He grits his teeth. “Well, I’m sure as fuck not giving you my blessing. That’s a big, complicated favor to call in. Risky too, if you get caught.”

He’s not just talking about my risk. I also run the risk of ruining a long-standing relationship with the Demons if I use Stump’s connection and fuck it up. “I don’t care.”

He sits forward and lowers his voice. “And that right there is why I’m telling you no. You stop caring, that’s when shit goes wrong.”

“I’ll never snitch. Demons will stay clear of any trouble.”

Realizing I won’t let this drop, Rock blows out a breath. “You’re going to have to share more details.”

My hands ball into fists. “Senator Kelly —”

“The one who’s about to go on trial?”

Great, the publicity surrounding the case isn’t exactly going to encourage Rock to help me.

“Lilly worked for him,” I continue.

“Jesus Christ.” As usual, Rock doesn’t need me to paint a full picture.

“He hurt her, Rock. Bad. Feds wouldn’t let her do anything that might ruin their case.”

“That’s why she ran?”

“Short version, yeah.”

“Shit,” he mutters, shaking his head. He’s silent for a few minutes, but I sense his mind flipping through possibilities. Finally, he says, “Let me see what Tony can find out for me.”

That’s a big favor for Rock to call in. “This needs to be done, Rock. You know that. No matter how hard he might be to get at. I won’t let this one go.”

“I understand. You need to understand that it needs to be done the right way. The way that doesn’t end up with you in prison, missing out on the next twenty-five years of your son’s life.”

Okay, when he puts it that way, it gives me pause.

“Remember the guard at Slater Correctional?”

“Fuck yeah. I remember the pig.” When Rock had been inside a couple years ago, one particular guard had made Rock’s life hell by doling out daily beatings, trying to provoke Rock into a fight. The guard was in bed with the Vipers MC and the cowards wanted to take out our president without getting their hands dirty.

Rock wouldn’t be tricked into lashing out at a guard while in custody. Then the CO made the fatal mistake of touching Hope on one of her visits to see Rock. That invasive pat-down sealed the guy’s fate. As soon as Rock was out of jail, we started planning to end that motherfucker.

“You think I didn’t want to take him out right away?” Rock asks.

“This is different. This fuck has gone unpunished for years. He’s responsible for…a lot of things.”