Forgiveness

by Elise St. George

  Chapter 36 - Steve, 25 years old

  I am on cloud nine right now, she’s going to give our relationship a chance again. I’m almost hesitant to leave her, but I have to go to work and she’s going over to Ace’s cabin. Apparently, I was right to lead Ace in Mickie’s direction because they’re slowly becoming a thing. I knew he was smitten with her the moment they locked eyes in that holding cell. Apparently, Ace and Mickie are going to the baby doctor, my boss’s ex-wife, and Harley and Ms. Janie are going to the house to start working on a nursery for Mickie. I’m glad Ace has found someone...he does so much for all of us and he deserves some happiness. I’m glad he’s found it.

  Harley leaves my place and heads home to change clothes before heading over to Ace’s while I get dressed for work. I get in my car and head to the courthouse and everyone is looking at me weird. I walk into the judge’s chambers and start getting ready for the day. I listen as his clerk tells him what cases are on the docket today, and they both keep looking at me weird. Why is everyone looking at me so funny? Is there something on my damn face?

  “What are y’all looking at?” I ask. “In fact, why is everyone looking at me weird today?”

  “Well,” starts Melanie, the judge’s clerk. “This is the first time that I’ve ever seen you smile since you’ve started working here. I mean, the judge said it’s possible but I don’t think any of us actually believed it was possible until today.”

  She walks off as Judge Reynolds starts laughing. Have I really never smiled since I started working here?

  “I know what you’re thinking,” Judge Reynolds begins. “No, you haven’t smiled once since you’ve worked here. Don’t forget, my boy, I officiated your wedding so I’ve seen you during the happiest moment of your life. I know it’s possible.”

  “Since you brought up my wedding,” I say. “After last night, if things keep going the way they’re going, you could be officiated our wedding again soon.”

  “Our wedding?” the judge says with raised eyebrows. That man doesn’t miss a damn beat. My face turns beet red because I realize that I’m jumping to conclusions. It’s only been one damn day, but I’m not taking any chances.

  “I was with Harley last night,” I whisper and he starts beaming.

  “I was waiting for the two of you to get your shit together. I’m glad it’s finally happening,” he tells me.

  I laugh and shake my head while we get started. The first two cases are pretty straightforward, and I’m coming to appreciate it. The best part about being in a small town like this is that the people in our courtroom are pretty much the same people day in and day out. We don’t really have too many ‘high profile’ cases, unlike Atlanta.

  The judge and I are sitting in his chambers eating lunch when I get a text from Harley. At first, I ignore it until I realize she’s blowing my phone up.

  “You should check it, son,” the judge says.

  I check my phone and immediately start to freak out, and the judge sees the panic on my face. The thing about being a judge is that you become a really good people person after a while, and he’s great at reading people’s expressions.

  “Harley just texted me. Davenport junior and senior just showed up at Ace’s house demanding to take Mickie home, and I know for a fact that Ace and Mickie aren’t there because they had an appointment with Sue this morning,” I tell him.

  “So it’s just Harley and Janie alone at the house with those two men?” he asks.

  I nod.

  “Well, what are you still doing here, son? Get your ass over to that house ASAP...go make sure our girls are safe,” he says while damn near shoving me out the door.

  I had a feeling he had a thing for Ms. Janie, and I’m pretty sure Harley is the only one who’s oblivious to it. I jump in my car and head over to Ace’s cabin. I haven’t been over here since he (also) kept me hostage to sober me up, except it actually stuck that time. I quit drinking and started smoking weed again, and trust and believe, the weed is a lot better for me than the alcohol.

  When I walk in I see Ms. Janie and Harley standing together while Ratchet and Ace are shielding Mickie. Meanwhile, Mickie’s dad and brother are across from them and it’s pretty much a standoff. Ratchet and Ace look like they’re waiting for a reason to beat the hell out of these two men, and I feel like a street cop breaking up domestic violence cases again.

  “Is there is a problem here?” I say knowing damn well what the problem is.

  “No problems here officer,” Dwayne Davenport Sr. says. “Just trying to bring my daughter home.”

  “Your daughter,” I start. “You mean the daughter who you let get carted off to jail and never once checked on her or visited her? The daughter that Ace here offered a place to stay, despite the fact that she was a Davenport. From my understanding, your family has been trying to run him out of business for years...why would he offer to take your daughter into his home when she could easily be a plant by you?”

  Senior and junior’s jaws drop and I turn to Ace with a smirk. I am so fucking tired of these ppl and the crooked ass way they move. I want them to know whose side I’m on, and it’s not their side.

  “Ace, are these men trespassing on your property?” I ask with my authoritative cop voice.

  “They sure are, officer,” he responds.

  “Sirs,” I say. “I’m going to need you both to leave the property, or else I’m going to be forced to arrest you both for trespassing. I’m sure that won’t look good on your family when it hits the local paper.”

  The possibility of a family scandal makes them both back down quickly and they tuck their tail between their legs and run, but I have a feeling they haven’t given up. They’re more afraid of the Davenport matriarch than they are of the Burnt Kings MC. Ms. Janie casually reminds Steve that Mickie ran upstairs, and he follows her while the rest of us stand in the living room. Ratchet and Ms. Janie keep giving us the side-eye and I’m beginning to feel uncomfortable as hell so I decide to break the ice.

  “Hey momma,” I say to Ms. Janie. She automatically melts because she’s been pushing me to call her that for years and I hope that it will distract her from asking questions.

  “Nice try, Steve,” says Ratchet. “How did you know they were here?”

  Ugh. He’s so damn nosy. Ratchet and Brandon would do two peas in a pod, I swear.

  “I called Steve,” admits Harley.

  “Huh,” Ratchet says. “Last I heard, you were avoiding Steve like the plague. Why did you call him?”

  “Um,” she says nervously so I step in to answer for her.

  “We’re working things out,” I interrupt. He looks back and forth between us while Ms. Janie beams.

  “I knew you two would work it out!” she exclaims. “I’m so happy for you.”

  She takes Harley into the kitchen and Ratchet just stands there staring at me. After about a minute, his face splits into a huge smile.

  “I had a feeling you two would end up back together. Everyone thought y’all ended things way too soon,” he tells me.

  “Yea, man,” I say. “That was a little out of my hands though, I never wanted to end things with Harley. I definitely don’t plan on ending things with her anytime soon.”

  He looks at me hard, nods his head, and gives me a hug. I tell him goodbye and then walk into the kitchen to say bye to Ms. Janie and Harley before heading back to work.

  “Leaving so soon, Stevie baby?” Ms. Janie asks me. I smile at the nickname and kiss her on the cheek.

  “Yea, momma,” I say. “You seriously think Judge Joe would let me leave work to check on y’all without coming back and telling him what happened?”

  Harley and Ms. Janie both laugh. They know how overprotective that man is of this family, and he’s always been that way. Hammer, Joe, and Janie grew up in Winslow before a club was even established here. I head back to work and brief him on what happened at the house, and he just listens to my story and shakes his head. He knows how much of a problem the Davenpor
t family is, and it’s sad to hear that they’re basically harassing and threatening their pregnant daughter.

  Harley agreed to grab some clothes from her house and spend the night with me tonight, and I decide to call mom on the way home to tell her and Doug the news. Mom finally left dad. She did it because of how much he meddled in my relationship with Harley. Obviously, mom knew how bad things were for me and she couldn’t even look at my father after she confirmed the Crystal story. Apparently, Crystal didn’t accidentally stumble upon the shelter. She was sent there by my dad. I was too messed up to be angry about it, but that was the last straw for mom. Ghost offered her a place to stay in Atlanta, and she jumped at the opportunity. She’s living in mine and Harley’s old apartment, surrounded by club members so it’ll be hard for my dad to find her. I call her and she immediately picks up.

  “Hey mom,” I say.

  “Hey baby boy,” she immediately answers. I hear her talk in the background for a little bit. “Bear and Ghost say hello too.”

  Of course they’d be at mom’s apartment. “Cool, well then put me on speakerphone because I have something to tell y’all.”

  “You’re on speaker,” she says.

  “Harley and I are getting back together,” I say. Then I have to pull the phone away from my ear with all the screaming in the background.

  “I’m so excited for you two,” mom yells. “You two never really gave your relationship a chance.”

  “That’s what I keep hearing,” I grouse. We make small talk until I pull into the house and see Harley’s bike, and I realize that I never gave her a key. I say goodbye to mom, Ghost, and Bear before I head inside the house. Harley has already gotten comfortable because she’s sitting on my bed playing my Playstation and cussing people out on my headset. I burst out laughing, which causes her attention to focus on me. When she sees me, she logs off of the game and gives me a kiss.

  “How did you get in?” I ask.

  “I picked the lock,” she says with a chuckle.

  “Oh,” I say wiggling my eyebrows. “Breaking and entering I see. Put your hands behind your back young lady and spread your legs.”

  She giggles. “Ok, officer.”

  She spreads her legs and I trail my hands up and realize she’s not wearing any panties under my shirt. She moans and I shudder before my finger circles her clit. She moans again and pushes her ass into my cock, making me moan. I can’t take it. I rip her shirt off and pick her up. She squeals and I head into the bathroom and turn the shower on. I get undressed while the shower heats up and she’s already in there when I step inside.

  I lather up some soap in my head and rub it all over her body while I gently kiss her neck, and when I hear her soft panting and moaning and I know she’s ready for me. I gently pin her up against the wall and enter her slowly because I plan to take my time. I fuck her slowly while whispering to her how much I love and missed her, and I can tell that my words are turning her on. I feel her pussy clench around me and I know I won’t be able to hold on much longer. I keep a steady pace until I feel her pussy clench hard around me again so I pick up the pace. She starts screaming my name, which always tips me over the edge. Nothing better for your ego than a woman screaming your name in ecstasy. I fuck her faster until she’s basically squeezing the life out of me, and I keep thrusting into her until I have to let go. I scream her name in release and we both pretty much sit in the bottom of the shower until the hot water runs out.

  I reach up and turn the shower off before drying Harley off and carry her to the bed. She snuggles under my arm and I sit back thinking that life couldn’t be any better.

  * * *

  It’s been a couple of months since all the drama with Mickie and her family, and life with Harley is going great. My apartment lease ended a few weeks ago and Harley agreed to get a bigger apartment with me. We’ve been living with each other for a couple of weeks now and it’s been great. The only problem is that there’s been something on my mind that I can’t really shake.

  I’ve been on the rotating security detail, when I can, for Mickie ever since her father and brother popped up at the house. I asked to do it so his family knows that the Burnt Kings have a cop on their side. I’ve been spending time with some of the Burnt Kings’s club members while on security rotation, and I’m starting to think about making some serious changes in my life. I call Ghost and Bear on three-way to get a second opinion.

  “What’s on your mind, son?” Bear asks.

  “I’m thinking about quitting my job and joining the Winslow chapter,” I blurt out. The other side is silent until both men start laughing.

  “What’s so funny?” I ask.

  “We were wondering when you were going to come to that conclusion, son. You’re in a relationship with a club princess and spend most of your time around the members of the club. You’ve become a hang around without even realizing it,” Ghost informs me.

  I know a hang around is the step before becoming an official prospect of the club, but I hadn’t even realized that’s what I was doing. I was just hanging out with the guys. Bear clears his throat.

  “Your mom was wondering when you were going to wise up and quit that crooked ass sheriff’s office in Winslow. She stole some files from your father that she was going to give you, which is why she lived in the club’s apartment complex. We couldn’t risk your father finding her and most of the club properties are in the name of an LLC so the club’s name isn’t officially attached to the property. Judge Reynolds has the file and your mom told him to give it to you when you asked for them,” he tells me.

  “What type of files?” I ask.

  “You’ll just have to see them for yourself,” he responds.

  We have a quick chat about what to expect when prospecting for the club before I hang up with both of them and head to Judge Reynold’s house. I knock on his door, and he opens it.

  “Steve, my boy. What can I do for you?” he asks me.

  “Bear told me something about a file my mom gave you before she moved to Atlanta,” I start.

  “Oh, yea. Before becoming a judge, I was an attorney. I’m in charge of your mom’s estate,” he informs me.

  “Really?” I ask.

  “Yea, she wanted to keep it a secret from your father. You know he’s not the most upstanding individual in the world, and your mom would never put it past him to make sure she ‘accidentally’ died. She mailed this file to me right after she left Winslow...I had a feeling its information that your father would kill for,” he tells me.

  “You haven’t looked?” I ask. He shakes his head.

  “She said it was for your eyes only,” he told me.

  He leads me to his office and hands me the file. I open it and skim it quickly and my jaw drops. Dad was keeping information on the Davenoports just in case they ever screwed him over. It’s not surprising, but mom also included correspondence between dad and Loretta Davenport proving all the cases and bodies he’s buried for her. Holy fucking shit.

  “Don’t tell me what’s in that folder,” Judge Reynolds tells me. “I’m a judge.”

  “For how long?” I ask knowingly and he looks at me before taking a deep sigh.

  “I’ve been thinking about retiring for a while, son. I want to go back to being a prosecutor...there are a lot of people in this town who need prosecution, and the current district attorney is too afraid to handle it. He’s been asking me to step down for a while now and become an assistant district attorney so I can take over and mentor him on the cases that I may have to recuse myself from,” he admits. “I haven’t taken the offer because of you. You won’t have a job if I retire.”

  This man has picked me up when I was at my lowest, and even though I’m back on my feet, he’s still looking out for me.

  “The reason I asked for this file is that I was thinking of quitting to prospect for the Burnt Kings,” I admit.

  He starts laughing and comes to hug me, which I return with full force.

  “You should
put in that resignation now and accept that offer,” I whisper. “Based on this file, you’ll have plenty of work as a prosecutor.”

  On my way out, my phone rings. It’s Ace. I pick up the phone and he tells me that the Davenports kidnapped Mickie. I tell the judge what is going on and her follows behind me in his car. I rush to his cabin because I know this file could make sure the Davenports never bother Ace’s new family again. It takes me less than two minutes to get to the house since the cabin is down the street from Judge Reynolds. I may talk to Harley about building a cabin in this area.

  As soon as I walk in, Sue and Harley run to me in tears and I just hold them both in my arms. Joe comes up behind us and we all wait for Ace. Ace runs in with Ratchet and sees who’s here so far.

  “We need to get her back,” he says to me. When I nod, he shakes his head.

  “We need to get her back, and we probably won’t do it the legal way so you and Uncle Joe need to leave,” he says.

  “You’re right boy,” Joe says. “I can’t be a party to this, but make sure you do everything to ensure you don’t go back to jail son.”

  “You go with him, Janie,” Hammer says. “That way we’ll know you’re safe. You know I need to stay behind and help save our girl.” He kisses her forehead and she walks over to Uncle Joe who takes her to the car. Well, that’s an interesting turn of events.

  “That’s a good idea,” Ace says. “Harley, I texted my top three enforcers and my VP, but can you go to the clubhouse and send them here just in case they didn’t get the memo.”

  She nods and heads out with Sue.

  “So,” Ratchet says. “What’s that in your hand?”

  I’m nervous now. I thought I’d have more time to give them this information. Hell, I still can’t get over the fact that mom squirreled all this away.

  “I’m quitting the force,” I say quietly.

  “What happened?” Ace ask.

  “I found out the Davenports have been paying the sheriff’s office to try and set you up with trafficking charges. My mom left a file for me. It’s evidence of all the Davenports shady business,” he says. “There’s a lot of other stuff that I found out, but it really only concerns your sister and me.”