by KJ Dahlen
Moose shrugged. “They’ll try for sure. They won’t succeed, but they will try.”
Brinn studied him for a moment then asked, “You don’t seem to be too worried. Aren’t you concerned at all about them coming after you and yours?”
Moose leaned back against the headboard and crossed his arms over his massive chest. “The cartel is going to find no rest in Texas until we run them out of here. We don’t want them or their poison here and this war is only beginning. We aren’t the only ones in this fight either. We’re drawing our line in the sand and if they want a war, they have to step over that line. Then we will nail them. They have no idea how strong we are, but they’ll learn.”
“But they will kill you,” she whispered fearfully. “The cartel can’t be stopped. They’ll just keep coming and coming and they will use whatever they have to find you. People like my father and his group. They’ve got more people than you think they do.”
He shook his head while leaning forward to make his point. “Honey, there are more people like us that are tired of being bullied by the cartel and gangs like the Rebels. People that have been pushed around and stomped on and have had their businesses fined and taken over. They are tired of it and when they figure out they have nothing to fear anymore, they will stand with us. They will fight back side by side with us. They just have to figure out we’re on their side first. They have to believe that they aren’t trading one bully for another. We don’t want to hurt them, we just don’t want the cartel and its toxins on our streets anymore. History tells us it doesn’t take much to start a war, well we’ve just fired the first shot and the cartel is going to find out the hard way, we have an army behind us.”
Brinn remained quiet, but she didn’t feel any safer by his words.
Moose leaned back against the headboard of the bed again and thought about what went down today. Then his eyes widened and he turned to her to ask, “Have you ever heard about or seen a tunnel anywhere in Laredo? One that goes from this side of the border to the Mexican side?”
Brinn thought about his question for a moment then shook her head. “No I haven’t, maybe that was why he sent me to McAllen with Mr. Riggs. But that doesn’t mean there isn’t one. I just have never seen or heard of one.”
“Ok, we’ll get a few hours of sleep then get back on the road. There’s safety in numbers and right now, we’re on our own and I don’t want to be a sitting duck.” He motioned toward the food. “Eat up, you need your strength.”
Brinn pressed her hand against her belly as she felt queasy now, “I’m not sure I’m hungry anymore.”
Moose shook his head. “Don’t let this or him take your appetite away. I’ll keep you safe.”
She cocked her head to one side. “Why? You rescued me from that hell, then whisk me away to feed me and give me some rest. And I thank you for it, but I just don’t get it. I mean why are you putting your life on the line for someone you don’t even know?”
“Because baby, I’m a Savaged Soul brother and that means we protect innocents from harm. I’m also a bounty hunter and I track down bad guys. What happened today at the Riggs ranch was long overdue. Riggs gave the order for the murder of a peace officer fifteen years ago. Evidence showed us that and it finally came to light. You were caught up in something that you never should have been caught up in.”
“So I’m just an innocent to you then?” she had to know.” Like someone lost and needing help.”
“I wouldn’t say that.” Moose’s voice lowered.
“Then what?”
“I took one look into your eyes and I recognized something in you. You may not know it yet, but you belong to me and I’m not turning my back on that,” he told her quietly.
Brinn began to shake again, only this time it wasn’t from fear. “But we just met. That’s crazy! How can you know such a thing so soon?”
“Sometimes, a person just knows.” Moose looked into her eyes.
“You said you wouldn’t hurt me. You promised me that back at the ranch,” she whispered.
“Have I hurt you?” Moose asked her patiently.
“No.”
“And I never will,” he assured her. “I’m a patient man, I can wait for you to catch up to where I am. I might kiss you but I would never hurt you.”
“You’re like a freight train, you know that, right?” she murmured.
Moose smiled and chuckled at her analogy. “No, I’m really not. I just have great instincts and I rely on them. I can wait for you to catch up, like I said, but when you’re ready, I’ll be waiting.”
Chapter Three
Brinn watched him carefully, keeping her distance until he snapped off the light and told her to get some sleep. They would be leaving before dawn to complete the trip to Jasper.
She curled up on her side of the bed and he stayed on his. Only when she heard him begin to snore did she relax enough to fall asleep herself.
Hours later, something nudged her awake. But she didn’t want to move. She was warm and she felt safe and she wanted that for a few more minutes.
She groaned and tried to swat away the thing that tried to wake her but it wouldn’t go away. She snuggled deeper into her pillow but then she frowned. Her pillow was rock hard. She came awake slowly and before she opened her eyes, she thought she could hear another heartbeat echoing in her ear. She opened her eyes and found herself looking at a soft black t shirt.
Following the shirt upward, she saw a long brown beard, above the beard she found herself looking into a pair of silver grey eyes. Eyes that were looking back at her with amusement in them.
“Mornin’ sweetheart,” he rumbled softly.
“What are you doing?” she whispered.
“I was sleeping until you snuggled into me. Now, I’m just holding you.” His voice was full of humor.
She sat up and noticed she had moved over to his side of the bed. “Oh God, I’m so sorry.” She felt mortified.
“Hell sweetheart, I’m not.” Moose chuckled. “I was happy to hold you. I didn’t mind a bit.”
Brinn pushed her hair out of her face and turned her head to stare at him. “You are a strange man. You don’t even know me.”
Moose sat up and leaned into her space. “Maybe I don’t know all of you yet, but if you give me a chance, I’d like to know more.” Then he brushed her lips gently before he moved away from her. He checked the clock on the bedside table. “It’s time to get on the road. I want to get a start before the sun comes up.”
Brinn nodded. “Yeah, I think we should get as far away from them as we can.”
”Are you still worried about them finding you?”
Brinn nodded. “The Rebels would drag me back to Laredo and then hold me for the cartel.”
Moose thought for a moment then decided to tell her something that not everyone knew. “I have a feeling the cartel will take a little while to restructure. The three men in charge have been killed in battle.”
Brinn frowned. “I thought only Francisco had been killed?”
Moose shook his head. “Like I said before, there are others out there that don’t want the cartel spreading their poison in their towns either. But the war didn’t start on the Riggs farm today. It started a few days ago and if they don’t have the news yet, they soon will.”
“Are we going to be safe?” She wanted to know.
Moose nodded. “I’ll protect you until we can get to Jasper then my brothers will protect you as well.”
“How long before we get there?”
“Roughly, five hours.”
“What are we waiting for then?”
Moose shook his head. “Hold your horses there, little girl. I let my brothers know we were spending the night and they agreed to escort us home. They’re meeting us on the road and will follow us back.”
Brinn shook her head. “I’m sorry but you have no idea how the Rebel’s work. Once they get their teeth into something, they don’t let go and if they know what happened at the farm, then they will b
e out there looking for those who did it. They have to protect the cartel or give them information for the cartel to strike back. Either that or the cartel will go after them. That’s just the way they are.”
“So in other words, they have sold their souls to the devils.” Moose raised a brow at her.
Brinn nodded. “And the devils will come for their souls. And they will keep coming and coming and coming. They could care less about how many lives they destroy.”
“Then this should be an interesting battle huh?” Moose just smiled.
“What does that mean?” She frowned.
“I told you last night, the cartel doesn’t know yet, but there are more of us than they realize. The good people are tired of being bullied and putting their lives on the line for something they didn’t want in the first damn place. They will fight back once they realize we have their backs. They might just be surprised.”
Brinn felt her heart stop then start up again. She didn’t know if she was happy about this news or not. She hated the idea that a war was coming but she prayed she would live through it. She got up and went to get herself ready for the day.
They left the motel about twenty minutes later.
Moose looked over the parking lot carefully before he took off, then he watched his rearview mirror until the sun came up a few hours later.
They were just hitting Houston when Moose saw his brothers surrounding his truck. He looked over at Brinn.
She was staring at the bikers around them.
“Relax these are my brothers. They will escort us home.”
She looked over at him and nodded. She seemed to relax the more miles they drove.
“Tell me more about how you met the man who sold you to the cartel,” he finally asked.
Brinn exhaled slowly. “You aren’t giving up on this, are you?”
“Nope, just not in me to do so.” Moose shook his head. “If he’s going to come after you, my brothers and I need to know as much about the man as we can. We need to know and understand what you know about the Rebel Runners as well. The more we know, the more we can plan our defense, and also keep you safe.” He pulled out his phone and told her, “I want my brothers to hear what you have to say as well, so I’m opening a line to them and they’ll be listening.” He hit the call button... he knew Gunner and the others were on the other end.
Exhaling again Brinn nodded. She had already decided he was right. The more they knew the better chance they had to defend themselves. So, she delved in, “The Rebels are a group of five different factions. I only know four of the five leaders. One is my father, Luther Oliver and he’s a real bastard. A man with no honor whatsoever. He controls the west side. The East side territory is controlled by Jose. I’m not really sure about his last name. The north side is controlled by Jax Devlin. The south side is run by Martin Shane.”
“What’s left then?” Moose asked as he urged her to go on.
“There’s a small section in the center of the city. That’s the fifth section and no one knows who runs that section.” She bit at her lip. “No one goes there unless they have business with the Rebels. In fact, the people in the city hope they never have to go there. They say the streets in that section are protected by armed guards. Only the four other leaders travel into that area.”
“So, your dad’s name is Luther Oliver huh?”
Brinn shrugged. “So he claims, but like I said, I never knew him until I was fourteen. My mom had very bad taste in the men she dated, so I was never sure about anything with her or him.”
“Were you born in Laredo?”
“I’m not sure. My mom moved us around a lot when I was growing up. I know I lived in McAllen, Crystal City and Kingsville for a while.” She shrugged. “Whenever I would ask her about my father, she would never give me a straight answer. Then she met up with Luther again. She always did like the bad boys but he was no boy.”
“How many men are there in this Rebels’ gang?”
Brinn shrugged. “Luther had five in his council but I know he had more men working the streets. I couldn’t really say how many. I asked my mom once but she said that was not our business and Luther didn’t want us knowing his business. If I had to guess, I would say maybe thirty or so, but that was just his territory. I have no clue how many the others had.”
“What else do you know about the Rebels?” Moose keep her going.
“I know they are always watching for any threat to their city. You can see them on every corner. It’s kind of creepy. Laredo used to be a nice place to live until they took up there. It’s only been the last seven years or so, they really became as big as they have.”
“What happened seven years ago?”
“That’s when they became organized and the city was split up into sections. I mean the Rebels have been there for years but seven years ago, the man who controls the center of the city came in and took over. For a while, there was chaos in the streets as every one of the leaders fought to control more of the territory that he already had. Then the man came in and he organized them and since then things were harsh but everyone knew his role.” She shrugged. “I don’t know who he is but he did organize them all and he runs a tight ship. Everyone answers to him.”
“That was why you didn’t want to be seen in Laredo. You were afraid someone would see you and report back to Luther,” Moose finally acknowledged.
Brinn nodded. “Luther had to get approval to do what he did, which means he had to ask permission from the guy in the center of the city. And of course, he said yes, which will make my disappearance all the more painful for him.”
“Why is that?” Moose wanted to know.
“The cartel could have gotten a lot of money for me, now they won’t get anything.”
“Well, you are a beautiful woman. I’ll give you that much,” Moose agreed.
Brinn shook her head. “No, that’s not it. I’m worth more to them because I’m a virgin. Luther made sure of that.”
Moose gripped the steering wheel harder and almost swerved off the road. He took a deep breath then turned his head to glare at her. “What the fuck did you just say?”
Brinn stared at him. “Which part didn’t you understand?”
“The part about the fact your dad sold you to the cartel for big money because you’re a virgin,” Moose repeated. “You told me earlier you were twenty four, how can you be a virgin at twenty four?”
“There are still virgins out there in the world you know.” Brinn raised her chin at him. “I also told you my mother always had bad taste in men, remember? I realized very young what sex was and I could see it every day, how people would use their bodies as a barter to get something they thought they wanted in exchange. To me. that was just so sorted. I wanted something more for myself. Besides, the way my mom lived? I didn’t want that for myself. Moving from man to man like that? Maybe she could live like that but I knew I didn’t want that. I had dreams as a young girl. Then my supposed father found us and those dreams were gone. My own mother used me as a tool to get something from him. When she told him I was untouched... that’s when he knew he could use that to his advantage. I think he always had plans to sell me to the cartel as I would make him and them good money.”
Moose could hear the bitterness in her voice, both for the cartel and at her father, if indeed that’s who this Luther Oliver really was.
He was close to home now and his hands relaxed their tight grip on the wheel. So his Brinn was a virgin huh? Moose thought. Then he frowned. When did he start thinking she was his?
Grinning, he remembered... oh yeah right after I saw her in the disgusting room at the Riggs ranch. He reached down and shut off his phone. His brothers had heard a little more than they really needed to know but that didn’t mean they needed to hear all of it. “We’re almost home, baby.”
“You mean you’re almost home. Me? I still have a long ways to go yet, before I can find a place to call home. I’m not even sure there is a place for me out there that I can c
all home. I honestly have no idea what a home is supposed to be like.”
“A home is supposed to be somewhere where you feel safe and loved,” Moose explained. “A place where you make it yours by building the walls that surround you with your bare hands, knowing that they will stand between you and the rest of the world. A place that has a roof over your head that will do more than just keep the rain and sun off of you, but it will also protect you from the wolves at your door.”
Brinn turned her head and gazed at him. “I’ve never had a place like that before.”
“I had that once,” he murmured softly. “After I lost it, I think I’ve been searching for that place all over again. I still haven’t found it, but I believe I’m getting closer.”
“I think I’d like to find a place like that and settle down there myself.” Brinn nodded.
Moose turned the wheel and they left the highway to turn onto a gravel driveway. He then made another turn. Now a fence with an open gate was in front of them.
Brinn gasped as she looked inside the gate. A huge building sat front and center but there were also other buildings there as well. This really wasn’t what caught her attention though. The many men, who stood waiting for them to arrive, were what she stared at. There must have been thirty to forty of them lined up in front of the main building.
Brinn looked over at Moose in shock.
Moose gave her a dazzling smile as he said, “Honey, we’re home.”
Chapter Four
Brinn stared at the lineup of men in front of her then she slowly turned her head to look at Moose. “Will I be safe here?” she whispered. “You promised me I’d be safe.”
Moose frowned. “Yeah baby, you’ll be safe here. I always keep my promises.” He stared at the men. Then he looked at them through her eyes and realized his Mc brothers might just look a little scary to other people. He chuckled to himself. “Oh baby, these men aren’t going to hurt you. I promise, they won’t touch you.”
