Murphy: Satan's Fury MC-Memphis

by L. Wilder

  “Exactly.”

  My stomach started to growl, so I asked, “Do you think we could get a bite to eat? I’m starving.”

  “How about a burger or something?”

  “A burger would be great … and some fries too.”

  “You got it."

  He ordered us a couple of cheeseburgers and fries, and we talked and laughed the entire time we were eating. Just as I’d hoped, Grady had helped me forget about my troubles on the farm—at least for the time being. When it got close to closing time, I leaned over to Grady and said, “I’m going to run to the bathroom before we go.”

  “I need to check in with our night manager and make sure he has everything covered, so just meet me up front when you’re done.”

  “Okay.”

  As I started towards the bathroom, I remembered that I hadn’t checked my messages, so I reached into my purse for my phone. I was scrolling through my texts when I saw that my class for the following day had been canceled. Relief washed over me when I realized I wouldn’t have to get up early in the morning. I rushed into the bathroom, and once I was done, I headed up front to find Grady. On my way, I found myself glancing around the bar, looking for the hot biker I’d seen earlier, and was disappointed to see that he’d already left. I don’t know why it mattered. It wasn’t like I’d ever have the nerve to just go up and talk to a guy like him, especially with his burly buddies at his side. The sexy biker was quickly forgotten as I followed Grady out of the bar and over to his loft apartment across the street. With a stunning view of the river and the Memphis-Arkansas Bridge, his place was amazing. He’d spared no expense making it exactly the way he wanted it to be with lavish furniture and expensive artwork. It was a shame he didn’t have someone special to share it with.

  He didn’t have to bother showing me to my room. I’d been there enough to know my way around. As soon as I’d gotten into my pajamas, I curled into bed, and with an improved state of mind, drifted off to sleep. Unfortunately, I didn’t wake up in the best of moods and had no idea why I was feeling so grumpy. I headed into the bathroom for a shower, hoping that the hot water would help wake me up, but I had no such luck. I managed to get dressed but had no desire to put on makeup or fix my hair. Instead, I just threw on one of Grady’s baseball caps and called it a morning. I grabbed my things and headed downstairs to my car. Since Grady was already at work and my class had been canceled, I decided to just go home and take Anna Belle out for a ride.

  I had it all planned out. I’d completely bypass Dad and Hunter and head straight to the stables. Once I had Anna Belle all saddled up, I’d spend the afternoon riding and try to rekindle those feelings of hope and possibilities I’d had the night before when I was with Grady. I thought I had it all planned out until I turned into my driveway and noticed four motorcycles parked by the barn. As I got closer to the house, I could see several men talking to my father. Over the years, we’d had all kinds of people come out to our farm, even bikers, so I didn’t think much about it. I just went along my merry way and pulled up next to the house. When I got out of my car, I glanced over at the men with my father and was surprised to see that they were all staring at me. I rarely made quick judgements about people, but I knew right away that these men weren’t like the bikers who typically came out here. They were big and beefy with fierce expressions on their faces, and it was highly unlikely that they had any interest in going to the stables to see the horses.

  I was standing there, frozen, with a mix of fear and intrigue when my father called out to me, “Lee! What are you doing here? I thought you had class.”

  “My class got canceled.”

  “Well, uh … I have some business to discuss with these fellas. Why don’t you head inside, and I’ll be in when we get done?”

  “Business, huh?” I asked sarcastically. If I hadn’t seen it for myself, I would’ve never known that my father was selling illegal weapons. He’d purposely never done business when I was home, but it was clear from the looks of these men that they hadn’t come to the farm to discuss buying one of our foals. Even though something told me it was a bad idea, I asked, “What kind of business?”

  He didn’t answer. He simply looked at me like I’d grown a third head.

  Maybe it was my ill mood, or maybe it was the animosity I felt towards him for bringing men like these to our home, but I couldn’t stop myself from pushing him further. “Are they here to see Dasher? Man, he’s a two-year-old beauty … Oh, wait. I bet they’re here to see Merrick. Am I right?”

  “Lee,” he warned. “Go inside. I’ll be there in a minute.”

  Being as snarky as possible, I smiled and said, “I’d be happy to show them around for you. I’m sure they’d love to see the stables and check out the horses, or are they here for some other reason?”

  I knew I was walking on thin ice. These men were most likely dangerous, but I couldn’t seem to stop myself. It was like I’d been possessed by a crazy person, and she was determined to ruin whatever business they had together. I probably would’ve kept at it if one of the bikers hadn’t taken it upon himself to get involved. As soon as he stepped forward, I realized he was the man from the bar, and it was all I could do to keep my wits about me. With his leather jacket and ass-hugging jeans, he had a rugged look about him, but that didn’t make him any less attractive. In fact, just like the night before, I found it sexy as hell. My interest in him took me by complete surprise. He and his buddies were more than likely criminals, doing God-knows-what to God-knows-who. I knew I had no business finding him or anyone like him appealing, but I couldn’t seem to help myself. I was trying to pull myself together when he removed his sunglasses and his blue eyes locked on mine. Damn, I couldn’t move. I couldn’t think. I was a complete mess. Thankfully, the spell was broken as soon as he opened his mouth.

  “Hey, Lee. Why don’t you do us all a favor and just go inside like your father said?”

  I was equally hurt and appalled by his unwarranted suggestion, and while I would’ve loved to tell him where to stick it, I wasn’t stupid. I knew I was up against a grizzly bear of a man. Choosing to play it safe, I replied, “I was just trying to be helpful.”

  “I think we both know that isn’t true.” The look on his face left me as breathless as it did enraged. Damn. I had no idea why he got to me the way he did. His voice was low and menacing as he growled, “Now, if you don’t mind … we have business to discuss.”

  Again, I had to fight the urge to snap back at him. Trying to play it cool, I took off my baseball cap and ran my fingers through my hair. With sarcasm dripping off of every word, I gave him a forced smile and replied, “Certainly. I wouldn’t want to interrupt.”

  When I started for the barn, my father shouted, “Where are you going?”

  I removed my sunglasses and turned towards him. “I’m taking Anna Belle for a ride. I’ll be back in a few hours.”

  “Are you going alone?”

  “Yep.” I continued forward, and when I strolled by the biker, I gave him a disapproving scowl. “It was a real pleasure.”

  He didn’t respond. Instead, he just stood there silently as I walked away. I was close to the barn when my father called out to me. “Riley, be careful. You know the river’s up. You’ll need to go down to the east bank if you want to cross over,” he warned.

  I just held up my hand and waved as I entered the barn. I found it ironic that he seemed more worried about that damn river than he was of the ominous bikers he’d brought to our home. I glanced back over my shoulder and my heart stopped when I noticed the hot biker’s gaze was still fixed on me. Good or bad, it seemed I’d made an impression on the handsome stranger, but it didn’t matter. I knew a man like him was trouble, and I had no intention of seeing him again.

  But like it’s been said before—“the road to hell is paved with good intentions.”

  5

  Murphy

  As soon as the trial was over, Gus called the brothers into church. Since our concerns about Reece�
�s safety were behind us, and Riggs was on his way home, he was eager for the club to move forward. It was time for us to start making plans for the next pipeline run, which meant meeting up with the new supplier—Daniel Nichols. He supposedly had a large shipment of Intratec DC-9s, and Gus wanted us to check them out before another buyer got their hands on them. I knew he was hoping this Nichols guy was going to be the real deal, but after looking over the small amount of intel Riggs had been able to find on him, I was feeling skeptical. Nichols was a horse breeder who’d done pretty damn well for himself. He had an unbelievable place with a ranch-style house sitting on three hundred and twenty acres of land. He’d just built new stables and had new training grounds in the works. It was clear that he was doing well, but that hadn’t always been the case. After going over his bank statements, Riggs discovered that Nichols had started selling almost three years ago, right after his wife had gotten sick with cancer. Money had been tight, so he was looking for a way to bring in more funds. The fact that he’d started supplying out of desperation didn’t sit well with me, and my feelings towards Nichols didn’t improve when I rode out to his farm with Shadow, Gunner, and Blaze to meet him.

  When we pulled up to the house, Shadow was the first one off his bike. He took a quick glance around before he asked, “Are you sure this is the right place?”

  “Yeah.” I got off my Harley and removed my helmet. “This is it.”

  “I know you said the guy bred horses and all that, but damn,” Gunner was obliviously impressed as he added, “this place is incredible.”

  Blaze walked towards us and asked, “Where the hell is everybody?”

  “Got no idea.” I took a moment to scan the property, and I was surprised to find that there wasn’t a single guard on watch, only a couple of farmhands out in the stables. “It’s the perfect location. It’s miles away from everything, but from the looks of it, he actually lives here. At the very least, you’d think he’d have more security than this.”

  Gunner shrugged. “Maybe the guy’s a badass and people know not to fuck with him.”

  “Nobody is that big of a badass.” Shadow looked over to me and asked, “Is Gus sure about this guy?”

  “No. That’s why we’re here. He wants us to check him out.”

  I’d barely gotten the words out of my mouth when a man stepped out onto the front porch. He was wearing dark denim jeans with a cowboy hat and boots, and as he started towards us, he reminded me of John Wayne when he was younger. I assumed he was Nichols when he walked up to us and asked, “Which one of you fellas is Murphy?”

  “That would be me, and these are my brothers, Shadow, Gunner, and Blaze. You must be Mr. Nichols.”

  “The one and only. Glad you boys could make it out.”

  “You’ve got yourself a nice place. From the looks of it, I’d say you’ve been doing pretty well for yourself.”

  “Yeah, I guess you could say that.” He shoved his hands in his coat pockets. “But I haven’t done all this on my own. This farm has been in my family for as long as I can remember.”

  “Your family always breed horses?”

  “No. My father raised cattle and made a good living out of it, but when the market changed, I decided it was time for me to try my hand at breeding. It served me well for many years, but then my wife got sick …” He shook his head and mumbled something under his breath, and then he said, “You know how it is. Circumstances change, and you have no choice but to deal with it the best you can.”

  “Are those changes in circumstances the reason why you decided to branch out into the weapons trade?” I asked, trying my best to put a positive connotation to it.

  “The opportunity arose, and I took it.”

  “Until then, had you ever had any experience with it?”

  “No, not exactly.”

  “Have you always done your business from here at the farm?”

  “I figured it was the safest place for me to do it. We’re miles away from town, so it’s not like I have to worry about anyone being suspicious or anything like that.”

  He was doing business from his home and that was a huge issue for me, not to mention the fact that they had so little security. It was like he had no idea that he was putting his family and his farm in danger by bringing his buyers to his home. Hoping I was wrong, I asked, “What kind of security do you have in place?”

  “Security?” he asked, then chuckled. “You looking to rob me or something.”

  “No, sir,” I flatly answered. “Just need to know what kind of situation we’re dealing with.”

  “I have a security system for the house, which has all the basics, and cameras out at the barns and the front gate. I keep all the weapons locked away in a safe. No one can get to them without the combination, and I’m the only one who has it.”

  “So, no guards?”

  “Nah. Got no need for ‘em.” Fuck. My gut was right. This guy was in way over his head. Even though Nichols seemed like a decent guy, I saw more red flags than I could count. I was debating on walking away from the deal when Nichols said, “Gus mentioned that you were interested in checking out some of my merchandise.”

  I nodded. “We are.”

  “Good deal. I just got a new shipment in if you’d like to have a look at it.”

  “We would.”

  “Just give me a minute, and I’ll go …” He stopped mid-sentence when he noticed a car coming down the driveway, then shook his head and mumbled, “Damn.”

  Blaze glanced over at the car as he asked, “Is there a problem?”

  “No … Well, not exactly.”

  The car pulled to the house, and we all watched in silence as his daughter got out. It was difficult to get a good look at her with that damn baseball cap, but it was clear from the way that she spoke to her father that she wasn’t happy we were there. If I had to guess, I’d say she didn’t like the fact that he’d branched out into this new line of sales, especially when it brought men like us to her home. While I didn’t blame her for being pissed, this wasn’t the time for her to make her feelings known, so I decided to intervene, hoping I could put an end to her little display. As soon as I stepped forward, I knew I’d made a mistake. With the brim of her hat pulled down low, I couldn’t see her face, but her body language told me everything I needed to know. “Miss Goodie Two-Shoes” was into me, but sadly, her interest vanished the second I opened my mouth. She didn’t take my suggestion lightly that she should go inside, but she didn’t lash out, either. Instead, she simply walked away but not until she’d removed her ballcap and sunglasses, giving me my first good look at her. It was at that moment when I realized she was the woman from the bar. From the minute I’d spotted her staring at me, I couldn’t take my eyes off her, but I knew right then that she was out of my league.

  I’d seen my fair share of gorgeous women but never anyone as beautiful as her. From her long, wavy brown hair to her round, full lips, she was all kinds of perfect. And those eyes—damn, I’d never seen eyes like hers. They were black as coal and shined like diamonds, and every time she looked at me, it felt like she could see right through to my soul. I was enamored by her—not just for her beauty, but for her fiery spirit. I couldn’t remember the last time I’d been so drawn to a woman, and I didn’t like it. I didn’t like it one fucking bit. Knowing I had no business having such thoughts, I tried to shake it off, but then she winked at me and I was done. Fuck. It was all I could do to keep myself from reaching for her and throwing her over my shoulder like a fucking caveman.

  “I’m sorry about that,” Nichols mumbled, pulling me out of my head. “I didn’t know she was going to be here.”

  “No offense, Mr. Nichols, but that’s why you don’t shit where you eat.”

  I knew I had no right to call him out. If I didn’t like how he was running things, I could’ve just walked away and cut our losses, but not before I warned him. Obviously offended by my remark, Nichols crossed his arms and gave me a smug look. “What the hell is that supposed to
mean?”

  “You seriously have no idea how bad you’ve fucked up, do you?” I shook my head in aggravation. I had to make him see what he’s been doing was wrong. “It’s one thing to get involved in this line of business, Mr. Nichols, but it’s another to do it right from your home without a major security detail. If something goes wrong … if someone isn’t happy with the product or demands more than you have to offer, what are you going to do about it? You’ve left yourself completely exposed.”

  “I’m not exactly new to the gun trade business, Murphy, and besides that, I’ve been in sales for longer than you’ve been alive.” His voice was low and strained as he continued, “I understand your concerns about my security, but you’ve got to remember, my main focus has been and always will be this farm and selling my horses. We have people come out to these stables every day. They want to see the horses. Touch them. Dream about having one of their own. They have always felt comfortable coming out here because they know they can trust me. I start putting armed guards out here, then all that changes.”

  “If something goes wrong, you’re putting them and yourself in danger.”

  “No, I only work with people who I’ve looked into first. That’s right. I looked into you boys … the same way you looked into me. I knew all about Satan’s Fury. I knew who you were and what you represented long before I allowed my guy to contact Gus.” He gave me a stern look as he told me, “I know what I’m doing, Murphy. I’m careful. Hunter, my son, has helped me out a few times, but I never do business when Riley is here.”

  “She was here today,” Shadow barked.

  “That was a mistake,” he argued. “I never wanted her to know that I was even doing any of this. I’ve always done business when she was at class or in the city with her cousin.”

  Shadow was quick to reply. “Clearly, she knows.”

  “Yeah.” He let out a deep breath. “She witnessed a deal going down a few weeks ago.”