Patriot

by KJ Dahlen

  “Just do it.” Gunner growled as he struggled to hold her in place.

  Cobra nodded. “She needs some time to calm down and realize we aren’t the bad guys here.”

  Patriot took her arm and held it out as she fought him all the way. He found a vein and plunged the needle into her arm. She screamed out again as he depressed the plunger.

  With tears in his eyes, the medicine took over and her struggles lessened. She looked at him with tears washing her eyes. “I trusted you and you betrayed me,” she whispered before her eyes closed and her struggles ended.

  Patriot felt his heart breaking.

  Annie came to an abrupt halt just at the doorway and she watched with horror in her eyes as she caught her sister’s words. “What the hell are you doing to her?”

  Gunner and Cobra eased Becky onto the bed and turned to Annie who was now joined by Harry and half the MC.

  “We had to sedate her,” Gunner explained almost breathless. “When we told her about what Silvers was going to do with her blood she went crazy.”

  Annie and Harry walked into the room and looked down at her. “Will she be all right?”

  “If I have anything to say about it she will be,” vowed Patriot. Shaking his head he told them, “She told me the first few weeks Blacky had her he would come into her cell and ask her about her father, her real father. She thinks he knew Silvers was her real father all along.”

  “But how could he?” Annie wanted to know.

  Patriot sighed heavily. “I don’t know, but she went crazy when we told her she shared Levi’s rare blood type and that he would use her for her blood. Blacky would tell her that her blood was worth a lot of money. She didn’t know how but she now thinks we’re going to drain her blood for some nefarious reason.” He nodded his head at her. “I had to sedate her.”

  Annie moved closer to her sister and began brushing her hair away from her face. She knelt beside the bed and took her sister’s hand whispering, “Oh baby girl, what the hell did he do to you?”

  Patriot handed Annie a cool cloth. “I’m not sure we’ll even know the answer to that question. She’s convinced she’s broken beyond repair.”

  Annie snapped her head up to glare at him. “She may be a lot of things but she is not broken.”

  Patriot smiled sadly. “I know that and deep down, I think she does too. But it’s when thoughts of Blacky creep into her mind and she remembers everything she went through that she believes she is. She doesn’t see how strong she was fighting back, most women would have given into the pain long before she did. He tried to break her but he never could and all she can remember is the pain he put her through. But she’s safe here.” He looked down at the woman on the bed. “But you’re right she isn’t broken, she’s the strongest woman I know.”

  “Please understand her then?” Annie begged. “She’s going to have flashbacks, she’s going to cry and carry on sometimes, and she’s going to live with this insane fear for a long time. All you can do is be patient with her and be there for her.”

  ”I’m not going anywhere,” Patriot assured her. “And she isn’t either.”

  Annie looked over at her sister and whispered, “Will she ever forget what he did to her?”

  “Probably not anytime soon,” he told her sadly. “Especially, since there’s someone after her.”

  “More than one someone remember?” Annie reminded him. “One wants to take her back to her real father and the other just wants her dead.”

  “As I said, she isn’t going anywhere if she doesn’t want to.” Patriot growled.

  Gunner and Cobra and half the men standing close by voiced their agreement to stand with Patriot.

  Annie watched as the men lined up in the doorway in order to show trust and honor of brotherhood for their man. She knew then they would protect her sister, forming an impenetrable wall between her and anyone out there, willing to bring her harm. She looked at her sister and was grateful that she had gained these allies in her life. She knew these men wouldn’t allow her to be ripped away from them.

  In upstate New York, three men were holding a meeting in a rather unconventional area. The walls were lined with computer monitors and maps. The maps were full of colored pins and labels while the large table they were sitting at had more maps and files on it.

  “What do you have here, James?” Bastian asked.

  “There has been a lot of activity near Jasper, Texas.”

  “And what’s in Jasper, Texas?” the oldest member in the room asked.

  “An MC called Savaged Souls. They run a bounty hunting business primarily but my scouts tell me they have been busy breaking up a human traffic ring linked to the Mexican cartel. I’m also told that recently they have been visited by the Vory V Zakone. I haven’t been able to find out what the Russians were there for but the underworld is missing a few members.”

  “And this interests us how?” the older man growled.

  “Damen Cole has been spotted in Jasper the last few weeks,” James told them. He watched his screen as that information grabbed their attention.

  Bastian looked at the other man and then back at James. “Your scouts have seen Cole in Jasper?”

  James nodded. “They just phoned in another sighting. They spotted Jase Brunner there as well.”

  Bastian glanced at the other man and frowned. “What the hell does the SANG group want in a little town like Jasper?”

  James picked up a file and handed it to Bastian. The name on the file was Levi Silvers.

  Bastian flipped through the file and read the information James had compiled all those years ago. He didn’t ask how James got the info, he didn’t need to know. James had tons of files on most of the big players in the nation and some on big wigs living aboard.

  Bastian knew James’ files had come in handy more than once. One thing caught his eye as he read the file and when he was done, he passed the file along to the older man. He watched him read the file and he knew the exact moment he caught the same tiny piece of information he did.

  Bane closed the file and laid it on the table. He looked over at James and asked, “Are you sure about the medical information?”

  James nodded. “His daughter has the same blood type. I double checked the results.”

  “And what will happen if he can’t get the transfusion he needs?” Bane asked.

  “He’ll die,” James told them both.

  “And the SANG group?”

  “They will go on without him I’m sure.” James growled. “They will continue to grow and prosper on paper while their bank accounts get bigger and bigger. What they show the business world is only the tip of the iceberg. They’ve made sure of that.”

  “We need to find a way to bring them down then don’t we?” Bane looked into Bastian’s eyes steadily. “We need to expose their secret activity and show the world what they are really doing.”

  “Personally, I think we should recruit Damen to work for us.” James was bold enough to suggest.

  Bastian snapped his head around to glare at his friend. “What the hell would we want with him on our team?”

  “Think about it for a minute.” James shrugged. “I’ve been watching him over the years and I think this case has him torn in two different directions. He’s getting older, but he has years of experience we could use. He knows people in the industry and he knows all of SANG’s secrets.” James nodded at the file again. “He’s been the one man who has been looking for Levi’s kid all these years. With Jase being in town, I think there could be trouble brewing. SANG has never sent more than one man out to the same place before which tells me, Levi is beginning to not have faith in Damen anymore.”

  “And what do you know about this Jase character?” Bastian asked.

  “Jase is power hungry. He does what he does for the money and has made no attempt to hide it. Levi once took him down and I don’t think he’s ever forgiven the man for that. If he does get to the girl...she won’t make it back alive. And Jase won’t
care that Levi needs her blood to live either.”

  “I think we need more information before we make our move.” Bastian suggested. Looking over at James he suggested, “Maybe you should go recon and find out what’s going on down there. We should protect the girl until we know what’s going on. Make contact with Damen if you need to, feel him out.”

  “And the MC?” James asked.

  “Report first and if we need to, we can contact Sadie’s brother,” Bane told them. “He can help with the MC side of things.”

  James got to his feet and nodded. “I’ll get there right away and find out what I need to know.”

  “Be careful, man,” Bastian warned. “We don’t know yet what we’re walking into down there and Texan’s can be stubborn about protecting their own.”

  “MC’s can be too.” James grinned. “We all learned that the hard way if I recall.”

  “Indeed.” Bane chuckled as he remembered his introduction to the Sin’s MC. Then he wiped all the emotion off his face and growled. “Watch your back man.”

  James gave Bane a nod and left the room.

  Bane looked over at Bastian. “What do you think?”

  Bastian picked up the SANG file James had compiled over the last twenty years. “I think it's time for us to move in and break up the SANG group. We need to find a way in and then we tear them apart.”

  Bane smiled. “Fuck, I love a good fight, don’t you?”

  Bastian grinned. “You know it, old man.”

  Bane paused at this and raised a brow, his expression cold.

  Bastian laughed. “Ah, cut that out will ya?”

  Bane almost smiled.

  A few hours later, Becky opened her eyes. She didn’t find herself in a dark cell or in pain. She looked around and found herself back in the bed she shared with Patriot. Turning her head, she noticed he was beside her.

  His eyes were open and he’d been watching her sleep.

  She met his concerned gaze. “What happened?” she whispered. Her throat ached and her hands trembled as she raised one to feel her throat. When she felt the gauze covering her throat, she grew afraid but waited for Patriot to explain. “What happened?” she whispered again.

  Patriot leaned over and kissed her lips tenderly. “You had a flashback. I had to sedate you to stop you from hurting yourself. You thought someone was strangling you.” His words were calm and spoken softly.

  “Did I hurt anyone?” she whispered.

  “Only yourself.”

  Becky closed her eyes and sobbed.

  Patriot gathered her gently in his arms and held her while she wept. “Honey, it's okay.”

  “No... it's not,” she cried looking up at him. “I can’t stay here. What happens if I hurt someone during one of these stupid flashbacks?”

  “You aren’t going anywhere.” He growled at her. “Do you hear me? You belong here. You belong to me and I’m not letting you go anywhere. I can and will take care of you and these flashbacks aren’t going to last forever.”

  “Do you promise?” She stared at him as tears ran down her face.

  “Baby girl, you need time to heal and time to understand what happened to you wasn’t your fault. It was Blacky’s fault. He tried to break you but you didn’t give in to his plan. You are stronger than he ever could be and he’s in a place where he can’t hurt you anymore. He can’t hurt anyone ever again.”

  “But I don’t want to hurt anyone, least of all you.” Becky sniffled through her tears. “I know I’m broken...”

  “You are not broken. Nor will I ever let you say that again. You may be battered and bruised but bruises fade and heal and so will you. And I’m going to be there right next to you as that happens. Not only me, but Annie and Harry too, along with every fucking member of this MC will be there for you. Every day, no matter how long it takes. You belong here with me and don’t you forget that.”

  Becky felt hope building inside her very soul. Blacky tried to end her but she hadn’t allowed him to do that. She fought to stay alive for her sister and now she would fight to be able to claim her place with this man. God, how she loved him. She promised herself to work harder at staying calm. She kissed Patriot sweetly and gently.

  Chapter Twelve

  Damen walked in the shadows as he followed Jase back to where he was staying. Jase was as bold as brass, almost like he didn’t care who knew he was there. Damen had learned that was dangerous. If you were here to kill someone, you shouldn’t advertise the fact. You wanted to get in, do the job and get out clean but Jase was doing everything he could to get noticed.

  Damen slid deeper into the shadows as he watched Jase enter into his motel room. He stood there and waited for a long time before he saw the door open again. He followed the other man around town for a few more hours then back to the motel. After he watched the light go off in his room, Damen finally went back to his cabin.

  But as soon as he walked into his room he sensed someone else had been there. They weren’t there now, this much was obvious but as he looked around the room he sniffed the air. A lingering scent of something that shouldn’t have been here. He couldn’t put a finger on what was different but something wasn’t quite right.

  His sixth sense kicked in as he began wandering around the small room looking for some sign that someone had been in here while he was gone. As far as he could tell, nothing had been moved, that is until he got to the bed. The mattress was askew just enough he knew someone had lifted it.

  Damen paused then felt almost betrayed. He carefully lifted the mattress himself. He was prepared to find his weapons gone but his eyes widened slightly when he found they were still there and every one of them accounted for. He also knew they hadn’t been disturbed, just observed.

  He lowered the mattress again and sat down in the chair beside the bed. “Damn, who found him and why?” he asked himself. Maybe a better question was why had his things been found but not touched?

  He looked toward the door and wondered, “Could I have trained Jase this well cause if it was Jase, Damen knew his weapons would have been fucked up in some way. There was no way Jase would have just not touched them. Lifting the mattress again, he pulled out his rifle and began checking it over. He checked the barrel and the hammer plate, he also checked the firing pin and the sights. Everything was as it should be. Yes, the firing pin was missing but that was his doing. He always removed the pins in his weapons and stored them somewhere else, so no one could use his weapons without his knowledge. The pin someone would use to replace the original just wouldn’t allow the weapon to be fired. This was his own sense of defense and no one else knew about.

  He replaced the weapon and sat there thinking. If Levi had sent a third man in after his text about Jase, Damen would have been surprised. Levi thought he was invincible and his own people would just blindly follow his orders. He hadn’t believed Damen about Jase but that was his mistake and he would have to learn a hard lesson when Jase took his daughter’s life. But Levi wouldn’t ever understand much less learn, Jase would eventually end him with a bullet through his head.

  As Damen sat there, he made up his mind that if Jase took another shot at Becky he would take Jase out and walk away from the SANG group. They had begun with high hopes but all four men had lost their way. They turned toward greed and that same greed had all four of them by the throat now... none of them could stop what they were doing and go back.

  Damen had served these men for too long not to see what they were capable of. He knew he had no choice, his position had been compromised, so he began packing his things and moving out. He hadn’t lived this long in a cutthroat business by being stupid. He still had a trick or two up his sleeve. Tricks he never shared with the others when he’d trained them. Tricks that might just save his own life one day. Well it appeared that day—was today.

  When he got to this town several weeks ago, he set up a new identity for himself. He bought all new clothes and a new cell phone. Then he stashed them in a third location, intend
ing not to use them unless his first two locations had been compromised. He did this with every new job he took on. Now his habit would pay off. He felt his position was compromised and now the hunted would become the hunter. He gathered his weapons and packed the few things he knew couldn’t be left behind.

  This game was one he was well familiar with. He stripped his clothes off and showered under very hot water. Breaking his own safety seal, he got dressed in fresh clothes and gathered his things. He left behind clothing and anything of his old life that could be traced back to him or the SANG group. Damen had found a few years in, that Levi often used tracking equipment to keep track of his people.

  But Damen knew he couldn’t track his weapons they were never out to be seen when Levi was around. He sent one last text to Levi, telling him Jase shot his daughter and he didn’t think the girl would come to him alive. He told Levi he knew he wouldn’t believe him but that would be on him. Then the last thing he did before he left the room was to carefully place his phone on the desk and smash it with the butt of his gun.

  He smirked. “Catch me now old man, if you can find me that is.” He knew Levi would come searching for him or have someone do the deed but he wouldn’t be here. Then he turned and walked out the door leaving his old life behind. When he closed the door to his room, he finally felt free.

  James watched from down the block. Standing in the shadows, he had followed Damen, as he’d trailed him while the man had been watching Jase, since they left the MC’s compound. Neither man knew he was there.

  James knew Damen would stay and watch Jase for some time before returning to the cabin, so he went and searched Damen’s room, then just for his own interest he’d left a camera behind. He was interested in knowing if Damen was as good as he’d been told. James watched the video as the other man didn’t disappoint him. He knew the moment he stepped into the room, someone else had been there and he did exactly what James would have done if he had been compromised.