by Debra Kayn
"I've seen two men in my condominium. They were wearing masks. They also chased me when I was driving. I never got a good look at the, but it was a blue car. That's all I could remember. I got away when I drove through someone's yard," she said.
"Good girl," he mumbled, glad to hear she kept her head in the heat of an emergency. "What else has happened?"
"Little things." She shrugged. "Most of the odd things that had happened I excused as me being paranoid."
"Tell me. It doesn't matter if you can prove it or not. I need to know what we're up against," he said.
"I always placed my car keys on my nightstand at night." She groaned. "Now looking back it was silly, but living on my own, I thought if someone ever broke in I could push my car alarm, and someone would come running to help me."
"Your car doesn't have an alarm."
"No, not the car I have now. I traded my car to get the Honda so nobody would follow me to Montana." She closed her eyes, exhaled, and continued. "Anyways, I woke up, and my keys were on the kitchen table. I convinced myself that I did put them there, but Swiss, I know it wasn't me. I always made sure the keys were beside my bed."
"That explains why the piece of crap at the curb isn't in your name," he muttered.
"You checked up on me?"
"I knew something wasn't right," he said.
She waved her hand in front of her. "It doesn't matter."
"Anything else happen?
"The sliding door in my bedroom went out to a balcony overlooking a wooded area." She blew out her lips. "I lived in a gated community. After taking a shower, I found the sliding door open and blamed it on the wind."
"Not possible."
"I know." She shook her head. "Then, I started getting the sense that someone was following me. But, it was only when the two men broke into my condominium, and I faced them that I realized I couldn't make excuses anymore. Someone was after me. I had packed a bag planning on getting out of Seattle and the night before I was going to leave, I received a text on my phone."
"What did it say."
She stared at him with tears in her eyes and whispered, "Only one word. Dead."
"The same message outside on your car," he said.
"Yes."
"What's your plan?" he asked, changing the subject and distracting her from the real threat.
"There's nothing I can do. I've called the police when things were happening to me in Seattle. They take a report, pat my head, and send me on my way. I can't get a restraining order against men I can't identify. Haugan's police department will be no different, and if it's the men who killed my coworkers after me, which I swear it is, telling the police will only make them more determined to kill me," she said.
"That's what you believe they are here to do?"
"Why else would they follow me to Montana?" She stood, worn out from talking and bringing up every scary detail she'd lived through. "I was hoping I was only paranoid or the stress was making me crazy. The police said after a trauma, a lot of people will imagine someone is after them."
"It's not in your head." He stood up, dropped his chin, and looked her in the eyes. "In the morning, I'll meet with the club. We'll have a better understanding of what we're up against."
"I can't let you become involved. You've already done so much, and...I can't ask you for more." She stretched on her tiptoes and kissed his cheek. "You probably saved my life tonight by inviting me to your club. Thank you."
He held her against him. "You're not going anywhere. You'll stay here with me."
"I can't," she whispered. "I thought..."
"What?"
She sank down on her feet, and he let her go. "It's not important."
"The way I see it, you don't have many options that won't put you in more danger."
She blew out her breath. "Maybe I can contact the landlord and see about getting out of my lease, and hope that he'll give me back some of my deposit."
"You paid for a year in advance?" He rubbed his head, trying hard not to tell her she'd never see a dime of her fucking money back. The landlord lived in Florida. Repairs, complaints, and all inquiries into dealing with an absent landlord went unanswered. The only time you could get ahold of him is if you left a message wanting to send him payments in cash.
"No, he offered me a six-month lease if I paid in cash." She rubbed her forehead. "That's the only thing I can think of doing. I don't have enough money to purchase tires, and before you open your mouth, no, I'm not letting you buy anything more for me."
"Sweet, don't you have parents, a brother, someone who can help you and give you a place to stay?" The thought of someone else protecting and knowing how to deal with killers set him on edge. He had enough skills to do the job and yet it was her decision on who she wanted to help her.
"No, I'm alone." Her shoulders lifted, and she raised her hands before letting them fall to her sides. "I had a job, coworkers, a condominium, a nice dependable car, and I thought life was finally settling down after losing my parents one after another. Then everything fell apart the morning I walked into work and found Sean and Trinity dead."
So much of her story remained missing. A lone woman on her own with limited access to money made different choices than someone with a family and financial support. "Why come to Montana, sweet?"
Gia pressed her fingers to her forehead and moaned. He hooked his finger under her chin and raised her face.
He used his thumb to stroke her cheek. "What's wrong?"
She winced. "My head is killing me."
"There's Tylenol in the medicine cabinet in the bathroom." He turned her around. "Go take two and then crawl into my bed for the night. I'll bunk on the couch."
She glanced over her shoulder. "I can't—"
"Don't argue." He lifted his chin, setting her in motion. "I'm going over and grabbing your things from the other side of the duplex.
She turned around. "Why?"
"Until we have everything sorted, I want you closer to me."
She lowered her gaze and walked into the bathroom, shutting the door. He stepped outside, looked and listened, and took the fifteen steps to her door. Underneath the mat, he removed the spare key he knew he'd find. Luckily, the killers hadn't thought to look there, or Gia would be dead.
Chapter Thirteen
Inside the clubhouse, Battery slid a piece of paper across the pool table toward Swiss once every Ronacks member settled in for the meeting. Swiss picked up the paper and read through three copied newspaper articles regarding the murders at Loans by Day in Seattle. The crime barely covered by the reporters, all he got from each update were the facts.
When he finished, he nodded at his president.
While Battery filled his MC brothers in on the major details of why Gia came to Haugan and the trouble that came to the duplex last night, Swiss accepted what he'd read by the media. The specifics Battery provided to the club were ones Swiss handed over earlier and were exactly what Gia had told him privately.
A few phone calls to connections in Seattle came back with proof that Gia gave him all the information she had. Her name was nowhere in the articles, and the case was open for the time being with no suspects.
"A few years ago, the leader of Sparrows—a man named Vince Pladonta, was murdered and half the members of the Yesler Street Gang were put in prison when the FBI took out their prostitution ring. A handful of the members not caught went legit without their leader. The other ones tried to join other street gangs in Seattle and finding out they were tainted by bad blood, rallied amongst themselves and tried to rebuild under the Sparrows creed. Instead of peddling women, they went back to laundering dirty money." Battery thumped his knuckles against the table. "That's the men we're more likely than not dealing with here. Swiss has informed me that Gia overheard some talk while being questioned at the police department and the fingers were pointed at Sparrows being involved in the Ponzi scheme, but as of yet, there have been no arrests or any pinpointing on a suspect."
Rod whistled long and softly. "We're not talking a lone man bent on revenge or someone we can easily take out."
Battery shook his head. "Any action from us against Sparrows will bring more trouble down on the club. Don't let their location fool you. They've traveled from Seattle to come after Gia in Montana. They're not worried about crossing territories."
"What if it isn't Sparrows?" Swiss folded the papers and tossed them to the middle of the pool table. "Lipstick on the car..."
"Could be anyone," said Sander.
Swiss inhaled deeply. "Has anyone carried lipstick in their pocket in the off chance they wanted to leave a message?"
Dead silence answered him.
"Right." Swiss looked at Battery. "The night you went to Pine Bar and Grill, about eight days or so ago, there was a woman there that caused trouble for Raelyn."
"Yeah." Battery frowned. "She was looking for her sister."
"Gia doesn't have any sisters or brothers," said Swiss. "Can you remember any details about the woman?"
Battery ran his hand down his beard. "Fuck..."
Swiss kicked his own ass for not paying better attention. He'd gone into the bar knowing Battery and Rod were there to take care of the problem.
"She was about five foot, nine inches. About up to here..." Rod cut the air in front of his mouth with his hand. "She had a nice ass."
"She needed to get her hair dyed, cause there was brown up top, blonde at the shoulders. Not long, not short." Battery lowered his hand from his face.
"Hair can change," said Swiss.
"Her ass ain't changing." Rod grinned. "Long legs up to there. I noticed because when she walked in front of me, she was at the perfect height to fuck me standing up."
"Pull your head out of your ass, Rod. Do you expect us all to ride around the fucking town looking for a woman you'd be able to fuck without bending your fucking knees?" Swiss planted his hands on the table. "If we're done here, and all you want to do is throw bullshit down on the table, I'm out."
"Hang on." Battery pointed to Mel. "Prove your worth, Prospect. Wherever Swiss and Gia go, you're on their ass."
"Got it, Prez," said Mel, stepping forward.
"Rod, since you've got a good look at the woman's ass, you're staying in town." Battery's gaze intensified. "Pick a brother to go with you. I want your eyes everywhere. You see someone fitting the woman's description, you put a call out to everyone."
Swiss pulled out his pack of cigarettes and stuck a smoke between his lips, ready to leave and take Gia back to the duplex. He spent most of the night looking out the window, trying to piece together Gia's story. Hearing about Sparrows, he only wanted to go in the backroom where Gia sat with Bree while he met with the club, and make sure she was safe and not let her out of his sight.
"Everyone else, check the roster before you head out. Six people have been pulled off of working at the businesses that employ Ronacks members. That's the new crew that will keep two riders on the duplex and two on the clubhouse. I'm not taking another fucking chance of something going wrong." Battery held up his hand. "Meeting's over."
Swiss walked out of the room, down the hallway, and opened the backroom the members used for all kinds of business. Fucking, planning, talking.
Gia stood at the sight of him. His chest tightened. He hated seeing any woman living in fear, and she had a good reason to be afraid.
He held out his hand. "We can go home now."
Gia slipped her fingers into his palm and latched on to him. Swiss turned to Bree. "How are you doing?"
It wasn't long ago that trouble hit the club and everything centered around Bree. She'd almost lost Battery, and in the end, the club lost Duke, a brother, and Bree lost her father.
"I'm good, Swiss," Bree said softly. "You take care of Gia. Ronacks has your back, always."
"Right." He walked out of the room, taking Gia with him. Outside, he lit the cigarette he'd been holding between his lips and slowed his steps at the sight of Raelyn with her ass pointing out of the backseat of her car.
"Hang with me a second, sweet. I need to talk to someone." Without letting go of Gia's hand, he led her over to Raelyn.
Duke's widow straightened from the car with her baby and turned with a smile. "Hi there, stranger. You haven't come around for a drink all week."
"Been busy." Swiss let go of Gia's hand and held out his arms to Dukie, who pushed against his momma and stretched his upper body out toward him. "Come here, son."
He held the boy to his chest and let Dukie pull on his goatee. At one-and-a-half years old, the kid touched and climbed on everything. A regular brawler. "Everything okay at the bar?"
"Yeah." Raelyn continued to glance at Gia and answered Swiss. "I had Dukie's well-baby checkup this morning with the pediatrician, and Bree wanted me to stop by for a few minutes before I go back to town and open up the bar. Why don't you stop by for a drink later and we'll catch up?"
"We might do that." He shifted the kid to his other side. "This is Gia. She's staying with me for a while."
"Hi." Raelyn held out her hand to Gia. "I'm Raelyn."
"It's nice to meet you." Gia stepped back and pointed over her shoulder. "I'll wait over by the motorcycle and give you two time to talk."
"Hang on." He turned and held out Dukie. "Take him with you while I talk with Raelyn."
"Oh." Gia's head came back, and she scrambled to get a tight hold on Raelyn's son. "Okay."
Swiss waited for Gia to walk off before he turned to Raelyn, who grinned at him shaking her head. "What?"
"That was rude." Raelyn squeezed his arm. "You could've asked her to hold him before you threw my kid at her, and now she's going to think something is going on between us. I can see she believes something is going on, and she doesn't like it."
"So?"
"So..." Raelyn grew serious. "You don't do that to a woman if you're interested in her."
"Who says I am?"
"God, Swiss. Not every woman you meet is going to throw themselves at you for sex like the women who hang around Ronacks. She's interested in you."
He grunted. If Gia was interested, she had plenty of time to do something about it before shit went down at the duplex and he found out the truth.
"Who is she to you?" asked Raelyn.
"Nobody." Swiss lied, even though it was mostly true. "She moved into the duplex and is having a bit of trouble. That's what I need to talk to you about."
"Okay," said Raelyn, giving him her full attention. "What can I do to help?"
"A little over a week ago, I showed up at the bar to find Battery and Rod diffusing a situation with a woman who was looking for her sister." He paused. "Remember?"
Raelyn's brow wrinkled. "A week ago? Oh, I remember her. It was right at closing time. She made me nervous because it was late and I was getting the cash bundled for when you rode in."
"That's the woman I'm asking about." Swiss lowered his voice and turned to keep an eye on Gia. "Can you tell me what she looked like and any more details than she was looking for her sister?"
Raelyn caught her bottom lip between her teeth and stared at the ground in thought. Swiss's attention went back to Gia, who rocked side to side gently, swinging her hips and talking to Dukie. She was a natural with kids.
"I'd say the woman was about my age," said Raelyn.
Swiss snapped his attention back to Raelyn. "How old are you?"
"I'm twenty-six years old, and most days I feel fifty." Raelyn sighed. "You know, Swiss. I thought you were the smartest biker in Ronacks. But, dude, you need a woman to smooth the edges a little. You've been on your own too long."
"Do you remember anything else about her?" he asked, ignoring the advice and surprised to hear Raelyn was the same age as his daughter he'd lost twenty-two years ago.
Raelyn rolled her eyes. "She had ombre hair."
"What's that?"
"Two toned hair with the top darker than the ends, which are blonde. About my size, but taller." She laughed when he stared. "She was real p
retty, but honestly Swiss, I've seen girls like her. She was a little too intense, almost in a panic. Either a man or drugs cause that kind of jitteriness."
"That it?"
Raelyn shrugged. "I guess. I'm not sure what you're looking for."
"Any accent?"
"No."
Swiss inhaled. "Okay. Thanks, honey."
"Can I get my son now?" She half hugged him. "Bree is going to wonder where we are, and I need to hurry. I'm cutting time close."
"Yeah, go get him, momma." He followed her to Gia.
Gia kissed Dukie's forehead and handed the kid back to his mom. Swiss took in her eyes, softened by her time spent holding someone who needed her. He understood the comfort a child brought when overwhelmed with responsibilities as an adult.
"It was nice to meet you, Gia. I hope to see you around more." Raelyn told Dukie to wave and laughed when he slapped her shoulder. "See you two later."
Swiss placed his hand on Gia's lower back to get her attention. She turned to him smiling and quickly lost all pleasure. He motioned with his chin at the bike, and she stepped in front of him to pick up the helmet.
He'd make sure the trouble hounding her stopped, and she could go back to smiling. The look was good on her.
Chapter Fourteen
Everything bothered Gia. She paced the length of Swiss's living room waiting for him to come inside.
The meeting about Gia at the clubhouse.
The shock of holding Raelyn's son.
The unease of knowing the men after her were in Montana.
Who was the woman Swiss talked to privately?
Was the baby Gia held while waiting for Swiss his son? He'd called him son.
She hated the way her mind worked and the disappointment that came when Swiss pushed her away to talk with another woman privately. Gia squeezed the skin at the base of her neck. Every day, more problems piled up around her.
She was the creator of the mess in her life.
The responsibility of coming to Montana and force feeding Swiss to protect her without his knowledge somehow convinced her that he was here solely for her. How selfish could she be?
