Page 52 of Soul of Discretion

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

Through the cracked window in his old truck, Nick looked out at the bar across the street. He wasn’t sure it deserved to be called a bar. The faded neon sign declared it was, but it looked more like an old corner store. The windows had been painted black so people couldn’t look in, and a faded plastic M&M sign leaned against the wall of the alley.

It had been two weeks since Simon had left for Plymouth, England, and although they had Skyped four times since then, it did little to fix the pain in his heart. It didn’t take long after Simon had left for Nick to realise that he was in love with the man.

But he was gone and there was nothing Nick could do about that.

Yes, you can. You can go to Plymouth and tell him.

Nick had been arguing with himself about doing that. Would Simon be happy to see him? Did he love Nick? Did he want him in England at all? A couple of times during their sexy Skype sessions, Nick had been sure Simon was about to say “I love you” but changed it quickly to “I like” and then made a comment about Nick’s hair or his body.

Questions kept piling up without answers. Nick felt like he’d lost his chance when he let Simon walk away, and Nick didn’t know if he’d be given another, or whether he’d even be welcomed. His gut screamed, “Yes,” but his brain said, “Whoa. Slow down, dude.”

****

His review was still carrying on, one for his misconduct with Simon and the other over claims he’d sexually harassed a fellow officer—an officer he was about to have a surprise meeting with. Nick had hoped Jeffries would have withdrawn his complaint by now, knowing he was lying to destroy Nick’s life. But no, he hadn’t decided to do the right thing so now Nick would have to force him.

The envelope he held in his hand felt heavier than the simple pages and pictures inside should. Thanks to Jackie and her amazing skills, Simon had given this to Nick to use if necessary. He took a deep breath and stepped out of his truck, steeling his nerve and expression. Show time.

The second Nick walked through the front door, the scent of stale beer hit him. It smelled as if the place had been doused in it. Cigarette smoke hung heavy in the air, coating the entire place in grey.

So much for the law prohibiting smoking inside public establishments.

His heavy boots stuck to the floor as he walked up to the bar and sat down beside the man of the hour. At first, Jeffries didn’t bother looking over, not until Nick threw the envelope in front of him. When their eyes met, Nick saw fear, but Jeffries soon hid it behind a mask of superiority.

“Well, well, Nick. The inspector will certainly be interested in the fact that you’re following me. Don’t think the review board would find that this was an innocent meeting. I might give you a break if you scurry out of here right now.”

“You’re such an arrogant asshole.”

“Well, this arrogant asshole is going to make sure you never put the uniform on again.”

“I did nothing to you. You made the whole thing up.”

“Doesn’t matter. All that matters is who they believe, and at this moment it’s me.”

“Not for long,” Nick replied and allowed himself to smirk at the bastard.

Jeffries picked the envelope up off the bar and examined it as if it was a bomb. “So is this what’s supposed to change my mind? There’s nothing you could dig up on me.”

“Oh, it wasn’t me who dug it up. It’s amazing what someone can find when properly motivated to destroy a bigoted bastard like yourself.”

Jeffries smug look fell slightly. Nick had him. There was no way Jeffries wouldn’t look in the envelope. “Go ahead and take a look, because it’s not going away. If given a chance, I’ll make sure everyone sees what’s inside there along with whatever else we find.”

Nick could see the slight tremor in Jeffries’s hand, and Nick waited to see how long it took before the asshole ripped into it. The bartender came over and Nick bought a beer and was about to take a drink when Jeffries broke down and opened the envelope. A few typed pages along with three photos fell out.

Nick gave him a moment before saying, “I particularly like how the flames of the burning cross flicker across your white robes, really brings life to the picture. However, the pièce de résistance has to be those two AKs you were firing off in the next photo. Now that must have taken skill.”

Jeffries face was red and his hands were full on shaking by now. “Where did you find this?”

“It’s amazing what you can find when you start digging. Your family may have been rich enough to make all that disappear, but nothing is ever truly gone,” Nick explained before taking another drink of his beer.

“What do you want?” Jeffries growled.

“I think that’s pretty obvious. You will rescind the harassment complaint you falsely brought against me or I’ll send this information out.” Nick took a final swig of his beer and stood. “And it better be over and done with before noon tomorrow, understand?”

Jeffries nodded his head and Nick walked out. He felt like he needed a shower from being inside that bar.

Nick pulled up to his aunt’s old house. The front door opened with the same old squeak. The house was empty and stark, and no one was there to welcome him home or ask about his day. He wanted to share the evening’s events with Simon but with the time difference, it was close to 3 a.m. in Plymouth.