Reckoning, p.1
Reckoning, page 1
Reckoning
Wolfes of Manhattan Five
Helen Hardt
Contents
Reckoning
Dedication
Untitled
Praise For Helen Hardt
Prologue
1. Lacey
2. Rock
3. Zee
4. Reid
5. Lacey
6. Reid
7. Zee
8. Lacey
9. Reid
10. Zee
11. Reid
12. Lacey
13. Rock
14. Lacey
15. Reid
16. Zee
17. Reid
18. Lacey
19. Reid
20. Zee
21. Reid
22. Rock
23. Lacey
24. Zee
25. Reid
26. Lacey
27. Reid
28. Zee
29. Reid
30. Lacey
31. Reid
32. Zee
33. Reid
34. Lacey
35. Zee
36. Reid
37. Lacey
38. Zee
39. Rock
40. Reid
41. Zee
42. Lacey
43. Rock
44. Lacey
45. Reid
46. Lacey
47. Zee
48. Reid
49. Lacey
50. Zee
51. Lacey
52. Reid
53. Lacey
54. Reid
55. Lacey
56. Reid
Emily
A Note From Helen
Acknowledgments
Also By Helen Hardt
About the Author
Reckoning
Wolfes of Manhattan Five
Helen Hardt
This book is an original publication of Helen Hardt
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This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental. The publisher does not assume any responsibility for third-party websites or their content.
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Copyright © 2021 Helen Hardt, LLC dba Hardt & Sons
Cover Design: The Killion Group, Inc.
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All Rights Reserved
No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic format without permission. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author’s rights. Purchase only authorized editions.
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Paperback ISBN: 978-1-952841-04-0
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PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
Created with Vellum
For my angels
One Wolfe wife is forced into a marriage of convenience to the man she loves desperately.
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Another is about to take the fall for a murder she didn’t commit.
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Time is running out for the Wolfes. Lacey is under arrest for the murder of patriarch Derek Wolfe, and the four Wolfe siblings—Rock, Roy, Reid, and Riley—are still considered suspects. Rock is determined to save his wife, even if it means committing murder himself, while Reid resolves to to discover the truth and avenge his love, Zee, for what she’s suffered at his father’s hand.
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A court order not to leave the state of New York doesn’t stop Rock and Reid. Using aliases, they venture out to find the key to this mystery once and for all. Several others are implicated, and an abduction, a death, and a long-lost relative complicate matters and bring new evidence to light.
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Rock and Reid will do anything to save the women they love—even if it means neither of them comes out alive.
Praise For Helen Hardt
STEEL BROTHERS SAGA
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“Craving is the jaw-dropping book you need to read!”
~New York Times bestselling author Lisa Renee Jones
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"Completely raw and addictive."
~#1 New York Times bestselling author Meredith Wild
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“Talon has hit my top five list…up there next to Jamie Fraser and Gideon Cross.”
~USA Today bestselling author Angel Payne
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“Talon and Jade’s instant chemistry heats up the pages...”
~RT Book Reviews
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“Sorry Christian and Gideon, there’s a new heartthrob for you to contend with. Meet Talon. Talon Steel.”
~Booktopia
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“Such a beautiful torment—the waiting, the anticipation, the relief that only comes briefly before more questions arise, and the wait begins again… Check. Mate. Ms. Hardt…”
~Bare Naked Words
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“Made my heart stop in my chest. Helen has given us such a heartbreakingly beautiful series.”
~Tina, Bookalicious Babes
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WOLFES OF MANHATTAN
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“It's hot, it's intense, and the plot starts off thick and had me completely spellbound from page one.”
~The Sassy Nerd Blog
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“Helen Hardt…is a master at her craft.”
~K. Ogburn, Amazon
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“Move over Steel brothers… Rock is everything!”
~Barbara Conklin-Jaros, Amazon
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“Helen has done it again. She winds you up and weaves a web of intrigue.”
~Vicki Smith, Amazon
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FOLLOW ME SERIES
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“Hardt spins erotic gold...”
~Publishers Weekly
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“22 Best Erotic Novels to Read”
~Marie Claire Magazine
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“Intensely erotic and wildly emotional...”
~New York Times bestselling author Lisa Renee Jones
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“With an edgy, enigmatic hero and loads of sexual tension, Helen Hardt's fast-paced Follow Me Darkly had me turning pages late into the night!”
~New York Times bestselling author J. Kenner
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“Christian, Gideon, and now...Braden Black.”
~Books, Wine, and Besties
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“A tour de force where the reader will be pulled in as if they're being seduced by Braden Black, taken for a wild ride, and left wanting more.”
~USA Today Bestselling Author Julie Morgan
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“Hot. Sexy. Intriguing. Page-Turner. Helen Hardt checks all the boxes with Follow Me Darkly!”
~International Bestselling Author Victoria Blue
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BLOOD BOND SAGA
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“An enthralling and rousing vampire tale that will leave readers waiting for the sequel.”
~Kirkus Reviews
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"Dangerous and sexy. A new favorite!"
~New York Times bestselling author Alyssa Day
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“A dark, intoxicating tale.”
~Library Journal
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“Helen dives into the paranormal world of vampires and makes it her own.”
~Tina, Bookalicious Babes
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“Throw out everything you know about vampires—except for that blood thirst we all love and lust after in these stunning heroes—and expect to be swept up in a sensual story that twists and turns in so many wonderfully jaw-dropping ways.”
~Angel Payne, USA Today bestselling author
Prologue
Zee
I’d felt more with Reid Wolfe—now my husband—than I’d ever felt before.
More than I’d ever wanted to feel.
Yes, I’d fallen hard. But I desperately wanted a husband who loved me as much as I loved him.
My flesh still numb, I walked with Reid back to the Wolfe Building. It was several blocks, and we didn’t talk.
We took the elevator up to his apartment. He gathered his staff in the dining room.
“I have some news,” he said. “This lovely lady and I were married this afternoon, so you now work for her as well as for me. Whatever she wants, please see to her needs.”
Lydia and the others were clearly surprised, but they all simply nodded and then went about their tasks.
I followed Reid to his bedroom. “I’ll have your apartment packed up and your things delivered as soon as possible.”
“My job…” I began.
“I’ll see if you can get an extended leave of absence.”
“Mo. The others. They can’t afford the rent without me.”
“That isn’t anything for you to worry about. I’ll cover it until they can get a new roommate.”
“My job…” I said again.
“I promise I’ll take care of all of it,” Reid said. “But you’ll never have to go back if you don’t want to, Zee. I’ll see that you’re always taken care of, even after the marriage ends.”
After the marriage ends…
So the marriage would end, in his eyes.
This was only temporary.
My heart broke in two.
I was in love—and married to the objec t of my affection.
And it was only temporary.
1
Lacey
Several hours earlier…
Someone pounded on the door to the conference room.
“What is it?” Reid yelled.
“It’s me.” The voice belonged to Terrence, Reid’s assistant.
“What do you want, Terrence?” Reid demanded.
Terrence opened the door. “I’m sorry.”
“Sorry for—”
Two uniformed NYPD officers followed Terrence into the room. “Lacey Ward Wolfe?”
My heart thudded. “Yes?”
“You’re under arrest for the murder of Derek Wolfe.” One of the officers entered and grabbed me out of my chair. Literally gripped my shoulders and forced me into a stand.
Rock stood, his green eyes full of fire. “Hands off my wife, asshole.”
I gasped, fear surging through me. I was innocent. Innocent! “Rock, please… You’ll just get yourself in trouble.”
Rock had already been through so much in his life because of his father, Derek Wolfe. This would only add to it.
The officer cuffed my hands behind my back. I was helpless. So helpless.
I hated being helpless.
“Come on,” Reid said. “You’re really going to parade her out of here in cuffs? The wife of our CEO?”
Would they listen to Reid’s words? Would they allow me my dignity?
“I’m only following orders, sir,” the blue said.
No, they would not.
“You have the right to remain silent,” the other officer began. “Anything you say can and will be held against you. You have the right to an attorney. If you can’t afford an attorney, one will be provided for you.”
My Miranda rights. The Miranda case was a staple in criminal law class. Anyone who’d ever watched a police drama knew them by heart. Somehow, though, I never thought they’d be directed at me.
“She’ll have the best fucking attorney,” Rock said. “What is the basis for this arrest?”
“Detective Morgan has determined probable cause and the DA agrees,” the blue who cuffed me offered. “That’s all we know.”
Reid glared at Terrence.
We all wondered if Reid’s assistant had been behind the phone call made from Reid’s office to Rock’s landline in Montana three weeks before Derek’s death.
“I’m going with her,” Rock said. “Don’t worry, baby. I won’t rest until you’re cleared.”
“I’m innocent,” I said softly.
“We know,” Reid said. “We’ll prove it.”
Handcuffed. Like a common criminal.
I sat in the back of the police car, unable to move my arms. Stiff.
Why? Why did this happen to me? I was innocent. As innocent as the day I was born. I was nowhere near Derek Wolfe the night he was murdered. Why would he want to frame me?
Except this wasn’t about me. Not at all. It was about Rock and his siblings. It was about hurting them.
I was a good attorney, damn it. What had I missed?
The squad car stopped at the NYPD Seventeenth Precinct. Rock’s driver pulled up behind him, and Rock hurried out of the back seat and walked quickly toward me.
“We’ve got this, baby,” he said. “I swear to you that we’ve got this.”
I nodded blankly as the two uniformed officers led me in. Why hadn’t Hank Morgan himself come to arrest me? Was he too good for that? He’d been gunning to make an arrest since the reading of Derek Wolfe’s will. Surely he’d want to be the one to bring me in.
Very odd.
The truth will always prevail.
I heard the words in the voice of Leon Huxby, my criminal law professor. They were his mantra. How I’d have liked to believe them, but I hadn’t then, and I didn’t now. Even though I was an estates and trusts attorney, I’d seen the justice system fail more than one person since I began practicing law six years ago…and that was just for the clients of my former law firm.
Innocent people got convicted all the time. The system wasn’t perfect by any means.
I never thought I’d be on this side of it. Did anyone?
Only now was I realizing exactly what was happening. Before, I’d been numb. Frozen and numb. But now? I was arrested. In police custody for a murder I didn’t commit.
Lacey Wolfe, you’re under the arrest for the murder of Derek Wolfe. You have the right to remain silent…
The officers didn’t acknowledge Rock.
I said nothing. I didn’t beg Rock to help me, though I was pleading inside. On the outside I was determined to appear strong.
Truth be told, I was scared out of my mind.
Chills spiked along my flesh as I stood facing a camera. Then my profile.
I, Lacey Ward Wolfe, good girl extraordinaire, had a mug shot. A fucking mug shot.
Paperwork. Paperwork. Paperwork.
And then…
A holding cell.
Rock was working on this. I knew that. I’d be out of here quickly, right? He could push this through without an arraignment. But what if he couldn’t? What if I had to spend the night here? In a jail cell?
Three other women were in my cell. Two were obviously prostitutes, and the other was a young woman who sat crying in the corner. A toilet and sink sat in another corner.
And then I had to pee. Of course. No way was I taking a piss in front of these other women.
Come on, Rock. Please.
I wasn’t wearing a watch, and they’d taken my phone, of course. My purse was back at the office. They hadn’t let me bring it when they arrested me.
I sighed, willing back the tears that threatened to fall. This was it. I’d hit rock bottom. Rock bottom, and I hadn’t done anything wrong.
You never think it will happen to you.
A guard walked to the holding cell. “Wolfe?”
I nodded and attempted to swallow the lump in my throat. “That’s me.”
“An attorney is here to see you.”
“Hey!” one of the prostitutes said in a raspy smoker’s voice. “I never get to talk to my attorney except on Tuesdays.”
The guard ignored her, opened the cell door, let me out, locked it, and slapped cuffs on me.
“Is this really necessary?” I asked. “Do I look like I could overpower you?”
