by Hart, Rebel
“You didn’t have to, Dani.”
I snickered. “Remember back in middle school?”
“What?”
“Humor me for a second. Remember back when I was in middle school? When a slot on the History Debate Team came open my seventh grade year?”
He paused. “I do.”
“You remember how hard Mom tried to get me to join?”
He sighed. “Dani, that was--”
“Do you remember, Dad?”
“Yes, I remember. And I know where you’re going with this.”
“Good. Then this will cut the conversation short. I told Mom I didn’t want to do it, and she threw a fit. Got you involved. And the two of you sat me down and essentially told me I’d regret not doing the History Debate Team. That I was too young to understand the consequences of my decisions, and that you had already called the principal of my school to let him know I’d be trying out. Remember that?”
“Dani, please. It was only one time.”
“And sometimes, Dad, once is all it takes. One lesson being learned at the exact right moment is all it takes for something to really stick. And that stuck with me, Dad. You and Mom completely disregarded what I wanted for my life at that moment and you used the age excuse with me then. Just like you are now. I’m not going to let you get away with it. This is my life, which means these are my decisions.”
“I can’t fight with you anymore. Just please, tell me where you are.”
I shook my head. “I love you guys, but I have to go.”
“Dani, plea--”
I hung up the phone before flipping it over. I slid the battery pack out and placed the pieces back onto the bedside table. I didn’t want to take any chance that my parents might actually get so desperate as to have someone track my damn cell phone. At this point, I couldn’t put anything past them. My heart felt heavy. My soul felt as if it were still being weighed down in that pool by that chair. I looked down at the clothes I’d fallen asleep in and took stock of how wrinkly they were. So I decided to exchange my shirt for one of Max’s.
Before following the smells of coffee into the kitchen.
I felt all eyes on me as I schlepped into the room. I made my way to the coffee pot and plucked a mug from the cabinet. I picked up a piece of toast and shoved it into my mouth. Some of the other crew members were lined up against the walls with their eyes facing the table. That meant they were talking. Deliberating. Trying to figure out the kinks to this plan. And as I carried my coffee to sit next to Max, I draped an arm around his shoulders.
“So! Is everyone on board, handsome?”
John paused. “Wait, she knows?”
I sipped my coffee. “I’m actually kind of hurt you think I’m not in the know, John.”
Max chuckled. “She knows, yes.”
I kissed the top of Max’s head. “Didn’t answer my question, though.”
I gazed into the eyes of every man lining the walls of the kitchen before I sat next to the love of my life.
“Is everyone on board?” I asked.
23
Max
“Mmph.”
“Ugh.”
“Fuck, come on.”
“Ergh, shit!”
I took the bag from Dani’s hands. “Take a breather, gorgeous. I’ve got it.”
She took it back from me. “I’m not a child. I’ve got this.”
“I’m not saying you’re a child. I’m saying you’ve matched me, bag for bag. Take a break.”
She wiped at the sweat on her forehead. “What? Think I can’t keep up?”
“Dani.”
She sighed. “I’m sorry. I’m sorry. It’s just…”
I stopped hoisting bags into the back of the rented truck before I cupped her cheeks.
“Gorgeous, I know you’re fully capable of stepping up to the plate. You’ve proved that to me more times than I can count. Okay?”
She nodded. “Okay.”
“You’re tired. There’s nothing wrong with that. Go get some water, take a breather, then you can get back at it. Okay? No one’s going to think anything bad about you just because you’re winded.”
“I know. I know. It’s just--”
I ran my thumb along her lower lip. “Shhhh. You need to trust that I understand a bit more than you give me credit for. And I promise you, whatever’s going through your head right now, that’s not what’s actually happening.”
After watching her nod softly in my grip, I placed a kiss to her sweating forehead. We’d been lugging these massive bags into the back of the truck for well over an hour now. And it shocked me that she hadn’t taken a break up until this point. I knew Dani was on edge. I knew she was overly concerned with how people perceived her right now. And in some respects, I understood.
But she needed to learn how to rein her emotions in during times like these.
I watched her make her way back into the house before I picked up another bag. I lugged it into the back of the truck, listening as the chassis groaned. The bed wouldn’t be able to haul much more than this. And we still had to unload them at the other end. I wiped my face off with my shirt before I dusted off my hands. The street behind me was lined with motorcycles. Lined with my men, ready to jump at the drop of a hat if someone rolled up onto us.
I just hoped this worked.
“You sure he’s going to buy it?”
John’s voice sounded behind me and I turned around.
“Yeah, I really do. Benji’s strong suit isn’t his wits. He’s going to be pissed after what I did to him in that warehouse. So if he thinks you’re offering him redemption, he’s going to jump at it.”
My brother pointed to the bags. “And all of these are necessary?”
Dani walked out of the house. “If you tell me we’ve tossed those bags onto that truck for no reason, I’m having someone’s head.”
A few of the guys chuckled as a grin crossed my face.
“I’d like to see you try that, gorgeous.”
She handed me a bottle of water. “Play your cards wrong, and you just might.”
I smiled as she winked at me, then I cracked open the bottle. The glorious cold liquid dripped from the opening, and it was all I could do not to choke myself on it. I guzzled it down, completely unaware of how much I had exerted myself up until this point. The bottle crinkled as I continued sucking it back, barely giving myself room to breathe.
Then, with a growl, I tossed the bottle into the bed of the truck as well.
“Hey, now. Don’t go ruining all of our efforts,” Dani said.
I snickered. “I would never.”
She smirked. “Uh huh.”
John piped up. “So someone want to run me through this plan one more time?”
Dani turned to face him. “Which part do you want to hear?”
John snickered. “All of it, maybe?”
She licked her lips. “I know it’s not as thorough as everyone would like it to be. Myself, especially. But I trust this is going to work out. Do you trust me, John?”
My brother peeked over at me. “She being serious?”
I shrugged. “Do you trust the girl?”
Dani corrected me. “Woman.”
I winked. “Hell yeah, you are.”
Dani rolled her eyes. “John, do you trust me?”
He sighed. “Yeah. Yeah, I do. But this is also Max’s only shot at getting out of this as a free man.”
Dani nodded. “Which is why it’s worth the risk to me. Remember, John, you need to tell him we’re running. That we’re leaving town. Getting out of Dodge for good. And you need to make sure Benji understands it’s because of him. That’s the important part. It’s the only thing he’ll believe, because he’s just as egotistical as your father.”
I jumped in. “He’ll follow us if you make sure he understands we’re leaving due to his treatment. Benji won’t want to leave anything unfinished. If my father has rubbed off on him that much, we play this like we’d play our father.”
I sighed. “It’ll only be a matter of time before Dad’s paid goons catch up with us, too. As long as Benji makes it to us first, we’ll be good. He’ll talk. But, if Dad’s paid idiots find us with him, this might get complicated.”
My brother nodded. “Got it. Make sure it’s all about Benji, and that he makes it to you guys first. I can do that.”
Dani smiled. “We knew you could.”
John paused. “You’re sure he’s going to be at the hospital?”
I hoisted one last bag into the bed of the truck. “Positive. There’s nowhere else for him to go. He’s got no one else at his side but Dad right now, and we know Dad’s still recuperating in that hospital bed. Benji isn’t going to be at school. He can’t come to any of our clubhouses without risking his own life. And he can’t go to the estate because it’s still a crime scene. He’ll be at the hospital, either talking to Dad or waiting to see Dad. It’s a safe place to corner him.”
John paused. “If we don’t want Dad getting to you guys first, are you sure we don’t want to lure him away from the hospital?”
Dani cupped my brother’s cheeks. “John, you need to take a breath with me. Okay?”
I watched the two of them draw in deep breaths together, and out of the corner of my eye I saw some of my men on their bikes doing the same thing. Their chests expanded as their eyes closed. They were breathing with Dani, as if she were silently commanding them.
Hell, those men never listened to me like that at all. And it was inspiring.
What a woman.
“All right, John. Ready?” she asked.
He nodded. “Ready.”
“You’re the one who’s going to the hospital. Max and I are getting on the road. When you talk to Benji, follow our stipulations. And when you do, that’s when he leaves the hospital and comes after us. We’re banking on the hospital holding back your father from placing phone calls or leaving or generally fucking this up. Okay?”
He nodded fervently. “Got it. It’s all sorted out in my head now. Sorry.”
She patted his cheeks. “Such a dirty word. You have nothing to be sorry for. It’s complicated, and diluted, and risky at best. You need any other clarification?”
I stood in awe of her as she talked my brother through the bare bones of the plan with poise and confidence.
“No, no. I’m good. Thanks,” John said.
Dani dropped her hands. “Wonderful. Okay. Max, do we need any other bags in the trunk?”
I shook my head. “Got the last one in while you were doing your focus thing. We’re good to go whenever John is.”
She smiled. “John?”
“Yeah?”
“You gonna be able to do this?”
He paused for longer than I liked. “Yeah. I’m going to be able to do this.”
Dani giggled. “Great. Fantastic. Max? I’m going to go get cleaned up a bit more, then I’ll be ready. You need anything while I’m inside?”
I shook my head. “Just need to talk with my brother while you’re gone. Then I’ll be ready.”
I watched Dani disappear back into the house before I walked over to my brother. I slung an arm around his neck, pulling him in for a brotherly hug. I closed my eyes and cherished the moment, because I knew it might be the last time we ever saw one another. If shit went south with this little operation of ours, I didn’t know who the hell was getting out alive. It’d be every man for himself at that point, and we’d actually be forced out of town.
I wanted to make sure I left no stone unturned.
“I love you. I hope you know that,” John said.
I patted his chest. “Yeah, I know. And I hope you know I do, too.”
He nodded. “Yeah, I know.”
I sighed. “Don’t you dare do anything stupid. You got it? I’ll do my part. You do yours. And I’ll see you on the other side.”
“So long as you keep up your end of the bargain. If we’re not doing stupid shit, neither are you two. Got it?”
“Trust me, I more than got it.”
“Good.”
He wrapped his arms around me in a massive hug and I had to close my eyes. I swallowed back the knot forming in my throat as John clapped my back. I hugged him tightly, holding on to him a few seconds longer than I normally would have. And after I heard the front door of the house open again, I released him.
Before Dani came to stand at my side.
“Ready?” she asked.
I looked into John’s eyes. “You ready?”
My brother nodded. “Ready when you guys are.”
I clapped his cheek. “Good. Because I’m ready to end this.”
I hugged my brother one last time before I wrapped around the back end of the truck. While John opened the passenger door for Dani, I hopped behind the wheel of the massive vehicle. I let Dani and John say their goodbyes before she climbed into the seat. And as she buckled her seatbelt, John’s words made me chuckle.
“You take care of my little brother now, Bambi. He’s fragile, though he doesn’t like to speak of such things.”
I chuckled. “Fragile. You wish.”
Dani giggled. “I promise I’ll take good care of him. You just take care of yourself. Okay?”
John’s eyes found mine. “She’s one of us, through and through.”
I grinned. “I know.”
I cranked up the massive diesel engine and heard it roar to life. John closed Dani’s car door and I watched him in the mirrors as he retreated to the guys lining the curb with their bikes. I backed out of the driveway and straightened the truck out in the middle of the road, keeping my eyes on the guys.
I felt something warm and comforting squeeze my knees.
“This will work, Max. I promise.”
Dani’s voice sounded so soft, yet so reassuring. And it brought me a great deal of hope.
“I know, gorgeous. But, more than that, it has to work. Our futures depend on it.”
She patted my knee. “Try not to put that kind of pressure on yourself just yet.”
Easier said than done.
I looked each and every one of my guys in the eyes as we idled in the middle of the road. I chose to ignore the way Dani’s hand trembled against my knee with nerves and the soft break in her voice as she swallowed hard. I already felt it in my chest. The tension of this moment. The desperation in the eyes of my men as they looked to our truck as a source of their own hope. We were playing with fire. All of us were. I looked over at Dani, and the confidence in her posture washed over me.
I’ll do anything to keep you safe.
I wanted this to be behind us once and for all. I wanted my father and Benji out of the fucking picture so we could all get on with our lives. I was tired of the torture. Tired of being bossed around. Tired of eating ramen and scrounging for change in the couches because someone else was in charge of the jobs we took. The money we made. I wanted better for my men. I wanted better for myself.
And damn it, ‘better’ felt too close not to reach for it.
With my father out of the picture, I could love Dani without fear of losing her. I could hold her at night without fear of someone attacking us in the middle of it. I could go to campus to visit her without fear that someone had gotten to her. Like Benji at the pool. Or my father, creeping in the shadows next to her dorm. With this behind us, Dani and I had a future we could strive for. A future where our love wasn’t overshadowed by my father’s insanity and lust for blood.
That alone was a future worth putting everything on the line.
“Ready?” Dani asked.
I raised my head high before I nodded.
“Let’s go, gorgeous. We’ve got a future to preserve.”
Then I sped off down the road, listening as motorcycle engines revved and sputtered, as if the guys were clapping for us, cheering us on. Sending us off into a better world fit for the two of us.
Soon.
Soon, my life could be everything I dreamt of and everything I felt was impossible for my world.
Once my father and Benji were gone for good.
24
Dani
“Which ones have our stuff in it again?” I asked.
Max pulled the truck up to our motel room. “The ones in the back seat. The ones in the bed of the truck are filled with random things. You know, to make it look like we’re hauling more stuff than we are.”
I nodded. “Just making sure we didn’t have to dig for them or something. I’m exhausted.”
“Me, too.”
I stared at the door to our room. “You think four hours out of town is enough?”
He opened his door. “We’re about to find out, I guess.”
“Doesn’t give me much hope, handsome.”
He snickered. “Well, if you’re looking for hope, you shacked up with the wrong guy. Because I don’t deal in hope.”
I looked over at him. “Oh, really? And what is it you deal in?”
He grinned. “Certainties.”
I rolled my eyes at his pompous attitude, but I was a bit jealous as well. He seemed so calm. So cool. So collected, despite everything going on around us. I wished I felt that way, too. On the outside was a curt frown and unfocused eyes, which matched my mood on the inside. I was worried. Fearful of the future. Concerned that this would all blow up in our faces.
Or that Max would actually wind up dead.
The door behind me opened. “I got your bag. Just grab the key. It’s in the cup holder.”
I reached for it. “Got it. I’ll go unlock the door.”
I slid down from the truck and went to unlock the door. Max walked our bags in before going out to lock the truck back up. I watched his eyes pan around, as if he were looking for something. Or possibly keeping one eye in the distance.
Reminding me of the trouble following on our heels.
“You gave them the fake name, right?” I asked.
Max stepped inside. “Yep. Didn’t even bat a lash when I said Monroe.”
