\[Rosco’s POV\]
I wait until Denali is asleep before untangling myself from around her and making my way out into the hall. Once I’m sure I won’t wake her, I pull out my phone and call my father.
“Rosco?” He sighs, his voice filled with exhaustion. “How are you and Denali?”
“We’re fine,” I respond, “but I need you to do me a favor.”
Even if I didn’t want to leave, I needed to be present for Nadia’s questioning. I was sure that she was most likely being arrested right about now, and I knew Harold well enough to know that he wouldn’t interfere with the process. That didn’t mean that he wouldn’t do everything in his power to try to get his daughter out of jail, but for the time being, she would be taken to the police station.
“Can you and mom come keep Denali company while I go somewhere?"
I knew that I was asking a lot of them, especially given our past relationship, but I knew she would be safe with them. And with Nadia behind bars, any further attempts on her life shouldn’t happen.
“Where are you going?” My father asks slowly. “Shouldn’t you be the one to be with her right now? And what about you? You almost died, and you’re already wanting to run off somewhere. Can’t you think about your own health and…”
“I didn’t call for a lecture,” I snap. "I..." I continue, trying to bring myself to say the words that I didn’t want to. “Need both of you right now.”
Ugh, I haven’t said anything like this since I was a child, but here I was saying it. However, would this be enough for them to agree?
Growing quiet, I wait as my father remains silent. I’m not sure if he is considering arguing further or shocked by my words, but I could only hope for the latter.
“Alright,” he finally sighs, allowing a wave of relief to rush through me. “Give me ten minutes.”
“Thanks.”
Finished speaking, I hang up and lean against the wall as I try to process how quickly things have begun to change since Denali came into my life. Not only was I beginning to actually allow myself to feel emotions I hadn’t felt in years, but I was even slowly starting to mend my relationship with my parents. I guess you could say that she was the miracle I needed all this time. A miracle that didn’t realize just how amazing she truly was.
Smiling to myself, I turn and head back into the room, fixing my gaze on her sleeping form. Good. I was glad that my movements didn’t wake her, especially when she had a long healing process to go through.
Taking a seat, I wait until my father and mother appear. My mother carries a change of clothes for me, which I happily take. After changing, I begin to move but stop as my father reaches out and grabs me.
“What is it?” I ask, trying my best to keep my voice down.
“I don’t know exactly what it is that you are doing, but please try to stay out of trouble. We’ve already got a mess to clean up.”
“I will,” I assure him, shaking myself free. “I’m simply going downtown to make sure that the one responsible for all of this is properly dealt with.”
“Are you referring to Nadia?”
Frowning, I find myself wondering how exactly he would know this before I realize that Harold must have already called him.
“Are you also going to try to defend her?” I ask slowly, deciding that this would be the deciding factor in whether or not my father and my relationship could ever be mended.
“You aren’t a liar,” my father responds. “And I trust you to make honest decisions. Whatever happens, your mother and I stand beside you.”
At his words, my eyes grow wide as I feel my walls beginning to crumble. Fuck. I don’t know what I expected when I asked that question, but it wasn’t this.
“Th-thanks,” I manage, trying to keep my emotions in check. “Then please keep Denali safe for me until I return.”
"Sure." My father nods.
Twenty minutes later, I step into the police station and wait until the detective in charge of Nadia’s case comes to find me so he can lead me back into the room that overlooks the interrogation room.
When we arrive, Nadia is already sitting inside, looking both at ease and on edge. It’s clear that she didn’t expect things to go this far, and when her gaze comes to rest on the two-sided mirror that separates us, a smile spreads across her face.
“You’re there, aren’t you, Rosco?” She giggles, showing her true colors. “I’m sure you’re enjoying seeing me like this, but while you have me interrogated, the one that can help your precious wife is still running free.”
The one responsible? No. She was bluffing me. She was the one behind all of this and, therefore, the one who would have the antidote to whatever poison was running through Denali’s veins.
Shaking off the sudden urge to break through the glass in front of me and attack Nadia, I wait until the detective steps into the room and takes a seat across from her. For the next hour, he interrogates her, trying every possible method to get her to admit to what she has done, but she continues to pretend to be innocent, and we are left with nothing.
Growling in frustration, I consider going into the fucking room and using force, but before I can, two police officers enter and escort Nadia out while the detective heads in the opposite direction.
“She’s a stubborn one,” he huffs when he finds me again.
“Because you aren’t using the right tactics,” I point out.
I had a few tricks up my sleeve that would easily get her to crack, and if she didn’t want to cooperate, then I would make her life a living hell.
“What do you have in mind?” He asks, cocking a brow. “Do tell.”
“Ruin everything she loves." I shrug.
I already warned her that I would fucking ruin her father’s business, and I intended to do that. Once I left here, I was going to meet with a reporter who was more than ready to spread the news about Nadia’s attempted murder plot. As soon as the news was released, stocks would start to plummet, and their reputation would be fucked.
“Do you mind if I have a word with her before I leave?” I ask.
“Sure,” the detective responds. “Follow me.”
Nodding, I allow him to lead me out of the room and down a long hall until we reach a door. I wait as he busies himself unlocking it, and once it is opened, he allows me inside.
When I enter, I take in the cage that sits along the back wall and the person that sits inside with her wrists and ankles shackled to the ground.
“You came to visit; how sweet!" Nadia giggles as I take a few steps inside. “But I’m sure you’re here for her and not me.”
“If you know why I’m here, why don’t you give me the answers I seek?" I ask, crossing my arms. “Or are you ready to be responsible for your family and pack's downfall?”
I didn’t have the patience to try to coax anything out of Nadia anymore. To this point, I went lightly on her, but this time around, she crossed the line. If it weren’t for the fact that I needed to know what was needed to help Denali, I would have let those fucking sharks eat her.
“I don’t know what you mean,” she says. “I’m just an innocent victim in all of this.”
"Victim!" I spit. “You’re from that and always have been. Haven’t you considered that maybe this was the reason I would never think twice about having anything to do with you except a few fucks?”
At my words, a look of rage flashes across Nadia’s features, but as quickly as it is there, it disappears.
“I would think twice of that,” she giggles. “Otherwise your precious wife will die.”
“You’ll die way before she does,” I counter. “Do you think there isn’t someone out there that can come up with a remedy if you’re unwilling to speak?”
“You can try,” she sighs, leaning against the wall behind her. “But when you realize that I’m your only choice, you’ll come running back.”