Depths of Salvation (Love on the Edge) (24 page)

I coughed, unable to hold back the tears that choked me. The flood of memories became too much, weighing on my chest like a fucking anvil, cracking it. “I miss him, Mom.”

She wrapped her arms around me, and I cried into her shoulder like I was five years old again.

“I know, son. I do, too. I do, too.” She rubbed her hand up and down my back, soothing just like she had when I was young and would come home scraped raw from a fight with a group of bullies.

“I missed you too, you know,” I admitted, sucking in a deep breath, forcing myself to lock my shit up.

“Me too. More than you’ll ever know.” She pushed me backward, tapping the side of my cheek and fixing me with a look. “There you are. I almost couldn’t recognize you underneath all that ice over your eyes.

I shrugged. “Habit.”

She nodded, smoothing my hair back. “Tell me.”

I rubbed the back of my neck, picking up a nervous pace. “There’s a girl—“

“I knew it!” She all but fist pumped the air.

“Mom?”

“Right, focus. Tell me about her.”

“She’s a marine preservationist,” I said, stopping mid-pace to arch an eyebrow at her.

“Well, I love her already.”

“Don’t fall too fast. She hates me.”

Mom scoffed. “You are unhatable.”

“I was hired to help destroy her site, under the guise I was there to save it.”

Mom’s shoulders dropped. “Shit.” She smacked me hard on the shoulder. “And you took the job?”

I flinched but took the hit. I deserved so much worse. “I didn’t know her.”

“Like that should matter.”

“All I could think about when I accepted the gig was how much money I could funnel into the rehab clinics.”

She sighed. “You’re still doing that?”

“I’ll never stop.”

“You already do enough, Connell. You didn’t have to resort to something so dirty.”

“Stop, I get it. And in the beginning, I figured her site could’ve been deemed unworthy without my help and I’d only be taking easy money from an asshole boss. I didn’t know shit about her site or anything about how far Slade was willing to go to ensure its destruction.”

“Your fault.”

“Yeah,” I said, pressing my palms into my eyes. “I fucked everything up.”

“You fell in
love
with this girl.”

I snapped my eyes to her. I wouldn’t say it, because when I did, Sadie would be the one to hear it. No one else.

“Did you talk to her? Tell her?”

“He threated to ruin both our careers.” I shook my head. “And then progressed to threatening her life. He’s the worst kind of man—no moral center, just powerful and used to getting his way.”

“Oh, Connell.” She sighed and reached out, placing her hand on my shoulder. “Not that I’m not grateful to be here, because believe me, I’m more thrilled than winning the lottery but . . . how do I fit into all this?”

“Her site is golden, Mom. Entire ecosystem thriving in an old WWII cargo ship. Organisms all depending on and feeding each other, right up to the top of the food chain for the island—a keystone source. Plus, it’s got the potential to be a huge medicinal find too . . . but the results are hung up in fucking slow-motion tests and the FDA are dragging their feet on her request for human cell trials—“

“You need my word and my pull.” She cut me off.

“I do. It’s worth saving. One of the big ones. I’m working with a friend to ensure Slade can’t make good on his threat if I don’t side with him when the time comes, but I can’t go to the authorities because he has so many people in his pocket. But I need more insurance in case my other attempts don’t work.”

I had no idea if helping Ryan gather evidence—including a strongly suggested confession from the faux drug dealer on video—would be enough to force the hand of the only man above Slade. I didn’t know the investor but Ryan was an old friend of his, and we’d been working together to make sure his and Sadie’s meeting went as smoothly, and secretly, as possible. I was banking on him being the stand up man Ryan said he was but if he was anything like Slade, all those efforts could be pointless.

“If anything happens to her, I’ll break.” I rubbed my palms over my face as a pickaxe dug in between my eyes.
Would it be enough? Have I done enough?

“What an absolute scumbag.” Mom sighed. “And the Head of Government?
He gave you say in this because you’re my son?”

I nodded.

“I’m here now. We’ll settle this.”

“Sadie can’t know. She can’t know you’re my mom.”

“Why not?”

“She won’t trust you.”

“Because of what you did to her or what I did to you?” She swallowed hard, and I took her hand.

“Both.”

“We’re too much alike. Hurting the ones we love most because we’re too hung up on our own shit.”

“I guess.” I shook my head. “Can you really help me?” I held her gaze. “I mean, will you?”

“Of course. But can you do me a favor?”

“You help Sadie, and I’ll do anything you want.”

“Tear down these walls and let that girl back in. Do whatever it takes, because she’s obviously the one. Nothing else short of love could bring you back to me.” She hugged me again and this time, I hugged her back.

It was awkward, not as easy as it once had been, but I could feel it . . . the familiarity of what it had been like when it had been me and her trying to save Conner, and before that, Conner, her and me, living life like a team.

“I promise, Mom,” I said. “But I can’t guarantee she’ll ever speak to me again.”

“You might be surprised.”

“After everything I’ve done? I wouldn’t give me another chance.”

She pulled away and picked up her bag off the ground. “That’s the thing about love, son. It doesn’t make sense, it just
is.”

Sadie

I STEPPED OUT
of the airport and into the taxi line, the Houston heat completely different from the Bahamas sun I’d left behind a little over three hours ago.

Ryan had more than made good on his efforts to help me, and he worked fast—nearly as fast as Connell was in the water. I shifted the small leather backpack on my shoulder, my chest tightening at just the thought of his name.

Slipping into a blessedly air-conditioned cab, I rattled off the address to Slade Industries headquarters’ that Ryan had given me. He had made a few calls, along with providing me with some hard evidence I’d never be able to repay him for. He’d went above the efforts needed, and did so all in the name of
hoping I’d pay it forward and give Connell a second chance.

Connell barely had any friends, but the one he’d acquired was loyal to the end, and it made me feel somewhat comforted in my pain. If a stand-up man like Ryan could find the good in Connell and defend him with every breath, then I didn’t feel as foolish for giving him my heart to crush. I pulled out the paperwork from my bag, forcing myself to focus on what really mattered, not the still aching wound with Connell’s name on it.

The cab dropped me off in front of a ten-story, green stucco building lined with mirror-glass windows. I shielded my eyes from the bright sun reflecting off the glass, shocked that Slade’s primary building only had ten stories. I’d expected hundreds with the way he threw around his ego, but of course, he did have a dozen more buildings spread throughout the country.

“Mr. Williams is waiting for you,” a redhead receptionist said, flicking her fingers toward a set of double doors after I’d told her my name. She clearly had left her southern hospitality at home today.

I pushed through the doors, steeling myself against whatever this crotchety old man would say in Slade’s defense. I had plenty of evidence, and, really, I’d be doing him a favor as well. My breath caught in my throat as I walked further into the sleek office decorated with plush leather chairs and a cherry-wood desk.

Mr. Williams—silent partner with one percent over Slade’s control of his own company—was not the Scrooge character I’d imagined on the plane ride over. He was only a handful of years older than me, with broad shoulders filling out his slick black suit, his cornflower blue tie making his even bluer eyes pop. He had short cropped brown hair, with evidence of a five o’clock shadow dusting his strong jaw. The man was gorgeous, and absolutely not what I was expecting.

“Do sit down, Ms. Jenkins,” he said, a slight accent sounded when he said my name. He glanced at his watch—a Rolex no doubt. “I only have about ten minutes, so please dive right in.”

I sank into one of the wide armchairs across from his desk as he elected to stand and lean against it. “Ten minutes?” I shook my head. “I suppose I’ll talk fast.” I couldn’t help the attitude in my voice. I’d flown three hours just to speak with him, for both our benefits. I took a steadying breath and reminded myself Ryan had done me a huge favor by setting this up.

Turn on your filter, girl. For Ryan’s sake.

Mr. Williams stared down at me, an easy half smile on his face.

“All right,” I said, shoving at him the copy of the contract Slade had drawn for his and Connell’s deal. “First piece of evidence Slade is working on the wrong side of ethical.”

He took it from me, his sharp eyes scanning the document with a rapid pace.

Ryan had said it was Connell’s copy, and that he’d given it to him freely in any attempt to help. The gesture had warmed my insides for a blink before the pain of betrayal set right back in and coupled with a boatload of confusion.

“How did you acquire this?” Mr. Williams gestured toward the document before setting it on his desk.

My heart sank. How could he not be immediately outraged over this? Did this sort of thing happen all the time in companies with this much money at stake?

“I’m a resourceful woman,” I said honestly and pulled up a video on my iPhone. I handed it to him. “If the contract isn’t enough to buy me more time with you, click play.”

He arched a perfectly tweezed eyebrow at me but tapped the screen. I sat further back in my chair, knowing this was a priceless piece of evidence against Slade. I had watched it three times on the plane—a testimonial from the man who had threatened me and my crew with a gun while posing as a drug dealer on Slade’s behalf. Ryan had secured the video for me as a bonus I never thought I’d receive.

When I’d asked him how he managed to get the guy to go on record, he’d shrugged. A signature
Connell
shrug that made me question what type of motivation was used in wrenching the confession from the man. Ryan had further reminded me that the guy hadn’t technically committed a crime—besides boarding my boat without permission and waving an unloaded gun around—and that it was easy to sell someone like Slade out. Still, I couldn’t help but imagine Connell somehow being involved, like I could smell his scent on the whole scheme.

Regardless, it appeared to be working, because Mr. Williams had straightened and his eyebrows were drawn together over his slightly tanned forehead.

“Evidence number three,” I said and handed him a tape recorder. “This was the recorder the man—the one you just saw confess about what Slade hired him to do—used when on board my ship. Everything is on it, right up to when I call him out for being a fake.”

He handed my phone back as he took the recorder and walked around his desk, clicking a button on his phone.

“Mr. Williams?” The redhead’s voice came over the speaker.

“Cancel my flight. I’ll be spending the remainder of the day here.”

“Absolutely. Anything else I can get you?”

“No, thank you.” He took his hand off the button and sat heavily in the chair behind his desk. He smoothed out his tie before finally looking me in the eye.

“How much do you want?”

I tilted my head. “Excuse me?”

“To keep this matter private.”

My eyes turned to slits upon recognizing what he implied. “You think I’m here to blackmail you?”

“Aren’t you?” He gestured to the contract and then to the cell still in my hand.

I stood up, the adrenaline rushing through my veins too much to take sitting down. I sucked my teeth and shook my head. “It’s just like you corporate types to jump to that conclusion first. Do you all operate like this?” Maybe I should’ve asked for one hundred and twenty million.
Think of all the sites I could save with that.
I blinked hard, grounding myself in reality.