“There’s something else.”
Shadow hesitated.
“You might want to consider backing off. Just temporarily. Give Ashworth nothing to photograph. Let things cool down.”
“No.”
“Garrett…”
“I said no.”
Garrett’s voice was iron.
“I promised Sadie I’d be there for her. I told her I wouldn’t disappear.”
“If I pull back now, what does that teach her? That people leave when things get hard? That promises don’t mean anything?”
“It teaches her sometimes discretion is the better part of valor.”
“It teaches her she can’t count on anyone, and I won’t do that to her.”
Garrett stood, jaw tight.
“Set up the meeting with Rebecca. We’re going to fight this the right way, in the open, with the truth.”
Shadow nodded slowly.
“I hope you know what you’re doing.”
“I’m protecting my friend.”
Garrett headed for the door.
“Same as I do for any of you.”
The call from Marlene came two days later.
Her voice was shaking when Garrett answered.
He could hear Sadie crying in the background.
“They called,” Marlene said. “Child Protective Services. Someone filed multiple reports about Sadie being in contact with a known criminal.”
“They’re opening an investigation.”
Garrett closed his eyes.
“When?”
“The caseworker is coming Thursday. They’re going to inspect the apartment, interview me, interview Sadie.”
Her voice cracked.
“Garrett, what if they take her? What if they decide I’m unfit because I let you into our lives?”
“They won’t.”
“You don’t know that. You can’t promise that.”
“Marlene, listen to me.”
“You’re a good guardian. That apartment is clean. Sadie is healthy and happy. You have a stable job. You’re providing for her. You love her.”
“There’s nothing for them to find.”
“Except my niece’s best friend is a Hells Angel.”
“I’m not a violent criminal. I’ve never been convicted of a violent crime. I volunteer in the community. I have character references from veterans, business owners, teachers.”
“If they investigate me, they’ll find a middle-aged mechanic who rides with a club and takes care of a kid who needed someone.”
“You really think that’ll be enough?”
“It has to be.”
There was a long pause.
In the background, Sadie’s crying subsided to sniffles.
“She wants to talk to you,” Marlene said. “She’s scared, but she’s also angry. Really angry.”
“I’ve never seen her like this.”
The phone shuffled, then Sadie’s voice came through, thick with tears but fierce beneath them.
“Mr. Garrett?”
“I’m here, sweetheart.”
“They’re trying to take me away from Aunt Marlene. Because of you. Because we’re friends.”
The words cut like knives.
“I know. And I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be sorry.”
Sadie’s voice hardened.
“Be angry. Be ready to fight, because I’m not going to let them win.”
“I’m not going to lie about you. I’m not going to pretend we’re not friends. And I’m not going to let some mean man in a fancy suit decide who my family is.”