Epilogue

Four months later

THE CHANGE in temperature was immediate as Mitch stepped from the air-conditioned high-rise onto the city street. He hit the Send button and pocketed his phone. He pulled his coat tighter against the chill, and despite being jostled by the crowds purposefully walking in both directions, Mitch stopped and looked up. Above the office buildings, the sky was a clear blue. He took a deep breath. It was over. He’d done what he had to do, and now he was free.

“C’mon. Let’s get that beer. We’ve got something to celebrate, right?” Ross’s grin was wide as he nudged Mitch in the direction of The Rocks.

Luckily it was early enough that they managed to get a table on the rooftop, and soon Ross was raising his glass in a toast.

“Here’s to a job well done.”

Mitch snorted. “I’m not sure how well the job was done, but I’ll drink to the bloody thing being over.” They clinked glasses, and he swallowed the cold lager.

“You’ve started the celebration without me.”

They both looked up to see Shelley, Ross’s wife, smiling at them. She gave Mitch a quick kiss before slipping into the seat beside Ross. Ross flung an arm around her shoulders and pulled her close. Envy tugged at Mitch’s heart as he observed their closeness.

“Hey, Shell. It’s great to see you. I’ll get you a drink.” He pushed back, chair legs scraping on the floor. A minute to himself would be good. “What are you having? Glass of white wine, right?”

“Ah….” She and Ross shared a look.

“What?”

“Well, we’ve got some news,” Ross said.

“It’s only early days, but we want you to know we’re having a baby.”

“Fuck. Really?” Mitch’s smile was wide, but he was sure Ross’s grin was wider. “That’s amazing. I’m so happy for you guys.”

He moved around the table and gave Shelley a quick hug as Ross stood. He grasped Ross’s hand and gave it a shake before hauling him into a back-slapping hug. “That’s great news, mate. I really am happy for you.”

Ross pulled back, eyes crinkling. “Yeah, me too.”

“This is definitely cause for a celebration. Lemonade all round?” Mitch said, looking at Shelley. He gave her a wink, her laughter following him as he headed to the bar to order another round.

“How’d it go today?” Shelley asked when he finally returned.

“As expected. This was only the internal inquiry to tie up loose ends regarding the whole operation. Bureaucracy more than anything, but critical to make sure the case holds up in court. The trial won’t be for at least twelve months, maybe longer what with the court backlogs,” Ross said.

“I can’t believe how lucky you were, Mitch.” Shelley reached over and patted his hand. “Thank God you weren’t hurt worse.”

He instinctively brought his hand to his side where the bullet had entered and thankfully passed straight through. I guess you can call a broken rib, punctured lung, and shredded muscles lucky. Even now he felt the twinge that reminded him daily of that fateful day. The only good thing to have come out of the injury and his subsequent stint in hospital was that he had finally kicked the smoking habit once and for all.

“Yeah. I’m glad Ross and the others were there, or there could have been a very different outcome.”

It had been a hell of a lot easier to watch the police cart Finn away rather than the paramedics. But Mitch still had nightmares of coming to, strapped to a gurney, and seeing the look of desperation on Finn’s face as he was dragged away. God, how he wanted to see Finn. The yearning gripped him hard enough to take his breath away.

“Are you okay, honey?” Shelley squeezed his hand.

Mitch shook his head to clear his thoughts. “Uh-huh.”

“You’ll let us know if you need anything, right?”

“Thanks, Shell. I’ll be okay. The inquiry today was the only thing holding me here in Sydney. I’m free to move on now, at least until the trial.”

“What happens next?” she asked.

Ross spoke up. “The presidents of both clubs were killed along with eight other club members. The remaining gang members were taken into custody. They’re facing a slew of charges—illegal possession of firearms, assault, murder, drug importation and distribution. The businesses have been closed down. The assets of each gang have been confiscated under the Proceeds of Crime Act—cash, vehicles, property. Thanks to Lana and the Forensic Accounting team’s hard work, we think we found most of it.”

Mitch thought of Finn’s worn weatherboard house that had been declared a proceed from crime, along with everything in it. As a result, Finn owned nothing. He’d lost his only surviving close family member, his job, and his home. He’d paid a heavy price.

“So what does that mean for you, Mitch? What are you going to do?”

He shook his head clear of thoughts of Finn. “I don’t have to be back until the Supreme Court trial, so I’m taking some extended time off. After that, who knows?”

A moment later, his phone pinged with an incoming text. He smiled as he read the message.

So happy :) Can’t wait to see you.

“Got to go, guys,” Mitch said as he stood, suddenly impatient to hit the road. He gave Shelley another hug and congratulated Ross once again.

“Don’t be a stranger,” Ross said.

“I’ll miss you.” Even though he was eager to get out of town, he knew he’d miss spending time with his partner. “You’ll keep an eye on Pete?”

“Of course. He’s due out of rehab in a fortnight. I’ll give you an update then.”

“Thanks.” Mitch nodded.

He turned his thoughts from his ex to his future as he left the pub, typing a reply message.

Leaving now. See u soon. Xx

FINN’S FACE broke into a broad grin. “Thank God you made it. I thought you’d never get here.” Fuck, he was glad to see Mitch. Messaging and phone calls weren’t the same. You’d think he’d be used to the distance, especially since they’d spent time apart when Mitch had been recovering from his injuries.

Mitch dropped his bag on the floor and wrapped Finn tightly in his arms. Finn buried his face into Mitch’s neck, inhaling the scent he’d missed over the past two weeks. Mitch’s hold was strong and tender at the same time, and Finn allowed himself to melt into his arms. It didn’t matter that their future was uncertain. All that mattered was this moment.

“Fuck, I’ve missed you,” Mitch murmured against his ear. “So bloody much.”

“Me too.”

“I won’t leave you again.”

Yes. Oh God, that’s all I want.

Finn tilted his head, and Mitch brought his mouth down in a hot kiss. He tightened his hold, pulling Finn to him while he kissed him desperately.

Later they lay on the bed, Mitch’s arm under Finn’s neck and their legs tangled. Cool air chilled his damp body, so Finn tugged up the sheet and doona, drawing them up to ward off the cold. He wished he’d lit the fire in the bedroom, not just the one in the living room, but he had been planning for a dinner, not a passionate tumble. He laughed to himself. I really should know better.

He traced circles on Mitch’s chest, playing with the dark hair, loving the ache in his body, the feeling of being totally sated. This was exactly where he wanted to be.

“Mitch?”

“Mmm….” Mitch’s voice had that sleepy quality of someone only half awake.

“You haven’t told me what happened today.” Finn knew the concern was evident in his voice, and he hated raising the topic, but he had to know. He needed the reassurance that everything was going to be all right.

Mitch moved, hauling himself up until he was sitting propped against the headboard. He drew Finn with him.

“It’s going to be okay, Finn. Everything went well, just as I told you it would.”

“You didn’t lose your job? You weren’t suspended?” Finn had worried himself sick at the potential cloud over Mitch’s career.

“Not even close. But I told you that wasn’t going to happen.”

“I was sure I was going to fuck up your career. That they’d find out about us and you’d be reprimanded in some way.”

“Finn, listen to me. They weren’t going to find out about us because no one was going to tell them. Plus the operation wasn’t compromised. It may not have gone down the way I thought it would, but all in all, we got the result we wanted. Both of us.”

Finn hated the fact he wasn’t allowed to speak up on Mitch’s behalf at the departmental inquiry, but he understood the whole situation was complicated. It took weeks to sort out his own role in the whole debacle. Mitch was astounded and overjoyed to find out Finn was the person passing over confidential club information. Finn and Pete decided together they wanted to bring the club down—Pete because he wanted to make amends for getting involved in a drug running operation, Finn because he hated everything the club and his brother stood for. Thankfully Finn was able to strike a deal for his testimony.

He was seeing a counselor, someone to help him come to terms with not only the events of that day, but everything that had happened leading up to the siege. Unsurprisingly, he was dealing well with the death of Rocky, but old wounds had reopened when information came to light after the arrests of a number of the Soldiers. There was still no concrete proof and it was largely hearsay, but Rocky had bragged to fellow Soldiers about killing their father. There was enough substance to the story for the police and Finn to believe it was most likely true. Carl’s death was still unclear, but it reopened old wounds and Finn grieved for his loss of family again. But how he had hope.

“So—what now?” Finn asked.

“Now we have probably a year until we testify and get this thing over with once and for all. Then we do anything we want. You, me. The world’s our oyster.”

Finn pressed close to Mitch. “I’ve been thinking about that conversation we had, the one where you asked me what I’d do if I didn’t have to stay with the club, if I could do anything I wanted to do.” He paused, listening to Mitch’s strong and regular heartbeat under his ear. “I think I’m ready to have those dreams now. For us to have our dreams come true.”

Finn could hear the smile in Mitch’s voice. “I’m so glad to hear that. Starting with the coast?”

“Uh-huh. Then working on the other things—you know, the white picket fence?” Mitch hugged him tighter at those words. “Maybe we can stay right here.” Finn looked out the window at the crashing waves below.

“Anywhere you want, Finn. Anywhere you want.” Mitch pressed a kiss to the top of his head. And Finn realized that so long as he was with Mitch, he didn’t care where they were. His place was with the man he loved, and that was all that mattered.