Through The Weeds (Nightshade MC Book 2)

by Shannon Flagg

  Amelia came back in the front door, a scowl on her face. “Well, I guess gardening is off fucking limits.” She glared daggers at Monroe. “You really had to call him?”

  “He said to call him if you tried to leave.” Monroe held up his hands. “I'm a prospect. I do as I'm told.”

  “Whatever,” Amelia grumbled and came over to the bar. “You okay?” She asked Caroline. “You're looking a little bit pale. You and Buster haven't been going bareback, have you?”

  “No.” Well, yes, but not that it mattered, considering what she knew now. “I just got a call from Jillian.”

  “Why would Jillian call you?”

  “I don't know. She hasn't answered or responded to any of my other calls.”

  “Other calls? Wait. You've been calling Jillian?”

  “Yeah. Why are you looking at me like that?”

  “Because, Caroline, she's with Jake Dodd. She's his fucking old lady. She's the god damn enemy, that's why!” Amelia's eyes flashed with anger. “Why would you call her?”

  “She's Jillian, damn it. She's the closest thing I had to a best friend here. I called because I want to hear from her why she turned her back on us. And I want to know that she's okay.”

  “Does Buster know you've been calling her?”

  “I've never mentioned it,” Caroline said and realized that she should have. She just hadn't considered it important, probably in the way that Buster hadn't considered the money important. Well, fuck. “Shit.”

  “Yeah, that about sums it up. Use your head, Caroline. Get rid of that fucking phone.”

  “Actually,” Bones spoke up. “She shouldn't do that. She should try to make contact again. Ace has the GPS activated. We can try and get her location if she calls back or even if she keeps the phone on.” The man was excited, really excited. “I'm on it. Give me five minutes, Caroline, and then we'll call her back.

  They called back a dozen times, straight to voice mail with no sign of a location on the tracking program. “Well. Fuck.” Bones drummed his fingers against the desk tucked in the corner of the kitchen. “Leave the phone here with me. I'll keep the program up in case she turns it back on.” Caroline sighed and handed over the phone. “Don't worry, I've got another one for you.” He reached in the drawer and handed her a pink phone covered with rhinestones.

  “Seriously?”

  “Seriously,” he replied. “Got it for free when I bought a couple others online. Come on, take it, please. I can't give it to one of the guys.”

  Caroline could see how that wouldn't go over well. “Next time, Amelia gets the pretty princess phone, okay?”

  <#<#<#<#

  Caroline knew that Buster had heard about the Jillian thing. She saw it on his face immediately. “Did we get anything from the phone?” He demanded of Bones who was at the bar with a burger in front of him.

  “Nothing yet. Phone is still off.”

  “You sure that you're running the software right, dickhead?” Ace demanded. “Should have called me. Made sure it got done right.”

  “It's a tracker program. I can run a tracker program in my sleep,” Bones shouted as Ace stormed into the kitchen.

  Caroline walked right over to Buster. “I'm sorry. I'm a shitty old lady. The shittiest. I never thought that....” He cut off her apology and protest with his mouth. The unexpected kiss was wonderful, forceful to the point that Caroline nearly climbed him like a tree right there. She pulled back. “I should have...”

  “You're not a shitty old lady.” He placed his hands on her shoulders. “You're just figuring stuff out. Besides, this actually turned out to be a good thing. It might confirm a location for us. So relax, alright? You're practically vibrating out of your skin. Come on, I need some quiet.” He took her by the hand and together they walked up the stairs. “I can't wait to go back home. The one night was like a tease.”

  “I liked it there.” Caroline had, truly; it just didn't feel like home to her yet. It wasn't a big surprise since she'd only been there one night. “I'm sorry for yelling at you last night. I shouldn't have lost it.”

  “I'd say I dropped a few bombs on you yesterday, you had a right to lose it.”

  “I came downstairs to apologize, but you were already gone.”

  “I knew I wasn't going to sleep. I jumped in the truck, took a ride to watch the house we think is Jake Dodd's. I was hoping to catch a glimpse of Jillian.” Buster closed the door to the room behind him. “When she called back, what did you hear?”

  “Just her breathing. It felt like maybe she was scared to say something. Maybe I should have said more than hello. Why were you looking for her?”

  “We figure Jake's not going to be far from his new bride. If she's there, we know it's his place. We can hit him and the warehouse at the same time with the help of The Street Kings. Also, I figure that Edge might want to see his sister. Who fucking knows with them?” Buster took off his cut, hung it on the back of the door. “I don't want you to take this the wrong way, Caroline, but right now, all I want is a shower and bed.”

  “Can I say one thing first?” Caroline closed the distance between them, lifted her arms to drape around his neck. “I love you, Buster. At the end of the day, that's all that matters.”

  His face creased into a smile. “I love you too, Caroline.”

  <#<#<#<#

  Caroline awoke the next morning to the feeling of warmth, the heavy weight of Buster's arm thrown over her body, and she'd never felt safer or happier. Sleep had brought her a degree of clarity. She'd told Buster the night before that she was a shitty old lady, and she hadn't been wrong, but she was also a hypocrite.

  She'd kept things from him, like the Jillian phone calls. She'd also held out as long as possible on telling him the truth about her past. He still didn't know how long she'd spent mourning what happened between Ronald and Kim. Yet, she didn't see it as lying to him. It was just not telling, not opening a wound that had taken so long to heal.

  No matter how she tried to justify it, she was being a hypocrite when she got angry with him over not telling her about the vasectomy or the money. She needed to tell him that, to let him know she was aware of her faults. She'd do better. She'd make everything right.

  “Buster. Buster. Wake up.”

  “What's happening?” He went from fast asleep to wide awake in the time it took her to blink. Immediately his hand settled on his gun

  Caroline knew that she was going to have to add asshole to her new list of attributes. It had never crossed her mind it was a bad idea to jolt him awake in the middle of a war. “Nothing. Shit. I'm sorry. I just wanted to talk to you.”

  “It's early, Caroline.” He set the gun back down. “What's on your mind?”

  What wasn't on her mind? Caroline let out a brittle laugh, sat up because it was hard to think when all she could feel was him on her. “My whole lying thing, the way that I hate it? That's about me. It's about the lies I fell for. It's not about you. I got so worked up over everything. And then I fucked up with Jillian, and you didn't come down on me. You could have. You probably should have. But you didn't.”

  Buster chuckled “Try and take a breath, Caroline. I like that you get worked up.” He smiled. “And you had a right to get worked up, I dropped a lot of shit in your lap. Sometimes I forget that you don't already know everything about me. We haven't really been together all that long, but it feels like forever.”

  “Is that a good thing or a bad thing?” She couldn't help but think that he was letting her off the hook once again because he loved her.

  “It's a very good thing. Trust me.” He watched her with a thoughtful expression on his face, and it felt like his eyes saw straight down to the heart of her.

  It was a humbling feeling. Did she make him feel the same way? “I do trust you. I really do.” She was starting to feel frantic now, and she didn't know why. Nothing about the conversation was bad. It was just so full of feeling. Of fear and hope.

  “You're working yourself up over nothing, Caro
line. Lie back down.” He patted the space next to him she'd just vacated. “We're good. I promise, we are.” He waited until she lay back at his side before he continued. “Let me ask you something. Were you serious with anyone before your ex?”

  “No. Not really. I had this guy in high school but... it just wasn't something meant for the long term. Nice guy but you know how it is at that age. It's not serious, not really. Why do you ask?”

  “Just curious. One of those things that I don't know about you.” His voice was low. It soothed her from the inside out.

  “How about you?”

  “I can count the number of women I've been serious with on my hand, include you and still have fingers left over.” He shifted against the pillow. “I liked being a bachelor. I didn't want the extra shit.” Caroline wasn't sure exactly where this conversation was going, so she remained silent. “And then Hanna got pregnant. Don't get me wrong. I liked her. She was sweet, a little simple. Once I realized that she was going to have my child, I figured that... I figured that maybe I could learn to love her. I already loved the baby. And then they were gone, and I never wanted to feel that again. Ever.”

  “So you got the vasectomy?” Caroline shifted so she could run her fingers over his chest. She couldn't fault his reasoning. It was logical. Practical. She understood the need to take any steps to make sure that pain never returned.

  “Yes. I never imagined that there would come a time when I'd want a child. I didn't think I'd ever want a woman, either, but then there you were.” He covered her hand with his. “I love you.”

  “I love you, too.” Caroline wasn't sure how the conversation had turned to his vasectomy.

  “One of these days, I'd like to make a baby with you. The procedure is relatively simple to reverse. I may have looked a little online. I think it's something that we should talk about. Doesn't have to be now.”

  “I don't know the first thing about being a parent. You don't, either. It seems like that's two strikes to start. And then there's this. We chose this life. Our kid wouldn't have that luxury.” Caroline gripped his shirt in her hand, terrified at what he would say next. It could be a deal breaker for him.

  “You've never really known club life in peaceful times, Caroline. Things have been going to shit on the regular, but it's not always like this. Sometimes, it can be pretty boring.” He reached out and stroked his hand over her hair. “How about we talk about it again when things have calmed down some. We've got plenty of time.”

  Caroline nodded, buried her face against his chest, but she knew that there was a good chance that there wouldn't be plenty of time. Soon, things with Jake and The Wild Cards were going to come to a boil. She wasn't stupid enough to believe that they would come away unscathed.

  Chapter Seventeen

  “The phone is on. The phone is on.” Bones did a little victory dance as he came out into the bar with his laptop. “The GPS is working and places her...” He set the computer on the bar. “She's on Market Street. Wait, she's at the warehouse.”

  “Call Monroe. See if anyone's moved at the house.” Buster ordered. Bones nearly dropped his phone as he rushed to do so. A glance around the room showed him that only the most hardcore hang-arounds remained. All the girls were gone. Amelia and Caroline were sitting at one of the tables. They had been playing cards, but they'd stopped. “And take everything downstairs, now.”

  Nightshade was scattered about, all over the city. Ace was at the warehouse. Monroe was at the house. Train was upstairs, drugged to the gills because he'd torn the majority of his stitches earlier when he'd been determined to play a part in the surveillance.

  They were stretched too thin, even with the prospects that they'd taken on. Of course, no one could have seen them losing two members in one fell swoop. He sure hadn't thought it possible. Edge's betrayal, after they'd given him a second chance, was like a kick to the face.

  “You want me to get Train up?” Danny asked. “I can call Ace and Monroe back.”

  “Not yet. Let's hear what Monroe has to say first.” Buster motioned towards the basement door. “Not sure that it's a good idea to tell Ace she's in the warehouse. He's been a bit twitchy lately.”

  “You think? If you ask me, that whiny little twat he's banging isn't helping that much,” Danny replied. “You're thinking if she's there, he'd go all kamikaze?”

  “I think it's a possibility,” Buster replied.

  “Monroe says there's been no movement. He's seen Jake several times, once getting the paper and the other times through the windows. Ace says the warehouse is quiet.”

  “You called Ace?”

  “Figured I should if I was calling Monroe.” Bones replied. He looked between Danny and Buster, an expression of confusion on his face.

  “What did you tell Ace? Did you tell him about the phone turning on?”

  “Yeah.” Bones nodded. “Should I have not?”

  “Get him on the phone, Danny. Tell him to stay right where he is until I get there.” Buster turned his attention to Bones. The man was all but squirming. He couldn't give him too much shit, he hadn't thought not to spell out not to call Ace. “Relax, Bones. You did good tracing the phone.”

  “He said he's got no intention of going inside.” Danny ended the call. “Says to give him some credit, he's not exactly stupid. That said, I think that we need to get there, now. I didn't like his tone.”

  Buster nodded. “Bones, you stay here. Keep an eye on the women and the cameras. Once we're gone, don't let anyone else in. Think you can manage that?”

  “I've got it, Boss. You don't have to worry.”

  Buster knew that he was going to worry anyway. It was nothing against Bones, but they still didn't know enough about The Wild Cards to make an effective strike. And with their low numbers, they were going to have to rely heavily on The Street Kings. Even with the new friendship seemingly on solid ground, he didn't want to have to owe too many favors. There had been a time when he'd worried Royal would run the club into the ground. Now he was terrified that he was going to be the one who let it all far apart.

  <#<#<#<#

  “No one has been in or out since I've been here.” Ace lit a cigarette. “No trucks. No cars. So, either all of the Wild Cards live inside that building, or we've been watching the wrong place. I got closer.”

  Buster shot Ace a sharp look, which he, of course, ignored. “What did you see?”

  “Most of those cars in the lot aren't in shape to drive. I'm starting to think that this is a fucking decoy.” Ace began to pace. “I'm starting to think I'm tired of this asshole and his guys being one step ahead of us at every step. We've wasted too much time watching this place and that house.”

  “How close did you get? Close enough to look in the windows?” Buster wasn't sure he thought that Ace was wrong.

  “No.”

  “We wait until it's dark,” Buster decided. “Danny, you take over here for Ace. Ace, come on. We're heading back.”

  “No.”

  “Excuse me?” Buster hadn't expected an outright refusal.

  “I'll stay here. I'm good. I'm not going to go in or get close. I'll stay.” Ace tossed his cigarette. “Not that there's anything to see, if I'm right. Guess we'll find out in a few hours.”

  Buster realized he could order Ace, in no uncertain terms, to leave, but he didn't. He wasn't sure exactly what was going on in Ace's head, but he'd bet good money that it had something to do with Jillian. “Is this about her?” He asked directly.

  “No. This isn't about Jillian.”

  “Then how did you know that I was talking about her?” Buster asked. “Don't bullshit me. Don't bullshit us. Right now, Nightshade needs you at your best. That means that you need to sleep, get some food in you and shower. Definitely shower.” He grinned when Ace flipped up his middle finger at him. “Danny will stay. He'll keep an eye out. Tonight, we'll all come back. Get closer and see what we see.”

  “I got a fucked-up feeling about all of this. A fucked-up feeling abou
t her.” Ace lit another cigarette. “I can't shake it. I'm a fucking idiot.” He looked like he wanted something to hit. “She's married to the enemy, and I'm worried about her.”

  “It's because you love her, just say it. And don't even bring up Tabitha to me. That little twat is just a distraction, an annoying one at that.” Danny cleared his throat. “It must suck to know she's with Jake now, but it's the fact and you've got to deal with it.

  “Did I ask you?” Ace demanded. “Why don't you go back to the bar and try to knock up your wife?”

  “Hey!” Buster stepped between the two men. “We've got bigger fish to try. Once all this is over, you can beat the piss out of each other. How's that sound?” Both men stepped back, put the personal shit to the side, like he'd known that they would.

  <#<#<#<#

  Buster only let himself relax when Ace was upstairs and in the shower. He wasn't sure the man was going to come back at all, but he had. “Uh, Buster?” Bones came over, his voice just above a whisper. “I've got something that you should see like right now.”

  “What's going on?”

  “Downstairs. I don't want to show it up here.” Bones didn't wait for a response.

  Buster wasn't sure he wanted to see whatever it was, but he followed the man down to the basement regardless. “What do you have?”

  “About twenty minutes ago, Caroline's phone got a message from Jillian's phone. It was a video.” Bones cleared his throat. “Just watch and see. I put it on the laptop. It's cued up and ready to go.

  Buster sat, pressed play and couldn't resist the urge to snarl at the screen at the sight of Ace being filmed as he checked out the cars parked in the lot. The video cut off and began to play again. This time it was the inside of the warehouse.

  “What the fuck are you doing recording me?” Edge's voice made Buster sit up straighter. The man came into the frame with a frown on his face. “And where's my sister? You said that I'd get to see her by now.”

  “And you will. Calm yourself. She's still a little leery. After all, you did pimp smack her the last time that she saw you. You should also know, I haven't told her that you're going to be here or what you've done. You can do that yourself.”