Page 32 of Talon
Talon took a deep breath and forced himself to let it out slowly.He wanted to know it all.He needed to get back to Madison and make sure that Morgan asshole hadn’t followed them out here and wasn’t, even now, trying to take her from him.
“Relax.Heather and Bonnie are both armed,” Malice’s voice was steady and calm.“They know what’s going on and will watch her back, in case he comes after her while we’re here.”
He sat in the seat Madison had vacated moments before and looked around the room.
“All right.Tell me what’s going on.”
Jake straightened in his seat, leaning forward, and propping his elbows on his knees as he met Talon’s gaze.
“I found a Jane Doe found who fits Sally Fox Morgan’s description, but it was in a different state, and I think that delayed things.I did a little online magic and now we’re waiting to see if the DNA is a match, but I’m confident it will be her and it’s not good.”
“What do you mean?”Talon frowned.
“Official cause of death is broken neck from falling down the stairs.But the x-rays show a roadmap of abuse and beatings.”
“What do you mean?I get that healed bones can indicate abuse, but beatings?How does that show?”
“Other than the bruises that just aren’t congruent with falling down the stairs, she had several fractures in places that are typical with domestic violence.And while they could be caused by other things, all of it together tells me there was a long history of abuse there.That, plus the out of place bruising tells me her death, while officially ruled as an accident, likely wasn’t.I don’t know who he bribed or blackmailed to have it ruled accidental, but there’s no doubt in my mind he did.”
Talon forced himself to keep his breathing slow.He clenched and released his fists several times as he tried to make his brain focus.He needed to get through this, to find out everything his brothers had for him, then go check on Madison.He didn’t know how much of this shit he would share with her, but he needed to know all of it before he could make that choice.
“What else?”he asked through clenched teeth knowing there had to be more, or they wouldn’t all still be so tense.
“Sally’s autopsy report made me suspicious, so I went back to Rick Armstrong’s, to look for anything out of place.”
Talon knew that was Madison’s father’s name and wondered what Jake had found that made it worth mentioning.Now he wasn’t the only one who suspected this Morgan asshole killed her father as well as his wife?How long had this fuck wad been planning this?He hated this for her, but knew she would need to know.This fucker was bugnuts and now that they knew he was willing to kill, and people he supposedly loved, in order to get what he was after, they would need to be more vigilant.
The last thing they wanted was for one of them to get hurt, or worse, dead.He would be okay with Morgan dying though.In fact, the more he found out about the fucker, the more determined Talon was to make sure he ended up six feet under.
He didn’t know how Madison would feel about that though.The more he thought about it and the more he learned about the useless asswipe, he knew he had to tell her what they’d found, at least the part about Morgan’s wife.
“What did you find about Armstrong’s death?”Lurch asked when Talon was too lost in thought to ask.
“It was ruled natural causes.He had a sudden, massive cardiac arrest.There was a lot of bull shit in the file, but included was all the bloodwork they normally run for an unattended death.I’m no doctor, but even I know that too much potassium can cause severe heart issues.The blood work shows Rick’s potassium levels were high.When I googled the levels,” he glanced up at the men, “I know, doctor google is not the most accurate, but it can get you some decent information sometimes.Anyway, according to google, the potassium level in her father’s blood work was more than double what it would take to be deadly.And to make things even more interesting… There was nothing in his stomach.”
Talon scowled.Nothing in his stomach.At first he failed to see what that had to do with anything.
“That means he didn’t eat whatever had so much potassium in it.If he didn’t eat it, it was likely injected,” Jake answered the question that had been on his mind, and likely written across his face.“Unfortunately for us, the medical examine didn’t look for puncture marks.”Jake shook his head.“I don’t know if this was a bribe or blackmail either, but I’m looking into both of these medical examiners.Either one of these alone could have been laziness or coincidence.I don’t believe that two suspicious deaths, both people that this Morgan shit head is tied to, can be mishandled this badly.Especially when added to how aggressively he’s pursuing Madison.”Jake looked up and met Talon’s gaze.“This reeks of something more, something sinister.I don’t like it.At the same time, I hate seeing what appears to be an innocent woman getting caught up in it.I don’t care if this thing between the two of you lasts.She needs help and I’m more than willing to do what I can to catch this son of a bitch.”
Talon scrubbed his hands over his face for a moment then dropped them into his lap before scanning the rest of the faces in the room.
“I’ll be honest.I don’t know how long this thing I’ve got with her will last.”He dropped his gaze to his hands where they hung, woven together, between his knees.“I like her, a lot.I think I could easily love her.But she’s been through a lot recently and I won’t be another cross she has to bear.”He took a deep breath and let it out slowly as he pushed away the pain that squeezed his chest at the thought of Madison walking away.“Either way, I want to get her through this.I want to make sure she’s safe, whether she wants to stay with me or not.”
Around the room his brothers nodded.Talon wasn’t surprised.They were his brothers for a lot of reasons and being willing to leave a woman who needed them in danger wasn’t one of them.
24
Aftermakingastopby the truck to grab her backpack, Madison followed Heather and Bonnie as they led her up to what looked like the main ranch house.The house was dark and looked empty as they approached.
“Does someone live here?”Madison asked, doing her best to keep the nervousness from her voice.
“Not right now.This is the ranch owner’s house.Tuck, he’s the owner, and his woman, London, went back to Arizona a couple of weeks ago.”Bonnie turned to look at her as they continued walking.“Don’t worry.We have permission to use the house as we see fit.Since they left, we’ve only been using the kitchen and dining room.We have breakfast and dinner here every day.Most of the time, Kerry and Robyn do the cooking, but the guys pitch in too.Especially now that London’s gone.The meals aren’t mandatory, and there’s often one or two that aren’t there, usually at dinner unless they’re away like Talon has been for the last couple of days.”
They reached the house and Heather opened the door, letting them inside.
“We came in and dusted earlier today, as some of the bedrooms have been closed up since London and Tuck left.The rest of the place should be in good condition.But don’t hesitate to let us know if there’s anything you need.Talon knows where nearly everything is, but if you need anything else, Kerry and Lurch live in the foreman’s house over that way.”Bonnie waved her hand in the air toward the back of the house.“Malice and I have a cabin over that way,” she waved in a different direction.“With Robyn and Ghost a little farther past it.”They showed her through the house, making sure she knew where the restrooms were, as well as the kitchen and dining room.
“What about you?”Madison asked Heather.
