Page 61 of Shelter for Shay
And she always found a way out.
Moose – Friday Night | Just Off Base
Moose tucked himself in the passenger seat of Thor’s truck. The tires crunched over the gravel as Thor pulled out of the base parking lot, the evening sun already sinking low on the horizon. Moose had barely buckled his seat belt when his phone buzzed in his lap. Ry’s name lit the screen.
He tapped the screen. “Ry, tell me you’ve got something.” He glanced at Thor.
“I’ve got more than something,” Ry said, voice low and tight. “I dug deeper into W.E.H. Holdings. You were right to besuspicious. It’s not just a shell—it’s a whole network of LLCs meant for money laundering that I can trace back to Edmonds. It took some major magic to do it, but his fingers are on it. Unfortunately, Margaret’s and even Shay’s are the foothold.”
Moose’s stomach dropped. “What exactly do you mean by that?”
“The funding—I can track that back to him—but the LLC itself, at least this one, once he set it up, technically, he’s free and clear. He was just the backer. Margaret was the owner and operator. The money went into her account, and it came out clean. She got to keep some—that was how he tied her to him. But Shay, she was listed on the documents once she turned eighteen.”
“Jesus,” Moose muttered. “I wonder if Margaret even knew in the beginning she was laundering his money.”
“Based on what I’ve uncovered, I’d say no,” Ry said. “It appears she made a bold decision to fuck with Edmonds six years ago. I hacked into his email and found one where she told him he could go fuck himself. That she didn’t need nor want his money. He responded that if she wanted him to close the account, he’d do it, but she had to do him one favor.”
“I’m not sure I want to know what that was,” Moose said.
“It had something to do with his assistant and a drop. But I can’t find the details.”
“And Edmonds let her go, just like that?” Moose eased onto the highway with his pulse in his throat.
“I think he held criminal activity over her head. The threat of going to jail. Exposure to her daughter. But maybe Edmonds grew a conscience because he never pulled the trigger. However, I do believe the murder of his assistant has something to do with all this. As in whatever Margaret may have done and Shay being his daughter.”
“Edmonds is married,” Moose said. “His wife is the daughter of someone who is rumored to have ties to a cartel. Not someone you want to fuck with. Rufus mentioned that Bradley believed Margaret was carrying on with a married man.”
“Oh, Edmonds was married all right when Shay was born.” Ry paused, and Moose could hear the tap of keys.
“I found photos. Moose, they’re old. Grainy—but they’re of Blake and Margaret. Together. Intimate. Not just friends.”
His phone dinged. Moose opened the message, and everything clicked.
A young Margaret, smiling, eyes bright. And beside her—Blake Edmonds. Arm slung around her shoulders. Confident. Possessive.
“Jesus,” Moose muttered. “He’s got to be Shay’s father.” Moose’s hand clenched the phone tighter. “And Margaret didn’t want anyone to know. She figured she’d never see Bradley Morrison again. It was a cover story.”
“Exactly.”
“Thanks, Ry. I owe you.”
“Get her out of there,” Ry said softly. “Whatever this is—it’s heating up.”
Moose hung up, heart pounding, only to have the phone ring again.
Todd.
Moose answered. “Hey. What’s going on?”
“Uh… I think something’s wrong,” Todd said slowly. “Shay sent me a weird text earlier. Something about not needing help anymore and that she found what she needed. She said I could let you know it was a dead end. But the wording—it was… off.”
Moose’s grip tightened on the phone again. “Did she say anything else?”
“No, but I mentioned it to Becca, and she got this look on her face like something wasn’t right either. She said Shay was stillplanning to come out for girls’ night, but… man, I don’t know. I haven’t gotten anything from her yet. If this is nothing, I’ll take the heat for overreacting, but I have a weird feeling in my gut.”
Moose had that same feeling now—like a low rumble before an avalanche.
“Thanks for calling, Todd. You did the right thing. I’ve only got the weekend, but I’ll be there as soon as I can.”
