Out of Left Field

Chapter 17 - Dodger (Sloane)

Sloane

My eyes burned, exhaustion threatening to pull me into a deep sleep. I've been awake for almost 24 hours now, but I can't sleep.

Not yet.

Not when Chris is in jail and Dodger is scared out of his mind.

I poured myself another cup of black coffee, draining it in a few large gulps, ignoring the bitterness it left on my taste buds. I didn't care about taste. I desperately needed the caffeine.

Dom and Cami stood in their kitchen with me, both of them just as exhausted.

The news about Chris blew up overnight and several of his sponsors dropped him immediately. I wasn't hopeful he would be able to get them back, but we were still going to try. I owed him that much. Cami's been on damage control, trying to spin the news and stop it from spreading too far.

It didn't look like it was working.

I rubbed the heels of my palms into my eyes, fighting past the exhaustion. "Okay." My hands slapped against their marble countertop. "It's 8am on a Sunday. The pound opens in an hour. The bank opens in 30."

"What do those have to do with each other?" Dom asked mid-yawn.

"I'm gonna pull out as much as I can and I'm gonna start playing dirty. The law obviously hasn't worked in my favor. I'm gonna bribe them. Who can say no to cash?"

Dom and Cami exchanged a look, then shrugged.

"You sure?" Dom asked.

"No. But what the hell else am I gonna do?" As a lawyer, it did hurt to consider breaking the law in so many ways, but I'm out of options.

The law isn't going to protect us, it wasn't protecting Chris.

"And his lawyer?"

I looked over at Cami, pulling my bottom lip between my teeth. I knew I was a good lawyer, but I'm also humble enough to admit that this was beyond my expertise.

Stu had his opportunity to pull strings. Now it was mine.

Unfortunately for him, I had a lot of favors to cash in.

"Helen Toley. She's... an evil genius. Best defense attorney I know. If anyone is gonna get him out of this, it's her. Cam, can you call her at 9? Her nephew plays for the Yankees. I negotiated his contract up by 3 million. She owes me."

Dom walked over to where I stood, clamping a hand on my shoulder. "Well, even if she doesn't, we'll chip in whatever we need to help. We're here for you guys."

I smiled appreciatively, tears welling up in my eyes. "Thank you," I whispered, my voice cracking a little.

Obviously, Cam and Dom would help me however I needed it, I knew that. But it still warmed my heart that I had friends like this.

I sniffed, taking a deep breath and clearing my throat. "Okay. I gotta... Fuck. I don't know. My brain isn't working."

"It's okay," Cami said softly, "You're tired. It's normal. Just... Go get ready to go, wash your face, then head to the bank."

I nodded a few times, then turned to head to their guest bathroom, skidding to a stop when my phone started buzzing on the counter. I ran over and eyed the caller I.D., snatching it off of the counter when I didn't recognize the number and swiping to answer, "Chris?"