LOST KING: THE KINGS OF RETRIBUTION MC

by Alvarez, Sandy

  I stand in front of the bathroom mirror and study my face. It's early. Peering across the room, I watch Emerson for a moment as she sleeps. Turning my head, I examine myself again. Rolling my neck a few times, I try to work out the tension in my muscles, but it doesn't work. I'm tired, and sleep hasn't been easy with all this shit on my mind. I get lost in thought standing here.

  I smell her before she touches me. Emerson comes up behind me, wraps her arms around my waist and splays her palms across my bare abs. "I love you," her soft lips press against my back, and her hot breath causes my skin to prickle.

  "I love you too, Sunshine." Exhaling, I push my thoughts away for now. Emerson dips her head under my arm, putting herself between me and the bathroom sink. Tilting her head back, she looks at me. Her beautiful grey eyes lock on mine.

  "Are you okay? You've been restless. I don't think you've slept at all the past two nights." She says with worry.

  "I'm good, babe." Brushing her unruly slept in hair from her face, I run the pad of my thumb over her cheek. "You don't have to worry about me," I look at her knowing my words aren't sinking in.

  "You can't tell someone who cares about you not to worry and expect them not to worry," her lips lift in a half smile. "I understand you can't tell me everything that's went down with this other club. I'm also very aware since being involved with the MC for a while now you men don't talk outside the member circle about things, but something's eating at you," she scrunches her nose causing her forehead to crease as she makes her point. "I've never seen you this way, and for me, that's enough cause to worry."

  There is a lot of shit we don't tell the women and our other family members. To keep them safe. The less they know about some of the shit we encounter from time to time the better. Plausible deniability. If they don't know, it can't be used against them. When something needs to be said, we keep it to a minimum. Sometimes that can be hard as hell when the one person you want to tell all your secrets to is stressed out. Not for herself, but for me. "Sunshine," I zone in on her full lips that have a little pout too them. "Everything is good. Promise." Leaning down, I kiss her forehead before touching my lips to hers. Her hands clench at the waistband of my sweatpants. Pulling away she looks at my face again, her cheeks flushed. Emerson clears her throat.

  "Nice try—" she reaches up putting her hand on the back of my neck. Her fingers start to play with my hair, "but, I can't shake this feeling I've been having lately. The feeling something awful is going to happen," her eyes start to gloss over with emotion.

  "Babe," I grab her other hand and place it over my heart. "You feel that?" I ask her. She nods. "It beats for you, Sunshine. It beats for us. We can't live in the future. Not when we haven't lived for right now. In this moment." Placing my hands beneath her ass, I lifted her up. With her palm still over my heart, she wraps her legs around my waist, and I carry her to the bed. Laying her on her back, I hover my body over hers, covering her hand on my chest with mine. "That's what we focus on. We live for today; for this moment." Emerson bites her bottom lip to keep from crying. "I love you, and nothing else matters right now but you and me." The rest of the morning I make slow love to my woman.

  It's mid-afternoon and Logan, and I are knee deep in a massive rebuild at the shop when my phone rings. Assuming its Emerson who usually calls on her lunch break, I half ass wipe my hands down the front of my jeans, grab my phone from the top of the workbench next to me and swipe my thumb across the screen leaving a light smudge on the surface. "Hey, beautiful. You miss me?" I say playfully, hoping she says yes.

  "Quinn," my mother's shaky voice is barely audible coming through the speaker of my phone causing every muscle in my body to go rigid. "Mom, what's wrong?" I say a little too loud, and it catches Logan's attention. Standing, he walks over and stands beside me. My mom sniffles on the other end of the phone.

  "Sweetheart, Dad had an accident at work. They're in route to the hospital now—" she pauses for a moment. I can hear her take a deep breath. "I'm in my car heading that way now."

  All the air gets sucked from my lungs. "Did they tell you anything else?"

  "No, just that I need to get to the hospital. Honey, I need you there with me if—" her voice breaks.

  "I'll be there," I tell her before ending the call. Hauling ass, I run out the bay door. I don't look back. I don't say anything to Logan. He was there. He heard every word. I know he will cover all the bases and in no time my brothers will follow suit, and be standing right beside me.

  After weaving in and out of lunchtime traffic, I make it to the hospital and find my mom's car already in the parking lot. Racing to the entrance of the ER and through the automatic doors, I immediately scan the waiting room looking for her. I don't see her. Maybe she's back there with him. I walk over to the small exam room where the triage nurse is and knock on the open door. Her head lifts from the papers on the table in front of her. "Can I help you?" she asks with a smile.

  "A patient was brought in, Quinten Beckett."

  "Yes, I took his wife to the back only moments ago," she stands, "are you family?"

  "I'm his son," I inform her as we walk out of the exam room.

  "I was instructed to take your mom to the chapel. I'll take you to her."

  The chapel? My stomach sinks. The nurse notices the look of concern on my face, and just before the double doors open leading to the back, she pauses. "The doctors are with your dad right now. The chapel is a quiet place for the family to wait," she tries to assure me. It does nothing to ease my nerves. Just as we pass the nurses station, Emerson walks out of an exam room, her arms clasping her laptop to her chest. She looks up, surprised to see me "Quinn?" Quickly her eyes shift to the nurse beside me. "What are you—"

  I interrupt her, "my dad was brought in. Something happened to him at work."

  "Dr. Evans, I was taking Mr. Beckett's son to the chapel to wait with his mother," the nurse explains. "Dr. Chamberlin is with the patient now."

  "Thank you, Tracie." Emerson faces me and places her hand on my arm. "I'll go see what I can find out. Right now, go comfort your mom."

  Giving Emerson a quick hug, I follow the nurse. Upon opening the doors to the chapel, I find Mom sitting on the small front pew with her face buried in the palms of her hands. "Mom," I say softly trying not to make her jump out her skin. Her tear stained eyes breaks my heart as she lifts her worried face to mine.

  "They haven't been in to tell me anything. Not knowing is the worst part for me right now," she wipes the wetness from her face with a tissue she has in her right hand. Sitting beside her, I bring her close and wrap my arm around her.

  "Dad's strong. Whatever happened, he'll pull through," I do my best to soothe her.

  The door to the room creaks. Turning my head and looking over my shoulder I see Emerson making her way in. Following her is a tall, dark-haired doctor.

  "Mrs. Beckett?" he appears in front of us. Squatting, he brings himself level to talk with my mom. Emerson sits beside me, her hand resting on my thigh.

  Ringing her hands together my mom addresses him with a plea. "Please tell me the love of my life is going to be okay."

  Dr. Chamberlin's face softens with understanding. "Your husband is going to be okay. He suffered a gunshot to the kidney region. We've confirmed the bullet went through the left kidney so he's being prepped for surgery and I'll be the surgeon taking care of him."

  "Shot?" my mom asks in a state of shock.

  "Mrs. Beckett," Emerson speaks, "I talked with the guy who rode with him, Bob I believe he said his name was."

  "That's a coworker of his. They've worked together for years," I clarify.

  "He said that Mr. Beckett rode out to investigate a potential poacher on the property that someone had called in this morning. An hour later he received a distress call over their hand-held radios that your husband was shot." Emerson finishes with the information she was able to find.

  "But, he is going to be okay? Right?" my mom wants Dr. Chamberlin to confirm.

/>   He looks from me back to my mom, settling his attention on her. "Yes. All his vitals looked good. He's fit and healthy for his age. I have no reason to believe otherwise." He states. Placing his hand on his knees, Dr. Chamberlin stands, and I stand as well and put out my hand.

  "I'll take care of him." Dr. Chamberlin assures shaking my hand. "Thank you," I tell him.

  He gives me a nod and leaves the room. Suddenly the air is a lot less thick and we all breathe a sigh of relief.

  "Unfortunately, I need to get back to work," Emerson stands. "I'll take you two to the family waiting area and get you some coffee. As soon as he's out of surgery, I'll come get you." Mom and I stand, and Emerson steps closer and embraces my mom and rubs her back as she hugs her. "How about some coffee or some warm tea?" she offers as we exit into the hallway.

  "Tea sounds nice," my mom conveys.

  After walking us to the waiting area, Emerson makes a quick trip to the cafeteria and reappears with a cup of tea in one hand and a coffee in the other. Mom sips on her drink as I take the offered coffee from her. "Cream and sugar the way you like it," she smiles and I pull her close to me so that I can feel the warmth of her body against mine.

  "Thank you, Sunshine." Leaning in, I kiss her.

  "I'll see you soon," she whispers as I let her go.

  A couple of hours later Dad is in recovery resting comfortably, with Mom by his side holding his hand. They couldn't repair the damage to the kidney caused by the bullet so now he's left with one. My brothers showed up too. Jake closed the shop early, and even Gabriel shut down and rescheduled clients for the rest of the day to be here. Every one of them sat out in the waiting room waiting to hear the final word after surgery before leaving.

  "Quinn, honey, would you pick your sister up from school and stay home with her tonight? I'd like to stay here, and once she finds out about Dad, she'll be upset," my mom strokes my dad's hair with her fingertips.

  "No problem." I walk over, lean down and kiss her cheek, "Call me if you need anything. Do you mind if Emerson stays too? She's about to clock out for the day," I ask.

  "Of course, sweetie. Emerson is always welcome," she says sitting down in the chair beside the bed looking exhausted.

  I leave the room and make my way towards the elevators, pushing the down button. The door slides open to my woman standing inside looking back at me.

  "Hey, you," she says.

  "Hey, you," I echo.

  An hour and a half later, the three of us pull into the driveway of my parent's home. After Kat calmed down from hearing the news about Dad, we took her to get pizza and ice-cream and now she's feeling a little better. Emerson staying over seems to have helped. It went from her staying the night with me to having a pajama party with my sister. The talk of painting nails and doing each other's hair was all Kat could talk about on the way home. I smile at how easy my baby sister and Emerson get along. "She's my woman," I tell my sister. "Besides, what if I want a pedi too?" I chime in interrupting girl talk as I put Emerson's jeep in park.

  "Ooh, you can wear Dad's Christmas onesie I got him last year. I think it's still in the box," Kat laughs.

  "Hell yeah. I'll rock that motherfucker," I confess unlocking the front door.

  The following morning, I wake to my phone ringing. Leaning over the side of the bed, I rummage through my clothes on the floor only to realize it wasn't my phone it was Emerson's. "Babe, here," I pass her phone to her as she rolls onto her back and stretches her arms above her head causing the sheet to fall exposing her breasts. She swipes the screen and immediately calls whoever it was back. Trying to distract her I flick my tongue across her taut nipple then take it into my mouth.

  "Quinn, stop" she whispers and tries pushing my face away, "I'm on call so, I have to see if the hospital need me."

  I tune out the fact she is on the phone with someone from work and continue by kissing my way down her body before diving under the sheet. Before my lips make it to my destination, Emerson blocks me with her hand. "Quinn, I've got to go," she jumps from the bed and pulls her clothes on in a hurry. "They have some accident victims being brought in." As she's tying up her shoes, she looks over her shoulder at me, "don't you need a ride?"

  I roll onto my back, "Naw, babe. I brought my car out here a few weekends ago to have my dad's detail guy clean it for me, so it's sitting out in the garage."

  Snatching her keys and purse from the dresser next to the bedroom door, she walks over and leans down. "I'm sorry I gotta go."

  "Go save lives, superwoman," I swat her on the ass after she kisses me and turns towards the door. "We'll pick up where I left off later," I wink.

  Blowing me a kiss she's out the door, and a minute later I hear her Jeep start. Getting myself out of bed, I head to the kitchen to make some coffee. When it's finished, I pour a cup and carry over to the big window that overlooks the backyard and the side of the house. From the corner of my eye, I catch movement near the garage and notice the door moving back and forth with the breeze. The fuck? The door was closed when we got home last night. And the way it locks there is no way it can open on its own.

  Placing my mug on the counter, I look out the living room window towards the driveway. Nothing. Making sure the front door is locked I go back to my room and grab my gun. I peek in on my sister who's fast asleep. Thankful she sleeps like a rock. Easing out the back door and locking it with the code pad, I inch alongside the house until I reach the corner. With my gun in my hand, I turn the corner of the house and walk over to the garage. Sure as Fuck the lock has been pried off. Thinking I might catch whoever it may be off guard, I charge in with my gun held out in front of me ready to defend myself and flip the overhead light on only to find my car vandalized. Tires and interior have been slashed, and red spray paint covers every inch of the body. It's the words painted on the hood that causes my blood to boil.

  YOU'RE NEXT

  I waste no time getting back to the house. The only call I make is to Prez. I need to get my car out of here before anyone else gets the chance to notice. Something isn't adding up. First my dad; then this.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Emerson

  "Great save in there, Evans," Doctor Collins says sitting down on the chair next to me at the nurse's station with his laptop.

  "Thanks," I reply as we both continue to type away entering our notes for the trauma that we both finished working on moments ago. A mother and son were brought in after a truck t-boned their minivan. Luckily the little boy was in his car seat and had only minor injuries. His mom, on the other hand, suffered a broken arm, and a deep gash on the left side of her neck due to broken glass, and she had a twisted piece of metal lodged in her left side puncturing her kidney. By the time she arrived at the emergency room she had lost a lot of blood and had a weak pulse. She is now up stairs in surgery and is expected to make a full recovery. "Did anyone locate a family member for the little boy?" I ask.

  "Christy is in with him now. She was already here on another case and has agreed to contact the father. She's going to stay with him until his dad arrives."

  "Do you want to talk to him about his wife or you want me to?" I ask.

  Looking down at his watch, Doctor Collins shakes his head. "No, your break is soon. I got it."

  "Thanks," I say closing my laptop and standing. "I'm going to peak in on the little boy and see how he's doing before I go to lunch."

  When I walk into the room where the little boy is being held, Christy is sitting beside the hospital bed, and I see the little guy has fallen asleep. "Hey," I speak quietly. "How's he been doing?"

  "He was a little scared and worried about his mom. I was able to get his dad on the phone, and once he talked to him, he settled down and went to sleep. How's his mom doing? I heard she was pretty bad?"

  "It was touch and go, but she's going to be fine. She should be out of surgery soon. I called up and told them her husband was on his way. They will send someone down to come get him as soon as he gets here."

  Slu
mping back in her seat, Christy lets out a deep sigh of relief. "That's good."

  "So, how have you been? How's your husband doing?" I ask.

  "Oh, you know, same old same old. The better half is doing good. He needs to talk to Quinn. He found an old 1966 Pontiac GTO for sale. It doesn't have a motor or anything, but he says the body is in decent condition. He figured Quinn would be interested. I won't see him until Friday when he comes to the center though. The old man selling the car said he has another interested buyer but is willing to hold off a day or two for Quinn to come look at it."

  "How do you know Quinn and I are together? The last time we talked I admitted I liked him, but we weren't an item."

  Christy waves her hand at me, "Oh, girl, please. Quinn has made sure the whole town of Polson knows you belong to him. I mean this is Quinn we are talking about."

  Thinking about it for a second, I roll my eyes and agree. "True." Looking at the clock on the wall, I realize I only have forty-five minutes left of my break. "Well, I'm going to get going. I'm starving. I'll be sure to relay your message to Quinn. After Christy and I say our goodbyes and I step out of the room, my phone rings. "Hello," I answer.

  "May I speak to Emerson Evans?" the voice on the other end asks.

  "This is she."

  "Ms. Evans, this is Beth with Dr. Spears office. We are calling to remind you of your appointment today. We were expecting you thirty minutes ago. Dr. Spears had a couple of cancellations and said she could see you now if you can make it."