“Stop it.”
Confused Tessa rolled her head to the side and looked at Creed.
“What?”
“Stop it. You didn’t cause any of this shit, get those thoughts out of your head. I can practically hear the words rolling around in there. You think Tuck was right, all that shit he said about you. Stop it,” he growled louder. “None of this shit is on you. It’s on me and Tuck, hell, even Caine, but not you. You fucked up by not staying behind and telling me what you needed. Letting me help you get to your last rotation, but beyond that, you did nothing wrong, Tess.”
“I worked in Junie's bar, Creed, if I hadn’t—”
“If you hadn’t nothing, Tess. Fuck, those bills were coming long before you decided to go to work in that bar. Caine is looking into it, and my buddy Talon has already found some shit. All that money, those accounts were set up in shell corporation that leads directly back to the Vultures. They targeted you. It wouldn’t have mattered if you worked at the bar or not. Do you understand what I am saying?” Creed held out his hand, and Tessa took it.
“But why? I don’t get it,” Tessa said.
“Caine had a no touch order out for you, but if you were caught with any man wearing a leather cut, that order would be voided since Caine wasn’t around to enforce it. They wanted you working in that bar. You were set up, babe, and if you would have told me about any of that, I could have done something.”
“Why are you being nice to me if you’re still mad? I don’t get it Creed. None of it.”
“Babe, I want to spank your ass for scaring the shit out of me, but I get it. Doesn’t change the fact, but I do get it.”
“What are we going to do? Oh, shit Creed we have to go back, Cinny was supposed to meet me if Grinder...”
“Cinny’s gone, her brother took her out of there as soon as Caine showed up. There’s history there you probably know more about than me, but it wasn’t pretty. Her brother and your brothers made her make a choice. She chose her family; I’m sorry Tess I don’t think you will be hearing from Cinny again.”
Tessa closed her eyes; Creed had no idea how much history there were between all of those people. But one thing she did know was, once it was safe, Maria would find her. Or at the very least, find a way to make sure that Tessa knew she was okay. That was all she could ask for, and she sent up a silent prayer, adding a few more things to that prayer.
“She’ll be okay, Creed, I know her, and her brothers, they’ll keep Cinny safe.”
“Damn, Tess did you know who her family is? What they do?”
“Are you asking if I know they run a cartel? Yeah, I have for a long time.”
“Damn it,” Creed said, slamming his hand down on the steering wheel. “Why in the fuck would you even consider getting them involved in this, don’t you know—”
“Stop, I didn’t involve them, Cin did.” Tess was too overwhelmed to even lift her head or raise her voice. “Cin called them, I didn’t, I just got in the car with her brother.”
“Damn it, that isn’t good enough. Even just getting into a car with one of those guys can put another target on your back. If anyone thinks you are in league with the cartel, even your brothers won’t be able to help you. Do you get that? Fuck, Tess.”
“I have known those men my entire life, and you know what Creed?” Tess sat up letting her anger strengthen her. “They have been there for me more times than I can count. More often than my own fucked up family. They’re good people.”
“Good people? They’re part of a known cartel; those two things—good and cartel—don’t go together, Tess. Do you know what they do to people, what they sell to kids? Fuck what they sell to anyone. I’ve seen the aftermath of what happens when the Perez Cartel decides you’re a loose end. Fuck!”
“I’m not stupid, and neither are they. Give Maria and me some credit. The Perez Cartel has kept me safe without claiming me or even acknowledging me unless it was behind closed doors. I’ve known the score for a very long time. It’s Maria that I care about, not her family or her brothers. If they go down, they go down, but they won’t take me with them. I have their word.”
“Their word!”
“Yes, and you might not like it, but it’s the way it will stand. If I’m taken in, I will conveniently have memory loss—you, them, my brothers, all of it. The only people I was ever in contact with were Caine and Maria, but Tuck has made it know how naïve and stupid I am, so don’t worry, my cover is firmly intact.”
“Damn it, Tess.”
“No, enough,” Tessa said unable to hold back the tears anymore. “I’m done. You get that? I AM DONE. I’m not going to fight about any of this with you. You never once told me who you were or what you did, you can’t come back at me now and complain about the shit I held back. Just take me wherever it is Tuck and Caine have decided and leave. Wash your hands of this whole damn, mess. I sure as fuck wish I could.”
Creed started laughing, but it wasn’t jovial in any way.
“Oh, I won’t be leaving you anytime soon, babe. You and I are going to be glued to each other's hips from here on out. You made that choice when you didn’t listen to me to leave that garage. Now, you're stuck with me, and you better get used to it. You wanted me to stay for the long haul? Well, guess what baby? Wish fucking granted.”
CHAPTER TWENTY
Fuck Creed thought he loved her; it came to him in blinding clarity right in that instance. Because if he didn’t love Tess, there was no reason for what he had done and what he was about to do. Yep, he loved this crazy woman with a death wish. The sweet woman he had been playing house with was associated to a Mexican Drug Cartel, the sister of two Presidents in one-percenter motorcycle Clubs. One being his own damn club and she apparently had no idea how fucked up or bad that was.
Just breathing Tessa was leverage for any one of a dozen alphabet soup agencies and then there was the criminal element. If any of them got their hands on Tess, it would be pay dirt. Because Tuck and Caine would do whatever it took to keep Tess safe. They might have issues, Creed thought, shaking his head. Hell, they had more issues than psychology books had words in them, but they all loved each other in their own way.
Creed, Tuck, and Caine had hashed out what they were going to do before they found out that Tess and Cinny had taken a hike and blew it all to hell. Now, he was scrambling to get her somewhere safe. They couldn’t risk phones because they could be traced. Tal had disabled the onboard assistant in the SUV, but there was still a small chance if the Vultures had a person with the right knowledge, they could track the vehicle. Creed was sticking to back roads and staying out of populated areas. But still. Damn it, how many times would he say or think those words?
“We need to find a place to make a phone call, take someone’s phone, or buy one.”
Tessa started looking through her backpack and pulled out a phone he had never seen before. “Will this work?”
“Tessa, we can’t use your phone, it’s probably being traced. Shit, give it to me.” Tessa pulled the phone back, but Creed wasn’t in the mood to play. Leaning over he tried again to snatch the phone, but she twisted her body around to keep it from him. “Damn it, Tess, that could lead them right to us.”
“No, Creed, if you would just shut up for a minute and listen, you would know that this isn’t my phone. I got rid of my own damn phone before I got to the hospital, so you, Tuck and Caine couldn’t track me. Mickey gave me this, it’s a prepay, no sim chip and untraceable.”
Well, shit, Creed thought, that made things easier, but he still snatched it out of her hands.
“Asshole,” Tess mumbled, making him smile. She was going to find out just how much of an asshole he was, and she might as well get used to it. She was about to get the real Creedence Clearwater, warts and all. No need to keep up with the nice guy routine anymore.
Quickly dialing Talon, he barked into the phone, “Sitrep!” Sitrep was the shortened military word for a situation report. He needed to know what was going on, so he
could plan his next steps.
He listened to the details. Caine and Tuck had gotten out of the hospital with no incident. Talon and Jinx had managed to cut the feed to the video cameras, so what went down in the garage wasn’t known by anyone who hadn’t seen it with their own eyes. It looked like they had gotten away scot-free until Talon told him a contingency of at least twenty Vultures was spotted heading north on State Route 25 which would put Tess and Creed right in their path.
Caine, Tuck, and the boys were coming in from the East and the West, hoping to cut off the Vultures, but Creed knew with his and Tess’s luck, they weren’t going to make it in time. He looked around, but there wasn’t anything but cornfields. He could drive into one, but the tracks from the SUV would give them away. Fuck! Creed said, “Understood” into the phone and eased his foot off the gas, he needed to think to figure out a way out of this.
“What’s going on?”
Creed let a breath out of his mouth that he hadn’t realized he was holding.
“The Vultures are driving this way. Tuck and Caine are trying to catch up, but they had to clear the hospital first. We’ll run into the Vultures unless I can find a place for us to hide out until they catch up.”
Tess looked around and then said, “Turn onto that track on the left.” Creed wouldn’t have noticed the two worn tire tracks if Tess hadn’t pointed them out. But it had rained the night before, the tire tracks would still show. He couldn’t risk it.
“Trust me, Creed, turn now!” Tess pleaded with him
Fuck! Creed whipped the wheel and turned onto the road. It was more like a worn-out path.
“Get on the side, the grass is beaten up enough it won’t show the tracks. Just don’t hit any of the bushes. In about fifty feet, there’s going to be a drop. Since it rained last night, I can guarantee the good ole boys have been out mudding, we’ll just add to the tracks that are already there.” Creed hoped she was right. The drop came he maneuvered the SUV around thankful it was four-wheel drive.
The ruts and sinkholes were everywhere, it was impossible to stay driving in a straight line. Tess would yell out every once in a while, telling him where to go or to watch out for something. When they came out on another state route heading South, he asked, “I take it you have been there before.”
“Yeah, a few times. What I want to know is how a person who hung out in Hazard hasn’t? If you spent any time here as a teenager, you would know about this place, it’s legendary.”
“I didn’t live here, Tess, I only came to visit my Aunt, and she wasn’t the type to go mudding. We usually just went to the drive-in down in Howell or to one of the bars she liked to hang out in.”
“Your aunt took you to bars when you were a teenager?”
“Yeah, don’t look so shocked Kim is who she is, the rest of us just live in her world,” Creed laughed. If they weren’t being followed by the Vultures, he would have thought sharing these things with Tess was a good thing, making them closer but now it was back to business.
“I know Kim, did you know that? I even consider her a friend. She never talked about you, you never said a word about her, why?”
“Tess, are we going to hash this out now?”
“Yeah, I think we are,” Tess said, crossing her arms over her chest.
“Fine, listen, I didn’t tell you about Kim or anything else because I was protecting you.” Creed didn’t need to hear Tess’s snort to realize how bad that had sounded. He hadn’t been protecting her he had been protecting his own damn self.
“Fine, I didn’t tell you because I didn’t want you to know. I thought you were a one-night stand, then when I got the orders to stay in town but lay low, I thought I would hang with you for a while longer. I didn’t think it would go anywhere, that you wouldn’t mean anything to me, but the longer I stayed, the more things changed between us.”
“But they didn’t mean enough for you to stay.” It wasn’t a question, just a statement, but it did burn.
“No, not enough to make me stay. I was going to leave, you’re right about that, but that was before all of this shit. Before I found out who you really are.”
“What the sister of two assholes, that has links to a Mexican drug cartel?” Tess said laughing. “Damn, it does sound really bad when you say it out loud doesn’t it?”
“Yeah, it kind of does,” Creed said smiling back at her. The fact either of them could find humor in anything right now was amazing.
“Listen, I can’t promise you being with me will be white picket fences or even close to how we’ve lived the last few months, my life isn’t like that. I go away, and most times, I wouldn’t be able to tell you where I was or what I’m doing. But I want to try.”
“So, are you making me your Ol’ Lady or something? Do I get a nice leather vest and some kick-ass leather pants, so I can ride on the back of your bike and let all the other bitches know you’re taken?” The smile on Tess’s face showed she was teasing, but Creed knew there was also a part of her that needed to know what was coming next.
“Babe, I think if you squeezed that luscious ass into some leather, you wouldn’t make it onto the back of my bike. Plus, until we get the price off my head and the claim off your ass, neither of us will be riding around showing anyone who is whose.”
“Damn,” Tess said, snapping her fingers, “I knew there was a catch. You’re just going to keep me as your dirty little secret, aren’t you?”
“Nah, if we get that shit cleared up, I’ll claim your ass and call the tattoo artist to do the ink, right there, in front of everyone.”
“Huh, ink? You better be talking sharpie I don’t think I’ve agreed to have any needles come anywhere near my body, Creed.”
“Oh, yeah, needles and all.” Creed slipped his hand under Tess’s butt and pinched. “Right there, so that every time I bend you over my bike, I can see my name in living color. Creed’s Property. What do you think? I might even let you pick a little something to go around it, just make sure it isn’t too girly. No flowers or butterflies.”
“Whatever!” Tessa laughed. “Sorry, Dude, but ain’t going to happen. You need to figure out another way because I’m not getting a tattoo of your name on my ass.”
“We’ll see, sweet Tessa, we will see.”
Creed had just turned the corner and wanted to bang his head up against the steering wheel. Son of a Bitch. Slamming on the brakes, he sat there. Two dark SUV’s crossed the road, and five guys, all with guns pointed at them, waited outside.
“Wait,” Tessa screamed, and before he could stop her, she was jumping out the door and running to one of the men.
Yep, she was getting the damn tattoo and a spanking, maybe tonight.
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
“Juan!” Tessa screamed, running for the man, throwing herself into his arms. “Is she okay, where is she?”
“Calm down, Tess, Maria’s okay, she’s with family now, but we need to talk to your man,” he said, placing Tessa back on her feet and moving away from her.
“Let’s make this quick,” Juan barked at Creed. Tessa was surprised at how different Juan was. He was the nice one, the one who took her and Cinny out for pizza and ice cream when she was little. He was also the one who would come over and play board games, making fun of them when they lost. But that man was nowhere to be seen now, he was just as cold as Micky had been.
“The Perez Cartel has bought out the price on your head, no one will touch you,” Juan said pointing at Creed. “Tess will be given a choice, she can stay with you, or she can go with us. The claim on her will be voided either way.”
“Why, what’s in this for you,” Creed sneered at Juan. Tessa didn’t like it, but she knew better than to say anything, this was business, and even though it affected her, these men didn’t want or need her opinion.
“My sister has agreed to come home; her price was making sure you and Tess are taken care of. We’re keeping up our end of the deal.” Tessa couldn’t help her intake of breath; this was bad very ba
d. Cinny would never agree to go back to her family. Her brothers were okay, but her father was a monster. He treated Cin like property or a possession he had the right to do whatever he wanted with. Tessa had seen the scars.
She put her hand on Juan, trying to get him to look at her, but he wouldn’t.
“Make your choice, Tessa.”
Tessa walked over to Creed and stood by his side, there really wasn’t any choice. She wouldn’t be going with the Perez’s even if she wanted to go to Maria more than her last breath.
“Load up, Tess has made her choice,” Juan barked to his men but stop and turned. “Your President has been taken. I don’t know where they’ve taken him, only that he’s been taken. You need to tell Caine to stay away from Maria. His reprieve is over, we’ll be gunning for him. Take care of her, Creedence,” Juan said pointing to Tessa, “she’s what has kept you all alive.”
“Juan, wait,” Tessa said, trying to move forward, but Creed grabbed her arm. “Please,” Tessa yelled, “is Maria going to be okay, will you be able to protect her? Please, Juan, I need to know.” Tessa had fallen down on her knees, knowing how bad all of this was.
“Maria isn’t your concern anymore, Tessa. She’s with family now where she was meant to be all along. Move on and forget about her. She made her choice and bargained her life for yours and your brothers.”
Tessa was still on the ground crying as she watched the SUV’s pull away, Creed standing behind her.
“Come on, babe, we need to figure out what to do next.”
“You don’t understand, they’ll hurt her. Her father will punish her for all the years she stayed away. We have to do something.”
“Babe, if I knew what to do, I would. But right now, we need to get in the car. Find out what’s going on with Tuck and find Caine, okay?”
Tessa woodenly stood and walked to the car with Creeds support. Damn, this was all her fault. Right about now, her nursing career seemed so small. The risks she’d taken and the people who had gotten caught up in her trying to finish out her dream. It wasn’t worth it, any of it.
Creed: Ruthless Bastards (RBMC Book 5) Page 14
