Shameless (Made For Them #3)

11. Working Together

Crew

F uck.

Jules spits out the last few words like poisonous arrows and I’m the obvious target.

I thought Cutler was chasing Lula just to piss me and Stefan off.

It’s always been that way between us. We’ve been fighting for the same things since the second we met.

Jules has almost always won. In part because his family name has so much weight in town and I was just a nobody stepping on his turf. But also because getting to play QB or nailing more cheerleaders wasn’t the end all and be all for me. It just mattered as long as I could show Jules Cutler that not everyone was ready to roll a red carpet for the town’s golden boy.

This is different.

Lula is it for me and if he thinks I’m going down without a fight, he’s even more delusional than I thought.

In a perfect world, I wouldn’t have to share Lula, not even with Stefan. But while I can coexist with the younger Cutler brother, Jules is a real problem.

“Stop acting like you have some kind of claim on her, Cutler.” I retaliate. “This isn’t a tryout at school or even for Eddie’s team. And stop acting like a martyr. If you walked away from Lula, I’m sure you had other reasons than just to give Stefan space. I’ve never seen you doing anything for someone else’s benefit.”

“You think you know me, James, don’t you? You think I’m a selfish douche who only cares about himself. I guess you and I aren’t that different after all.”

Fuck, he’s right.

And that pisses me off more than anything else. He’s been putting his family first just like I did in the aftermath of Eddie skipping town. I haven’t seen him with his daughter, but Stefan told me countless times that Jules is a great father. Arianna told Mom the same thing. “So what do you propose we do?” I ask both my half-brothers.

“Dating Lula together can work with Stefan but it’s obvious that Jules and I can’t even be in the same room without fighting.”

Jules crosses his arms over his chest, but for once he agrees with me. “Yeah. And if you think I’m not going to fight for Lula this time, you’re both crazy. She told me how she feels about the two of you and while it’s an inconvenience, I know I can win her over. One day she’s going to have to choose and I’ll do anything in my power to make sure she chooses me.”

I lose my shit. “The fuck she is. If you think giving her an ultimatum will make her choose you, you’re even more of an asshole than I thought.”

Jules snorts. “Oh believe me, I’m not that stupid. I’m confident about Lula’s feelings for me. All I have to do is wait until the two of you do something stupid, or push her too far. She’ll see that she and I are meant to be and you’ll be nothing more than a notch on her bedpost during a wild summer.”

I open my mouth to tell him to fuck off for the umpteenth time, but Stefan cuts me off.

“You two will have to cut this shit and learn to coexist, at least for now. At least while Evan is in town. We lost track of Lula for five minutes on that ferry and that bastard approached her. Thank fuck Napoleon was with her and scared him off. Mason Morelli is another problem. I don’t trust him not to try and lure Lula back into addiction in a moment of weakness. He wants her and he already tried to convince her to resume their old deal. If Lula felt scared enough and like she had no other choice…”

I hate to admit it, but Stefan is right.

“Fuck,” I mutter. “That’s true. Last night I walked into her room just as she was about to spiral back into using. It was the last of her stash and I took it from her. But with Morelli in town, she knows where to get more and that fucker will take advantage of it.”

This time Cutler doesn’t argue. “So what do you propose we do?”

“We need to protect her from both Evan and Mason. Until they’re dealt with, we need to put our differences aside and work together.”

Jules looks even less excited than I feel at the idea. “I don’t know if I can do that. We’re too different.”

“I’m afraid Stefan is right and we have no choice. Unless you’re saying that you aren’t prepared to put your selfish desires aside for the woman you love.”

He looks so vexed, it’s almost funny. “I hate it when you’re right, James. But I guess we’ll have to find a way to coexist at least for now.”

Stefan rubs his hands together, clearly excited. “With the three of us working together, we’ll be able to keep Lula safe. Take it as a practice run, if we’re to run Star Thunders together.”

Jules’s tone is resigned. “Fine. Without Star Thunders, we’re all fucked anyway. But what are we gonna do about Morelli?”

“I have a crazy idea, but it could work.” Stefan says.

I bark out a laugh, since last time I went along with one of Stefan’s ideas, I ended up in a hot threesome. “I don’t know if I should be worried or excited, Stef. Let’s hear it.”

Stefan’s grin widens. “Let’s go to the sheriff and tell him everything we found out about Eddie and Star Thunders.”

I open my mouth to question his sanity, but Jules beats me to it.

“Have you lost your fucking mind? Why would you do that? I thought you agreed that we need to keep the company going and work together?”

Stefan rolls his eyes. “Duh. That’s exactly the point. You said it yourself that there’s no way to walk out from a deal with the mafia unless it’s in concrete boots. What if we do what any law abiding citizen should do and go to the police? We can tell the sheriff what we learned and how we want to take over Star Thunders but we want to be above board. It’s perfect timing because we aren’t involved with whatever Eddie and Trevor were doing. Besides, if we offer our full cooperation, we can make sure the company gets out unscathed. Maybe we could even try to make a deal that if we let the sheriff look at Eddie’s personal finances without needing a warrant, we could get to keep all of his assets even if they end up being fishy.”

Jules immediately disagrees. “That’s too risky. We all need that money. What makes you think that the sheriff will accept your ridiculous offer? Eddie is dead and I’m pretty sure the police have already applied for a warrant as part of the murder investigation.”

Not for the first time today, I hate it when Cutler is right.

But Stefan has given his idea some serious thought. “True. But whoever has been taking care of Eddie’s books, must have been good at their job. Remember Mom looked into Star Thunders for us before we signed our contracts and it all looked squeaky clean? The police might have the same problem, but if we tell them what we know, they might know what to look for.”

That isn’t totally crazy. “That could work.”

Stefan is emboldened by my backing. “It will work. Think about it, if we have any chance to catch Morelli, it’s now that he’s taking over from someone else and he might not know the ins and outs of Trevor and Eddie’s operation. Besides, Eddie and Trevor are dead and full access to Eddie’s secrets might help Sheriff Pullin with the investigation.”

The more he talks about it, the more I think this could work. “That’s true. The sheriff might be grateful for our help and cut us that deal.” I nod.

Jules is finally on board. “I guess we could talk to him in private. Luckily he’s a friend of the family, so he’d never play dirty with us. He and Mom went to school together and Pullin senior and Grandpa went way back.”

I would usually hate this kind of entitled talk, it was one of the things that made me hate Jules Cutler from the second we met. For the first time in my life though, we’re on the same side and his connections are working for my benefit too. I guess our moms aren’t totally wrong when they say that we’re family, whether we like it or not.

“I’m in.” I say.

Jules claps Stefan’s shoulder. “Me too. Well done, dude. I wouldn’t have thought about that.”

The smile on Stefan’s face, the way he preens under his older brother’s praise tells me that he doesn’t hate Jules the way he wants the world to believe.

I only got a taste of having to live in the shadow of Jules’s popularity and I can only imagine how hard it must have been for Stefan. When everything is said and done though, he wants his big brother’s respect and approval like everyone else in this goddamn town.

“Ok,” I say, my hand on the car door handle. “Do we want to drive to the police station now?”

I guess the harmony between the three of us was just temporary, because Jules disagrees. “No. That’s too official. We need to play this right. We should call him and ask him if he could meet with us at the house. Talking to him in private is better in case our offer needs any tweaks before it’s acceptable.”

Right. I hadn’t thought about that, I’m not used to the level of privilege and nepotism people like Jules take for granted.

My phone rings in my pocket, distracting me from my thoughts.

“One sec, it’s my mom. Let me take this.”

Speaking of the devil, Mom tells me that the sheriff just called her to let her know that Rikki has been released. “The gun residue test was negative,” I tell Jules and Stefan. “Rikki has been cleared, his story that he touched Trevor trying to help, checks out.”

Lula

The family is all gathered to welcome Rikki home when Scott Larson comes to drop him off, accompanied by his daughters and Sheriff Pullin.

Tilly runs to hug her youngest son, her eyes brimming with tears. “Oh baby,” she cups Rikki’s gaunt face with both hands. “You look so tired.”

Rikki looks haggard, the dark tattoos that cover most of his arms and hands make him look even paler than usual.

“Yeah Mom,” Rikki says, running a shaky hand through his bleach blond hair. “Sleeping at the police station wasn’t easy.”

Arianna sighs, addressing the sheriff. “Kirk, was it necessary to hold Rikki at the police station? Like the tests confirmed, he told the truth.”

“I understand your concern, Arianna. But Rikki was detained for just over twenty-four hours, and while not ideal, it was legal.” The sheriff explains. “He wasn’t under arrest or in a cell by the way, even though maybe that would have been more comfortable than the interrogation room where he was kept.”

Rikki nods, fidgeting with his lip ring. “Yeah, I think those chairs are designed to make you feel uncomfortable so you confess. The trouble is, I had nothing to confess.”

London immediately laces her fingers through Rikki’s. “I’m so glad they know you were telling the truth, babe. No one who knows you even a little bit could ever believe that you’d do something like that. All that blood, I still have nightmares about it.” She says with a shudder.

I agree with London. Rikki is a sweetheart and it doesn’t matter how mad he must have been at Eddie or even Trevor, I don’t think he would have shot them in cold blood.

I’m glad the police ruled it out though, because while I would vouch for a sober Rikki, last weekend he was definitely high at some point and in need of a fix by the time we saw him at the stables. I’ve been in his shoes and high Lula would consider doing a number of things that I would never do when sober.

The tremor of his hands tells me that his night at the police station didn’t help the situation. I seriously hope Crew and Tilly can convince Rikki to check himself back into rehab.

Arianna and Tilly are both fawning over Rikki, offering him dinner and a place to crash if he doesn’t want to endure the drive all the way home to the other side of town.

“Kirk,” Jules addresses the sheriff. “How are things progressing with the investigation?”

The sheriff looks tired too. “We’re still at the beginning and it was a very complicated, very messy crime scene. The fact that it had been tampered with when forensics showed up,” he says with a glare in Rikki’s direction. “Didn’t help matters. We just got a preliminary report and we have more questions rather than answers.”

Dad has always been a true crime buff, just like me, so his question doesn’t surprise me. “Is there anything you can tell us at this stage?”

The sheriff looks around the room. “Yes and no. I’m sure you can understand how I am not at liberty to discuss certain aspects of the investigation, at the same time we have more questions than answers. And I would like to start asking you all a few questions if you don’t mind. My counterpart in Berry Point is doing the same with Mr. Andrews’s staff and the other guests who were present at the quail hunt. I’m going to have to speak to everyone at Star Thunders and to the people who stayed in Star Cove until we can start clearing people off our suspect list.”

He’s obviously referring to Tiffany and Evan.

“I can tell you that the deaths have been ruled a homicide and that the only weapon at the scene has been confirmed as the murder weapon.”

Dad sighs. “That isn’t a surprise. Is there anything I can do concerning the shotgun?”

The sheriff shakes his head. “No, thanks Tom. I was a witness to the fact that it was missing in the morning and you had to borrow a shotgun from George Andrews to join the hunt. I received the copies of the gun permit you had for that weapon this morning, thank you for emailing it to me. The main thing we aren’t certain about is the connection between the three victims. I mean, Branagh and Braverman were co-workers, but why was Maura Andrews at the scene? Right now the only explanation is that Maura might have been Braverman’s client.”

That’s the only thing that makes sense, that Maura was there to buy drugs.

Arianna intervenes. “So you’re thinking of a drug deal gone wrong?”

The sheriff explains. “That would make sense if there was at least a second weapon at the scene. Even though I can’t imagine why Maura would shoot those two men. No, one weapon means they were all targeted by someone else. Maybe someone who walked in on the drug deal? I must admit the fact that Trevor Braverman side gig with illegal substances is what makes the most sense as a motive. If that’s the case, Trevor could have been the target and Maura would have just been unlucky to have found herself in the wrong place at the wrong time. But that bears the question of why Branagh was at the scene? Was he a part of the drug deal? We have no evidence to support that. We’re looking for answers and it would be helpful if we could locate the victims’ cell phones. They’re all missing.”

Jules asks the next question. “Can’t you ask for phone records? That could help you regardless of finding the actual phones.”

Scott provides the answer to that question. “It’s a little more complicated than that. We tried obtaining everyone’s phone records but last night’s storm interfered with the cell towers in the area and there are no data available until later on in the morning, unfortunately well after the murders. Mr. Andrews’s WiFi network was down. If any texts or calls were exchanged during those hours, we don’t know how they traveled and the only answer would be in the actual devices. The point is that all the victims’ phones are missing and we’d like to find them.”

For a moment the only noise in the room is the ticking of Napoleon’s paws on the hardwood floor as he circles Jules, jumping repeatedly into his side.

Up to a few days ago, I would have warned Jules to protect his “assets” from Napoleon’s sharp teeth, but now I know why Crew’s pooch is so obsessed with my stepbrother.

Naps knows that Jules has been carrying beef jerky in his pockets and he’s trying to reach them to get a treat.

Jules however isn’t paying attention to his new best friend.

A look passes between him and Stefan, like some kind of silent communication. That in itself is strange, but my curiosity is peaked even more when Jules looks at Crew and receives a brief, almost imperceptible nod.

Jules clears his throat. “Kirk,” his tone is cautious. “Maybe we could help you establish a connection between the three victims.”

The sheriff looks at the three brothers. “I’m listening.”

“Today we received a phone call from the lawyer who was the executor of Eddie’s estate. We just came back from his office?—”

“Wait a second,” Scott Larson interrupts him. “As your attorney, I would like to advise you that this isn’t an official interrogation and you aren’t under any obligation to provide any information or answer any questions.”

Arianna nods. “Scott is right, honey. And this is news to me. What did that lawyer want? Did your father leave a staggering amount of debt?”

Crew intervenes. “Not quite, Arianna. Maybe we should sit down for this. It’s a little complicated.”

Jules

It’s decided that we should all go to sit outside with a glass of lemonade to have this conversation.

The table is full as our parents, Lula, Rikki and the twins join us, the sheriff and Scott Larson on the deck.

“Eddie left a will.” I say, once we’re all settled in our chairs.

“Jules,” Scott interrupts me again. “I have to advise you again that maybe we should talk before you continue with whatever you’re about to say.”

I appreciate his concern, but the guys and I have made up our minds about this. “Thank you Scott,” I acknowledge. “We think the sheriff should know this, but we would appreciate your help with another aspect of this matter. We would like to make a deal with the sheriff in return for the information we’re about to provide.”

I’m not surprised when both the sheriff and Scott perk up at my words.

“Like a plea deal?” Kirk Pullin says cautiously.

“No,” Crew answers on my behalf. “Nothing like that. None of us has anything to do with the murders.”

Scott looks between me and James. “Is what you’re about to say related to any crime committed by any of my clients? If so, I?—”

Stefan reassures him. “No, nothing like that. But we’re aware of a situation that could potentially interest the police and we want to make sure that disclosing it won’t affect our bottom line from here on out.”

“Yeah, Stefan couldn’t have said it better.” I say, pleased by Stefan’s calm and collected attitude. “We would like the promise that the sheriff will do his best to help us move forward with something. It’ll become clear once we explain.”

The frown on Sheriff Pullin’s face is understandable. “If I was anywhere else, I would just walk away and come back with a subpoena and an invitation to continue this extremely odd conversation at the police station. However, I’ve known you and Stefan since you were born and I’ve known your mom since we were in grade school. Crew is also an upstanding young man who’s been a bright light since he came to town. The football season you guys had your senior year was something Star Cove had never seen before and I doubt we’re going to see talents like yours any time soon.”

Normally the fact that Crew is being put in my same category would piss me off, but I have to admit that the sheriff isn’t wrong. I can hate it as much as I want, but Crew was one hell of a football player and it’s a real shame that he didn’t get to go pro.

Kirk Pullin’s eyes go from me to my brothers—after today it’s hard to deny that Crew is my half-brother whether I like it or not—before he sighs. “Don’t make me regret hearing what you have to say. Scott,” he says to Paris and London’s father. “Feel free to interrupt them if they say anything stupid that would incriminate them and cause me a word of trouble.”

Scott chuckles, but there’s a warning in the look he gives me and the guys. “You got it, Kirk.”

I take a sip of ice cold lemonade, wishing it was something stronger to give me some liquid courage. “Eddie’s lawyer read us our father’s will,” I begin. “He left everything to the four of us.”

Mom shakes her head, clearly unimpressed. “I’d be surprised if that amounted to anything worth your time.”

I cover her hand with mine as I explain the details of how Eddie divided his estate.

Since we heard about how Grandpa paid Eddie off to make sure he wouldn’t come back to town, I’ve been wondering if Mom knew about it.

The shock and hurt in her eyes are all the answer I need.

“That’s why he didn’t fight me for custody of you guys or to get more than what was agreed in our prenup?” she asks, more to herself than to us. “At first when I kicked him out of the house, he threatened that he wouldn’t just go quietly but then he just left without another word. Now it makes sense.”

The sheriff has been quietly listening up to this point. “I don’t see why you would want me to know that, Jules. This doesn’t help the investigation aside from answering the question who would potentially benefit from Eddie’s death?”

I knew he would think that. “This isn’t everything,” I continue. “Eddie didn’t leave us just the house and the cash in his bank account. He also left us Star Thunders.”

I explain about the stipulation in his will that we continued working with Trevor and with his main sponsor.

The sheriff’s ears perk up when I mention that. “I wasn’t aware that the Morelli family sponsored your late father’s racing team.”

I explain that the company that fronts the sponsorship doesn’t bear the Morelli name. “We believe that Trevor Braverman was the connection with the Morelli family and that Star Thunders was used as a part of a money laundering and probably smuggling scheme. We think Eddie was extremely careful in keeping Star Thunders’ front as clean as possible, leaving Trevor to deal with the other, less legal aspect.”

The sheriff is practically salivating at the news. “That would explain why Branagh was killed. The theory of a drug deal gone wrong is now more believable. This is extremely valuable information, but why did you say you wanted to make a deal?”

Stefan clears his throat. “We want to keep racing. But we don’t want to take over whatever was going on below the waterline, so to speak. If we provide Eddie’s letter as proof and also allow the police full access to Star Thunders’ books, we want the assurance that the company assets won’t be frozen like the rest of our father’s estate.”

As predictable, the sheriff is hesitant to grant our request. “This is a big ask. I could get the access you talk about by obtaining a warrant.”

Crew nods. “You could. But obviously whoever has been doctoring the books, did a great job. Without the information we just gave you, it would have been weeks before you would have had a chance to look at those books. Maybe you wouldn’t have even thought about it, since Eddie had no apparent connection with Trevor’s business.”

I add the tidbit of information that should seal the deal. “Crew is right. Besides, Eddie’s letter is the only thing that would prove that connection as far as we know. It wasn’t part of the will. It was sealed in a separate envelope marked for our eyes only. If you agree to our terms, we’ll give you a copy. Hopefully having the police sniffing around will be enough to discourage the Morelli family from wanting to continue using Star Thunders as a part of their operation.”

When the sheriff accepts our offer, Scott offers to draft a written agreement.

Things are definitely looking up. With this deal, I’ll be able to keep racing and to keep Jasmine from causing more trouble.