50 Shades of Drake 3 and 4

Chapter Thirty

    "What did he say?"

    "He wants me to leak the story about Palmer killing his wife to the press," Brian answered, pocketing his cell phone and pacing the length of the living room.

    Destiny frowned. "But that will probably make Palmer retaliate."

    "That's why he blew off the suggestion the first time I made it," he said. "The fact that he wants me to do it now means that he really feels like he's backed into a corner."

    She shook her head. "Why aren't the police doing anything?"

    "They are. They're targeting Aubrey as a suspect."

    "This is ridiculous," she muttered, sitting down on the couch. Her brows drew together as a thought occurred to her. "Wait...but if they really do think he's a suspect, then...then he wouldn't be able to leave town, right?"

    Brian arched an eyebrow at her. Is she serious?

    "I mean...that's according to crime shows, I guess," she added.

    "He's being framed for murder and you're relieved that he has to stay in town?" Brian asked her incredulously. "Is the sex that good?"

    She frowned at him.

    "That question wasn't rhetorical. I really want to know."

    "Stop being a jerk."

    "Stop acting like a junior high schooler with a crush. He could get arrested."

    Her expression sobered up immediately.

    He felt like a jackass, but he also felt like the words had to be said. Her selfishness and desire to see Aubrey was so strong that it hadn't even occurred to her that Aubrey could very well go to jail. Brian sighed and ran a hand through his hair, coming to a stop near the living room window. "Don't worry. I'll do everything I can to keep him out of there."

    "All you have to do is one thing," she told him.

    He cast a glance at her over his shoulder.

    "Take the flash drive he gave you to the police."

    "If he isn't doing it, why would I do it?"

    "Because he's being an idiot!" she exclaimed, jumping up from the couch. "According to what Bridgette said, that flash drive is a smoking gun that can bury Palmer. She held onto it instead of taking it into the police and now she's dead. You and Aubrey shouldn't make the same mistake. Take it in. That plus the leak to the press should at least cause the police to look at Palmer and consider him a suspect. That would take some of the heat off of Aubrey."

    Brian mulled over the idea. For some reason, Aubrey isn't taking the flash drive in when he said he was going to. I have to trust that there's a reason for that. "I'll leak the rumor about Palmer killing his wife tomorrow, as requested by Aubrey. If that doesn't cause enough media attention, then I'll talk to Aubrey about the possibility of turning in a copy of the flash drive."

    She crossed her arms over her chest. "This is ridiculous. Give me the flash drive. I'll take it in. Aubrey can get mad at me if he wants to. It will help to keep him out of jail."

    "I would never give you the flash drive," Brian told her. "Doing that would be putting your life in danger, which is the opposite of what I should be doing."

    "That seems to be the running theme lately," she muttered under her breath.

    He stared at her for a moment with a shake of his head.

    Her expression brightened. "I know. Let's look at what is on the flash drive."

    "He doesn't want me to access its contents. We don't know if Palmer knows more than we think he does. For all we know, he knows just how much Aubrey loves you and knows that you're staying here with me. We can't take any chances."

    "Do you always do what Aubrey wants you to do?" she demanded.

    "Do you?" he countered, unable to keep the flames of jealousy from leaping into his eyes. He glared hard at her, wanting her to catch the undertones of the question.

    She drew back, looking hurt.

    And again, he felt like a complete jackass. But although he loved her, he wasn't going to let her talk down to him. The mind games of making him feel inferior to Aubrey in any way wasn't going to fly with him. The man who allowed that in the past was gone now. He stared at her, refusing to back down.

    Exasperated, she turned on her heel and stormed out of the room.

    For once, he didn't chase after her.

~~~~~~

    "You're so quiet. What are you thinking about?"

    Aubrey toyed around with the cap of his water bottle. "Nothing, really."

    His mother, Sandi, sat across the kitchen table from him with her dark blonde brows drawn together in concern. "Are you going to tell me what's going on, or are you going to keep pretending like everything is okay? Because I'd prefer to fast-forward through this part."

    He smiled at her. She was such a compact, adorable woman. Short, with fluffy blonde hair. Her Jewish sensibilities made it difficult to get anything past her, though. She could sniff bullshit a mile away. "There is a man out there who...isn't fond of me at the moment," he said carefully.

    She pinched the bridge of her glasses and adjusted their positioning on her nose. "Meaning?"

    "Meaning, that he may have threatened my life. More than once."

    Her eyes widened. "Have you gone to the cops?"

    "I have, but this man happens to be extremely powerful."

    "So that's why we're going out of town?"

    Aubrey nodded. "That's a part of it, yes. I also just...want to be around you all. I need my family right now."

    She stabbed a piece of waffle with her fork. "Why didn't you tell me?"

    "Because I didn't want to worry you. Especially in your condition."

    "Pfft," she muttered, popping the piece of waffle into her mouth. She chewed on it for a moment, then swallowed. "Where is your girlfriend?"

    Pain clutched his heart. "She is...staying with a friend, for now."

    Sandi frowned. "Aubrey, what is going on?"

    "I can't tell you any more than I already have. All you need to know is, Destiny is safe. I'm making sure she stays that way. For now, that means she has to stay away from me. Our family is going to go away for awhile. Tank, Chubbs, and a few other of my security guys are coming with us."

    "Security?" Sandi echoed. "I thought your days of needing security were over."

    "So did I," he muttered, looking down at his plate with a grimace. He hadn't been able to eat much. That morning, he'd taken Carlos to the airport and hadn't wasted time in showing up to his mother's house.

    She rested her elbows on the table and leaned forward. "If someone is causing you trouble, you know we have...extended family that can take care of it."

    He smiled sadly at her. All influences, internal and external were strongly suggesting that he should kill Palmer. It was a recurring idea that came to him on nearly an hourly basis these days. But he didn't think his conscience could handle it. Not even now, after a third person was killed at the hands of Palmer. At this point, he just had to hope and pray that leaking the possibility of Palmer killing his wife would help speed up an investigation into Palmer. He'd pulled his own investigator from investigating Palmer, since Palmer seemed to be clocking the investigator's every move. This left Aubrey at the mercy of law enforcement.

    "I don't like this, Aubrey."

    Neither do I, Mama. But there's not much I can do about it, right now.