“Stop it, Knox. You don’t even know what’s going on. I’m Dustin’s lawyer and I came out here to discuss his court case with him.”
“Which one? The one where he sold pot to an undercover cop or for Sam’s death?” Knox mocked her, letting her know they had already figured out why she had come to the Porter’s house.
“Put me down!” Diamond knew there was no arguing with Knox when his mind was made up.
Cash took Rachel’s arm, moving her away from Greer. “Don’t fucking touch her!” Greer yelled, moving forward. Viper had him in a second; held immobile as Rachel struggled against Cash.
“Stop it, listen to me. He didn’t mean for the gun to go off. Rachel tried to take the gun from him. You know he wouldn’t hurt his sister. Knox, calm down and listen to me.” Diamond quit trying to struggle against him, letting her body go pliant. Turning against him until she was plastered against his front, she took his face in her hands, drawing his furious gaze back to hers.
“They had no intention of hurting me,” Diamond told the partial truth. Greer she wasn’t sure about, but she chose to give him the benefit of the doubt to save his life even if he was a jackass.
Knox stared down at Diamond with a look she barely caught before it was smoothed out and once again his demeanor returned to the impassive one she was so familiar with. Knox released her, stepping away from the closeness of her body.
“Let her go, Cash,” Viper ordered. Cash released a still struggling Rachel who, when he released her, turned around and planted her foot in his balls.
Cash went immediately to his knees.
“Don’t fucking ever touch me again.” She started for the downed man again, but a laughing Shade moved forward, blocking Cash who was bent over in agony.
“I think he got the message Rachel,” Shade told her.
Rachel pulled her shirt down, which had ridden up her flat stomach. Planting her hands on her hips, she earned Diamond’s admiration when she let the men have it with her vicious tongue.
“You’re going to buy me a new door, Knox.” She turned around and pointed her finger at Greer. “You’re going to get your ass out of bed in the morning and buy me a new couch.” Now, turning to Viper, she let him have it, too. “Next time you come to my house, fucking knock first.” She looked around at a smirking Shade to see Cash trying to get to his feet. Shade offered him a hand, but was met with an angry scowl.
“You have a whole club of women to haul around, don’t touch me again or the only thing you’re going to be able to touch them with are your damn fingers.”
Taking a deep breath, she turned to Diamond. “Now, can you help Dustin or not?”
“Yes,” Diamond said softly, seeing the fear for her brother behind the bravado. “I’ll go with him to the sheriff’s office to make a statement. I’ll talk to the Commonwealth’s Attorney to try to work out a deal, but he knows he doesn’t have much of a case. I sent for the coroner’s report from Frankfort; Samantha Bedford was in bad shape. She needed a kidney transplant and wasn’t even aware she had a problem. I talked to her grandmother; it could have possibly been what killed her mother. It was a genetic condition that the family was unaware of.”
“Could my kid have it?” Dustin asked.
“Possibly. Dustin, right now we have to deal with Samantha’s death. I’ll do what I can to see how I can get more help for you to find your child, okay?” Diamond meant it, she would try. Dustin deserved to know what had happened to his child.
“All right. I don’t have a choice, do I?” Dustin said unhappily.
“No. I’m sorry, you don’t. Samantha made several bad decisions, but I do think she cared about you, Dustin, and if she did, she would have seen your child was taken care of. You have to hold on to that hope.”
Dustin nodded his head.
“Let’s get this over with.”
“Wait a minute, who planted the jewelry in my bedroom?” Knox asked
The Porters stopped, looking at each other.
Greer faced Knox. “I paid Tara and Stacy to plant it for me. I gave them a month’s supply of pot for doing it and then to tell me which room was yours. Then I called the state police.”
“Who are Tara and Stacy?” Diamond asked, confused.
“They’re twins that are hanger-ons. They come to the clubhouse every Friday,” Viper explained, not able to look her in the eyes.
Diamond really wanted out of the house before she made a fool of herself. She walked toward the door, keeping her face averted from Knox and The Last Riders.
The Porters started to follow her until Knox took a step forward and punched Greer in the face. Tate managed to catch his brother before he fell to the floor then Tate started to move towards Knox, but Viper’s words stopped him.
“If it wasn’t for Diamond and Rachel, we would have had a different outcome tonight. Don’t press your luck. Get your asses to the car before I change my mind and don’t care if they see us get even.”
The Porters didn’t hesitate, going out to the front yard which was also full of The Last Riders.
Diamond went to her car, ignoring Knox who was watching her.
“I’ll meet you at the sheriff’s office,” she told the Porters. She looked towards Viper who had come out of the house and was standing by Knox. They stared at each other, both knowing that despite her taking up for the Porters, it could have been a dangerous situation if they hadn’t shown up.
Viper silently acknowledged her thanks with nod of his head.
Diamond got in her car, carefully turning it around and once again going down the treacherous driveway until she was on the road leading into town with The Last Riders following. Diamond had hoped she wouldn’t see them again that night. She had wanted to avoid seeing Knox, however Diamond was not going to get another of her prayers answered that evening.
Chapter Eighteen
She was at the sheriff’s office for several hours. David Thurman made an appearance as Diamond sat by Dustin’s side while he retold his story. Afterward, Diamond and Commonwealth’s Attorney went out into the hallway.
“Well?” Diamond asked.
“I’m not going to press charges. No jury is going to convict him after he tells that story. I’ve been trying to get the Porters in jail for the last two years, but that man’s being punished enough. He has no idea where his child is?”
“No. Samantha and her father covered their tracks,” Diamond explained.
“I’ll see what I can do in the morning,” David offered. He started to leave, but paused. “That was good work, Di. You ever want a job in my office, let me know.”
“Thanks, David.” Diamond went back into the room to give Dustin the good news.
It was another hour before Diamond made it back to her apartment. Exhausted, she went to the refrigerator to get a drink when a knock on her door startled her. She went to the door, looking out the peephole to see Knox on the other side.
“Go away, Knox.”
“Let me in, Diamond.”
Diamond’s head fell against the door. She knew what would happen if she let him in. It wouldn’t matter that she hadn’t seen or heard from him for the last two months. Where Knox was concerned, she knew her weakness.
“Diamond.” Knox’s cajoling voice almost had her weakening.
“Knox, if I let you in, we both know what will happen; that’s why you’re here.”
Silence from the other side of the door.
“I want you, Knox, so bad. You know I do.”
“Let me in then.” His voice turned seductive.
“I care about you, Knox, but us in my bed wouldn’t mean anything to you. The saddest part is, I don’t even care that you’ll leave here and be in someone else’s bed. I want you that bad. I’ll open the door if you can tell me you care about me. I have to know that much at least. That’s all I’m asking, Knox, please.”