Binding Ties

Chapter Thirteen

"Nate Casey, I never had you down for the tea party type," Sophie smirked, as she took the dainty teacup from his big brawny hands, "Brewed in an actual teapot, no less, I didn't think they still made those!"

"A present from my lady," Nate smirked, drawing Shannon against him as he swung back in his chair, "Tea holds this good country together!"

"Yes, Nate, we know," Shannon chuckled as she rolled her eyes, but still stroked his buzz cut affectionately before turning back to Sophie, "What do you think about shopping then? Fancy it? I need someone to help me reign Tori in!"

Jayden frowned and cut in.

"She says you're the bad influence!"

"Of course she does, Jay, that's what best friends are for!"

Sophie shook her head at them quietly, laughing along at the confusion on poor Jayden's face! He was always so cold, and distant, when he was at the club, but from the second he'd brought her into Asylum that time, asking for the Honeymoon package, it was clear that Tori Casey was the only person who could ruffle him. It was kind of enlightening to see him in this environment.

"No, I think I'll pass if you don't mind," she said quietly, "I'd really like to sit in with you guys and see if I can help with the next move. I want my brother stopped so that maybe I can start my life again."

There were a chorus of expressions – Clarke and Jayden frowned, there was a kind of respect in Nate's eyes, and every line of Shannon's body was empathy, and a kind of recognition of kinmanship that would have meant the world to Sophie if she'd have looked up at any point from her tea. Shannon really ached to comfort her, to help however she could, but Sophie was so far removed that while she was staying with them, she hadn't seen that helping hand that was offered to her – any more than she did at that moment.

"Are you sure you're up to this?" Jayden asked in a stern voice, "We aren't talking in riddles and making daisy chains, Sophie, this won't be pleasant – and it is your brother we're talking about now?"

"Jay, you're a class A prick sometimes," Shannon muttered, dropping a kiss to Nate's frown and slamming out of the front door.

Sophie sat up in her seat, made fists out of her hands, and looked Jayden clear in the eye as she spoke without a single inflection to her words.

"I grew up with Bratva. I sat around a table at Christmas to a catered meal with some of the most dangerous men in the world, and bounced on the knees of drug lords and murderers before I could even spell my own fucking name. I think I can handle three ranking foot soldiers over a pot of Tetley's, don't you?"

Nate laughed – a big, guffawing sound that rolled from the pit of his stomach – and even Clarke twitched a smile.

But it set the tone a little, even if Jayden did cringe while he had the good grace to blush.

"Owned!" Nate snatched the envelope from Jayden's hands as he pulled out the files, "Soph, these are all on your brother, so I don't suppose we actually need half of them, but there are a few other faces in here that we aren't sure of – we've got Franchetti digging – how much of this brotherhood shit did you actually get to hear about? Do you reckon you could recognise any of these faces?"

She took the photographs he offered, spreading them out on the table in front of her, taking time with each one. There were five faces that they were apparently looking for, but most of the pictures were grainy and out of focus, like they'd been clipped from newspapers, or Google Images.

"He's a French rep," she pointed to the second image of a young blond man coming out of the back of a 4x4 alongside a main road, "At least I think so – he was at a party once that my uncle threw, but I was just a kid. He was networking, I guess, I remember thinking he had a funny voice, shit I can't remember his name though?"