Devil's Due: Satan's Devils MC Colorado Chapter #3

by Manda Mellett

  “Can’t you see anything at all?” Aden, at seven has always impressed me. He’s staring with wonder at the woman by my side. “I’ve never met a blind person before.”

  Kaylee takes her three-year-old thumb out of her mouth. “What’s blind?”

  “She can’t see anything,” Aden patiently explains.

  “The lady can’t see?” Kaylee repeats, then puts her palms over her eyes as though trying it out for herself.

  Stevie may have no sight, but she’s not blind. “Why don’t you kids come sit with me and I’ll tell you what it’s like not to have your sight. Then your mommy and Beef can have a chat.”

  I lead her to a couch. An amused Pyro and Ink stand, making room for Stevie. Pyro leans in, then his expression changes rapidly to one of concern. “You smell like you’ve been in a fire, Beef. What happened?”

  I’m not surprised Pyro sussed it out so fast. Fires and he have a certain relationship. Mimicking him, I incline my body toward his. “Fucker locked her back door and threw a fuckin’ bomb in the house she was living in.”

  “Jesus.” Ink, overhearing, looks from me to Stevie and then to Sally who’s standing at the bar with her arms folded over her chest watching me talk with a suspicious expression on her face. “And you came back to this? All you fuckin’ need.”

  “Er,” Stevie speaks, her head tilted toward us. “I don’t know what their mom would say, but can we hold off on the swearing in front of the kids?”

  Sally wouldn’t have the nerve to say shit. To me, perhaps, but not to men she doesn’t know, or can’t even see.

  “You okay, babe?” Ink’s looking down at her in concern. His worried eyes flick to me.

  “Shocked, but okay,” she replies. “Don’t think I’ve got my head around it yet.” She coughs, making me frown.

  Pyro catches my unease and tilts his head toward the bar. “Go sort her out.” Her being the woman glaring at me. “I’ll fill Demon in and Ink can look after the girl. We’ll get Rusty to look at her too.”

  “Good to see you again,” Stevie speaks up. “Pyro wasn’t it? And pleased to meet you.” As she holds out her hand, I’m pleased one after the other Ink and Pyro take it then Ink starts introducing himself.

  After exchanging chin lifts with Pyro, I feel confident I’m leaving Stevie in safe hands. I turn away and stride toward the last woman I expected to see in the Pueblo clubhouse.

  For a moment I just stand in front of her, noticing she’s staring at my cheek which must be red by now. I almost don’t trust myself to speak. Half-turning, I see Stevie’s entertaining the kids, if that’s the right word. She’s got all three of them with their hands covering their eyes and has already got them passing a glass between them. I suspect she’s encouraging them to explore it by touch.

  “Come.” If Sally and I are going to have words, I don’t want everyone overhearing. Having entered my home and in such an explosive manner, there’s only one way this is going to end, and that’s not how she wants it. I lead her out the back of the clubhouse and over to one of the picnic benches, noting as I do, Stevie can never come out here, or not by herself. Even Max would find it hard to navigate. The ground is covered in crap, bricks, pieces of concrete, half-demolished walls. That great fucking fire pit, the furnace where they used to melt down half a train at a time, would be a death trap.

  “Sit.” I point. She does. I plant my ass on the opposite side of the picnic bench.

  She stares at me, then looks down. “I’m sorry, I got it wrong.” Her bottom lip is trembling. “I thought…”

  “Know what it looked like Sal. That girl’s not been here before.”

  “Don’t you hold people like them by the arm, not cuddle them?” Her question shows me she’s not convinced. And Stevie’s people, not people like her. Christ, Sally can’t cope as well as her and she’s got full use of her eyes.

  “Told you what happened. That’s all the explanation you’re going to get. Now, why the fuck are you here?”

  Sally finds her hands interesting. “The kids missed you.”

  I shake my head. “First thing Sal, we’ve been through this. Never played dad to those kids.” For this very reason. So they wouldn’t get attached if things didn’t work out. Somehow, deep inside, I’d had my doubts from the start. Like the kids well enough, played with them too, but always remained on the sideline. “Second, I’ve only been gone two days.”

  “It’s been longer than that. You’ve been living at the club, I missed you,” she admits at last. “You weren’t around much, but you were there to do stuff. When the air conditioning stopped working, and I called you, you sounded so cold. I thought something was wrong. I couldn’t sleep for worry. It was different when you were in Tucson. Tash had told me you weren’t—”

  “You didn’t trust me,” I reply, stopping her from saying my brother’s woman had reported back I wasn’t sleeping with whores. Looks like me and Blade will have words.

  I gaze at her, not sure whether I’m angry or upset. She’s got no spy here. She’s clearly been sitting on her own putting herself through hell thinking as soon as I arrived I was dipping my cock in every available pussy, despite the promise I’d made. So much so, she did what I didn’t think she was capable of and came to seek me out. In some ways I’m impressed. “How the fuck did you get here, Sal?”

  “We flew. I booked the tickets when I couldn’t sleep.”

  Makes sense. Well, they can just fly back. “Impressed you did that, Sally. I’m glad you did.” I feel guilt at the smile which appears on her face, but my next words wipe it off fast. “We need to talk.”

  “Beef—”

  “No. It’s my turn, Sally. The fact you don’t trust me fuckin’ hurts. No, don’t deny it. Your reaction without asking questions first; when you saw me walk in with Stevie you thought I’d confirmed your suspicions. I’ve barely been here two days, and yet already you had to come find me. You don’t trust me, I’ve got a job to do here. Seems you’d be happier without worrying what I’m getting up to, and I’ll be able to concentrate better, if we part ways now.”

  “Beef,” she starts, pleadingly. “I thought you’d let us stay. I wanted you to be pleased that you had your family with you. Hoped you’d be missing us as much as we miss you.”

  Hoped, yeah. But I notice she hadn’t said it had been her expectation. It was fear that had driven her here, she was afraid she’d already lost me. She has, she’s just moved me telling her up on the agenda.

  “No, Sally. You’ve got more strength than you realise. Coming here? Well that’s shown me that. Should show it to you, too. Takes guts to walk into a strange clubhouse.”

  She doesn’t look like I’m paying her a compliment, but I am. Her lip trembles again. “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have come here.”

  “Nah, Sal. You only advanced the timetable a bit. We were never going to work out, long term.”

  “Have you been faithful, Beef?”

  I hate that she has to ask. But I give her the words she needs. “Yeah, Sal. I have.”

  She goes quiet. Then asks, “Are we really over?”

  I settle for nodding my head. She wipes a tear from her eye as I try and think of ways to help her out. “You’ve got options, Sally. You should plan for your future. You could go home, back to where your parents are. They might be helpful with the kids.”

  Surprisingly, she shakes her head. “No, I don’t want to do that. Eliza’s settled in school. Aden too. Even Kaylee likes her playgroup. I still see Tash and Marcia from the club.” She nibbles her lip. “In fact, Sam came to see me yesterday. It’s why I’m here.”

  Sam? Drummer’s old lady? What’s she doing talking to Sally and making her come all this way to see me? Inwardly I bristle. I’ll be calling my old prez very soon and demanding to know why Sam’s been interfering in what should be something between a woman and a man. Then I’ll speak to Blade too and get them all sorted at once.

  “Sam suggested I should let you go. Well, not in so many words, bu
t that was her meaning.”

  My assessment of Sam has done a dramatic one-eighty.

  “She worried me. Suggested how I could be independent, and that I really don’t need you.”

  “No?” My lips quirk. Not to be needed? That doesn’t bother me at all.

  “I, also, I, er…”

  “Spit it out, Sal.”

  “In the, er, bedroom. You want more, don’t you?”

  I don’t immediately reply. What do I say without making her think she’s a failure? After some deliberation, I decide to be honest. “Yeah. Sometimes, Sal, I need someone to know my needs before I do myself. It’s not me to always be in control. There’s nothing wrong with you, just you’re—”

  “Wrong for you?” she replies. Then nods. “I knew, Beef, I knew. But I’ve been relying on people so long, I panicked. That’s why I’m here, to reach you before you started to look elsewhere. I wanted to, I don’t know. Yes, I do. I wanted you to take one look at me and see what you were missing.”

  Trouble is. I haven’t missed her at all. I keep quiet about that.

  She goes quiet. I keep my face impassive. I fucking hate situations and conversations like this, it’s why I avoid them. Hate disappointing people, not being able to live up to what they want. Exactly why I was a coward and wanted things to just fizzle out between us. My heart breaks for her, almost as much as it would if our situations were reversed.

  She watches me, then seems to focus on a handful of birds pecking at the ground, trying to find crumbs left over from a barbeque or perhaps just insects and worms. A glance back at me, then defeat comes into her eyes.

  “Can you arrange a motel for us? We’ll fly home in the morning.”

  She’s on her own in a strange town. I’ll have to get Stevie settled first, but making this offer seems the least I can do. “Want me to stay with you?”

  Her eyes close. She seems to have an internal battle with herself, then she opens them and says with fresh determination, “No, Beef. We’ll say goodbye here. If you can make the arrangements, then point me to somewhere the kids can have some fun. I’ll turn this trip into something about them.”

  I regard her before nodding. Her acceptance I’m not coming back to her is welcome, and so too, is the way she’s straightening her back, taking responsibility. It’s what I wanted for her all along. Was I holding her back? Quite possibly.

  As to a suggestion for the kid’s entertainment, I’m too new here to know, but I’m sure one of my brothers will have an idea.

  It turns out to be easy. Pal knows a hotel close to a pizza parlour and an ice rink. Apparently, that will do. He even offers to give Sally a lift there as Demon, not surprisingly, wants a word with me. It’s not after all, every day that a member almost gets killed in a house fire.

  I say goodbye to the kids, who Stevie’s been keeping entertained, then watch the four walk out the door.

  I’d love to say I feel some regret as Sally leaves, but I can’t. Instead, I’m filled with relief.

  Chapter Sixteen

  The door closing behind Sally and the kids makes me feel like I’m on the brink of a new life. One where I don’t see the need for a woman. I give myself a moment to draw in a deep breath, then a hacking cough draws my attention to Stevie, still seated on the couch.

  She’s my responsibility now. She’s my job. I suppose, as she’s alive, you could say I’ve been successful doing it, but hell, it was sheer luck we escaped with our lives today. But, in her case at least, not totally unscathed.

  “Beef.”

  “How the fuck do you do that?” Ink asks, amazed.

  She gives that typical shrug I’ve come to expect from her. “He walks a little unevenly. I heard his boots on the floor.”

  Well, of course, we all look down and examine my feet. Must admit I’m feeling a bit self-conscious as I complete my journey to her. “You okay?” I didn’t like the sound of that cough.

  Ink gets in fast, “I got Rusty to take a look at her. He’s not particularly worried. Just said if her cough gets worse, she may need to get checked out.”

  “I said all that without speaking,” she says, drily. “I don’t want to go to a hospital. When they find out I’m not dead, that’s the first place they’ll check.”

  Pyro’s eyes meet mine. Who? he mouths.

  I shake my head. Fuck knows.

  “You okay here, babe? I’ve got to update the prez on what’s gone on.”

  She presses her lips together, a sign which I’ve noticed means she’s thinking. “Can I speak?”

  I give a quick look around. It’s just members, no old ladies, sweet butts or prospects within hearing. “Yeah.”

  “I’d be dead if you hadn’t been there, Beef. Those kids? Well, they took that off my mind for a while, but now I’ve got to face up to the facts. I need someone on my side. And someone who saves me rather than tries to kill me is someone I know I can trust. Your prez is your boss, isn’t he?”

  I remember a nod isn’t sufficient. “Yes.”

  “Then if he wants me to, I’ll speak to you both.”

  “I want that,” a voice bellows from the direction of Demon’s office.

  She stands. “Lead on, MacDuff.”

  Chuckling slightly, I go to put my arm around her. “Take hold of my elbow, Beef. Just steer me in the right direction.”

  “While you’re in with Demon, I’m gonna head out to her place. See what’s going on.”

  “Can you see if you can find my white stick? It was in my bedroom…”

  “Cops will be there, Ink,” I warn.

  Stevie’s expressive face shows she hadn’t thought of that.

  He nods. “I’ll do what I can, Stevie.”

  She thanks him. I’m more interested in what he can find out rather than anything that can be saved.

  I’m not surprised to see Pyro going with him. He’s got firefighter friends who may well be in attendance and who might be able to give him a clue as to what accelerant was used or anything useful.

  I just remember to stop her in time to move a low stool out of her way, then we’re walking in to Demon’s office. I place her hand on the back of a chair. She takes a second before she sits down. Anyone else I would think she’s taking in her surroundings, but clearly she can’t be. After a moment she nods and holds out her hand in Demon’s general direction.

  He reaches over the desk to take it. “I’m Demon, President of the club.”

  “Stevie Nichols,” she responds. “Though I expect you already know who I am.”

  “I might,” Demon replies, the smirk showing through in his voice. “If you were who you say you are. Sit.” When she does, I take the seat next to her. “First off, Stevie, are you alright?”

  She closes her eyes briefly. “I’m fine, apart from a bit of a cough. That’s nothing. I shouldn’t be, wouldn’t be fine if Beef hadn’t been there. I don’t think what’s happened has really caught up with me yet. I’m just so pleased I wasn’t alone.”

  Demon’s eyes catch mine. We don’t need words for the sentiment to be exchanged between us that we’re both fucking glad I was too. We all know if I hadn’t been she most likely wouldn’t have made it out alive.

  “I told you I was the prez. My role is leading this motley crew, running our businesses and keeping everyone in the club safe. If we’re providing you protection, you are our business. But if that’s going to cause any harm to come to my club, I need to know about it. Beef got you out of the house, as he should. But from the soot on his cut he was wearing it. Anyone watching would have seen him take you away.”

  “Not necessarily here,” I tell him. “Fuck, they’d already know I was involved with her, Prez, from the amount of times I’ve been to her home and have been checking up on the dog. But I wasn’t followed here, I made sure of that. I could have stashed her anywhere.” But I can’t deny someone might know the Satan’s Devils are involved.

  Stevie’s nodding. “I don’t want to bring more people into it. That’s why I lef
t home in the first place, couldn’t risk putting my family in danger.”

  Again, Demon and I exchange glances. Her leaving wouldn’t necessarily guarantee they’d leave her folks alone, but now’s not the time to tell her that.

  “She’s in Witness Protection,” I tell him.

  “Have you a handler? Someone you can call? Get you moved on?”

  “That’s the point. That’s what he’d do.”

  It doesn’t take a genius to realise why she doesn’t want to do this officially. “She can’t go anywhere without Max, her dog,” I tell him.

  Prez digests that for a moment. If she refuses to go to her handler, it means we can’t get her off our hands. I wait, wondering what he’s going to do. His next words show me he’s not going to run her off, or not immediately.

  “Who’s after you, Stevie? What do you know?”

  Her lips press together. “I don’t want to say. Suffice to tell you, I saw something I shouldn’t.”

  Demon shakes his head. “Is this from before you went blind?”

  Stevie gives a short laugh. “No, sorry. The use of my word was confusing. I have ways of identifying people without using my eyes.”

  Demon’s staring at me. “Have you got any suggestions how we handle this, Beef?”

  Instead of answering, I stare at Stevie. Now the adrenaline rush of getting away from the fire has died down, and my anger, then sorrow at seeing the end between me and Sally, welcome, but the admittance of failure all the same, I’ve started to think more rationally. There are some questions I want answered.

  “Leaving aside the hows and whys of your situation. Who knows you’ve come to Pueblo?”

  “My handler. Who he’s told, I don’t know.”

  “Who’s he with? FBI or cops?”

  “Er, FBI.”

  My eyes meet Demon’s again. A federal case is more serious. “They usually play it close to their chests. Only people who know are those that need to.”

  “I know,” she says, adamantly. “That’s why I thought I was safe. I haven’t done anything to draw attention to myself. I’m not stupid. It’s my life after all. I looked into everything before I accepted leaving my old life behind. The US Marshals providing witness protection haven’t lost anyone, ever. Unless the person slipped up themselves.”