Jaxson (Black Devils MC Book 1)

by K. J. Dahlen

  “That’s tough isn’t it?” Cassie frowned. “You know something? I’ve met some other guys like that. Sometimes, being able to talk to someone in the same boat helps. Does Joey need a job? I can always use the help. Redemption House is nearly done but we have a ton of work to do before it opens. I also have several guys there, Joey could talk to. They wouldn’t judge him, they might even help him.”

  Maggie had tears in her eyes. “All anyone wants to do with Joey is push pills on him and he doesn’t need that. He just needs somebody who understands where he’s been. He just needs to know that what he was made to do in the line of duty was out of his control.”

  “Please tell Joey to stop by Redemption House and talk to Amos or Gus. If he needs a place to stay, some of the rooms are ready.”

  “Can I take him there? Maybe have a look around?”

  “Sure, we’ll be open in another month, thanks to him.” Cassie nodded her head at Deke. “He sent most of his crew to help with the remodeling.” She laid her hand over Maggie’s. “I really hope Joey will find his way in this. I know Amos and Gus and some of the others still have nightmares about what they did, but Amos told me once, talking about it does help somewhat to keep the demons away. He said just being around other guys that have gone through the same thing as he did, helps ease the situation. Maybe that would help Joey too.”

  “Thanks, I’ll make sure he gets there.” Maggie patted the bed. “I am out of here. I need to go home. I can hear my pillow calling me.”

  “Thanks for stopping by.” Cassie watched as Maggie left then turned her head to watch Deke. When she saw his eyes were open, she smiled.

  Deke got up and came over to the bed. The mattress dipped when he sat down next to her. Leaning forward, his lips pressed on hers. When she gasped, he pushed his tongue into her mouth. When he lifted his body away from hers, both were breathless.

  “Wow,” Cassie whispered.

  “Yeah.” Deke groaned. “I want you so bad right now.”

  “Me too,” she whispered back as she slowly licked her suddenly dry lips.

  Deke kissed her again. He broke off the kiss suddenly and leaned back. “If we don’t stop right now, I’ll overlook the fact that you were shot yesterday.”

  “Yeah, about that,” Cassie frowned at him. “Maggie just left. She said you asked her to stop in and check on me.”

  “I did,” Deke admitted. “I didn’t want you to have to go back to the hospital. She’s a nurse.”

  “Who the hell is Morris?”

  Deke chuckled. “Morris is our tech guy, brilliant mind and he prefers to go by Zipper.”

  Cassie nodded then plucked at the blanket. They had something to talk about and she didn’t know how to get the conversation started. “So…I need to know something.”

  “What would that be?”

  “How do you feel about the baby?” she swallowed hard.

  Deke thought about her question for a moment before he answered her, “I love the idea of you having my baby. I never thought about it much before now. I’ve always been very careful about protection but with you, I didn’t really give it a thought.” He sat back and stared at her. “How do you feel about it?”

  Cassie smiled sadly, then looked away. “I’m a little bit afraid, not of the baby or how I feel about you but I’ve never had anything in my life before that belonged to me. Janelle made sure of that. Even the clothes I wore belonged to somebody else first.” She paused then turned to him again. “I think I’d like us to be a family. I’ve missed that so much. I can’t hardly remember my mother anymore but I do remember she made me feel safe. When she held me in her arms, I knew nothing could touch me, or hurt me. I want that for our baby.”

  Deke leaned close to her. “And I want that for you. I want you to feel safe around me and I want to build that for our kids.”

  “Kids?” Cassie questioned.

  “Yeah, I want more than one and less than a dozen.” He grinned at the astonished look on her face. “I want lots of sons and daughters and I want you as their mother.”

  Cassie’s mouth popped open in shock.

  Deke chuckled and kissed her open mouth.

  ~* * * *~

  When Lance Sullivan reached his office in Boston, his partner Victor Shroder looked up from his desk. “Where the hell have you been?”

  “I had to run over to Troy on a case, why?”

  “We have another body,” Victor announced. “And this one was carved up really bad. Whoever this guy is he’s a sick fucker.”

  Lance sat down in his chair hard. He almost didn’t want to know the details. Picking up the file on his desk, he opened it and groaned. The first thing he saw was a young woman’s body covered in blood. He glanced up at his partner and asked, “Is it the usual twenty three stab wounds?”

  Victor sat back and nodded. “Yup, twenty three and he made a mess out of her back. This fucker really likes the pain. The coroner said all the wounds were before he ended her life.”

  Lance began flipping through the photos when something caught his eye. The killer had carved the word whore on her back. He’d seen that before in the same disgusting way. He lifted his eyes to Victor. “Tell me something, did he carve the same word on all their backs?”

  Victor threw his pen down on the desk and reached for the eight files sitting on the corner of his desk. Opening them, he saw where Lance’s question was going. “It seems so, why?”

  “Because I’ve seen this before.”

  “Yeah, every time we open one of these files.”

  “No, I’ve seen this on a living victim.”

  Victor looked stunned as he got up and walked closer. He looked down at the grisly photo in Lance’s hand. “You know someone out there with the word whore carved on her back?”

  Lance nodded.

  “Can we talk to her?” Victor was getting excited. “Maybe with her information we can stop this fuck head?”

  “I have to check something first,” Lance told him as he keyed in his computer. He was looking for something specific. When he got the location of the file he needed, he got up and left the room. He returned a few minutes later, he sat down and opened Robbie Pierce’s murder file. He saw the photos and autopsy reports. Searching the photos, he could see the body of a child. The reports said Robbie was a fourteen year old boy. His body bore the signs of the recent attack but the bullet that took his life had all but destroyed his face. There was no way left to definitely identify who this body belonged too.

  At least not without Cassie and Peaches’ help. If they were right, Robbie Pierce may not be the body in this file. He was going back to Troy in the morning and maybe finally…have some answers.

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  Cassie snuggled into Deke’s heat. She didn’t remember him coming to bed but she was glad he was there with her. The last few weeks of sleeping alone had sucked. She’d missed just being near him. She knew they couldn’t have sex yet, but just being close to him was almost worth being so hot and bothered.

  Deke shifted and wrapped his arm around her pulling her even closer. “Morning beautiful,” he whispered in her ear.

  Cassie tilted her head and smiled. “Good morning.”

  “How are you feeling this morning?”

  “Better now that I have you back.” She kissed his shoulder.

  “Been thinking about something.”

  Cassie closed her eyes and buried her face in his shoulder. She didn’t know if she wanted to hear this or not. “What is that?”

  “We need us a house,” Deke informed her. “The cabins are too small for a growing family and I’d like to build out of the city. There’s a spot on the other side of the clubhouse that would be perfect, all you have to do is tell me what kind of house you want.”

  Cassie popped her head up, her eyes wide and surprised. “You want to build us a house? A real house?”

  Deke nodded. “I don’t plan on letting you go anytime soon. We’
re gonna be a family soon, and this baby will be the first of many, I hope.”

  Cassie leaned up and pressed her lips to his. “A house of our own? I’ve never had a home before, well I did as a kid, but that was so long ago.”

  Deke smiled. It didn’t take much to please her and he hoped she would never change. “I want to give you the world. I just want you to be happy.”

  Cassie tightened her arms around his waist. “I love you,” she whispered into his shoulder.

  She didn’t say the words very loud but when Deke heard them he smiled. “As much as I’d like to stay here all day and cuddle with you, I have to get to work. I’ll be back soon but I have some paperwork that won’t wait.”

  Cassie sighed. “If you must, you must.”

  Deke chuckled. “I must.” He threw back the covers and sat on the edge of the bed. He looked over his shoulder and reminded her, “You stay in bed today. I don’t want to hear anybody tell me you were up and walking around. Maggie said it would be a couple of days yet.”

  “Yes daddy,” she grumbled then thought of something. “You heard what she said yesterday? You were awake the whole time she was here, weren’t you?”

  “Yup, I was.”

  “Why didn’t you let us know?” Cassie asked.

  He turned and leaned toward her. “I meant everything I said. I don’t want to risk losing you. I won’t risk anything happening to you. I’m leaving Gator here today. We have too many people here and if they pester you too much, he’ll kick them out. You’ll feel better in a couple of days.”

  Cassie nodded. “Okay big guy as much as I hate to follow orders, I will behave myself.”

  “You’d better.” Deke stared hard at her. “You and that baby mean too much to me to take any chances.” He finished getting dressed.

  “Hey the quicker you get to work, the quicker you can come home again, so git.” Cassie swatted his behind.

  Deke laughed and left the room.

  Cassie snuggled back down in bed and closed her eyes.

  ~* * * *~

  Deke went out to the main room and was surprised to find Gator there alone. He sat down and poured himself a cup of coffee from the pot sitting on the table. “So, where is your lovely wife this morning?”

  “She’s at home still,” Gator told him sipping his own coffee.

  “That’s unusual.”

  “Yeah, we kept the three kids at our place last night.”

  “Oh?” Deke questioned. “Why is that?”

  “Marnie brought them here to try and find a place that would take all three. They’re a family and they want to stay that way.”

  “And nobody in Boston wants three kids?”

  Gator shrugged. “I guess nobody wants these three. They’re a little rough around the edges for most folks.”

  “And Reva does? Is that it?” Deke knew Reva had a heart of gold and she loved kids. It hurt her that Gator and her never had any. It had just never happened for them.

  “Yeah I guess so.” Gator ran his fingers through his hair. He smiled. “Last night was different, man. Reva and me together, we’re doing just fine, but last night with those kids in the house that was special.”

  Deke grinned. “So, you think having kids around could be a good thing?”

  Gator nodded. “Could be. I might even get used to the idea of having a family around.”

  “Good, I told Cassie I want more than one and less than a dozen.”

  “Holy shit man!” Gator burst out laughing.

  “Yeah and I’m counting on Uncle Gator and Auntie Reva to help out.”

  “Uncle Gator huh? I think I could get used to that.” Gator grinned.

  Deke sat back in his chair and regarded Gator. “I have to run into the club and get some paperwork done this morning. I won’t be away long, but I want you to hang out here. I don’t think there will be any trouble but I don’t want to leave it to chance either.” He shifted a bit. “I thought she’d be safe at Redemption House and she ended up getting shot.”

  “I’ll keep some of the boys here too. We’ll keep her safe.”

  Deke nodded. “Maybe you should keep the gate locked down and a roving patrol too. Something doesn’t feel right. I don’t know what it is but I got a feeling I don’t much care for. It feels like there’s a target painted in the middle of my back.” He sighed. “I know they said Janelle and Flynn were dead but she might have arms reaching out of hell and I’m not losing Cassie again.”

  Just then, the main door opened and Reva came in with the three kids. She smiled at Deke and Gator, then headed for the kitchen.

  Ben and Jack came over to the table and Ben crawled up on Gator’s lap. Gator put his arm around the boy and Ben laid his head on Gator’s chest.

  Deke was suddenly struck at how domesticated the big man looked. He glanced back at the bedroom door where Cassie slept and was thinking about how in a few months’ time, he would be holding his own child.

  Reva and Alaina brought them fresh coffee and Alaina had a plate of sweet rolls. She sat down and the three kids began to eat. Reva chuckled softly at the enthusiasm they displayed. She glanced at Deke.

  Today, she had a twinkle in her eye he hadn’t seen before. “I’m outta here.” Deke got to his feet. Slapping Gator on the shoulder, he leaned close to Reva and gave her a peck on the cheek. “You two keep the home fires burning.”

  “Get outta here, old man,” Gator grumbled.

  Deke laughed all the way to the door. He got on his bike and revved the engine. Glancing over at the gate, he glared at who was on the other side. It was barely eight in the morning and these fuckers show up? He got off his bike and walked over as he frowned at who was standing there. “What the fuck are you doing here?” he growled.

  Lance Sullivan and Victor Shroder stood in his path. Neither one of them moved but Gator showed up out of nowhere and stepped in behind Deke.

  Lance held up his hand. “I’m not here to cause any trouble but I do need to speak to Cassie and Peaches. This has nothing to do with a case against her, but they might be able to help us with something else.”

  “What makes you think she’ll even speak to you?” Deke asked in a skeptical tone.

  “It might be in her best interest to do so,” Lance informed them.

  “That sounds like a threat boss,” Gator replied as he crossed his arms over his wide chest. “What do you think?”

  “If it helps Cassie, let the man speak his peace,” Peaches said from behind them.

  Deke turned his head.

  Peaches and Iceman had joined them all at the gate.

  Deke let out a disgusted sigh as he backed up a step and allowed Lance and Victor inside.

  They all headed to the clubhouse.

  Deacon came in the back door and a few of the brothers joined them.

  Marnie came in behind them and motioned her head a Reva.

  Reva hustled the children into the kitchen.

  Deke, Gator Lance and Victor sat down at the table Deacon, Peaches and Iceman joined them. Everyone else sat nearby.

  Deke stared at Lance Sullivan. “What’s this all about?”

  “Is Cassie here?” Lance asked. “She really should hear this too.”

  Deke glanced at Deacon and nodded. Deacon got up and left, returning a few minutes later carrying Cassie. He placed her on the chair next to Deke.

  She glanced at Lance and the other man. “Why are you here?”

  Lance introduced his partner to the group. “Everyone, this is my partner, Victor Shroder. When I got back to Boston yesterday, he told me there was another young woman murdered in the city. When I saw the photos there was something disturbingly familiar about her injuries.”

  Lance opened his briefcase and pulled out a file. He took a photo out and slid it over to Cassie.

  Cassie studied the man for a moment then looked down at the photo. She gasped and the color drained from her face.

  Deke sat u
p and pulled her to him. He glared over at Lance and growled. “What the fuck are you doing man?”

  Lance tapped the table. “She had to see this. I know it’s horrible but I needed to see her reaction.” He leaned forward and his finger tapped the photo. “This is the eighth young woman we’ve found in the last nine years. Whoever killed her is a very sick individual.” He turned his gaze to Peaches. “Does the number twenty three mean anything to you or Cassie? Cuz that’s how many times he stabs his victims and that’s after he carves the word whore into their backs. He lets them bleed to death before he’s done with them. He shows them no mercy and the evidence proves he watches them until they all die in pain. Then he poses them in his own sick way.”

  Cassie pulled away from Deke and reached out to pick up the photo. She studied it for a moment then passed it on to Peaches. With trembling hands, she pushed the hair away from her forehead. “The last few weeks we lived with Janelle, she upped her punishments with regards to me. I wouldn’t cry when she beat me with the belt and she needed to show me she still had the power over my life. One night after every else was sleeping, she came to get me and dragged me to a special room she had set up. That house had too many secrets. She tied my hands together and then she sat there and let Robbie cut me. They weren’t deep cuts but lord did they bleed. Over time, he cut me twenty three times. He did all this a couple of days before the last beating she gave me. That was when he carved the word whore in my back. A few days later, we left.”

  Everyone was silent for a moment as Peaches got up and leaning over her, gave her a hug. She was weeping but she wasn’t alone.

  Cassie was dry eyed though. She’d cried her tears a long time ago in private. She had learned to mask the pain she felt, she vowed never to let anyone see her cry.

  Iceman got up and led Peaches back to her chair. Wrapping his arm around her, he held her tight while she cried.

  “Where was this secret room?’ Victor asked. “We didn’t find it when we searched the house.”

  Cassie grunted. “You wouldn’t have found it unless you knew where the door was. The door is in the kitchen. There is a cabinet door next to the fridge with a small lock. She always wore the key around her neck. The door opened into a narrow hall. The hall opened up into a special room in the back of the house. The room was sound proof and had padded walls. The windows were small and set high in the walls. Some of the openings are covered by pictures that allowed you see out, but nobody could see or hear you. She told me I could scream all I wanted, but nobody would ever hear it. The air in that room was always stale. The windows didn’t open and there was no heat or air conditioning in there…” Her words trailed off toward the end.