UNBREAKABLE: The Kings of Retribution MC

by Daniels, Crystal

  No sooner does my ass hit the chair behind my desk when Reid and Logan come striding in. "Prez," they both acknowledge with a nod before taking a seat in front of me. "You got anything for me this morning?" I ask looking at Reid.

  With a grim expression, he shakes his head. "Sorry Prez, still can't find shit. Whoever Grace had help her disappear did a damn good job."

  Taking my ball cap off my head, I toss it on my desk and run my palm down my tired face and through my beard. Fuck.

  "I know we've already been through Grace's apartment, but maybe we should go back and take another look around. See if she left anything behind. Something we may have missed that would give us a clue." Logan chimes in.

  "Yeah, maybe you're right. Can't hurt to take another look around. You two feel like ridin' over there with me? Quinn and Austin can cover the garage today."

  "You got it, Prez," they both say standing from their seats, and the three of us walk back through the clubhouse and out to our bikes.

  After parking our bikes in front of the bakery, I walk around to the side of the building and make my way up the stairs that lead to Grace's apartment with Logan and Reid trailing behind. After we discovered Grace had left, I had Reid change the locks on the door since I did not have a key and I wanted to be able to gain access any time I wanted. Fishing the key out of my pocket, I unlock the door and the three of us walk inside. We don't make it but a few steps in the apartment when a man rounds the corner of the bathroom with his gun drawn and pointed straight at me. It only takes my brothers and me three point two seconds to pull our own pieces.

  The four of us engage in an intense stare off for several seconds before I see something flash over the motherfucker's face. Something almost like recognition and even though he keeps his weapon trained on me, I notice his shoulders lose some of its tension.

  "You mind telling me who the fuck you are and why the hell you're in this apartment?" I square off. Not looking the least bit intimidated at three bikers pointing their guns at him, the man answers my question.

  "I'm Detective Finn O'Rourke. And I could ask you the same thing Jake Delane, but I already know the answer to that question."

  At the mention of my name coming out of his mouth, my nostrils flare, and I grit my teeth. Why the fuck would a detective be in Grace's apartment and why would he make it his business to know who I am…unless he's investigation something that has to do with Grace, and like every other pig, they assume the local MC is responsible.

  "You can wipe that look off your face Mr. Delane. I'm not here for you or your club," he says lowering his weapon and placing it back in its holster. "I've put my weapon away, and I would appreciate if you, Mr. Kane and Mr. Carter would do the same. As I said, I'm not here for you."

  Knowing my brothers won't take orders from anyone in this room except me, I look over my shoulder and give Logan and Reid the signal to put their piece away. Afterward, I turn my attention back to the detective. "If you're not here for my club or me, you mind telling me why you are here and in Grace's apartment?"

  Walking over to the small kitchenette, O'Rourke casually leans against the counter and crosses his arms over his chest. I take a moment to size him up. The man is about 6ft tall and has reddish-brown hair. He also looks to be in decent shape. Every move he makes is skillful and with purpose. I'd say he's some sort of fighter or trainer. He looks almost relaxed but I can tell by his body language he's acutely aware of his surroundings and is ready for anything. After a moment O'Rourke finally speaks.

  "Let me ask you Mr. Delane, who is Grace to you?" Standing taller and without hesitation, I answer his question, "Grace is mine."

  I'd be lying if I said the smile that just came across the detective's face didn't confuse me. What the hell is he playing at?

  "I thought as much," he says.

  "Are we going to quit with all this cryptic bullshit and get down to some fuckin' answers," Logan pipes in from behind me.

  "Fair enough" O'Rourke says blowing out a breath. "Grace is a friend of mine. She is someone I have been helping the past few years, and she also is someone I care about very much." At the growl that escapes me, O'Rourke is quick to stress his words. "Grace is strictly a friend. She's more like a sister, I assure you." Studying the sincerity of his words for a moment, I gesture for him to continue while I fight to reign in my temper. "Anyway, I will not give you the details of mine and Grace's relationship because I feel that is her story to tell. What I can tell you is Grace moving to Polson was my doing. I chose this town on purpose and one of those purposes being your club. Grace had some shit happen to her, and she needed a place to lay low and a place where I felt she would be protected. I know about your club Mr. Delane, and though you and the Kings are sometimes into some shady shit, I also know that you all go to great lengths to protect your community. Nothing goes on in Polson without you knowing about it, and there are not too many people who would go head to head with the Kings."

  "So, let me get this straight," Reid steps forward and interjects. "Grace whom we already know is not likely her real name and I am going to assume is also your doing because she was in danger and needed a place to hide. You set her up in Polson and based on the club's reputation you felt like here was the safest place for her?"

  "Yes," O'Rourke answers. "My gut told me without a doubt she would be safe in Polson. And my gut has never steered me wrong."

  Fuck. I'm finding it hard not to like the son of a bitch. I stay silent for a minute as I let his words sink in. Then I ask my next question. "You know where Grace is, don't ya?"

  Nodding his head, O'Rourke answers, "Yeah, I know where she is, and I'm sorry, but I can't tell you. Grace doesn't trust easily, and I won't do anything to break the trust she has in me. What I can tell you is she's safe, and I am doing everything I can to convince her to come back. I still believe Polson is the safest place for her. I am doing everything within my power to eliminate the threat against her, but that shit is not going well. I need more time. She has insisted she won't be returning to Polson. I came back here today to make sure she didn't leave anything. She said she was in a hurry to leave but did do a proper sweep of the place. She knows not to leave any evidence behind. I came anyway just to be sure. I'm assuming that's what you all were coming here for. I'm sorry to say you wouldn't have found anything. I have taught her well. She is very good at covering her tracks.

  "Did whoever is after Grace find her? Is that why she left?" I ask.

  "No. Grace got spooked, and that is why she left. I think you already know that though don't you, Mr. Delane?"

  I don't answer because it was more of a statement than a question. Shoving off from his perch on the counter the detective makes his way to the door. "Grace is a very strong-willed woman and one thing I've come to learn about her over the years is she sometimes needs a little push." When he opens the door, he pauses and regards us one last time.

  "You know, I just came from this little place called J's Diner in North Dakota. They make the best pancakes I've ever had. You should check it out sometime."

  With those parting words, O'Rourke walks out of the apartment. "I'll be damned," Logan hisses. "Did that motherfucker just tell you where your woman is?"

  At Logan's question, I cut my eyes to Reid, and I don't have to say a word.

  "On it, Prez."

  Roughly an hour later we are back at the clubhouse and Reid has all I need to know. Now I am holding emergency church. Slamming the gavel down, I have the floor and my brothers’ attention. "I called this meeting because I am going to be out of town. I leave first thing in the mornin', and I don't know how long I'll be gone. A couple of days at best. Logan will be in charge while I'm away. If any of you has shit that needs handling you bring it to him. Are there any questions?" I peer around the table at all my men, letting my gaze stop when it lands on Quinn and his raised hand. Fuckin' Quinn. Blowing out an exasperated breath and narrowing my hard eyes at the dip shit in question, I ask. "What is it, man? And if you plan on l
etting something smart come out of your mouth, then think twice before you do because I'll put a bullet in your ass and you won't be able to sit down for a month."

  "Damn Prez, no need to get all snippy. I was just going to ask where you were going."

  "I'm going to get my woman and bring her home," I announce. And with those words, I slam the gavel down, and there is a chorus of "hell yeahs" filling the room.

  "If you run into any trouble and need back up, you give us a call Prez. We'll have your back." This is coming from Gabriel, and I acknowledge him with a chin lift.

  "Appreciate it, brother." I bring my attention to Quinn.

  "My pops needs some yard work done out at his place tomorrow, Quinn. You get the pleasure of taking care of that chore for me." I say with a smirk.

  "Oh, come on now, Prez. You know your dad hates me. He's always ridin' my ass and giving me a hard time. Can't one of the other brothers go?" he whines like a five-year-old.

  He's not wrong, my pops loves fucking with Quinn, but what my brother doesn't know is my father is rather fond of him, he just likes fuckin' with him.

  "Damn," Quinn grumbles. "Your mom better have something good to eat. Her cookin' alone is worth putting up with your old man."

  I shake my head and chuckle. Quinn in many ways is still the same little kid who followed Logan and Reid home from school one day. Word is they fended off a bully for him, and they were never able to shake him since. I'll never forget the gleam I saw in the kid's eyes the first time he hung around the clubhouse. It was the same look I've seen in the eyes of every one of my brothers. The look of belonging. Shaking myself from the past, I take one final look around the table at the men I call my family. I give them all one last nod before walking out the door and towards my future.

  It's 5:00 am the next morning, and I've already been on the road for an hour. After church yesterday, I immediately came home to pack and hopefully get a few hours of sleep before making the ten-hour drive to Crosby, North Dakota. It took Reid all of five minutes yesterday to pin down Grace's location after O'Rourke in a roundabout way ratted her out. He also found out that Detective O'Rourke is from Chicago. He's lived there his whole life. It also leads me to believe that is where Grace is from, or at least where she was living before moving to Polson. So now Reid is using that little bit of information to see what else he can dig up on Grace and her past. I respect the man because he has a sense of loyalty to Grace and because he wants to keep her safe, but I could also tell he wanted her back in Polson. He was right when he said it was the best place for her. There is no safer place for her than with me. And she will be with me, in my house and in my bed. I dare any motherfucker who comes into my town and thinks they can harm my Little Bird. Just thinking about the shit show at hand has me gripping the handle bars of my bike so hard my knuckles turn white. So, my first step is to go and claim my woman. Once we are back home and I've shown Grace what it is to be mine, I then will stop at nothing to find the bastard who is after her and, once I do, I will enjoy every second of torture he has coming his way before I end his life with a bullet between his eyes.

  4

  Grace

  I keep playing Finn's words over and over again in my head. To the point, it's made it hard to focus. Not even meditation has helped. It's nagging at me. With all my heart I want to go back to Polson. I want so much for the town and the people in it to become our permanent little slice of heaven. But, my head is telling me no. Why risk it. Staying in one place for too long has messed with my thinking. Disrupted what I think is best to stay one step or more in front of my husband.

  Then there's Jake. President of the local motorcycle club - The Kings of Retribution. Jake is a large man. Not only in size but in presence. At six feet three inches he fills any space he's in. He carries himself in a way that demands attention without speaking a single word. It's captivating. Jake is in his forties but looking at his body; you wouldn’t think it. Staying physically fit is important to him. I think it stems from his years in the military. His short dark hair has a bit of gray dusting right at his temples and tapers towards the back, and his striking blue eyes pierce my soul whenever he looks at me. I knew better. Everything about him should have told me to steer clear of him, but instead, everything about him appealed to all my senses. I put up a fight-tried to reinforce the wall I placed between us. Somehow, he always found a way to slip past all my defenses. He looked at me with knowing. I felt like he saw the real me underneath. He could see Anna.

  I'm quiet and soft-spoken. I've never been the type to draw attention to myself. I don’t wear flashy clothes or makeup, I'm understated, and that’s alright with me. Which is why I couldn’t understand what Jake saw in me. A plain jane, tiny redhead with way too many freckles.

  When Finn told me about his plan for setting me up in Polson, I wasn’t too sure. It was further away from Buffalo, South Dakota than I wanted to be. It meant longer drives and possibly less often. That alone made me sick to my stomach. Finn assured me that this move might end up being my last and he was so confident in his statement he even paid the rent for a whole year on a building that was set up with everything I would need to open a bakery of my own. It meant I could start truly building a future. Even hope to settle down for good. I let myself think it was possible. For a couple of years, as hard as it was, I made it all work.

  That being said I don’t trust men. I wanted to believe Jake. He isn’t a bad guy. Maybe in the eyes of the law, he may have done some bad things, but I don’t see that when I look at him. I know everything he does is to protect the ones he loves and cares for. The thing is I trusted my heart once before, and it betrayed me. I let it blindly lead me in the direction of heartache, and fear. Loving a man again put me at risk. I won't allow that to happen again no matter how much I want to.

  I open my eyes, turning my head I stare into the flicker of the candle sitting on the corner edge of the bathtub. Today was another long day on my feet. I did however finally get the opportunity to get back in the kitchen before opening this morning and baked a few things. Janet loved them so much she set them out for the customers and gave me half the earnings in sales. It felt good to be in the kitchen doing what I love.

  I've been baking since I was little. My mom owned a bakery called The Sugar Shop in Chicago. Her mother and father owned the business then passed it down to her. My grandparents are Irish immigrants. My parents were born here in the United States as was I. They made a good life for themselves. I grew up in a strong family and knew what I wanted to be when I grew up. Just like my mom and my nana before her. Strong, hard-working women. My father died when I was twenty after being mugged and attacked one-night walking home from the general store down the road from where we lived. One of the officers showed up on our doorstep that night to tell my mother and me what had happened. Not having our own transportation, he drove us to the hospital in his patrol car. Daddy held on long enough to see the loves of his life because he never made it through surgery. A few months before we lost my dad I met Ronan. At the time I still lived with my parents. I can't say it was love at first sight. Truth be told, he was far different than the guys I was attracted to. A bit on the shorter side but still much taller than myself. He wasn't unfit, I would say he had a runner's body; very slim and toned. His hair a dark shade of brown, and brown eyes.

  Before I knew it, one meeting with Ronan De Burca lead to another. I fell head over heels in love with him. My mom and dad, however, didn’t like him so much. You see, Ronan's family is well known. Depending on who you talk to his family members are good pillars of the community, and to others they say there is more than meets the eye. My parents told me time and time again that no good has come from their bloodline. They said the De Burca family built their wealth and empire on the backs and from the blood of others. When I look back, she was right. They were all right.

  The fact I didn't heed my family and friends warnings eats at me every day. He doted on me; always showed up with flowers in his hand and paid f
or every date. He took me out and introduced me to his parents as the love of his life. I had stars in my eyes when I looked at Ronan.

  I wanted to make him happy. I placed his happiness above my own. If he didn’t like my hair down, I would wear it up. If he didn’t like the dress I wore, I changed it. All to please him. I didn’t recognize it as control at the time until it was too late. We got married a year later a few months after I turned twenty-one. I wanted my mom to be the one to give me away, but she wasn’t supportive of my choice to marry a man she didn’t approve of. It broke my heart. I wanted her to love and accept him, but I didn’t let her opinion of him affect mine. Ronan would always assure me my mom was only having a hard time letting go of her only child. So, I believed him. Believing in him--in us was the worst mistake I have ever made in my life, and I've been spending the last two years running from him to save ours.

  * * *

  Shit. I overslept. Blinking again, I rub my eyes to make sure I read the clock on my phone right. I should have been at the diner almost an hour ago. I look over at the alarm clock sitting on my nightstand to find it flashing. Dammit. The storm that rolled through last night must have knocked the power out momentarily while I was asleep. I throw the blanket off and jump out of bed. Rushing I toss some clothes on and undo the braid from my hair, which is the only way with all these curls I won't wake up to a matted mess. Snatching my car keys from the kitchen counter I grab my things and head to the door. Yesterday while at work the guy from the mechanic shop came by. It turns out my battery cables came loose and needed replacing. He said it was a simple fix and the check engine light was on due to an O2 sensor, which he also replaced. Lucky for me I had enough to pay him for his time. Thanks to Finn. After I told him about my car, he took some money from his wallet and insisted I use it to make sure my car got fixed. He's done so much for me. I don’t know how I can ever repay him and it's not enough to say thank you.