Chapter Twenty-Eight
Judge
After River left for work, I went over to my mom’s house to have dinner with her and make sure she was doing okay. I knew Layla had been spending a lot of time over there, but I wanted to see for myself.
I rang the doorbell with my hip since my hands were full of bags from her favorite restaurant. To my surprise, Splint’s dad, Dean Montgomery, opened the front door.
“Hey, Judge. Oh, let me help you with that,” he said and reached to take one of the bags.
“Hey, Dean. What’re you doing here?” I asked, not bothering to hide the suspicious undertone in my voice.
He held his hands up in a placating manner. “The relay switch went out on the compressor of your mom’s fridge. She called and asked me if I had time to replace it.”
“Why’d she call you? I could’ve done it for her.”
“Jonah Jackson, mind your manners in my house,” Mom scolded.
“Sorry, Ma. My apologies, Dean. It caught me off guard when you answered the door.” I held up the bag of food I was still holding and grinned. “I brought dinner.”
Mom smiled. “Wonderful! Dean, would you like to join us?”
He glanced between Mom and me before saying, “I’ll have to take a rain check. I’ve got a big job starting tomorrow that requires some prep work I’d like to get done tonight.”
“Oh, okay. Maybe another time then. How much do I owe you?” Mom asked.
“If you’ll make me a batch of your cookies sometime, we’ll call it even.”
“You’ve got yourself a deal,” Mom said. “Thanks again for coming over on such short notice.”
After Dean left, Mom and I sat down to dinner. She started yammering on about anything and everything, clearly trying to avoid a certain topic, but I wasn’t going to let that happen. In the middle of her spiel about her flower beds, I interrupted her, “Why’d you really call Dean to fix the fridge? I could’ve done it for you. Hell, you could’ve done it.”
Ma wiped her mouth with her napkin and looked down at her plate. “When I was still in the hospital, Splint and his dad came by to visit. I knew Splint worked the call, but I didn’t know his dad was in the restaurant when I collapsed. He’s actually the one who started doing CPR on me before the ambulance got there. Then, I ran into Dean when I was having lunch with Boar and Shannon and invited him to join us. He’s a nice guy and I enjoy talking with him.”
I reached across the table and placed my hand on top of hers giving it a gentle squeeze. “Mom, if you’re worried about how I’ll react to you seeing someone; don’t. I know you loved Dad with all your heart, but he’s been gone a long time, and he wouldn’t want you to be lonely.”
She placed her other hand on top of mine and patted it. “That’s good to know, sweetheart, but Dean and I are just friends.”
“Be sure to let me know if that changes,” I said.
She laughed. “You don’t have to worry about that. You boys gossip more than any girls I’ve ever known, so you’ll probably know before I do.”
“I highly doubt that,” I chuckled and went back to my food.
“So, things still going good with you and River?”
I nodded and told her about River’s mother dying, as well as Dash showing up for an unexpected visit.
“Spring Lawson. Why does that name sound familiar?” Mom asked and cast her eyes upward like she was trying to physically search inside her head.
I shrugged. “Don’t know. She’s lived in Devil Springs for at least thirty years, if not longer. According to Dash, she’s been into drugs for the entirety of his life, so maybe you saw her name in the news. I’m sure she’s been arrested a number of times.”
“Maybe that’s it,” she said distractedly, clearly still trying to place River’s mother.
I knew why she recognized the name, but I didn’t feel right sharing the story about River’s humiliating prom experience.
After dinner, I helped her with a few things around the house before heading home for the night. I was still exhausted from the last few days and desperately needed to catch up on some sleep.
***
I dropped into my seat and waited for Church to begin. I was hoping it would be a short meeting because I wanted to get on the road before it got too late. River had no idea what we were doing for the weekend, and I was anxious to get the ball rolling.
The words “rental house” pulled me back to the present. “The inspection has been rescheduled for next Wednesday. We are still trying to locate Oliver Burgess, who we believe to be the person who tampered with the sensors. Spazz will be sending his picture to each of your phones so you have something to reference if you don’t know what he looks like. Also, continue to be on the look out for Roy Mayfield. If you do happen to see either one of them, grab ‘em and bring ‘em to the clubhouse. That’s all I’ve got. Anybody else have anything we need to discuss?”
I sat forward in my chair and cleared my throat. “I’m taking River out of town for the weekend, so she won’t need a tail. We should be back sometime Sunday evening.”
“Let me know when you get back. Anybody else?” he asked. When everyone shook their heads, he banged the gavel effectively dismissing us.
Chapter Twenty- Nine
River
I was awake and ready to go by the time Jonah returned from Church. I hoped the bag I packed would fit in his saddlebag. I tried to pack light, but it wasn’t easy since he wouldn’t tell me what we were doing or where we were going.
“I just need to grab my bag and I’ll be ready to go,” he said with a broad smile.
“Will you please tell me what we’re doing? It’s driving me crazy,” I whined.
“And ruin the surprise I’ve worked so hard on? No way in hell, lil’ ninja. You’re just going to have to wait.”
“Fine, fuckface. Have it your way,” I grumbled causing him to laugh.
A few minutes later, I was on the back of his bike and we were on the road. As much as I wanted to pout about not knowing where we were going, I couldn’t keep the smile off my face as the wind whipped around me while I clung to Jonah’s body.
It suddenly hit me that I didn’t have much time left in Devil Springs. In all the years I’d worked as a traveling nurse, I’d never let myself become involved with anyone beyond casual relationships. Even my friendships were superficial. I never opened up or shared anything personal because I knew my stay would be temporary, but somehow, Jonah Jackson managed to break all of my rules.
I tried to shake off the sense of sadness that washed over me and enjoy the ride, but my mind kept wandering back to how much I was going to miss Jonah, Kennedy, Leigh, and the other friends I’d made in Devil Springs.
The bike came to a stop and Jonah patted my thigh indicating for me to get off. I looked up to see we were in the parking lot of a small country store.
“What’re we doing here?” I asked.
“Getting groceries.”
“And where are you planning to put those groceries?” I asked. I knew he had storage compartments on his bike, but there weren’t that many and the ones he did have were already full.
He grinned. “In my mouth.”
I rolled my eyes and followed him inside the store.
“Hey, Bruce!” Jonah exclaimed and extended his hand to an older man behind the register. “How’s it going?”
“Well, now, I suppose I can’t complain. You boys keep me and Peggy in business. Good to see you, Judge. And who’s this you’ve brought with you?”
Jonah introduced me to Bruce and I reached out to shake his hand. “She doesn’t know where we’re going, so don’t let her try to get it out of you.”
Bruce laughed. “You’re a brave man, Judge—taking a woman away for the weekend and not telling her where you’re taking her. How’s she supposed to pack?”
“See! He gets it!” I shouted.
“I sure do, and I learned it the hard way, too,” Bruce shared.
“I’m still not telling you,” Jonah declared. “Pick out what you want to eat tonight and for breakfast tomorrow and Sunday. And anything you might want for snacks.”
“What about lunch and dinner tomorrow?”
“You don’t need to worry about that,” he said cryptically and went about gathering a few items.
After Jonah paid for the groceries, he carried the bags out to a truck parked in the lot. Before I could ask what he was doing, Bruce got into the driver’s seat and said, “I’ll follow you.”
We got back on the bike, but instead of pulling out onto the road we’d been on, Jonah took a different road that started to look more like gravel and less like road the farther we traveled. Then there were sections of the road that were so steep I was certain I would slide off the back of the bike and Bruce would run right over me.
Finally, Jonah stopped in front of a beautiful cabin. The thing was massive and appeared to be sitting directly on top of the mountain.
“Where are we?” I asked as I turned my head from side to side trying to take in as much as possible.
“Let me get the groceries from Bruce before he tries to unload them himself and then I’ll tell you.”
I followed Jonah to the truck to grab a few bags and thank Bruce for not running over me.
The inside of the cabin was just as breathtaking as the outside. I dropped the bags on the counter and ran to the huge glass window in the living room that looked out over the mountains.
“Will you tell me where we are now?”
Jonah chuckled. “We’re at my friend’s cabin. He’s actually the VP of the Croftridge chapter. Anyway, he doesn’t get up here very often so he lets other club members use it whenever he’s not. Copper actually met Layla up here.”
“But this place seems so remote. How did that even happen?”
“It’s a long story and it’s not mine to tell, but I’m sure Layla would be happy to share it with you sometime.”
“I’ll be sure to ask her about it when we get back.”
“Do you want to eat now or go explore first?” he asked.
I chose to eat first because I knew I wouldn’t want to stop whatever we were doing to come back and eat; plus, I was starving since I hadn’t eaten much before we left.
Once we were finished eating, I sprayed any exposed skin with bug spray I found in one of the bathrooms. I don’t know what it was about me, but mosquitos loved me. Had I known we were going to a cabin in the woods, I would’ve brought my own.
Jonah was standing by the back door waiting for me with a shotgun strapped to his back. “What’re you doing with that?”
“There’s a lot of wild animals up here, and technically, we’re in their territory. I’d rather be prepared if we happen to run into anything.”
“Hold up. What kind of wild animals?” I asked, thinking that maybe we should stay inside and explore the cabin. I had no interest in becoming bear poop.
“Cougars, black bears, boars, elk, and coyotes to name a few.”
I was already shaking my head and backing away from the door. “Nope. No thank you. I’ll be perfectly fine staying right here in the animal-free zone.”
Jonah laughed. “There’s nothing to worry about. If we happen to come up on any animals, chances are they’ll run away when they see or hear us. If they don’t and it comes down to it, I’ll shoot them.”
“Has anyone ever been attacked up here?” I asked.
Jonah grimaced and reluctantly nodded. “Yes, it’s happened one time, but the circumstances were very different and she didn’t have a gun or any other kind of weapon to scare them off.”
I placed my hands on my hips. “She? Them? Explain.”
He sighed. “Two wild boars chased after Layla and one of them got her leg before she could get away. She was unarmed and didn’t even know she needed to be watching for them. Copper heard her screaming and came to her rescue. But, in all the years we’ve been coming to this cabin, that’s the only time anyone’s had a problem,” he reassured me.
“You know how to use that thing?” I asked and pointed to the shotgun.
Jonah threw his head back and laughed. “My dad taught me how to shoot when I was five years old. Not only do I know how to use it, I can hit what I’m aiming for. Hang on a sec,” he said and turned to open the closet behind him. After rummaging around for a moment, he handed me something that looked like a mini fire extinguisher. “That’s bear spray. It’s like pepper spray, but meant for animals.”
“Do you have boar spray and cougar spray in there?” I asked as I studied the can in my hand.
“That works on other animals, too. If it doesn’t, I have a gun, remember. We’ll be fine,” he insisted.
I wasn’t so sure, but I sucked it up and followed him outside. “Which way do you want to go?” he asked.
I surveyed the area and started in the direction I wanted to go. Jonah snorted behind me and mumbled, “I should’ve known.”
“Known what?”
“You’ll see.”
After walking a bit more, I turned and asked, “What’s wrong with that rock?”
Instead of answering me, Jonah walked over to the rock and flipped open a hidden panel to reveal a keypad. He punched in some numbers and motioned for me to follow him to the other side of the rock. With his foot, he swept away a pile of leaves and uncovered a door. “Open it.”
“Do I have stupid written on my face?” I trusted Jonah, but everything within me said opening a random door in the ground was not a wise decision.
“It leads to an underground bunker. Badger’s uncle was a prepper and had it installed years before Badger inherited the place. It’s come in handy a time or two in recent years, so Badger keeps it stocked just in case it’s needed.”
I wasn’t sure how a bunker could come in handy, especially more than once, but decided not to ask. Knowing Jonah, he wouldn’t tell me anyway.
“Do you want me to go first?” he asked when I continued to stare at the door.
“Yes, please.”
Surprisingly, he didn’t give me shit about it. He just opened the door and climbed down the ladder. Against my better judgment, I climbed down after him.
“Holy shit!” I gasped.
I’d never seen anything even remotely close to Badger’s bunker. I was expecting it to be similar to a storm shelter, but it looked more like a studio apartment. The place even had a shower and toilet.
“Not what you were expecting?”
“Not at all. You could live in here.”
“Yeah, that was the idea—to be able to live in here for at least a year if necessary. Though I don’t think Badger keeps it stocked with a year’s worth of supplies anymore.”
I looked around the bunker a little more before we climbed out. Jonah covered the door with leaves and used the keypad to lock it before we ventured off into the woods.
After walking for a while, we came to a fairly decent sized creek. The water didn’t appear to be moving fast and I didn’t see any rapids, but I could clearly hear the sound of rushing water.
“Do you hear that? The water?” I asked.
“Yeah, there’s a waterfall a little ways down,” Jonah said.
“Can we go? I want to see it,” I said excitedly.
He grinned and reached for my hand. “Let’s go.”
The waterfall was gorgeous. The creek spilled down over several layers of rocks into a much wider creek at the bottom. “You know, I don’t think I’ve ever seen a waterfall from the top.”
“I’ve never really thought about it, but I guess you’re right; most of the time people view them from the bottom.”
“Are there any other—” I started, but Jonah cut me off.
“River, do not move. I mean it. Do. Not. Move,” he said so sternly that I obeyed him without thought.
“Wh-why?” I whispered.
“Just keep your eyes on me. Everything will be okay if you stay calm and stay focused on me.”
“Jonah, you
’re really freaking me out.”
“I know, baby; I know, and I’m sorry. Just stay still for a little bit longer and keep looking at me.”
My heart was pounding in my chest and it felt like I couldn’t breathe. It was taking every ounce of my inner strength to stay still when all I wanted to do was jump into the safety of Jonah’s arms.
I was on the verge of having a good old-fashioned meltdown when Jonah said, “Slowly, and I mean slowly, start walking to me.”
I tentatively took one step and stopped. When he motioned for me to keep going, I took another step. “Good. Keep coming,” he said.
Finally, I reached him and jumped into his arms. “What the hell was that all about?”
He placed me on my feet and turned me around. “Look right there,” he said and pointed to the edge of the water. “That copperhead was slithering along and stopped right by your feet. He took his sweet ass time deciding to keep going.”
“Holy shit! Those things are poisonous!” I shrieked.
“No, they’re venomous.”
“What?”
“Snakes are not poisonous; they’re venomous. Same with spiders and bees. Poison is ingested. Venom is injected. Didn’t they teach you that in nursing school?”
“No, they didn’t. But I did know that some snake bites require antivenom, so what you said makes sense. Can we go now? I think I’ve had enough of the great outdoors for the time being.”
Jonah chuckled and took my hand. “Yeah, we can head back now.”
Chapter Thirty
Judge
I refused to tell River how we were spending our Saturday because I wanted it to be a surprise, and because I was afraid she wouldn’t want to go.
“Uh, I have something for you before we leave,” I said and handed her the two bags I’d managed to keep hidden from her.
She gave me a quizzical look, but took the bags. She reached into the first one and pulled out a pair of leather chaps. “Those go over your pants. You can slide the belt through the loop on your jeans, but you don’t have to,” I explained.
Judge (Blackwings MC - Devil Springs Book 2) Page 14
