Victor had assumed the donation came from several local business owners who preferred to remain anonymous.
He had never asked for their names.
Now he wondered whether that assumption had been a mistake.
"Find every financial record connected to the club from that period," he told Mason. "Every donation, every reimbursement, every account we used. If someone has used our name, I want to know how."
Mason nodded.
"And if we find that someone inside the club accepted money?"
Victor looked at him.
"Then we'll deal with the truth, whatever it is."
Mason studied his face for a moment.
"Even if it hurts the club?"
"Especially then."
The answer came more quickly than Victor expected.
He had built the Iron Wolves around the idea that loyalty meant standing beside one another when life became difficult. But loyalty did not mean covering up a crime. It did not mean defending a friend who had betrayed the people they were supposed to protect.
If the club had been used to conceal stolen money, its members deserved to know.
And if Victor himself had failed to ask the right questions, he would have to accept responsibility for that failure.
He closed the notebook and handed it back to Mason.
"Keep this separate from the original evidence. Make a copy, record where it came from, and don't alter anything. We need an independent investigator to determine what these initials actually mean."
Mason nodded.
"I'll get it done."
When Victor returned to the main room, Dr. Lena Brooks had arrived.
She was a woman in her early fifties with short brown hair, a practical coat, and a medical bag that looked as though it had accompanied her through a thousand difficult nights. She had worked in emergency medicine before opening her clinic and had learned to recognize the difference between a patient who needed reassurance and one who needed immediate intervention.
She introduced herself to Caleb from several feet away.
"I'm Dr. Brooks. Bear tells me you've had a rough night."
Caleb glanced at Victor.
"She's here to help," Victor said.
Dr. Brooks knelt beside the bench and explained what she wanted to examine. She asked permission before checking his injuries and made sure he understood that he could ask questions at any time.
She examined his bruised face, his wrists, his knees, and his feet. She checked his pulse, blood pressure, and temperature, then asked about dizziness, nausea, headaches, and whether he had lost consciousness.
Caleb answered quietly.
When she asked how long he had been running, he said he wasn't sure.
"Several hours?"
He nodded.
"Have you had anything to drink?"
"A little water."
"Anything to eat?"
"Some bread."
Dr. Brooks looked at Victor.
"He needs fluids, warmth, and a more thorough assessment. His feet are badly cut, and I want to make sure there isn't an injury beneath the bruising. He also needs to be checked for a possible concussion, given the swelling around his face and the possibility that he was struck in the head."
"Can you treat him here?" Victor asked.
"I can clean and dress the wounds, but I won't pretend a clubhouse is a substitute for a proper medical facility. If he develops confusion, vomiting, a worsening headache, or unusual drowsiness, he needs emergency care immediately. Even if he appears stable, I recommend an examination at a hospital."
She turned back to Caleb.
"Do you feel safe staying here for the moment?"
Caleb glanced toward the windows.
"Yes."
"Do you feel safe going to a hospital?"
The boy hesitated.
"I don't know."
Dr. Brooks nodded.
"That's an honest answer. We'll make a plan that prioritizes your safety and your health. You don't have to solve everything tonight."
She cleaned his wounds, applied fresh dressings, and gave him instructions about keeping his feet protected. When she finished, she sat beside him.
"Caleb, I need to ask whether someone at home has been hurting you."
The boy looked at the floor.
For a moment, Victor thought he might refuse to answer.
Then Caleb whispered, "Not always."
Dr. Brooks remained still.
"Can you tell me what you mean by that?"
"My mother's boyfriend."
Victor felt his jaw tighten.
Caleb continued in a voice barely above a whisper.
"His name is Paul. He moved in last year. At first, he was nice. He bought me a bicycle and took us out for dinner. Then he started getting angry about everything. He didn't like it when Mom worked late. He didn't like it when she talked to people from the county. He said she was making trouble for people who could ruin us."
Dr. Brooks listened without interrupting.
"Did he ever hurt you?"
Caleb nodded.
"Sometimes he'd grab my arm. Once he pushed me against a wall because I wouldn't tell him what Mom was doing at work."
He looked up at Victor.
"But I never told anyone. Mom said she was going to make him leave."
"Did he hurt your mother?" Dr. Brooks asked.
Caleb's eyes dropped again.
"Yes."
The room became painfully quiet.
"He started hitting her before the men came tonight. He said she was keeping secrets from him. He said she was embarrassing him. She told him to get out, and he slapped her."
Caleb's voice trembled.
"Then he apologized. He always apologized afterward."
Dr. Brooks took a slow breath.
"Caleb, I'm sorry you've been living with that. None of it is your fault. And you don't have to protect him by keeping what happened a secret."
The boy stared at her.
"Will you tell the police?"
Dr. Brooks did not make a careless promise.
"My responsibility is to help keep you safe and make sure you receive the care you need. Because you're a minor and you've described being hurt, there may be legal reporting requirements. But that doesn't mean we have to ignore your safety concerns. We'll consult appropriate professionals and make sure any report includes the risks you've described."
Caleb's shoulders slumped.
"So they'll know where I am."
"We'll take precautions," Victor said. "And we won't casually share your location with anyone who hasn't been properly verified."
Dr. Brooks finished documenting his injuries and placed her notes in a sealed folder. She explained that her medical record would remain separate from the envelope and that she would not alter anything to accommodate the investigation.
Before leaving, she gave Victor the contact details for a child advocacy specialist who worked outside Blackridge County.
"She can help arrange a safe placement if necessary," Dr. Brooks said. "A child shouldn't have to decide alone which adults are trustworthy."