by Karen Renee
He stared at Brute for a moment. “You are shitting me. He left the damn door unlocked?”
Brute arched a dark brow. “You ain’t the only one who wants to get her back alive, brother.”
Fifteen minutes later, Har stood on a dilapidated front porch and knocked on the door. After a while, a light came on and the door opened five inches because the security chain was in place.
“What?” Massive demanded.
“You have my property. Give her back.”
He scoffed. “You ain’t put a cut on any snatch. So I don’t know what property you’re talking about.”
“Her cut’s on order,” he lied and continued, “So she’s as good as my property. And you know old ladies aren’t part of a beef between brothers.”
“Not your brother, asswipe. Not since you had my brother killed today.”
“Then you have two pieces of my property. My woman and my club’s patch.”
Massive’s eyes narrowed. “You can have your goddamn colors back. I don’t need ’em.”
Har fought grinning when Brute came from behind to press the barrel of his Glock to Massive’s temple. “That’s not the patch I’m referring to. I hear you had your entire back inked. That’s the patch I’m taking back tonight.”
“Kill me, you’re both going to prison. I got the film of Wreck being killed and Carter being beaten. That footage is being emailed to Dennizen in five minutes, if I don’t reset the time.”
The steps creaked behind him. Gamble joined him with his phone to his ear. “Yeah. I’ll put him on right now, Block.”
Har took the phone and went to the sidewalk to get out of earshot of Massive. “What is it, Block?”
“The Jacksonville brothers have an IT firm on retainer. Volt hooked me up with them. They hacked the address where Wreck rerouted the footage. Massive had an email scheduled to send out, but they killed it.”
Har smiled. “Excellent brother. Tell Roman to bring the cargo. By the time he gets here, it should be go time.”
When he returned to the porch, the front door was open. He handed Gamble the phone before they went inside. He heard Brute and Tiny struggling to subdue Massive in the dark room. A shaft of light could be seen to his right. He followed it to a small bedroom. For a millisecond, his heart swelled at the sight of Stephanie, but when he saw the blood on her body his stomach sank.
He dropped to his knees and grabbed her wrist. Her pulse could be felt which gave him relief, but she needed a doctor.
He looked over his shoulder to Gamble, who’d followed him. “Get Silvie on the line. If you don’t have his number, call Block. I gotta get her to his office now.”
Rage boiled up inside him, but he forced it down. He slid his hand along her forehead to move her hair out of her face. Her eyes fluttered open.
“Har,” she croaked.
He shushed her. “Save your energy, baby. I’m getting you the hell out of here.”
Her lips tipped up and she whispered, “Knew you’d find me.”
Stephanie
WHEN I WOKE UP AGAIN, I didn’t want to open my eyes. The last thing I remembered was Har crouched over me, but I didn’t trust that was real. Hearing a woman’s voice in the room, I opened my eyes.
“Oh, she’s up, Dr. Silverman.”
I focused on the room. It didn’t look like a hospital room. Yet the bed I was in looked and felt like a hospital bed, since I was semi-elevated.
“She is,” said a man with a deep gravelly voice. “Wait one moment before you call Har.”
A slim man wearing jeans and a mahogany-colored long-sleeved shirt under a white doctor’s coat ambled over to me.
He pulled a pen-light out of his pocket and propped a hip on the side of the bed. “Follow the light, please. Good. You were fortunate, Stephanie. I don’t know what kind of knife Massive used on you, but he didn’t penetrate the peritoneal cavity.”
I shook my head and he smiled.
“In other words, he didn’t get your intestines or your liver. You lost a lot of blood and had you been there longer, you’d have bled out.”
I exhaled. “I hardly remember him stabbing me. The last thing I remember is screaming when he pulled me from the car.”
Dr. Silverman nodded. “That’s not uncommon. Those memories will come to you in the days ahead, I’m sorry to say. If you need someone to talk to, Har and Block know a woman you can call about it. She’s a psychologist, but if you feel more comfortable talking to me, I’m available too. I suspect you might feel more comfortable with her, though.”
“Okay,” I whispered.
“Before Har barges in here, I stitched up your wound. You’re going to be on antibiotics, and they will interfere with your birth control, if you’re on it. I want to see you in my office next week to check your stitches. Understood?”
I nodded.
He squeezed my shoulder and left.
Moments later, Har stormed into the room. He propped a hip on the bed, leaned over me, and cupped my cheeks. The intensity in his green eyes was like nothing I had ever seen. He just stared at me for a long time, so long it was borderline uncomfortable. I smiled in hopes it would prompt him to speak.
After a deep breath, he finally said, “You... are everything.”
Those words knocked the breath out of me and my smile faltered. “I’m not. I’m just... me.”
With glinting eyes, he shook his head. Then he planted an intense kiss on me. I wanted to kiss him back just as hard, but he maintained control.
He broke it, but kept his face close to mine.
“I told Sam I was looking for a woman who fit, but you don’t fit. You fit to the point you overflow and bring more to my life than I ever imagined.” He shook his head. “Months ago, I thought you having a bike would be a problem. Only wanted a woman who’d be at my back on my hog. You feel fucking phenomenal behind me, don’t get me wrong. But, that first ride with you next to me was unreal babe. So, you can be at my back and you can be at my side. I don’t get that from anybody but you. That makes you everything to me.”
The door opened and Dr. Silverman said, “I knew you wouldn’t listen to me. Do not climb any further into that bed, Har. I’m serious.”
When Har turned his head to the doctor, I got a prime view of his profile. Watching him get irritated with the doctor made me laugh, but then my side hurt and I hissed. He turned back to me and stood from the bed like I would break.
“I’m fine, honey. It’s just laughing makes my side hurt, but you’re too funny, getting pissed at the doctor.”
He put a hand behind his neck and hung his head. When he looked up at me, his eyes were still irritated – but at me. “I’m not pissed, babe. He can’t expect me not to kiss the fuck outta you when you were so fuckin’ close to death’s door.”
I pressed my lips together because that assessment was more dramatic than the way Dr. Silverman put it.
“Har, she’s going to be fine. Don’t scare her.”
He turned toward Dr. Silverman. “How soon can I take her home?”
Dr. Silverman pursed his lips while he deliberated.
“Twenty minutes, maybe less if you let my nurse get in here and help her.”
SANDY BUSTLED INTO Har’s room to bring me my phone. “I’m so glad they got to you in time, sweetie. You gave me at least four new gray hairs. And, I’d love to tell you all the missed calls are from me and Joules looking for your phone, but Block had to tell Volt about you being MIA. Which means, Turk told your sister. Figured you’d want to put her mind at ease.”
“Nobody’s called to tell her I’m fine?” I asked while I pulled up Suzy’s contact.
Sandy patted my shoulder. “Oh, Brute called her when Doc got you fixed up, but if you were my sister, I wouldn’t rest until I heard from you directly.”
I nodded. Even though my phone showed the time was half-past midnight and therefore one-thirty in Jacksonville, I called my sister.
“Stephanie Joy! It’s about time you called me! You can’t scare me l
ike that ever again.”
I sighed. “Seeing as how I didn’t have it planned to begin with, that shouldn’t be a problem.”
She paused. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have flown off the handle like that, but you can’t get hurt, Stephanie,” I heard her sniffle before she added, “You’re all I have left.”
My eyes welled, but I forced myself to keep it together. “I know that, sissy. But, I’m here and—”
“And I’m gonna be there in five hours is how that sentence needs to end.”
“Honey, you don’t need to drive all the way out here. It’s all good.”
“Tough. Turk loaded me up, and we just passed I-75. We’re comin’ and that’s that.”
Har stepped out of his bathroom as I rolled my eyes. “Turk shouldn’t have done that,” I muttered.
“I told him to,” Har said.
Susan heard him and laughed. “See. Take that. We know what we’re doing. I’ll see you in the morning.”
“Where are you staying?” I demanded.
“My little sister has a room at the casino she works at. We’re getting the key from Har or Brute when we roll in to town.”
At least my room wouldn’t go to total waste. “You know check-out’s at eleven.”
She chuckled. “Yeah. We already extended your reservation. Don’t worry about it. I’m leaving you some cash to cover the bill.”
I heard Turk in the background say, “The hell you are. I got that shit covered.”
“Don’t listen to Turk,” she said in a lower voice.
“Whatever. It’s out of my control, clearly. Tell Turk to drive safe. I love you.”
“I love you, too, Stephie.”
Chapter 27
Wear My Patch
Stephanie
HAR FOLDED A PILLOW behind his head, but laid on his side facing me. I moved to mirror his posture and he shook his head with a stern look on his face.
For a moment I stared at the ceiling. I turned my head so I could look in his eyes. “Thank you for saving me.”
He tucked my hair behind my ear. “You’re welcome.”
My chest burned with anxiety, but I breathed through it. “You’re everything to me, too.”
“Are you sure?” he asked.
My eyes widened. “How can you ask that?”
His lips quirked. “I’m joking, baby. Fact you knew I would save you told me everything I needed to know. But it’s still nice to hear you say it.”
My neck hurt keeping my face turned to his, so I faced forward. “What happened to the bastard who took me? I can’t even remember the name on his cut. You’d think I’d remember that kind of thing. You gonna feed him and Dixon to the gators in a nearby swamp or something?”
He chuckled. “And you say you love the water. If you’re half the beach bum I think you are, you should know you don’t feed the seagulls, which means you damn sure don’t feed the gators for the very same reason. Besides, I’m not fond of swamps any damn way.”
I gave a nod.
He grabbed my hand. “You’re my Old Lady now.”
My head whipped toward him. “What? You just told me you love me like ten hours ago or something.”
While he chuckled, he scooted closer to me. “Yeah, but as a few of my brothers pointed out, I’ve been acting like you’re my property for much longer. If you’re not down with joining my world – fully joining my world – you gotta tell me now. Not saying I’ll agree, because I’m more likely to wear you down, but say so. Otherwise, Sandy’s ordering your cut first thing in the morning.”
His gaze was intent on me for a moment before he looked to the wall and back to me.
“Actually, knowing her, she’s probably already got it on order. But, I mean it. You got reservations, say so now.”
“I don’t have reservations, but—”
“But what?”
I grinned. “Let me finish, Michael.”
“Here we go. She breaks out the real name when she wants to butter me up.”
I gasped. “I do not. Whatever! Do I have to wear it when I’m riding my bike by myself, like to work?”
His expression turned calculating and I wished I hadn’t asked.
“You don’t want to worry about my patch when you go to work, you drive. You ride that bike of yours, you wear my patch. You’re on the back of my bike, you damn sure wear my patch, Miss Priss. I have to wonder if you understand why I want my patch on your back.”
I looked at him through my lashes. “I know why. I’m your property. That—”
“The cut says you’re my property, but that isn’t how I think of you. You’re my world, baby. Told you before, I take my woman’s back, which means the symbol of me has to be on your back. Are you with me?”
“I’m with you, but this has been awful fast.”
He chuckled. “When shit hits the fan, priorities change. Seeing you covered in blood shifted my views. I don’t care how long or how little we’ve been together. I love you, and I can’t imagine what I’d do without you.”
“I love you, too, honey. And I’m ecstatic you love me.”
His brow arched. “Your tone says there’s another ‘but’ coming.”
I smiled. “But it isn’t lost on me that you avoided my question. Where’s the asshole who grabbed me? For that matter, what are you doing with Diana and Dixon?”
He gave me a wry grin. “Didn’t avoid your question. I didn’t answer it because I’m protecting you. We aren’t married. You wearing my cut is equivalent to marriage in my world, but the law doesn’t see it that way. The less you know about the fall-out, the better.”
My eyes blazed at him. “Now that’s a problem. You really think I’d—”
“Stephanie. I’m protecting you this way. They can’t arrest you for something you don’t know.” He leaned over to kiss my cheek. At my ear he whispered. “They’re all gone. That’s all you need to know.”
Relief surged through me, and part of me knew I should be ashamed of that, but the bigger part of me didn’t care. A man who made my life a living hell and ultimately drove me to Biloxi was dead, and the man who cold-cocked me, stabbed me, and would have left me for dead was no longer walking the earth. None of that bothered me.
I suppressed my grin and pointed my lips to his ear. “That’s all I wanted to know, baby. And I’m glad they are.”
He pulled away from me to give me a look of approval. Then he sank to an elbow to give me a searing kiss goodnight.
Har
IN THE MORNING, HAR left Stephanie sleeping in his bed. He owed serious thanks to God for listening to his prayers.
But as he entered the common room, he wondered if he would need to pray some more.
Detective Dennizen stepped out from in front of Brute to eye Har with border-line disgust. “Just the man I’ve been looking for.”
Brute looked over his shoulder at him, irritation all over his face.
Har smiled. “What can I do for you, Detective?”
His face was stony. “You didn’t tell me your brothers opened up a cookhouse.”
From years of playing cards, he knew not to overdo his disbelief. “I’m sorry. A cookhouse?”
The detective put his hands in his pants pockets. “Yes. Hear this club can’t turn a profit with marijuana, so the time’s ripe to move into meth. That kind of cookhouse.”
Har shook his head. “Sorry, Dennizen. I don’t know anything about a cookhouse.”
Dennizen grinned. “Neighbor across the street saw a man who fits your description visit the house. Says you were on the front porch until another man wearing a Riot MC vest gave you a cell phone. You spent a few moments on the sidewalk talking before you went inside the house.”
Har pressed his lips together and shook his head again. “Sorry to disappoint you, Detective Dennizen. But I was here all evening. Ask Block or Joules. I was helping Block with a computer problem he had.”
Dennizen arched a dark brow. “You know about computer problems? Thought you ra
n a custom paint shop?”
He nodded. “I do, and I rely on my computer to get my graphics right. Did what I could to help my brother out with his problems last night.”
Dennizen dipped his chin. “I’d believe that, if only I could find Furman Pollard or Norris Strickland.” At Har’s puzzled look, Dennizen added, “A.K.A. Massive and Wreck.”
Har tilted his head. “We’d like to find them, too. They’ve missed so many meetings, we’re gonna have to levy steep fines against them.”
The detective shook his head. “You know, I misspoke. I found Pollard. Or, the M.E.’s pretty sure we found him. That cookhouse burned the ground last night.”
“That’s crazy,” Har said.
Brute nodded. “Exactly what I said.”
Dennizen looked between them. “Thing is, there were three other bodies in that house, but Strickland’s wasn’t one of them.”
Har stared past the detective for a moment as though lost in thought. Then he caught Dennizen’s gaze.
“You don’t think Wreck did something to Massive, do you?”
The detective’s eyes turned sharp. “Now why would you think that?”
Har shrugged. “I don’t know. It’s just one possibility. I mean, we aren’t getting into meth, no matter what you might think, detective. Not only is it illegal, but it’s my understanding it’s dangerous to make that shit. Though I only have Breaking Bad to go by on that.”
Before the detective could say anything further, Block wandered up to Har’s side. “Morning, Prez. Thanks for your help last night.”
That might have been laying it on too thick. The detective speared Block with a glare. “What kind of computer problems did you have last night?”
Block gave the detective a hard look. “None that are the business of the Biloxi PD, but since you asked, my motherboard had a kernel error pushing a PHP code to the root system file—”
Detective Dennizen held a hand up. “Never mind. I don’t understand half that shit you said, but I still don’t believe Mr. Walcott gave you any assistance with it because how would he know a kernel error from a megabyte?”
