Bound by Honour

20

— reread chapter 23 if you need a refresher on Noel's background. This chapter is way shorter but gives the readers info Maisie doesn't have yet ... content includes language — Charlie 🧡

| Cameron's POV |

"Hey, how is Maisie?" Jaime asked, as I dropped onto the picnic table, my mind flashing back to the helplessness I felt when I spoke with Maisie minutes ago. I took a moment to breathe as Harley and Denver made their way over from the smoking pit. Sebastian, Milo, and Chance headed our way from the basketball court. We all wore the same blue prison uniform and ID tags. It was just the seven of us in the fenced in courtyard.  Considering we were both informants in the case against Royce, and also targets, we were all put in protective custody. We didn't interact with the general population.

I shook my head. "She's at a Northwood, a secure juvenile facility an hour away," I said, squeezing my eyes shut. "She tried to run and attacked her social worker, so they sedated her. They'll place her in a foster home within a few days."

"We'll be out of here soon," Sebastian said, though I noticed the doubt that flickered in his eyes. "They can't prove we did anything to Colin. I mean, we didn't do anything."

Jaime sighed. "We left him for dead."

"We didn't kill him though," I snapped, narrowing my eyes. "Evie shot him in the leg and we dumped him, but he didn't die because of us."

"Royce is behind this ... who else would go this far to frame us?" Harley asked, sighing. "Despite what we've done, we don't have a lot of enemies."

"He wants Maisie," Sebastian murmured, fear striking his expression. "He's a diagnosed sociopath and research states that he'll focus all his energy and focus on calculated revenge ... your sisters collected evidence against him, Maisie shot him months ago and he's only now come out of hiding. He's had months to prepare and we've had none."

"What are you saying?" Jaime asked Sebastian rubbed the back of his neck, glancing around the yard as if Royce could somehow hear them even from behind bars. "I'm saying that Royce isn't just going to stop at framing us. He's coming for her, for Maisie, and we're just collateral damage. We have no way of protecting her in here."

Sebastian nodded, his eyes narrowing. "We need to start thinking outside the box. If Royce is pulling strings, then we need to cut them off. We need leverage."

"Leverage?" Harley asked, raising an eyebrow. "You mean what? Like blackmail? Information?"

"Anything that gives us an edge," I said, rubbing the tension building in my temples. "Royce has his hands in a lot of shady dealings. If we can dig something up, something that puts pressure on him or his network, it could buy us time—maybe even get us out."

Jaime shifted uncomfortably. "That's risky, Cam. We're already under the microscope. One wrong move and they'll slap on more charges."

"I know," I replied. "But it's better than sitting here waiting for the system to grind through the mess Royce created. We can't just be passive. If we wait too long, Maisie's going to break. Don't get me wrong, Maisie is strong but he took away her support system. Even Emory is anxious about her mental health."

"How's her concussion?"

Harley leaned forward, his voice low. "And what about when we do get out? Royce isn't going to back off. We're going to have to go after him."