He cocked his head. “Why did you stay in Storm once you figured out they weren’t the ones to blame? I never could wrap my head around that.”

Trying to explain my reasoning for something I even struggled to understand at the time was like trying to explain the blind faith I used to put in God. Faith is trust in action. It’s something believed in, not from proof, but from feel and a deeply held belief. I may have ended up in Storm for all the wrong reasons, but it was my faith in them that kept me there. “They cared about me.” I may have given him only four words, but those four words packed a punch. Sometimes you didn’t need a lot of words to explain yourself.

He scrunched his face. “What the fuck? I cared about you. My family cared about you. You can’t fucking say we didn’t.”

“There are many ways to care, but needing the person you supposedly care about to change themselves for you…that’s not the kind of care that’s good for a person, Danny. I always had to prove myself to you and your family; always had to tow a fucking line and fit in with who you thought I should be. Storm might have expectations, but they never once tried to change who I am.”

He looked at me in disgust and I knew we were done here. Probably done for life. “I will never understand you or your choices. I’ve tried to help you over the years but you’ve made your decision and now you have to accept whatever consequences that decision brings you. Don’t come crawling back to me when the shit hits the fan.”

“I don’t ever come crawling to anyone, asshole, and I’m not about to start now. I rely on one person, and one person only – me. Less chance of getting screwed over that way.” I took a step away from him and said, “Now, if you’ve said all you came here to say, I suggest you fuck off and leave me to get on with my night.”

He sneered at my words as he made a move to leave. “You always were a bastard, Michael. You’ve managed to take it to a whole new level.”

“It works well in my life,” I muttered and turned to walk inside.

I didn’t glance back at him – I had no intention of looking back anymore.

Danny and I were done.

* * *

A couple of hours later, I was a few drinks in, watching mindless television in my lounge room, and trying unsuccessfully to shift thoughts of Sophia from my mind. It astounded me that on the day I usually couldn’t delete shitty family memories, I was this year, instead, being bombarded by a woman.

I’d treated her exactly the way she’d told me she didn’t want to be treated. Used and discarded. I hadn’t intended for that to happen – fuck, I hadn’t intended to have sex with her, but I couldn’t have said no to her even if I’d wanted to. She had no idea how beautiful she was, and no idea how much I’d wanted her from that very first time we’d met in the car park at the bar. Hell, that was half her allure. The beauty of a woman who was unaffected by it was, by far, one of my biggest turn-ons. And, Christ, the way she lived in her vulnerability and let her mask fall – that sealed the deal for me.

Fuck.

I want her.

Again.

I couldn’t do it, though. We’d had our night, and now I needed to move on and find a woman who could take what I needed to give. Sophia was not the woman for me.

My phone buzzed on the seat next to me.

Scott: Can you meet me and Wilder at the clubhouse now?

Thank fuck – a distraction.

Me: On my way.

* * *

I walked into Scott’s office to find him and Wilder deep in conversation, and a woman in her early-twenties sitting on the chair in the corner. Her feet tapped in front of her like she was nervous about something and her hands fidgeted in her lap. When I got to her face, I realised why. She was craving a hit.

“Griff,” Scott said, looking at me. “Wilder’s got that info we were after.”

I jerked my chin at the woman. “Who’s she?”

Wilder faced me with a look I’d never seen on his face before. Fuck, she meant something to him. I hoped this situation wasn’t about to fuck us in the ass more than it already had. “Carly is my ex. She was dating Slug.”

“Shit,” I said. “And she knows something about the fire?”

Wilder nodded. “Yeah, she said he started it.”

“Why?”

Carly joined in the conversation. “Because he was threatened by Ricky Grecian that if he didn’t do it, he’d be killed.”

My eyes met Scott’s and he nodded once at me. Ricky fucking Grecian.

I turned my attention back to Carly. “What’s the connection between Ricky and Slug?”

She looked blankly at me. “Huh?”

I took the few strides to where she sat, and crouched in front of her. Placing my hands on the armrests of her chair, I got in her face. “What the fuck did Ricky have on Slug to even make him give that ultimatum to him? There had to be something between them.” I needed to know if she was telling the truth. Junkies had a way of making shit up when it suited them.

She glared at me and leant forward. “Slug owed him a fortune for drugs, and Slug’s never been good at paying his debts. I’d say Ricky got sick of his shit.”

I watched her closely, and decided there was truth to what she was saying. Pushing up, I stood and turned back to Scott. “Looks like Blade’s prediction was spot on – Ricky’s playing with us.”

Anger sat on Scott’s face. “Yeah, brother. So now we have to figure out a way to play back.”