By the time he was dressed and in a state to call Shark, at least he knew he wasn’t going to get his head bitten off for waking his brother. It turned out that Shark had ended up at the same motel that Chiz had stayed in over Christmas, so Chiz was under instruction to find some breakfast food to bring with him.
Chiz’d made the call in the bedroom, and then found Elmo in the kitchen. He gratefully accepted a second mug of coffee. She was dressed in black sweatpants and a little red t-shirt that had a neckline that dipped distractingly into her cleavage. It was the most casual he’d ever seen her, apart from naked. As much as he liked the high maintenance look, he was a fan of the easy-access Lycra, too.
“Thanks, doll.” He took a sip, relishing the caffeine hit. “I need to go talk to my brother. Don’t s’pose you’ve got Shane’s number around?”
Elmo dug around in one of the drawers, and triumphantly dug out a little book covered in gold material. It wasn’t much larger than the size of her palm. She flicked through the pages. “Yeah, here it is.” Elmo reeled the number off as Chiz tapped the digits into his phone. “What do you want to speak to him for?”
“He seems like an okay guy. Just wanna catch up with him, see how he’s doin’.”
Elmo very obviously didn’t believe that was the whole truth, but she didn’t ask him any further questions about it.
Elmo returned the book to its rightful place, as Chiz took another hit on the coffee. “I don’t like leavin’ you on your own while I’m about and about, doll. I don’t trust those Church freaks much right now.”
“I was thinking I’d go to the hospital, to see if I could see Jackie. Shane didn’t call here, so I guess she’s pulled through. If you’re thinking they’re going to come after me again, I should be safe enough there.”
“You up to that, doll?”
He could tell from the tightness around her eyes that she wasn’t being entirely honest, but also from the way she drew herself up, and straightened her spine, that there would be no arguing with her. “Yes. I will be. I have to be.”
“You need a ride? I can pick you up after I’m done with Shark.”
“No. I’ll take my car, then I’m not tied if either of us finishes later, or earlier, than the other. I promise I’ll come straight home if I’m done before you.”
She’d been a little sarcastic about the last part, but as long as she did come straight home, he wasn’t going to ride her about it. “You sure you’re okay to drive?”
“Are you sure you’re not going to keep fussing over me like a mother hen, twenty-four-seven?” Elmo asked with a cheeky grin.
Chiz put his mug down and slipped his arm around her waist. If he wasn’t careful he’d be bringing Shark lunch instead of breakfast. “Hey. I’m worried about you is all. Thought I’d lost you yesterday. If you start feelin’ like shit, call me, and I’ll give you a ride home.”
“Yes, Daddy.” She hadn’t lost that damn grin.
Chiz pulled her closer, so that she could feel the effect she was having on him. “Oh, I like that, doll.”
“I told you, I’m not into infant play.”
“I don’t want you in diapers, but I did like the pigtails.”
“Well, maybe we can work on that.”
Damn. Now he was going to be riding with a hard-on. Elmo brought her hands up, and gave a little shove against his chest. “Go play with your friend.” She tilted her head to one side. “Do I want to know how either of you ended up with your nicknames?”
“In all honesty, doll, no, you don’t.”
“Okay. Do I actually have to call him that?”
“I think he’d say you don’t know him well enough to call him by his real name, doll. You’ll get used to it quicker than you think.”
“Do you all have crazy names in your biker club?”
Chiz laughed. “No, but it looks like I’m gonna have to give you the MC 101 before you meet everyone else.”
Elmo shrugged. “Hey, you know bikes, I know Kinbaku.”
“Kini-what?”
“Erotic rope play.”
“Doll, I think I’m gonna wanna try that.”
“We’ll have to work that out. It’ll take a while for you to learn, if you think you’ll be tying me up.”
“I’m a quick study.”
“I’m sure you are.” She gave him another little shove. “Now, go play bikers, and I’ll go visit my friend.”
Chiz left Elmo with a kiss, as innocent a one as he could mange, given their conversation. He still wasn’t happy about leaving on her own, but there were things he needed to speak to Shark about, and Shane, and he didn’t want to drag Elmo along just to tell her she couldn’t take part in the conversation. He didn’t think that would go down so well.
Chiz made sure to pick up some decent food for Shark as a peace offering for being on the late side by the time he got to the motel. He followed a recommendation for a place that Elmo told him about, and got a little carried away when he realized that it had been close to twenty-four hours since he’d eaten. He had some very fond memories of his time at the motel, none of which needed to share the same headspace as thoughts of his MC brother. He swung by the vending machine in the reception to get coffee before he knocked on Shark’s door.
“’Bout time,” Shark griped, as he answered the door, but Chiz knew he was forgiven when Shark smiled as he took the bag of food from him. Shark got the food set up on the small table in the room, sat down, and began to eat like a starving man. For a minute, Chiz thought Shark was going to devour all the food, and considered holding the coffee hostage, but Shark pushed one of the plastic containers in his direction, so Chiz relented and set one of the Styrofoam cups in front of Shark.
“Your girl okay?” Shark asked between mouthfuls of pancakes, bacon, sausage and eggs.
“Yeah, she’s as good as she can be, considerin’. She’s gonna come back to Louisiana. We haven’t sorted out the details yet, but there’s nothin’ left for her here now.” Chiz answered as he concentrated on digging into his own similar meal.
“That was quick work.” Shark remarked.
Chiz shrugged and continued eating. He wasn’t going to explain in detail what was between him and Elmo. He wasn’t sure that he could.
“You speak with her about the blast at all?” Shark asked, after he’d finished his food and started on his coffee.
“Yeah. The strip club wasn’t open, but the dungeon was fully booked all day. She says that was usually the case on Tuesdays. She had a paper diary on her desk. Anyone who went in her office could’ve looked at it, and would’ve known the place was full.”
“But no one walked out alive?”
“We don’t know that. I haven’t asked her, yet, who could’ve been in there. The cops might find somethin’, but she thinks they’ll drag their asses. There’s no love for her line of work ‘round here.”
“Evidently,” Shark remarked, with no small amount of sarcasm. “What’s the story with that Shane? He looks like someone I should know.”
“He used to ride with the Dirty Rats. Patched out after a change of leadership.”
“Yeah, I heard some stories. Not our style of crew. He solid? No designs on your lady?”
“I don’t think so. He’s a loyal employee. Says he’s got an old lady at home. Seems sound.”
“Maybe we talk to him about who had access to that diary, let your girl deal with her own worries.”
“I was thinkin’ the same thing. Got his number from her. I’ll give him a call.”
While Shark cleared up the remnants of their breakfast, Chiz called Shane. He was careful about how much he explained over the phone, but Shane got it, and was at the motel inside of half an hour later. While they were waiting for him, Chiz went out for supplies for Shark, a bottle of tequila, some beers, and more vending machine coffee. It was kind of an apology for him being two states away from his pregnant wife. It was likely that Ashleigh had not been pleased to find out that her husband had taken off on
an impromptu road trip, with no set return date, when she was due to give birth in a couple of weeks.
When Shane arrived, he and Chiz took seats at the table. Shark sat on the bed, citing the discomfort of the chairs, which were too small for him. Shane, being as big as Shark, also made the furniture in the room look like it belonged in a dollhouse.
Chiz got straight down to business. “Andy told me about the club diary. Said anyone who went in her office had access. What this boils down to, is that we’re thinkin’ this was planned to hit the club when it was busiest, but we can’t figure out how that plays out, unless whoever did it turned suicide bomber. Are those Church freaks that far gone?”
Shane didn’t even take a beat before he answered. Chiz would bet good money that the same theory had occurred to him. “There were four rooms upstairs, all fully booked. I don’t think Andy got a lot of cancellations for that side of the business. Once people made the effort to book, they were committed to comin’. The clients never went into the office, they were buzzed in and shown straight to their room, but the dommes and subs did. Their facilities were through there, and they used the diary themselves, too, but they were all good people. They’d all worked with the boss lady for years. Our little thing was like a family.” Shane paused and thought for a moment. “The cleaners were the only other people who ever went up there.”
“You didn’t have any workmen? Repairs or anythin’ that week?” Shark asked. Shane shook his head in response, so Shark continued. “But you said the two cleaners were killed.”
“Yeah, but… shit.” Shane scrubbed his hand over his bandana and down his ponytail.
“What?” Chiz asked, before Shark could.
Shane answered, looking less than happy. “There were always three cleaners on in a mornin’. They did both floors. The dommes and subs took care of a lot in the rooms themselves, you know, cleaned up after the sessions, cleaned the toys. But the cleaners would throw the vacuum around, sweep and dust a little. There wasn’t as much to do as downstairs, so one would take the first floor, while the other two did the strip club.”
“So the third cleaner survived yesterday. You know who that was?” Shark asked, leaning forward to rest his forearms on his knees.
“I only knew them by their first names. Shauna and Frankie were caught in the blast. I didn’t know the roster in detail, and I wasn’t there. Not sure who they’d’ve been workin’ with, but I can give you the names of everyone, if you want to check them out.”
“That’ll take some time, even with our tech guy on it,” Chiz said ruefully, and then thought for a moment. “Did the club have a security feed?”
“Yeah, but that’ll be toast. It was just a basic set up in the boss lady’s office. It wasn’t to keep people out. It was more to keep track of the people payin’ to be there, in case shit went south.” Shane paused again. It looked like an idea had hit him, because he became suddenly animated. “Let me call Lenny, the guy who owns the bar across the street. He had a camera outside his bar. It got a little rowdy at closin’ sometimes, and he wanted to be able to show the cops who threw the first punch. His camera might’ve caught somethin’.”
Chiz and Shark both nodded, so Shane pulled his cell out and made a call. When he was done he relayed the information he’d been given.
“His camera’s shot to shit, but the feed should be okay. He’s gonna take a look at the footage from yesterday mornin’.”
“The cops haven’t asked him for it yet?” Chiz was beginning to wonder if the CSI guys were even going to look at whatever they’d collected the day before, or if they were just going to pull a cause out of a hat.
“It got blown off the wall. I don’t think they realized he had it, and he didn’t think to volunteer it. He’s not as paranoid as we are.” Shane narrowed his eyes at both Shark and Chiz. “You two are takin’ a mighty personal interest in all this.”
Chiz gave Shane the look right back. He wasn’t in a great mood. He was dying for a smoke, but it would be more than his life was worth to stink up Shark’s room. “Andy’s with me. That makes it my business.”
“So you two worked the last two weeks out?”
“And that is none of your business.”
“You’re right, it’s not. But the Pumpkin Patch is my business. It was my job, my friends, too, and some fucker blew it up. Sounds like you two are lookin’ to find who did it, and I believe you’ll look a lot harder than the cops. I want in on that.”
“What’re you askin’?” Chiz suspected he knew what was coming, but he wanted to be clear.
“I wanna patch in with the Priests. I miss the life. Andy’s a great boss, and it was a great job. Now that’s gone, I got nothin’ left here. And I miss ridin’ for a livin’. Y’know what I mean?”
“Yeah, we do.” Chiz couldn’t imagine not riding every day of his life. He didn’t even want to try to imagine it. “She’s comin’ back with me once she’s straight here. We’re talkin’ ‘bout settin’ up in Louisiana. You okay with that move?”
“Yeah, I’ll make it right with my old lady. I wouldn’t mind workin’ for the boss lady again, if she opens a new place.”
Chiz looked over at Shark, who nodded. “We’ll take it to the table.”
Shane took his leave of them, after he’d given them enough details for Crash to start running the requisite background checks.
So now Chiz was coming home with an old lady and a potential new patch. Not a bad day’s work by anyone’s standards. He was going to have to speak to Samuel about the bomb, and the potential involvement of the Church, though, especially if he was going to go after them. That wasn’t something he could do without club backing, and Chiz had a feeling he was going to need some club resources.
Chapter Twenty-One
The day had dawned somber and overcast. It was chilly, and Andy wasn’t convinced that it wouldn’t rain. It didn’t matter. The weather more than matched her mood. She finished dressing in a black pants suit, and opted for black ballet flats in place of her usual heels. It was Emma’s burial service, and there would be walking over grass involved. Andy did not want to make the day any more difficult, for anyone concerned, than she knew it was already likely to be.
She knew that Shane would be attending, too. Jackie wanted to, but there was no way she was getting out of the hospital anytime soon. The fracture in one of the vertebra in her back was a minor injury by comparison. Thanks to the loss of her lower left leg, she wasn’t going to be up and about all that soon. Her spine would be healed by the time she was ready to start physical therapy, but that would not be happening in Alabama. Jackie’s sister had arrived from Utah, and had made arrangements for Jackie to be moved back to her home state. Andy wasn’t sure what had been said, or by whom, but Jackie’s sister was also blocking Andy and Shane from visiting their friend and colleague. Jackie, still coming to terms with the loss of her limb, as well as the trauma of being in the middle of the blast, was in no fit state to put up any argument.
The remains of the people killed in the explosion had been released by the police department relatively quickly. Andy suspected that it was because there wasn’t a great deal to release. Andy wasn’t going to attempt to attend the services for the clients that had been killed, that would be adding insult to injury to their families, but she wanted to attend the services for her staff. Emma’s was the first of those.
It had been almost two weeks since the explosion. Chiz’s friend Shark had returned home to his pregnant wife. Meeting the massive man had been… interesting. Andy had felt a little like a bug under a microscope, and Chiz had seemed anxious at first, too. But Shark had seemed amused and intrigued by her in equal measure. Andy’s impression of the meeting, which had taken place at the same bar in which she’d met Chiz, was very much of being introduced to family, rather than just a friend. She’d also had the bizarre, or she thought so anyway, notion that maybe she was the first person that Chiz had done formal introductions for.
Chiz had been living
with her since the day he’d arrived. Apart from the snoring, that wasn’t working out too badly. He wasn’t a slob, which she’d kind of known anyway, but it was reassuring to know that his neatnik habits hadn’t been confined to his motel room.
His presence had had its uses, too.
Andy had wanted nothing more than for her world to go back to normal, to be able to get on with her life as if the whole damn thing hadn’t happened. But that had not been possible, in any way, shape, or form. Not only did she now have a live-in lover, she had no business to go to each day. There were only so many hours that she could spend in her tiny house, and the gym, her second residence, had been out of the question, thanks to the stitches in her arms. Consequently, she and Chiz had taken some extensive motorcycle tours of the state.
Breath on the Wind Page 22
