Page 55 of Mitch

Autumn thought back to that night, suddenly questioning what she’d seen. It had been dark as Terrell shoved her into the closet. She remembered Allen slamming the door open, seeing him in profile, the tattoo on his hand clearly visible, his hair and height an exact match.

“But I saw your tattoo. It was you.”

“Who pointed out the tattoo as being mine?”

Anton, he’d been the one to find her, to ask if the shooter had a tattoo or any distinguishing marks.

Autumn looked up as the sudden realisation hit. “But why?”

“Terrell got cold feet, wanted out, but Anton needed him to finish the formula. Then he hit on the idea to involve you instead.”

“But why frame you? You run the Onyx Cobras. He’s nothing but a soldier.”

“I run the Cobras, but I wanted no part of this. The people I hurt and kill know what they’re involved with. Innocent people living clean lives being hit by chemical weapons? I’d never get involved with that.”

“And yet you are involved, you’re up to your neck in it.” Autumn began to pace, her fear for this man waning as she began to see the man behind the mask.

“Anton, Hench, and Midas got us involved. I had to go along, or I’d lose my position as leader of the Cobras. The only way I can control the narrative is by being in charge. My reputation isn’t something I’ve nurtured because I’m an egotist, it’s so people fear crossing me.”

“So why did Anton, Hench, and Midas do it? Why did they go behind your back and why frame you for murder?”

“Because I’ve been trying to take the club clean, which means less of a cut for them. Anton doesn’t know I know about him killing Terrell. He believes I’m a fool who’s losing his grip and hell, maybe I am.” He brushed a hand over his face in a gesture of exhaustion.

“You let them think you’re losing control to give them enough rope to hang themselves with.”

“Yes.” He looked at her consideringly. “But we have an even bigger problem than my handle on the club. Anton is bringing in someone else to finish the formula. I told him I wanted you so that you’d pay for Terrell’s crimes. He liked the perverse notion, so here we are.”

“You shot Aubrey.”

“No, I shot Aubrey with a blank. It will cause a flesh wound at most. I had to make it seem real. I need Mitch to believe so he’ll come for me. You need to give him enough time to figure this out and end this once and for all by stopping that formula from working.”

“You want me to stop the formula from working?”

“Yes, the people at Henderson are close, but I told them I want you to finish it. I need you to make it look like you’re fixing it but don’t. We can’t allow this to go out into the open and kill people.”

“Why now? Why, after everything you’ve done have you developed a conscience?”

Allen shrugged. “I lost my way. I joined the Cobras because I knew taking them over was the only way to destroy them. They took my brother, my best friend, and I killed every last one of them for it when I gained power, but then I lost my way. Began to believe my own press, got high on the power, the women, the drugs.”

“What made you see the light?”

“I’m not sure I have, but even I have my limit, and dealing in chemical weapons is it.”

“If I do this, how do I know you’ll let me go?”

“I won’t have to because Mitch and his friends will find you. They already have Anton, Hench, and Midas. They’ll throw me under the bus to save themselves, and he’ll come.”

“He’ll kill you.” Autumn felt sadness well in her chest for this broken man who had been a grief-stricken boy.

“I know.”

“You want to die?”

“I’m tired of it all. So many deaths, so much blood on my hands, I’m unredeemable.”

“Nobody is unredeemable.” Yet as she said the words, she knew that wasn’t true. Some people were, but she didn’t think Allen was one of them.

“Don’t feel sorry for me, Autumn. I’m not worth any one’s sorrow.”