His Beauty_The Wounded Souls

by Leah Sharelle

  Shifting to my right, I reached over and plucked the tiny little girl from her booster seat. Charlotte upgraded her from the highchair a few weeks ago and then helped Shiloh learn not to be so messy while eating, and so far, so good. The food stayed on her plate more often than not—something Trigger wasn’t too happy about. I looked down at my dog, lying at the foot of Shiloh’s chair with her head resting on the floor, unhappy with the lack of scraps not landing at her feet. Taking pity on her, I tossed her my uneaten piece of cold toast.

  “Squirt, things are changing around the compound with babies starting to arrive soon, and your brother is going to be first. But, kid, you are loved by so many people. I love you. Mannix and Creed and Booth love you. That big mongrel Darth is crazy about you.”

  Shiloh giggled when I called Darth a mongrel. God knew she would be calling him that as soon as she got the chance, and when she did, I would be laughing my arse off.

  “So I won’t have to go away when all the new babies come?” she asked, a look of shock and wonder on her beautiful, chubby face.

  My heart constricted at her question. Holy fuck. I was going to have one of these of my own in the not too distant future. What if I fucked up? What if she asked me these kinds of questions or worse? Sex questions? Jesus Christ. What if Shiloh and my daughter went out on double dates with boys who only wanted to get into their pants? Nope, no fucking way. Shit. Mia and I didn’t think this through. Maybe having unprotected sex—the first time, unintentional by both of us, but then it was totally intentional by me the other times—was not such a great idea in hindsight.

  Shaking my head, I kissed her soft cheek. “No, baby girl. If you were to go away, everyone would be so sad. I have lots of room in my heart for you and my baby, and your mum and dad love you so much. So does Unca Vinnie and Stella and my beauty. We love you, Shiloh—never forget that, ever. Okay, Squirt?” I took a deep breath and waited to see if I did good or made things worse.

  “Okay, sniper man, I lub you, too. Can you puts me back in my chair? I need to finish my brekkie before Mummy comes in and tries to feed me her yucky fruit and yogurt. God lub her,” she said. Shiloh shook her head like her father did when Teach dished food up to him at the mealtimes Stella wasn’t cooking. The pretty ballet dancer wasn’t known for her cooking skills.

  I couldn’t help barking out a laugh and sent up a silent prayer that my kid turned out just like Shiloh, sassy and cute as fuck. Lifting her back into the chair, I helped her with her sugary cereal and chocolate milk. Teach would have my arse for plying Shiloh with so much sugar, but it would be worth it. I loved my time with the little girl, and nothing would change that, no matter how many children Mia and I ended up having.

  The day Deck, her sole parent, brought Shiloh home from the hospital, we all took on the responsibility of raising her. Seven bad-arse soldiers turned bikers buried in pink and girlie shit was a sight to see, and I wouldn’t change anything about it. Shiloh was part of my heart, and until Mia, she was the only female who owned me.

  ————

  “VP, I got something interesting here.” Ford sat down at the picnic table I was currently at, watching Shiloh play with C.O.D and Trigger. The women were all busy with setting up the compound for the upcoming wedding this weekend.

  Deck and Charlotte refused to put it off any longer. Deck wanted Teach to have his last name before their baby was born, and as she was already halfway through her second trimester, he was kicking everything into high gear.

  I tried to help earlier, but when I mentioned that we could use planks of wood sitting on bricks from the construction site as seating, I was told to go away. The flock all rolled their eyes at me, my beauty included, so I ended up on Shiloh duty. To be honest, I was happy as fuck for that. What was it about women and weddings? Why did the seats need to be white and have ribbon shit all over them? I heard talk about tuxes and ties for the members to wear—yeah, that wasn’t going to happen. I barely tolerated my dress uniform when I had to wear it for formal occasions. When Mia and I got married, she was going to have to deal with me wearing my cut. A new pair of black jeans would be my compromise.

  Turning to Ford, I gave him my attention but kept Shiloh in my peripheral vision.

  “What did you find, brother?”

  “That ringtone shit. I found software that can be used. It’s some pretty high-tech stuff, but it can be done. All the person needs to know is what ringtone to use,” he said, his eyebrows furrowing.

  “So what you are saying is someone connected to us is telling this guy this stuff? We already came to that conclusion, Ford.” This was not news to me. Rogue had more or less told us as much.

  “But, brother, for him to achieve that, he needed not only the software but the phone itself. He got hold of Stella’s phone,” he said ominously. The implication made my blood run cold. Not only was someone selling or giving away intel, but they were also taking things from the club and handing it over. The only way this could happen was if that person is in the main compound. It wasn’t just an employee of one of the club’s businesses but an actual friend of the club—someone who had access to rooms and our personal possessions.

  I stared at Ford with what could only be rage.

  “The fuck you say.”

  “Yeah, VP, and there is more.”

  I growled. Fuck me. I needed Booth and the other guys here for this. Holding up my hand, I pointed in the direction of Shiloh.

  “Don’t take your eyes off her. We need everyone here for this.” I took off at a jog, knowing that Ford would do exactly as asked. He was just as attached to Shiloh as Darth was, and he spent a good deal of his day with her in his office. He did his computer geek shit keeping the club running smoothly while Squirt played on the computer he bought for her and loaded with C.O.D. The game not the dog.

  Heading in the direction of the wedding preparations, I braced myself for more bad news and internal terror.

  ————

  “Okay, so Rogue got hold of Stella’s phone and used software so her ringtone would come through when he calls me. That I understand. Why didn’t you know this, Ford?” Booth asked.

  When Ford explained how it happened, Booth lost his shit and threw the unopened can of soft drink, and the full can hit an outbuilding’s window, smashing it. The man needed to throw things that were less likely to break or break something. At least it wasn’t expensive GPS units or phones this time. But Deck was going to have to fix a window before the day was over.

  Ford actually squirmed in his seat. We were still outside at the picnic area. The girls didn’t know what was going on, and they were still prettying the outside for the wedding—Shiloh’s word, not mine.

  “Pres, it is hard to admit this, but this fucker is smarter than me. He isn’t afraid of using underhanded ways and questionable software. There isn’t much I can counter with when I am working within the parameters of the law,” Ford defended himself.

  I felt sorry for him. In the army, there was no one better than Ford. He helped us with enemy locations hundreds of times with better intel than we were getting from the main command. He was a genius, so this really had to be messing with him, but I knew Booth, and no matter how bad he wanted to flush out Rogue and take him down, he would not go black, he would not turn on his honour.

  “I got it, brother. Have you found anything on the security cameras?” Booth changed the line of questioning, obviously noticing Ford’s annoyance with himself.

  Relief flooded Ford’s features, and nodding his head vigorously, he pulled out a few A4-sized photos.

  “Sure did. These were taken a few weeks ago, late at night. I can’t make out the guy, but it seems like he is waiting for someone at the back of the property. Near where Stella used to get access to the garden shed.”

  Spreading the photos out on the table, we all took a good look. The images were grainy, but what I knew for sure was the person wasn’t a member, nor was he an employee of the Bar and Grill, the gun shop, the strip cl
ub, or the construction company. The other photos were of the day Mia and I argued, and the camera’s pictures showed one of all of the women standing by the door, one of Callie smirking, and one of Tori on her phone. Then there was one of Mia spitting fire at me. Studying that photo, I couldn’t help but smile at it. She was so pissed at me, even swore at me. Until it turned to shit and some fucker tried to hurt her and my baby.

  “Who in the fuck is that?” Darth growled and pointed at the man waiting near a Mustang. The car looked familiar. In the photo, I couldn’t tell if it was black or dark blue, but I had seen it somewhere before. I know I have. To my side, I felt a tapping on my leg and looked down to see Shiloh had come over, bored with her game with the dogs no doubt, and looking for her dinner.

  “Up, pretty boy,” she demanded, holding out her arms for me to pick her up.

  Which, of course, I did. We never told Shiloh to go away. Being so young, she wouldn’t understand much about this, anyway. We were careful not to mention Dundee around her too much or the car incident she was involved in, but other than that, we talked around her freely. Always had.

  I settled her on my hip, and then went back to looking at the images.

  “Whatcha looking at, boys?” Shiloh said in a singsong voice, leaning forward in my arms to get a look at the photos, trusting I had a good hold on her. Since she could walk, Shiloh had no fear and pushed the boundaries of safety. At first, Deck and the rest of us used to hover around her with cushions, blankets, anything that would soften her landings. But it soon became apparent she was just a daredevil at heart, so we just rolled with it, and now we didn’t so much as blink when she did things like this. We just held the fuck on—although her running made us hold our breath because the kid always wanted to run faster than her little legs would allow.

  “Hey, that’s the mean man,” Shiloh shouted angrily, pointing her chubby finger at one of the photos taken at the back of the club’s grounds.

  We froze, and then all heads whipped around to stare at Shiloh. Darth was the first one to speak up. The look of rage on his face spoke volumes. Thank God Deck had to take a quick trip with Charlotte and Mia for some more silk or some shit like that and wasn’t here.

  “Squirt, have you seen this man before?” Darth asked, controlling the anger in his voice.

  Shiloh’s head bobbed up and down rapidly. “Yep, sure have, ya big mongrel,” she answered, her grin at me giving me away.

  Darth glared at me for a brief second.

  Yep, I may be getting in the ring sooner rather than later.

  “How, baby girl?” I asked, trying to get Shiloh’s attention back to the matter at hand.

  “If I tell, bad things will happen to me.” The minute the words were out of her mouth, every one of us was on alert.

  Booth quickly moved to me, then took Shiloh gently from my arms and settled her on the table, sitting her on the photos and all.

  “Shiloh, nothing bad will ever happen to you. I won’t let it. Neither will Steel, Creed, Mannix, Darth, Ford, or your daddy,” Booth said vehemently, intensity ringing in his words.

  Shit just got really bad. Someone had threatened Shiloh, the club princess. Of all the bullshit going on with our women being threatened, beaten, ran off roads, hit by bikes, and nearly blown up, which was all fucking bad shit, to go after a four-year-old girl... Someone was going to die for that fucked-up crap.

  “But he said Mummy will get hurt, then Aunty Stella and Aunty Mia and Aunty Rainn. I didn’t say anything, Unca Coops, I promise, but sexy eyes gots hurt in the tummy. I promise I didn’t tell,” Shiloh cried. The big fat tears rolling down her sweet cheeks broke all our hearts.

  Creed shouldered past me, got down on his haunches, and took Shiloh’s face gently in his large hands.

  “No man, not anything or anyone, is ever going to hurt you or any of your aunties or your mummy. You know why?”

  Shiloh tried to shake her head the best she could with it being held in Creed’s palms.

  Creed leaned in closer until he touched Shiloh’s nose with his.

  “Because, baby girl, you are everything to us, and there is no goddamn chance in this world I am ever going to lose someone I love ever again. Got that, Squirt?”

  I could hear the tears clogging Creed’s throat. The other night when Rogue taunted my road captain, it obviously triggered something in Creed. His talk with my woman had a positive effect on him despite his torment. I had no idea what had been said between them, and I didn’t want to know. That was business between Creed and Mia. My only concern was it was bringing Creed back slowly and surely. Talking was the first and best step to achieve that. I wanted my mate back. I wanted to see Creed happy and smiling again one day.

  “Unca Creed, will you smile for me one day?”

  Oh, Jesus, out of the mouths of babes. I held my breath as I waited for the answer to the question we had all asked ourselves at one time or another over the last five years. Kissing Shiloh on the forehead, Creed sighed loudly.

  “Anything for you, baby girl. You will be the first in line,” Creed promised, and I believed him. Because if there was one thing you could count on, it was Creed keeping his word.

  Shiloh’s face lit up with the biggest smile, and it was a beautiful sight. She had been so sad and down since Dundee died.

  We were all silent for a long minute. We needed to find out what Shiloh knew about the guy in the photo because it was vital to finding Rogue and keeping all the women safe—our children safe—but this moment was just as important. Creed needed it to start healing, and Shiloh needed it to feel loved and secure.

  “Squirt, who is this guy?” Creed asked, pointing back at the grainy image.

  “Tori’s boyfriend. She called him Shifty,” Shiloh announced.

  I swear to God I heard every brother swallow audibly.

  “What in the ever-loving fuck?” Booth boomed. “Go call Deck. He is going to want to be in on this one. And find Tori,” he said to Mannix, who pulled his phone out of his pocket and started hitting buttons.

  I looked towards Booth, and without words, I knew what he was thinking.

  We were being screwed by someone we classed as part of the family.

  A betrayal that just wasn’t going to happen anymore.

  “War room,” I shouted. Fuck, there went my plans of being wrapped up in Mia all night. I would be lucky if I saw our room before the sun rose the next day. Reaching out, I picked Shiloh up and swung her up over my head and onto my shoulders, making her giggle.

  “Come on, Squirt. Let’s go see what Stells has in her kitchen.”

  30

  Mia

  I hadn’t seen Steel for over three hours. Something was going down, and the men were being unusually tight-lipped. Normally, we were kept informed about most things, especially with Rogue out on the loose, but when they came in and stormed into the war room, I got a bad feeling. Steel had taken Shiloh into the kitchen with Stella and then came out a few minutes later, only stopping to drop a chaste kiss on my lips and stomach and murmuring that he loved me. Then he disappeared down the long hall, and I hadn’t seen him since.

  “Does anyone have a clue what is going on?” Stella asked as she placed a plate of goodies down on the table before taking a seat next to me. The woman could cook the best main meals imaginable, but her real talent lay with her desserts, and her vanilla slices were my weakness. I just hoped this baby liked them as much as I did.

  Charlotte threw up at just about the smell of everything. It was actually funny—not her being sick but watching Deck every time she left the room in a hurry and headed to a bathroom. The poor man looked so guilty. I couldn’t wait until I got morning sickness and saw how Steel handled it. It would be a little payback for not using a condom deliberately, not that I minded, of course. This baby was the best thing that had ever happened to me. And to Steel, too. I knew I was going to love him or her, her if Steel had his way, but this baby was going to feel loved every single day of its life. It would never k
now the sting of rejection, the pain of being tossed aside, or the loss of affection from its life. No way.

  Reaching over to grab a caramel slice, Rainn took a big bite. “I’m not sure, but I heard Mannix ring Body and Souls demanding to know if Tori was there. If there is trouble, that bitch is behind it,” Rainn said, glaring at the caramel slice as she took another bite. She looked like she would rather be killing it than eating it, not sure why because Stell’s slices were to die for.

  “I don’t understand why Mannix keeps her dancing at the club. Okay, so she has a banging body and is definitely pretty if you like that slutty, big boob kind of girl. But damn, she is mean,” Charlotte added, picking up a cream-filled pastry and smelt it experimentally. She waited for a second or two before shrugging and put it all into her mouth in one go.

  Glancing around, I shared a look of disbelief with the other members of the flock. Holy shit! Prim and proper Charlotte was taking a holiday, and hungry pregnant Charlotte was in residence. Laughing at her, I shook my head.

  “That’s why Callie gets along with her so well. They are both mean, nasty, and callous women,” I agreed with her, nodding my head along with the others. We have all had some kind of run-in with Tori’s snarky attitude at one time or another, Rainn and I more than the others have because we worked with her a lot at the Bar and Grill and the strip club. Charlotte and Stella had more protection from her because they were the women of the SAA and the president of the club, and Tori knew her place, so she kept her nasty comments to herself. They still got the death glares, but she didn’t dare actually say anything to them. She wanted to keep her job and the privileges here at the compound. Free booze and willing men, yeah, she was living the dream. A hooker’s dream.

  “Yeah, well, I am sick of her shit. Maybe I can use my power as the president’s wife and have her thrown out on her cellulite, dimpled arse,” Stella said, tapping her finger on her chin as she gave it some real thought.