sorry.” I realise I owe him that apology. “I didn’t know what else to do.” Wincing, I look down at my hands. “I am grateful to you.” The memory of Saul down in their basement fills my mind. “You’ve got Saul, and freed me. I’ll give you a good reference, Red.” Then I add, lamely, “I would have done anyway. It was the heat of the moment as Britney seemed so plausible.”

Slowly Red’s face relaxes, and he sits back, brushing his hand over his beard. “She was, which was how I presume she got him to marry her.”

“Petty spoke to me in confidence,” I point out, hopefully letting him know I won’t give anything else away.

One of his eyebrows rises. “Which you broke.”

“To save him!”

He leans forward again, clasping his hands. “Why the fuck does Petty think he doesn’t deserve to be in the club?” Again his eyes fixate on mine. “Telling me might be another way of saving him, this time from himself.”

I shake my head, but before Red can think I’m refusing to answer him, I speak again. “I don’t know the answer, but it’s deep rooted.” Red’s right, I’ve already spilled enough of Petty’s secrets, that probably telling the rest that I know won’t cause any more damage than I have already. “Petty showed me a different side of him in Texas.” I’ve perked his interest, as that eyebrow rises again. “He was relaxed, fun. It was as if he’d slipped out of character and into the person he’d been all along.”

When I pause for breath, Red gestures for me to continue.

“I’m no psychologist, but if you want my thoughts, Petty’s got an idea of what each of the sexes should be. A man is dependable and strong, and never shows weakness. A woman is frail and needs a man’s protection.” I frown. I don’t consider myself weak, but even with how I keep myself fit, so many men could overpower me simply because they’re bigger and stronger than I am. Maybe that’s the key? “Petty’s aware that being a man means he can overpower a woman easily. So,” I grimace, “if you’re asking me, I think that’s at the root of everything. And I think Britney taking advantage of him turned his view of the world upside down.”

Red’s brow creases as if he doesn’t comprehend the point I’m making. I don’t blame him. I don’t understand it myself.

So again I sit forward and now it’s my joined hands resting on the table. “Let’s say, Britney met the same version of Petty that I saw in Texas. A man who enjoyed life, who was relaxed and kind. The one thing he’d never do is hurt a woman.” I glance up to see Red raising his chin. “When Britney hit him, he couldn’t hit back. You’ve seen her, Red. He’d have laid her out flat. So he was helpless.”

“Why didn’t he leave?”

Again I betray Petty’s confidence. “Because he thought he loved her. He was shouldering some of the guilt that it was him who caused her behaviour. And like almost every abused person from the beginning of time, he accepted her apologies that it wouldn’t happen again.”

“But Britney didn’t stop.”

I nod. “Petty couldn’t understand the woman he married. She didn’t fit into his idea of the feminine role.” I try to add more twos together. “And Britney can act the vulnerable female part.” I’d seen that for myself in the basement where she’d been playing up to her audience.

At this Red dips his chin and raises it. “She certainly can.” He adds, scoffingly, “She had us all fooled.”

“Something ingrained in Petty meant he couldn’t physically stop her, and her,” I use my fingers to put the next words in quotes, “nice times confused him. If she hadn’t been locked up, God knows how long he’d have tried to make their marriage work.”

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