by Erin Trejo
I chuckle and pull her closer. “Wherever you want baby. The world is ours.”
Holding my Molly in my arms like this is pure fucking heaven. There is nothing in the world that I wouldn’t do for her. Nowhere I wouldn’t go. She means everything to me. I know we both have our demons, but together we are unstoppable.
“Roland?” Molly asks from her place in my arms.
“Yeah?”
“Do you think we could move?”
“Anywhere you want to baby.”
“Do you think he’d find us?”
I let out a sigh and press my lips into the top of her hair.
“I won’t let him.”
Chapter 1
Reaper
The sparks from the welding machine flicker and burn my skin. I welcome the pain, it’s a reminder of what I had and what I’d lost. A reminder of everything I want to forget. It’s a reminder of the ache in my chest that still pisses me off. Why can’t I shake her? She’s nothing to me anymore, but for some reason that lingering ache just sits there day after day. Nothing eases it. Nothing makes it better. I can drink until I lose days, fuck until my dick hurts, but the ache is still there.
“Hey Ink, pass me that piece of metal,” I call out.
He reaches down grabbing the piece I need before passing it to me. Adding it to the piece I already have welded in place, I grin. If this doesn’t conceal the shit we’re moving then nothing will.
“You weldin’ that under the trucks?” Ink squats next to me and asks. I pull the welding mask off and toss it to the side.
“Yeah. Won’t be shit that’s able to get in there, you add waterproof bags in those and you won’t have shit happen to the product movin’ up north,” Ink chuckles picking up one of my finished pieces.
“You’re pretty fuckin’ handy with that machine,” he mumbles.
I chuckle and grab another piece ready to make a few more cases. Moving drugs up north from Miami has always been a risk. Most cops know where to look. I like to make them work to find it. I also like making money, which is exactly why I do this. Welding hidden compartments is my specialty. You need it well hidden, then you call me.
“Think this will work for people?” Ink chuckles.
“How the hell are you gonna hide a body under a fuckin’ truck brother?”
“I didn’t say a whole body. Think pieces.” When I look up I can see he’s serious as he eyes the piece of metal in his hand.
“Suppose if you pack it the same way,” I tell him as I pull a cigarette out of the pack and light it up.
“Might come in handy, yeah?” He just looks at me. I nod once before blowing out a ring of smoke.
“You think you could work the inside of a box truck?”
His question catches my attention. Shoving off the stool I’ve been sitting on I stand and stretch my back. With my cigarette hanging between my lips I shrug.
“Don’t see why not. Never done one before, but I don’t think it would be too hard to add a few false walls. Where are you goin’ with this?” I ask watching his face for a reaction.
“Just thinkin’ brother. You know we gotta stay one step ahead of the cops. Motherfuckers are always sniffin’ around.”
So fucking true. It’s not hard for us to stay a step ahead of them. We are smarter than those fuckers; at least I am. I know how and when to move shit, most people make it too obvious and the distributors are dumb as fuck. That’s why I like handling this shit on my own.
“I don’t think they’ll find these. I’ll send out the decoy first. That way even if I am stopped, I should be covered,” I inform him. Ink nods before setting the metal back on the floor.
“We got a good fuckin’ thing goin’ on here. Fucked up that Joe’s not here to see it,” Ink says reminding me that Joe was a good guy. He owned the local bar, but he also housed a lot of products for us. He was killed a short while back over some shit with the mob.
“Yeah. He would be very proud of this shit. I gotta go talk to Viking about the next run,” I tell him as I flick my cigarette to the ground. The sparks flicker before I snuff it out with my boot. As I walk away, I look at the small blisters the hot metal made on my skin. I reach up and pick at a few as I stop in the main room. I inhale deep and head toward Viking’s office.
“Hey Reaper,” Tink hollers when she sees me. Club whores. You gotta love ‘em.
“Hey darlin’. Where’s your play toy?” I ask keeping my eyes locked on hers. Tink throws her head back and laughs.
“Mason won’t let me play with Whit anymore. He’s all about ruining the party,” she giggles. I chuckle. Mason won’t let anyone near Whitley these days. He’s got that girl wrapped around his dick.
“Heard that. Gotta go talk to Prez.”
Tink nods her head before walking down the hall. I knock on Viking’s door and wait impatiently.
“Yeah,” he finally hollers. Shoving the door open I saunter inside.
“Hey brother. I need to talk to you about the run comin’ up. I’ll have the trucks up and ready, but I don’t like takin’ that little fuck Prime with me.” Viking just laughs and leans back in his chair with a beer in his hand.
“Why the fuck not?”
“Are you fuckin’ with me right now? That son of a bitch can’t drive worth a damn. You ever seen him on his bike?” Viking laughs even harder, sitting up a littler straighter.
“Mason’s on another run with Chain. A couple of the prospects are ridin’ with him. Swap one of them out, I don’t give a fuck,” Viking says taking another pull from his beer.
“Thank fuck. I get pulled over and I’ll kill the little shit if I have to sit in a goddamn cell with the little prick.” Viking shakes his head.
“You talked to Jimmy?”
Shaking my head, I wonder where this shit is heading. Jimmy is a guy that we used to work with. He went to prison years ago, and we haven’t heard from him since.
“I heard he got out. That’s about as much as I know.”
“Yeah, he’s out alright. The motherfucker put a call into the So Cal boys. He wants his position back.” I watch as Viking’s eyes darken and turn almost black in color.
“Fuck that. Why call So Cal? He didn’t work with them,” I growl.
I know what he’s doing. He’s trying to sneak his way back in anywhere he can. It’s not going to work, and if he so much as steps foot anywhere near any of the other chapters, I’ll fucking kill him myself. We voted his ass out for a reason. He wasn’t good for us and he always brought trouble that we didn’t need. He was lazy as fuck and didn’t care who he brought down with him. He took two of our guys to prison with him claiming it was their fault he got caught.
“Guess he knew he wouldn’t get anywhere with us. Stupid fuck,” Viking grumbles.
“You let me know if I need to move in, yeah?” Being club enforcer I’ll gladly handle the bastard.
“Have no doubt brother.”
“I’m gonna head out for a bit. Get a few supplies before I make the run,” I tell him. Viking nods his head before I turn and walk out ready to get this run over with.
Chapter 2
Molly
My stomach churns as bile races up my throat; it burns. My body aches, my head spins and I can’t focus.
“I don’t know why you always want to fuck me over Molly. Do you like it when I hit you?”
Blood trickles into my eye and blurs my vision even more. As my head lolls side to side Thomas strikes again.
“It’s my money. I told you that you were never leaving me.” Another blow lands and I see stars.
“Leave my mom alone!” Drake cries and pushes his way past Thomas to try to get to me. I try to raise my hands to stop him, but I’m too late. His little arms are already wrapped around my neck.
“Fucking brat. I don’t know why I let you keep that kid here. I told you I want him gone. Give him to his real dad,” Thomas screams even louder. I lift my arm and pull Drake as close to me as I can get him. Thomas storms from the roo
m as the door slams shut behind him.
“Are you okay mom?” As Drake pulls away his little hands reach up to wipe the blood from my cheek. He wipes his hand down his jeans before looking at me again.
“I’m sorry Drake. Mom is going to get you somewhere safe. I promise,” I lie. I’ve said it over and over, again and again. Each time I try to steal a little bit of money from Thomas he figures it out. I’ve tried. God knows I have, but this is always the end result.
“It’s okay mom. We can do this. Let me help you,” Drake says while running his thumb up and down my cheek. That’s something I should be doing to comfort him, and yet he’s the one doing it for me.
“No, you’re too young.”
“I’m almost ten,” he reminds me. I let myself laugh a little. Taking a moment, I hold my son and revel in the boy that has brought me so much joy.
“You are almost ten. I can’t believe you’re that old already. It amazes me that we’ve made it this long,” I whisper and pull him into my chest.
I may not have been the best mother, and I may not have protected him the way I should have, but I did the best I could with what I had to work with. Now it’s time for him to have better. It’s time for him to live the life he’s supposed to be living. He needs to grow up without fear of watching his mom being abused until she passes out. He needs a life where he can play with other kids his own age and laugh. I can’t offer him that. I don’t know that I’ll ever be able to.
“We need to go as soon as Thomas leaves, okay? I need you to grab your run bag. Okay?”
Drake pulls back, looks up at me, and nods his head slowly. He’s watching me to see if I’m going to change my mind. I won’t. We have set up a small bag with everything that’s important to him. A change of clothes and his birth certificate are in a small bag that he can run with when the time came.
“Fucking bitch,” I hear Thomas screaming in the living room, and no doubt still pissed at me.
Drake turns with his head held high as he looks me in the eyes. Those bright green eyes are so much like his dad’s. They haunt me. It kills me to know what I threw away just to try to keep them safe.
“I’ll grow up and get stronger mom. I will. Then I won’t let him hurt you anymore.”
Tears stream down my cheeks as I hear the front door slam. I wait until I hear the truck start and back out of the driveway.
“Go grab your bag,” I tell Drake as I shove him toward the door.
I watch as his little worn out shoes leave the room with sad tears leaking out of my eyes. I should have been a better mother to him. He deserves so much more than the minimal things Thomas provides. Wiping my cheeks quickly I stand and hold my head up trying to balance myself. Drake runs back into the room with his backpack on.
“Are you sure we have to do this mom?” he asks softly.
“It’s the only way I’ll know you’re safe. Everything will be okay. I promise,” I reassure him.
Everything around me spins, but I kneel down and grab the last forty dollars I have hidden in the crack of the floorboard and stuff it into my pocket. Standing back up on quivering legs, I reach for Drake’s hand.
It’s now or never. If we don’t do this today I never will, and I may end up dead before my son has his tenth birthday.
“Let’s go.”
Heading out of the room I’m cautious even though I heard his truck leave. He’s done this once before. He walked back down to the house knowing I had planned to escape. I don’t know how he knew, but that was almost a year ago. I haven’t tried again until today. I know what will happen to me if I stay. The same thing that happened tonight, only so much worse.
Drake and I make it out the front door and down the steps. Every noise, every little crunch of a leaf under my tattered shoes, has me on edge and makes me cringe. Drake holds tightly to my hand. We don’t live far off of the main road, so it’s only minutes before we reach it and I can flag a taxi, rambling off the address while praying to God he’s still there. I wasn’t stupid. I had done my research when I was able to get my hands on Thomas’s phone. I found out everything I could about him. Where he lives, what he’s been doing and even about all the arrests he’s had.
At first it didn’t make sense. That wasn’t the man I’d known, but it didn’t matter. All that mattered was that he could provide something better for Drake. The taxi slows to a stop and the driver looks over his shoulder at my bloody and mangled face.
“You sure this is where you want me to drop you?”
I drag my gaze to the building in front of us and read the sign aloud, “Soulless Bastards MC.” I pull my eyes back to the driver and nod while pulling the cash out of my pocket.
“Come on Drake.” I climb out of the cab and pull my son out behind me. After closing the door, it takes him no time at all to speed off and get the hell out of here. Loud music blasts from behind the closed door. I swallow hard while trying to fight the pain in my chest and stomach.
“Are you okay?” Drake asks. I glance down at him and shake my head. I’m losing it. I’m going to pass out. I swallow hard and try to ignore the pain in my chest and stomach. I can feel it. It’s happening and I can’t stop it.
“Roland Sanders. Ask for him,” I mumble shoving Drake in the direction of the door.
“Mom?” he asks through teary eyes.
The world sways as my stomach tumbles.
“Go. Now!” I snap. Drake turns and hurries up the steps to open the front door.
As soon as I see him step inside I let myself fall apart. The overwhelming need to sleep takes over and I close my eyes. I don’t know what happens after that.
Chapter 3
Reaper
Grabbing another rope I toss it into the pile of shit that I’m unloading out of the shed behind the clubhouse. This run is one I’m ready for. I’ve been ready to try out all of my new experiments for a while now. Staying ahead of the game is always on the top of my to do list. What isn’t on it? Sirens. I can hear them off in the distance.
“Reaper, get the fuck in here,” Viking yells out the back door.
Goddamn it. This is not the time for a shake down from those bastards. I have too much going on. I blow out a breath and leave the pile of rope where it lies. Heading through the back door everyone seems to be in a panic. I run my hand through my hair as I head into the main room and stop in my tracks. That’s where the world slowly stops spinning and all of the air is sucked from my lungs.
I stand there staring into the same green eyes I see in my fucking reflection every day. The same dark hair that hangs wildly around my shoulders; hangs in that little boy’s eyes.
“We have a little situation,” Viking says nodding toward the kid. My eyes stay there lingering on something that can’t be. “He says he’s lookin’ for Roland Sanders.” The room grows silent. “His dad.” I swallow hard, but my eyes stay furrowed never leaving his. There is no way in hell he can be mine. Is there?
“Can’t be,” I mumble under my breath. The little boy holds his head high and walks toward me. There’s defiance in him, a rough streak that reminds me so much of myself.
“My name is Drake Sanders,” he says. His voice is full of confidence even with that little shake in it.
“Where’s your mom?” I ask him.
“That’s the other problem,” Viking grumbles. “Whoever she is was fucked up. Passed out in the front yard. Club bitch called an ambulance.”
Fuck. What the hell is going on around here?
“Watch the kid.” I motion to Ink. He looks at the kid and then back at me before he shrugs. I head toward the front door needing to see what the hell this is about. There’s no way it could be her. She left me. Walked the fuck away from me without so much as a goodbye or a fuck you. I never even knew why.
As I step out the front door I see the lights from the ambulance and police cars as they dance through the night sky. Right there on a stretcher is someone covered in blood, illuminated in red and blue lights.
Slo
wly I make my way closer until I reach the side. I swallow hard as I look down at the broken and beaten piece of my past that ran away from me.
“Molly?” I say her name softly. Her head lolls to the side and there’s an oxygen mask covering her face.
“I’m sorry.”
Those are the only words that fall from her lips. I’m pushed back by the paramedics as they load her into the back. Cops are buzzing with questions in my ear, but I don’t hear any of them. It’s her. After all these years. Where was she? What happened to her? Is that really my kid? None of this is making any sense.
“Reaper let’s go man,” Chain says behind me.
I glance over my shoulder wondering when this asshole even made it back, not that I give a shit. I nod my head once before looking back to the ambulance. The guys slam the back doors closed and the thought of running after them, making them take the boy with them, runs through the back of my mind. I don’t act on it though. She brought him here for a reason.
Finally pulling my gaze from the ambulance I turn on my heel and head back inside. As soon as I step foot over the threshold Fin finds me.
“I don’t know what this shit is, but he says you’re his dad. We’ve got Taz gettin’ him somethin’ to eat and shit, but fuck Reaper.” His eyes hold a hint of sorrow, but even more confusion.
“Fuck Fin. I don’t know what the hell is goin’ on. That was Molly.” I inform him.
Fin is the only one that knows that Molly took off on me. He’s the only one that I’ve been close to since then. Viking and the guys know I have a past with her, but that’s about it. This man is like my fucking brother in more ways than one. His hand comes to rest on my shoulder, and a slight smirk crosses his face.
“There ain’t no way you can deny that boy Reaper. He looks just like you brother. He didn’t get any features from his momma, God help the boy,” he chuckles. He’s right though. He does look just like me.
“I didn’t know she was pregnant Fin. I… Fuck!” I roar. Tugging at my hair I try to reason this out in my mind, but there’s nothing. There is absolutely no way that this shit plays out well. She didn’t tell me she was pregnant. Hell, when she left me we were fucking happy, or at least I thought so.
