Policy of Truth (Sacred Heart Continuum Series Book 1)

by Scarlett Holloway

  Lace cleared her throat, drawing Vader’s attention to her. “Let’s focus here. I believe the topic of this meeting is about a certain blond-haired female?”

  “Ah yes,” Vader conceded. “We want her back. It’s rather simple really.”

  Lace knew the smile she showed didn’t meet her eyes, already growing impatient. “Since when is pussy so important to the Warriors? Especially one you obviously care so little about? Who was beaten in a parking lot, by one of your brothers, who by the way, wasn’t in a cut.”

  “Maybe she’s useless, but her ol’man wants her back. His hand is getting tired from jerking off every night.”

  “So tired you’ve repeatedly attacked us? Even after we set up this meeting, I still got threatened?” Lace shook her head with a frown. “No, I don’t think so. I wasn’t born yesterday, Vader. What’s she got on you?”

  “Just give her back,” Vader growled.

  “What’s she worth to you?”

  Steel chuckled. “It’s a reasonable question, Vader. You’re saying she’s valuable property, so what’s her price?”

  “Fuck that, man,” Chico barked out, pointing at Lace. “You should’ve kept your fucking nose out of my business.”

  Vader glanced over his shoulder. “I suggest you keep quiet.” Looking back to Lace, he hooked his thumbs in his belt loops. “Two million.”

  “What?” Lace all but choked out the word, followed by laughter. The others were with her on Vader’s comedy skit, the humor of his outlandish amount causing everyone to titter.

  “Two. Million.” Each word slowly enunciated with precision.

  “Damn,” Lace looked around Vader to Chico. “You’re letting this piece of shit beat on two-million-dollar pussy? What are you smoking?”

  Chico smirked. “Fuck you, bitch.”

  Vader’s hand swung up in an arc, stopping short of striking Chico. “I told you to shut the fuck up. Now listen.”

  Lace smiled in contempt. “Looks like you need to keep that dog on a tighter leash, Vader.”

  “Enough of the games,” Vader snarled, stepping toward Lace.

  Her brows shot up, adrenalin shooting through her veins. He’d placed himself in her personal space, able to feel his breath on her chin—and smell it. It was sour and smelled of onions, making her want to gag. She held her ground, her fists closed and down at her sides, lest she forget and decide to stomp a mud hole in his ass.

  “Or what, Vader? Huh?” She taunted him, wanting him to swing at her and start an all-out war.

  An arm wiggled between Vader’s body and her’s, pushing her back a couple of steps. The red was fading from her vision, leaving Steel in her line of sight. His face was a stone-cold mask, emotions unreadable as he placed himself in front of her.

  “How about you give us Chico in trade?”

  Vader’s face registered surprise.

  “The fuck you say! Just hand over the bitch so we can go,” Chico interrupted.

  “We’ll trade the two. I think it’s fair.” Steel shrugged, glancing to Butcher, who nodded in agreement.

  “There’s no way tha─” Vadar’s fist connected with Chico’s face, crumbling him to the ground in a heap.

  Shaking his hand, Vader cleared his throat, his brown gaze stopping on Lace. “Two million. Take it or leave it. You’ve got two days to decide.”

  Lace licked her lips in frustration. This meeting had got them nowhere. There had to be something they could do to end this easily.

  “No attacks on any club while she decides,” Butcher’s voice rang out over everyone else.

  Vader paused mid-step. “Deal.”

  The group watched Cobra pick up a dazed Chico and load him on his bike. The Warriors drove off at a slow speed as if they didn’t have a care in the world.

  Infuriated, Lace spun around, tasting nothing but anger and betrayal. “What the fuck,” she yelled at Steel, noting that Butcher and Flames rapidly stepped away from the two of them.

  “What?” Steel asked innocently, his hands patting at his cut like he was looking for something.

  “You’ve got to be kidding me? You know exactly what.” Lace stepped closer to him, wanting him to admit he lied to her about members of his club infiltrating hers. “Don’t play stupid. Brett?”

  “Who?”

  “Brett, you asshole.”

  “Oh, you mean Sting?”

  Lace swung. She couldn’t stop herself. It was an open-handed swing and it made a solid land on his bicep, the sound echoing around them. The red mark she left was damn satisfying.

  “Jesus!” Steel yelped and jumped back, rubbing the wounded area. “It may have been wrong of me, Tilly, but I know these assholes. You needed help and we both know you won’t ask for it. Shit might have been a lot worse if the guys weren’t there when you were attacked. I can live with you hitting me and being pissed, but I won’t live long knowing I allowed you to get hurt and not try to protect you and your girls. If that’s so wrong, then I apologize.”

  Way to deflate the anger she had welled up inside of her. He always had a way of getting out of messes he made. Good intentions or not. “You could’ve told me, H.”

  “Really? How so? You guys voted us out of the Battleground. We only wanted to try and help. Imagine if we’d have all been there? Nothing would’ve happened to Viper or Stiletto then.”

  Viper walked over to the group with T-Rex in tow. “There ain’t no way that bitch is worth two million. I’ll go put a knife in her brain right now.”

  “I agree, but that’s not the point. If Vader wants a two-million-dollar buy out, she has something serious on them.”

  “Bad enough it might warrant a visit to her, Lace.” Flames joined in on the conversation.

  “Will she be awake and coherent enough to answer questions?” Lace gnawed on her bottom lip while thinking. Jenny had been in detox for two weeks, so she ought to be awake enough to tell them what the deal was with the desire to own her soul.

  “Let’s go find out. What will it hurt?”

  Lace nodded in agreement to Steel, shrugging out of her cut. Folding it neatly, she unlocked the left side of her saddlebag and placed the white leather inside. Locking it back up, she tossed her keys to Viper. “I’ll be riding with Steel. Have someone give you a ride back here and take my bike to the house. I’ll let you guys know what we find out.”

  It was rare for Lace to ride bitch, but she enjoyed it now and again. Today was one of those days. To be able to let her mind go and just wander as she set her face to the wind? Heavenly—just what the doctor ordered. Good thing Steel’s bike had the detachable back rest on it.

  “Oh,” Lace said as she scooped up her helmet. “I suggest no one tells Durty about her boy toy. That’ll be one less body we have to deal with.”

  She knew Durty was going to lose her mind when, and if, Sting ever told her he was a club member. It wasn’t their place to do so, no matter how much she felt the need to.

  Climbing onto the bike and settling down behind Steel, she gave a squeeze of her thighs, letting him know when she was ready.

  He gave a nod, yelling over the roar of the bikes. “Where do I need to go?”

  She should’ve thought about that little fact. Only the girls knew where they stowed away their newest members when they had to recover from drug addictions. “Barstow, at Pine Grove.”

  His helmet covered head gave a short nod, throttling out to get the bike moving.

  Leaning against the back rest, Lace let out a long sigh and closed her eyes. The purring engine relaxed the tension between her shoulder blades and eased the anger from her veins. She really needed to do this more often.

  “Wakey, wakey, eggs and bakey.”

  Lashes fluttered as Lace stirred on the small seat, remembering she was on the back of a bike. Going still, her eyes slammed open, realization settling in that she had fallen asleep during their ride. “We’re here?”

  “Yeah, sleepy head
.”

  “God, I needed that.” Lace didn’t fall asleep behind just anyone. She had to trust them fully when riding. Tugging off the helmet, she slid off the bike, groaning as she stretched her legs. Two hours on the back, without stretching, took its toll on anyone.

  Steel dismounted at the same time he peeled off his helmet, hanging it off the throttle grip. “It was a nice ride, I’ll agree. It’s not every day you get someone as still as you were on the back.”

  Lace choked back the snide remark asking how many females he carried on the bike, knowing it was none of her business. The little green monster needed to curb itself before she murdered it completely. “Right. Let’s go see what Jenny knows, visiting hours are almost over.”

  “Let me get this cut off first.”

  Anonymity was the case here. No need to alert everyone in the damn center that Jenny was being protected by an outlaw club, or have unnecessary attention drawn to her.

  Stepping to the side, Lace checked her phone as Steel locked the cut into a saddle bag. A few of the girl’s text to check in, but nothing else. Go figure.

  Making the trek up the walkway toward the front door, Lace slammed her hip into Steel’s, sending him careening into a bush. The look of surprise was more than enough to send her into a fit of laughter. That was, until he lurched out of the shrubs and lunged for her.

  With a yelp, Lace bolted away from him, darting across the lawn to the entrance.

  “You need to warn a fucker when you decide to do a shrub club, damn woman.”

  Lace couldn’t stop laughing, even when Steel caught her in a bear hug, pinning her arms to her sides. “That’s why it’s called a hip check, dumb ass.”

  He released her, gently tossing her to the side with a mischievous grin. “There’s the Lace I know and love.”

  Huffing at him, Lace flipped Steel off. She loved the fact he knew her like the back of his hand, but it also had its downfall. She couldn’t pull the wool over his eyes when she wanted to.

  Finding Jenny’s room was easy with the directions from the front desk. They warned Lace and Steel that Jenny had her moments of clarity, but there might be moments of someone Lace wouldn’t recognize. Jenny was out of the woods, the drugs no longer in her system, but the cravings and the denial was still very much there.

  Lace didn’t want to tell the nurses she wouldn’t have recognized Jenny anyway. She knew the girl all of a day before they slapped her ass in rehab. One thing Lace couldn’t stand was a fucking junkie. That was her burden to bare, no one else’s. She’d go to hell first before she’d be around a junkie again.

  Pushing the door, Steel held it open for Lace to step through, closing it behind them. The room was dark, a single lamp lighting the tiny room. It was barren, nothing more than a twin sized bed, a night stand, and a chair. No electronics, nothing to distract the addict from the reasoning of why they were there. The walls were egg shell with a shit brown rug. The stench of bleach thick in the air, mixed with a smell Lace couldn’t place.

  “Hey, Blondie. How you doing?” Lace spoke softly, not wanting to alarm the girl before they got the information they needed.

  A body stirred on the bed, the covers lowering to expose a mussed blond head. “Lace?” The head moved, lifted, and turned to shift dark blue eyes toward the two standing there.

  “Yeah, it’s me.” Lace stepped into the light, letting Jenny get a good look at her, feeling Steel move to the empty chair.

  Jenny pushed her frail body into a sitting position, leaning against her pillow and the wall. A trembling hand brushed the spunky blond hair from her face, showing the halfhearted smile. “Hey, never thought I’d see anyone here.”

  Taking a seat on the edge of the bed, Lace tilted her head to the right, quickly glancing at Steel before giving Jenny her attention once more. “Gipsy hasn’t been here?”

  Lace had placed Jenny in the care of Gipsy and Curby. She knew Curby was busy with football, but Gipsy had no excuse, her kids were grown.

  “I don’t think so, but I’ve been pretty out of it, sorry.”

  Lace made a mental note to ask Gipsy about it later. “Look, Blondie. I’ve got something I need to ask you, and I want the truth. No bullshit, okay?” This was going to be the ultimate test for Jenny in Lace’s eyes. If she lied, Lace would know it, and know she couldn’t trust her, and would turn her back on her.

  “Okay?” Jenny looked confused, eyes darting over to Steel, then back to Lace. “Who’s he?”

  “Steel, from the Roja.” Lace threw up her hands to calm Jenny down the moment Jenny started to freak out. “He’s not going to hurt you. He’s not here for you. Blondie. I need you to tell me what you have on the Warriors, why they want you so fucking bad.”

  Jenny looked away quickly toward the window, her jaw clenching and a slight shake of her head in response.

  Jenny’s right hand clawed at the palm of her left as she ground her teeth, her skin paled. Whatever it was scared the poor girl to death. “Let it go, Jenny. I swear to you, you’ll be protected. No one will be able to touch you.” Licking her lips, Lace frowned, trying to figure out a way to get Jenny to talk to her. “Look, I don’t know what else to tell you or promise you.

  “My girls have taken some heat because of you. One almost lost her fucking life to protect you. She’ll be laid up in the hospital for weeks. The Warriors have attacked us every chance they get because they want you for some odd reason. Personally, I think you’re a piece of shit junkie who will fuck anything for her next fix.” There was no reason to sweet talk the girl. She was acting like she didn’t want to cooperate, and Lace was fine with that. She’d call Vader back and tell him exactly where Jenny was, it was no skin off her back.

  “What?” Jenny gasped, looking rather appalled.

  “Do I need to repeat myself?” Lace looked over to Steel, who shrugged in response. Taking in a deep breath, Lace held it, and then expelled it slowly, calming herself before she trusted her voice. “Vader wants a payoff of two million dollars, Jenny. You either tell me why the fuck I’m going to shit out that kind of money for you, or I’ll walk the fuck out of here, call Vader, and give him this address.”

  The predicament Jenny was in spread across the girl’s face. The flight or fight reaction was blossoming. Just what the doctor ordered.

  “You got to promise they won’t find me, please?” Desperation clawed at Jenny’s voice, her eyes wide with fright.

  “We both promise that Jenny.”

  Tears flooded Jenny’s eyes, spilling over when she blinked. Her breath was ragged as she spoke, “I witnessed a murder.”

  “That’s it? A murder?” Lace scoffed, her hands falling to her thighs with a loud smacking sound. “Let’s go, H.” She wasn’t going to play any more games. As far as Lace was concerned, this bitch could rot in hell.

  “Wait,” Jenny cried out, her hand frantically reaching for Lace. “I was with Chico when he met the elder councilman of the Red Thunder tribe. They got into an argument and Chico killed him.”

  Lace’s head snapped back like she’d been slapped. She remembered the headlines about the missing man. He’d left the casino on the reservation to go pick up his granddaughter from her dance practice. He never made it and hadn’t been seen since. It was a high-profile investigation with both reservation police and the sheriff’s department looking into it.

  “Are you sure about this, Blondie?” Lace had to be sure before she stepped off into a mess of shit.

  She nodded rapidly. “Yes. Chico thought I was sleeping in the truck. He met a couple of the guys from the club there, and shot him, then dragged him to the back of the truck. He drove out to the Shaman’s Arroyo and buried him.”

  “Could you take us back to the burial site?” Steel interjected.

  “Yeah, I think so. It’s got a marker.”

  Lace rubbed her ear lobe, trying to figure out what she needed to do and how to handle this. The revelation was a bit more than she thought it�
��d be. There were still people looking for the councilman, believing he was still alive.

  Calming Jenny down, the two promised, and then re-promised to make sure she was kept safe. Once she was placated, Lace and Steel found their way back to the bike.

  “Looks like I need to make a phone call.” Lace reached into her back pocket to withdraw the cell.

  Steel shook his head in disbelief, his hands on his hips, toe of his boot pushing around a rock on the asphalt. “I knew Vader was crazy, but I never dreamed it’d be something this detrimental. This isn’t exactly something we can sit on, Tilly.”

  “We’ll figure it out, H. Maybe talk to Bronson.” Lace found Vader’s number in her contacts and hit the send button.

  “Speak,” the one word was issued in her ear.

  “This is how we’re going to play this, so I suggest you take notes.” Lace was frank, not wanting to be on the phone with the prick. “You’re in luck. Jenny has amnesia about the whole thing. If anything more happens to my club or Jenny for that matter, it could trigger her memory, and we’d hate to have that happen. The mind is unpredictable. You never know what might trigger the memories.”

  Chapter 24

  Lyin’ Eyes

  Sting stared at the reflection of the man before him. He didn’t know what he’d become. Being in a club changed the perspective of life and some morals, but he’d sworn to himself he’d never sell his soul.

  Sting felt like he had.

  He was lying to the woman he was falling in love with. Sure, it started out as a job, but it turned into something he’d never allowed himself—the comfort of love.

  He didn’t recognize himself any more.

  Luckily, the lie ended today.

  Sting wasn’t so sure he was going to come out of the meeting unscathed—physically or emotionally.

  He’d connected with Durty on a level even he couldn’t explain. Now that connection might be severed when he walked into the chapel room with his cut on, revealing exactly who he was. Maybe, just maybe, he could get her to see the club was the only thing he’d lied about.