by K. J. Dahlen
“Get onto him then,” Mountain urged.
Georgia texted him and waited impatiently for Jason to get back to her. Twenty minutes later, his text finally came through. She went over to Mountain and held out her phone.
‘Reapers have taken over Jarrett. Came in early this morning. Killed Mike Bowmen and shot Dwayne. Locked Jill and CeCe in the jail. Road blocked all roads in and out of town. Holding everyone in the school. They blew up the cell tower. I was getting gas when it happened and was able to get out before they knew I was there.’
Mountain read the message aloud and shook his head. “Holy fuckin hell.”
“Well okay…” Hawk drawled out. “At least we know what they are doing.” He glared at Mountain. “How the hell do they expect to get away with this shit?”
Mountain shrugged. “I have no fuckin idea.”
“Who are Mike Bowmen and Dwayne?” he looked over at Georgia.
“Mike is the Sheriff for our county and Dwayne is his deputy. Jill and CeCe work in the police office.”
‘What the hell is going on here Georgia? Do you know?’ Jason texted her.
“Yeah I know.” She texted back. “Reapers are causing a distraction for some very bad guys. We need eyes on Jarrett. Can you help us?”
‘Yeah I’ll help, you know you can count on me.’
‘Please be careful,’ she wrote back. ‘If they catch you, they will kill you. Hope no one plays the hero. Is my dad ok?’
‘Haven’t seen him but Lyle is looking for you. He wants you pretty bad, what did you do now?’
‘They kidnapped me last night but I got away. Lyle thought he could make me the club bitch. That wasn’t happening.’
‘Yeah, he’s just as stupid as ever.’
A few minutes later, he texted again, ‘I’ll keep my eyes open and try not to get caught. Catch you later. Stay safe.’
“Jason said he would keep an eye on the town for us,” Georgia told them.
“Did he say anything about anyone else in the town?” Calico asked. “My parents and younger brother live there.”
Georgia shook her head. “He said everyone else was herded into the elementary school.”
“Is this going to be a problem?” Mountain asked.
Calico and Reaper both nodded. “It could be. Dad isn’t exactly known to mind his own business. He might resist.” Calico looked troubled.
“He might step in and get himself shot,” Reaper hinted.
Stone came back about the same time. “I got a hold of Shay. He was very interested to know about the Bleu Vipers and what they were planning on doing here. He’s sending in a squad of Seals to take care of the problem in the Gulf waters.”
“They aren’t the only problem,” Mountain told him. “The Reapers have taken the town of Jarrett hostage.”
“What the fuck?” Stone swore.
Mountain nodded. “Yeah, they murdered the law officers and blew up the cell tower. They’re holding everyone who lives there in the school house and they are looking for her.” He pointed at Georgia.
Stone turned his head and stared at the girl for a moment. “Just who the hell are you anyway?”
Georgia shrugged. “I’m no body special.”
“Why do I doubt that very much?” Stone looked skeptical.
“Well, Lyle Boyd may or may not have found out that I killed his brother three years ago at Shadow Lake.” Georgia glanced around, seeing varying stunned expressions on their faces.
“You killed a man?” Stone didn’t know whether he could believe her or not.
Mountain laughed at the question. “You can bet your ass she killed him. The snake had it coming and she took the shot.”
“Why?” he asked.
“Because that vermin deserved to die for what he did to my mother and other women over the years.” Georgia growled.
“He got two bullets that day,” Mountain told the men. “One bullet, he got right between his nuts and the other one right between his eyes. It was a sight gentlemen.”
Gage hissed and his hand curled around his front.
Caine shook his head while Dewey and Stone grinned. Caine turned to her and asked, “What is it you do for a living anyway?”
Georgia grinned. “I’m a gunsmith. I build and repair guns of all types. Any weapon, actually.”
Caine’s brows shot up. Of all the things, he expected her to say—that was not one of them.
Mountain snorted. “She’s also the best damn shot in the entire state. Not only does she build the best guns but she can shoot them too. She’s a crack shot.”
“That’s not quite what I was expecting to hear,” Caine admitted.
“Why?” she asked. “Why can’t a woman build and shoot guns?”
Caine shrugged. “I never said you couldn’t. I just never thought about it as a profession before I guess.”
Georgia nodded. “It is a dying art but it’s still around. I do very well for myself. I can even blacksmith my own parts.”
“Girl can make some seriously sweet weapons,” Mountain informed them. He glanced over at Georgia. “How did they find out about Greg?”
Georgia shrugged. “Probably through Joey Patterson. He’s been trying to get an invite to the club but they kept telling him no. He’s a blowhard and the Reapers don’t think too much of him. It wasn’t any secret around town that Joey was trying to patch in. We all tried to warn him off but he thought they were a cool group. As Jason’s younger brother, he might have heard the stories about what happened that day. No one would have told him outright. He must have figured this was his way into the club.”
“This little prick would turn you over just to get into a club?” Gage asked.
Georgia shrugged. “I think I pissed him off when I told him what I thought of his plan to get into the club.”
“Why is that?” Gage looked curious.
Georgia blushed. “Joey was being an ass, pushing people around, trying to act like a big shot tough guy and I called him on it. It didn’t help that half the town was there to witness his humiliation or the fact that a girl like me could take his dumb ass down. By the time he picked himself up off the ground for the third time, everyone standing there was laughing at him.”
“What exactly did you do to him?” Mountain asked as he crossed his very large arms over his barrel like chest.
“It was a Sunday morning and everyone was going to the diner for the breakfast buffet. Joey pushed Marybeth out of line, so he could get there first. I called him a dickhead and he got mad at me. He swung his fist at my head and I reacted. I knocked him on his ass by kicking his feet out from under him. He came at me again and I knocked him on his ass a second time. Then he thought he could rush me and I just moved out of the way. He hit the building and hit the ground for the third time. By this time, he had everyone’s attention and when he noticed the people were laughing at him, he didn’t take it well.” She ended her story by shrugging her shoulders. “He screamed a threat at me then got on his bike and left town. That was two weeks ago now. I thought it was forgotten but apparently not.”
“Can you trust this Jason guy? Isn’t he the one you’ve been texting?” Caine asked. “I don’t know how far I would trust him if his brother is trying to get into an outlaw gang.”
Georgia nodded. “Jason is a great friend and I would trust him with my life but Joey is a little piss ant trouble maker. He probably made himself out to be more important than he is. He always was a little shit that way.”
“Doesn’t he realize Lyle will probably kill him to save his own ass if and when the time comes?” Caine asked. “Hell, he probably will kill him just for the fun of it before this is over.”
Georgia shrugged. “Joey only thinks of Joey. He probably thought Lyle would give him what he wanted once he told him about who shot his brother. Lyle has made no bones about what he wants. He wants the name of the person who shot Greg. Hell, he even offered a reward. Joey thinks that he will somehow gain everything without actually worki
ng for it. He expects life to treat him differently than it does everyone else. He thinks he’s entitled to the good life and that everyone should just give it to him. He’s nothing more than a cocky pisshead with nothing but shit to offer anyone.”
“He must be some kind of man if he can turn over a friend.” Gage scoffed.
“He thinks he’ll gain status as a Reaper,” Georgia stated. “He thinks everyone will finally look up to him if he’s got the vest on. He has no idea what that reality is really like.”
“Well, darling’,” Mountain drawled. “I think he’s about to find out the hard way that reality is seldom what we want it to be.”
Chapter Six
Earlier that day…
The sun was barely up, peeking over the eastern horizon when they rode into town as a group. Twenty five hard men on their motorcycles. They were loud but that was the point. They wanted to be noticed. To draw everyone’s attention. Two men broke off from the group and one went one way while the other took the other way. Two more men broke off and headed for the riverfront.
People opened their doors to see what was going on and to view the sight of the Reapers’ ride into town. More than most wore a look of stunned fear, wondering what the outlaws were doing there. They didn’t have to wonder long. Lyle and three others broke off and drove over to the police station. The others kept to the streets revving their engines while yelling and screaming at everyone. On the steps of the police station stood Mike Bowmen, Sheriff for the towns of Jarrett and Cameron. His deputy Dwayne stood next to him.
When Lyle drove up, without pause, he pulled his weapon and fired twice. Mike never even got the chance to pull his weapon as the first bullet struck him in the chest, and he dropped to the steps immediately. Dwayne took the second bullet in his side. Blood spilled freely as he dropped to his knees. The other three men with Lyle got off their bikes and began running up the few steps to the front door. Two of them grabbed Dwayne under the arms and dragged him inside the building. Screams were heard from inside and then more gunshots were heard. The three men came rushing out and when they got back on their bikes, all four of the men rode off.
Mike Bowmen’s body still laid on the cement steps, the pool of blood growing bigger all around him.
People began screaming when they heard the gunshots and Lyle threw his head back laughing hysterically. He calmly holstered his weapon and revving his engine, he sped away.
His men rode randomly around the square yelling at the people gathering there. They seemed to be herding everyone to the parking lot. It wasn’t really a town square but the parking lot of the elementary school.
Lyle came to a stop in front of the group. He turned off his engine and glared at the people. Most of the people gathered there weren’t even dressed yet and they all looked worried if not downright scared to death.
“Where is she?” Lyle called out.
“Where is who?” Bill Wymen asked. Bill was the mayor of Jarrett. He took a single step away from the group but didn’t separate himself too far. “Who is it you’re looking for?”
“Georgia Lacey. I’m looking for Georgia Lacey.” Lyle growled.
Bill looked around the group standing with him but no one seemed to know where Georgia was. “No one here has seen her.”
Lyle narrowed his eyes and glared at the man standing there. “I don’t fucking believe you. I know she came back here. Where else would the little bitch go but here?”
Lyle looked around at his men and gave them a command, “Round the rest of them up. I want everyone living here in the square in fifteen minutes.”
His men broke away yelling at the people to gather in the square.
Twenty minutes later, the last of the 304 people living in the city took their place in the parking lot of the elementary school. The fear running through the crowd seemed like almost a living thing. Children were crying and parents were trying to hush them. Nobody knew what was going on and that scared them.
Lyle looked over the small town’s people. “Where is Red Lacey?” he called out.
One man began to move through the crowd. When he got to the front of them, he glared at Lyle. “What the hell do you want, scum?” Red demanded.
“Watch yourself old man.” Lyle sneered. “You’re on thin ground here.” He took a few minutes to really study the other man. “What’s this? You almost look sober this morning old man. How the fuck did that happen? The last time I saw you, you were sleeping on the bar top at the Ghost bar.”
“Never mind about me, what is this all about?” Red asked. “Why have you taken over the town and why did you shoot the Sheriff? What did he ever do to you that would warrant a bullet? Why would you do that?”
“I want your daughter, old man,” Lyle told him ignoring all the questions. “I want the bitch who shot my brother. I’ve been looking for the one who pulled the trigger for three years now and I finally heard who it was. I finally know your fucking brat shot him. I want her to admit she pulled the trigger and then I’m gonna kill her.”
“What makes you think it was my daughter?’ Red asked.
“Someone who was there told me it was her.” Lyle sneered. “He told me she ambushed my brother. She took the cowards’ way out and she shot him from the shadows. She didn’t even face him when she killed him.”
“That doesn’t sound like my Georgia.” Red frowned. “She isn’t a coward, she never would have taken a shot like that.”
“Well, old man, she did.” Lyle snarled. “She shot my brother twice and I want my revenge. I made a vow the day I buried him and now, I’ll have justice for what she did to my family.”
“What about what you’ve done?” Red demanded looking around.
Lyle smiled. “What have I done, old man?”
“You shot two men already.” Red pointed out. “Over the years, you and your thugs have done so much more. Who holds you accountable?”
Lyle laughed. “No one holds me accountable old man. I am the law here now. I can do whatever the hell I want here and there’s no one to stop me. You will live or die by my command.”
“You’re a damn monster Lyle Boyd.” Red shook his head. “You aren’t God.”
“Where is your daughter?” Lyle snarled ignoring the other man’s statement.
“I hope to heaven she’s long gone,” Red told him. “You took my wife but you won’t get my Georgia.”
Suddenly, there was a loud explosion and dust filled the air. Everyone ducked and some of the people began screaming and children cried out. Lyle just stared at the group sneering.
When the dust settled Red turned and glared at him. “What the hell was that?”
Lyle smiled or rather his lips curled upward. His eyes remained dead. “That was the cell tower. We have the roads coming into town and going out of town blocked off, along with the river docks. This town belongs to me now and unless you want more bodies to bury, you will tell me where your daughter is!” he yelled the last out. He searched the eyes of the people in front of him but he could see no one standing there knew where Georgia was.
Lyle’s eyes narrowed. His frustration was growing and he wasn’t feeling like the town’s people feared him enough. He needed to feel their fear…no, he wanted their terror to be complete. He felt powerful and he wanted total control over the town and the people who lived there. He knew eventually, the Marshals or County would have to be brought in, but not yet. He was being paid a lot of money to distract the authorities, money he had yet to earn but with this taking over the town, he felt he was. Now all he had to do was keep his hold on the town for the next six days while his men searched for Georgia. He now needed to up the stakes and bring back the fear.
Lyle took his gun out of the holster and pointed it just above the head of the people. Firing off three shots most of the people crouched down, crying and screaming trying to get out of the line of fire. Only one man didn’t, only one man stood his ground. Red Lacey wouldn’t bow to him.
Lyle dropped the aim of his weapo
n and sneered. Then without blinking, he fired his weapon one more time. The bullet hit its mark. Dead center. Red never even blinked as the red stain widened on his belly. His eyes stared at Lyle as his legs weakened and he fell to his knees. When he fell face down in the dirt, Lyle looked around the group. He was satisfied to finally see the fear he craved on their faces. He turned to face the downed man. “Oh, don’t worry old man, death won’t come for you too soon. I want your brat to witness your final moments in this life. It will take a while for the bullet to kill you. Belly shots usually do. I’m hoping long enough to get your daughter’s head in my crosshairs.”
The crowd went silent, the echoes of children crying the only sound.
Then Lyle pointed his weapon at the Mayor. “OK, Bill, you’re next. Where is Georgia Lacey?”
Sweat poured off Bill’s face and he stammered, “I-I don’t know. She isn’t here and I have no idea where she might be.”
“I saw her the night before last,” a woman called out. “She was looking for her dad. I don’t know if she found him or not though.” She stood there watching Lyle. She, like the others were afraid.
Lyle grinned and holstered his weapon. “She found him and later, we found her.”
“If you found her once, why are you looking for her now?” Bill asked.
Lyle snapped his head toward the other man and snarled. “I’m looking for her because she managed to escape, old man. She ran away before I could get my revenge, so now I want her back.” He looked over at his men and nodded toward the school behind them. “Put them all in there and lock them in. I don’t want anyone to get out of town and warn the cops.”
“But I thought we wanted the cops to know about us?” one of his men suggested.
“We do, but I have things to get done first.” Lyle snarled. “We need to find that bitch Georgia again. I want her to pay for what she did to my brother.” His eyes narrowed. “If anyone gives you any problems, shoot them.”
Lyle watched as his men herded the towns’ people into the elementary school. He felt someone come up next to him and when he glanced over his shoulder, he frowned.
