Nick looked terrible. Three days of being held captive showed on him—he was unshaven, tired, and had the look of someone whose life had crumbled around him.
“Thanks for coming,” he said when they brought him into the room, where Jaxon and Ronan stood beside me like protectors. “I know you probably think I’m guilty. Everyone does. But I need you to hear me out.”
“I’m listening,” I said.
“The evidence against me is fake,” he said desperately. “All of it. The payments, the calls, everything. Someone set me up to take the fall for their betrayal.”
“That’s what guilty people always say,” Jaxon pointed out.
Nick acknowledged. “I know…But think about it—if I was really working with Hart’s people, would I be this obvious about it? Would I leave such an easy trail? I’m not stupid, and whoever
