“I didn’t say they were bad, I just said that I hoped you weren’t hanging around with them, that’s all,” he said and I rolled my eyes and looked away from him. This was proving to be impossible. It was so difficult to get any information from him. We’d been sitting there for a while now and I still had nothing on him.
“Fine. It seems like I have to be the one making all the revelations around here. I hang around with the Dragon Knights crowd, if you’re interested,” I said with a humph and crossed my arms over my breasts. I knew that was a little childish of me, but I couldn’t help it. Gunner’s lack of interest in this conversation was beginning to annoy me.
When I looked back at him, I noticed that he was glaring at me like I had told him something terrible.
“Do you know who they are? They’re a motorcycle club,” I offered to him and Gunner snapped.
“I know who they are!”
I knew the kind of reputation the DK’s had in these parts, but I was family to them, I knew they weren’t as bad as people assumed they were. They were brash and rude and sometimes violent, but they were also the only family I had.
“Okay, so there,” I said to him. Gunner brought his face closer to mine over the table now and I could see that he was clenching his jaw.
“What are you doing hanging around with the Dragon Knights, Brooklyn?” he asked and I looked away from him, my nostrils were flaring.
“Well, they’re like family to me,” I said and I could sense his eyes on me.
“Brooklyn, look at me!” he snapped and even though there was a loud din in the bar around us, Gunner’s voice was high. I jerked my head around to him and then rolled my eyes when I saw how angry he looked.
“Relax, Gunner…they’re cool. I’m like a sister to them. I know how this sounds but if you grew up around guys like them, you’d know what I know,” I said and I could see that his shoulders were heaving. His biceps looked just as clenched as his jaws were.
“Oh yeah? And what is it that I would know?” he asked and I pushed a curl away from my eye, trying to assimilate my words. If anyone, I assumed that it would have been Gunner who would understand me, and why I associated with DK.
“That they’re just like everyone else. They just have a different way of life, that’s all,” I said, choosing my words wisely. I was wondering if it would be a good idea to reveal to him that my father and brother had both belonged to the club as well. Gunner looked distressed enough.
“You need to stop hanging around with them, Brooklyn. Right now,” he said in a lower guttural growl and I crossed my brows at him.
“What are you talking about?” I asked him and Gunner let out a deep sigh, like he was trying to control some kind of building up rage.
“You heard what I said, Brooklyn, you have to stop seeing them,” he said and I scoffed in disbelief.
I didn’t need another man in my life, who was jealous and protective about me. I already had enough of that to deal with from Viper and the rest of the guys. Gunner had seemed easier going than that, less violent about something like that. But now he was proving me wrong.
“You can’t tell me who I can see or not!” I said and Gunner banged the table with his fists, making me jump.
“Dammit Brooklyn, listen to me!” he barked and gritted his teeth again. “I’m serious here. This isn’t some game. You need to stop associating with them,” he said and I whipped my head away from him, pursing my lips together in angry disbelief.
I couldn’t believe this was actually happening. I barely knew him…and he knew nothing about me and he was already dictating who I could or could not see!
“I don’t need to listen to this,” I said and picking my purse up from the table, I made to get up.
“Brooklyn…please, just listen to me,” Gunner said and reached for my hand but I had already moved it away from his grasp.
“They’re just friends to me, Gunner, and I told you they’re like family. I didn’t peg you as the kind of guy who’d get jealous of my friends,” I said, whirling away from him. I could hear him following me through the bar as I made my way outside.
“Brooklyn!” I heard him call my name as I burst through the doors and out on the streets now.
“What?” I snapped, whipping around to face him.
“I’m not jealous. This has nothing to do with my feelings. I just want you to stop hanging out with them. Okay?” he said. I could see that he was still angry, but that he was trying to control his rage. The veins on his neck were pumped and throbbing, his face was darkened and for the first time, I felt a little frightened of him.
“No, it’s not okay! Not unless you admit that you want me to stop hanging out with my friends. We’re not even dating…I don’t even know the first thing about you!” I was screaming now and he was standing in front of me, clenching his hands on his sides.
“I won’t admit that because it’s not true. I don’t care how many friends you have or who you see. I just want you to stop seeing them!” he growled and I rolled my eyes.
“They’re my friends!” I said and Gunner pressed his eyes close and took in a deep breath.
“You need to listen to me,” he said.
“Why?” I countered him and he had nothing to say. He just stood there, glaring at me and trying to keep his temper in check.
I had enough people in my life who were protective of me and trying to tell me what to do. I didn’t need another one added to the list. Despite how angry I was with Gunner’s behavior though, I still wanted him. My attraction towards him hadn’t gone anywhere and I wished that we could just move on from this thing. I wished we could just turn back time to the previous night, when I was lying in his arms in his bed. Maybe it was a wrong move to try and get to know him.
“I’m not jealous of who you hang out with,” he finally said, in a low breathless voice and I rolled my eyes at him again. Crossing my arms over my breasts, I glared at him…waiting for an explanation, when his cellphone rang.
“Yeah,” he said, answering the phone, while still looking at me. I could see the ferocity in his eyes…the very eyes that I had been so attracted to…that I was still attracted to. But it felt like he was impossibly out of my reach now.
“Yeah. Now?” I heard him speak into the phone and then in the next moment, he snapped it shut. It was one of those cheap kind of burner phones and just like how bare his apartment was, Gunner’s life looked too simple to be believable. He was hiding something.
He fixed an icy blue stare on me again, as I stood in front of him with my arms crossed.
“I have to go,” he said, in a low grim voice and I widened my eyes at him. This was unbelievable!
“Where? We’re in the middle of a conversation,” I said and he pushed his phone back into the pocket of his dark jeans. His wide muscular thighs moved and I remembered how strong he was when he drove into me. How I was nothing but a helpless toy in his hands. I wanted that back. I wanted those moments back with him.
“This is not a conversation, Brooklyn. It’s an argument, which you seem to be winning,” he said.
“Try harder then, give me an explanation why I shouldn’t be hanging out with the Dragon Knights,” I said, recognizing the tremor that had now entered my voice. Gunner took in a deep breath and shook his head.
“I shouldn’t need to give you an explanation. You should be able to trust me,” he said.
“Trust you based on what?” I screeched and he shrugged his shoulders.
“I have to go, Brooklyn. Be safe,” he said and then turned from me. I watched him as he walked towards a Harley that was parked against a lamppost and I felt my mouth go dry. He was just leaving…like that! Without an explanation!
We were supposed to be on a date.
I watched in silence, with my nostrils flared and my breathing heavy, as Gunner swung his legs over his bike, strapped on his helmet and then rode off into the night.
My hands were quivering as I slipped my phone out of my purse. I needed huma
n company, to stop myself from going mad. Gunner had asked me to trust him…but, how could I? Especially now.
The truth was that there was nobody I could really trust anymore, now that Luke was gone. I knew it was my fault that I had harbored hopes with Gunner. I should have known that he was just like all the rest.
“Viper,” I said, when I heard his voice at the other end of the line. “Hey, my shift at PJ’s got cancelled. Are you guys at the bar?” I asked him. He said they were and that they’d wait for me there, and I slipped my phone back into my purse and started walking in that direction.
Just a few nights ago, Gunner had insisted that he didn’t want me going home alone at night, and today he’d just left me here by myself. What was so important that he couldn’t stay and explain himself to me? He made it seem like he had nothing important going on in his life to begin with.
I needed to cool off and I needed several drinks.
11
Gunner
Axel was sitting on the bar stool again. An emergency Church session had been called and Glock had called me to say that they needed me there. I was still angry with Brooklyn and how stubborn she was being. I couldn’t believe that she knew the guys at Dragon Knights and I wanted to believe that she had no idea what they were involved in.
“Quiet!” Axel called out and the hush died down in the bar. I was standing with Glock, Hunter, Sniper and Tank, and Axel and the others were looking at us.
“What did you find?” Axel asked and Tank was the one to speak first.
“We went to the warehouse like you asked us to, and at first everything seemed normal. Just a warehouse full of storage units,” Tank said and Axel nodded his head.
“Then this girl turned up. She was in tears and one of the guys yanked her around. She said that some chick called Candy had upset one of their clients by crying,” Glock continued and Axel fixed his eyes on me.
“So, what do you think is going on, Gunner?” Axel asked me and I clenched my jaw.
“They’re running a prostitution ring. They’re getting these girls to sleep with men for money. We don’t know who these clients are but there is definitely money involved and from what we saw; these guys don’t treat the girls well,” I said and Axel and I were staring at each other. He could see how pissed off I was.
“Motherfuckers,” he cursed under his breath, but loud enough for us to hear.
“This goes against every code for us,” Thor chipped in and people around us had started talking again.
“What do you think we should do, Gunner?” Axel asked me and I took in a deep breath. I was surprised that Axel had sought out my advice so soon. It must be because of my family, which filled my chest with pride. My father would be proud.
“They need to be taken out before more girls get involved,” I said and I couldn’t help but think of Brooklyn. I had no idea how she was involved with the Dragon Knights, but I wasn’t going to give up. I needed to get her out of their grasp, whatever hold they had on her.
“And we need to rescue the girls,” Hunter added and the others in the bar were nodding their heads and agreeing with what was being said.
“I can’t have this on my territory. It’s bad business,” Axel said, in a faraway voice like he was thinking.
“So, what are we going to do?” Sniper asked and Axel looked at us again.
“We’ll have to take them out,” he said and a louder chatter erupted in the bar.
“We can’t just take them out, Axel. There are rules,” Thor said to him, but I was glaring at Axel and he was glaring back. We were both thinking the same thing.
“This is what needs to be done. They’ve broken the rules by getting girls involved in this,” Axel said, snapping at Thor.
“We’ll be risking men’s lives,” Thor said and Axel looked around the bar.
“Who is too much of a pussy to not fight it out with the Dragon Knights and stop a prostitution ring?” Axel asked in a louder voice and a silence blanketed the bar again. Nobody raised their hand or stepped forward and I found a grin emerging on my face. In that moment, Axel reminded me of my dad. He knew how to get his way around here and the men respected him for it.
Axel looked back at Thor.
“There are the lives of innocent girls here at stake. It’s a prostitution ring, fucks sake. Which means that girls are being held against their will and being forced to have sex,” Axel said and I clenched my hands on my sides. The more we spoke about this, the more anxious I was to get to Brooklyn. She needed to distance herself from the Dragon Knights as quickly as possible. Even if that meant her leaving town. Even if that meant that I might never see her again. I had to get that woman safe.
“Tomorrow night,” Axel said and everyone began talking loudly. “The operation needs to happen tomorrow. We cannot let this continue for a day longer,” he added and I nodded my head.
While the others talked, I stepped up closer to Axel.
“This is what your father would have done, Gunner, and I can see you have his fire. Just like Bryce did,” Axel said and I clenched my jaw. He had no idea.
“I’ll be there,” I said to him in a low deep voice and he must have seen the burning flames in my eyes, because he reached out and thumped my shoulder.
“I know you will,” he said.
“But right now, I have to go and take care of something else. I need to leave,” I said to him and he seemed to hesitate for a few seconds.
“Go on,” he said and I turned and ran out of the bar, before Glock or one of the others could stop me.
I needed to find Brooklyn and I needed to make sure that she was nowhere near those bastards.
How had this happened? How had I fallen for the one woman out of everyone in Long Beach, who might get caught up in this crossfire between us and the Dragon Knights?
I didn’t want to imagine that she knew what was going on. She didn’t seem like she did. I was angry because she was being naive and stubborn, but I knew she had no reason to trust me.
I got on my Harley and rode off in the direction of PJ’s. I curse under my breath as I realized that I didn’t even know where she lived.
12
Gunner
I burst through the doors at PJ’s and found Sam behind the counter, serving drinks lazily.
“Gunner, man! I was expecting you,” he said with a smile on his face. When he noticed how grim I looked, the smile dropped.
“What’s going on?” he asked.
“Where’s Brooklyn?” I thundered and Sam looked confused.
“Brooklyn? She’s not here. She canceled her shift and I had to cover for her last minute,” Sam said and I ran a hand through my hair.
“Can you give me her address?” I asked, ready to put my helmet back on.
“Look man, I know you and all, but I can’t go around giving her address out to everyone who asks, man,” Sam was shaking his head and I reached over the counter and grabbed him by his shirt collar. I could sense some of the guys at the bar turning to look at us, but I didn’t care.
“I appreciate your concern, Sam, but I really need to know where she is,” I hissed through gritted teeth. I could see that Sam was squirming. We’d known each other for several years and he hadn’t ever seen me lose my temper.
“Okay, okay…” he said and I loosened my grip on his shirt. He shot me an angry look before giving me the address to her apartment.
“Thanks, Sam,” I said and turned to walk away from him and stopped in my tracks at the last minute.
“And I’m sorry about all this. I just really need to see her,” I said and Sam scowled at me but nodded his head.
“Whatever man,” he said and I decided to deal with him later. I owed him a drink for all these favors he was doing me.
Back on my bike, I rode at full speed dodging traffic dangerously, as I made my way to her apartment building. Sam had told me she lived on the sixth floor and I jumped off my bike. Someone was just leaving the building so I didn’t need to be buzzed in.
I took the stairs two at a time, till I was banging on her door.
“Brooklyn! Open up. It’s me. We need to talk!” I was barking and someone opened the door of their apartment down the hall. I glared at the guy and he slunk back in.
“Brooklyn! I want to apologize. Just open up,” I shouted, but there were no sounds in her apartment. I stood there, banging on her door for several minutes longer till I decided that she wasn’t there.
On my way down to the bike, I tried her phone number but it rang away. It could have been that she was avoiding my calls and she had every right to. She obviously had no idea how desperate I was to find her.
I sat back on my bike and gripped the accelerators tightly, trying to decide where to go next, when the thought struck me. We’d just had a fight. I’d commanded her not to see the Dragon Knights and she had stubbornly claimed that she wouldn’t stop seeing her friends. So, if I ditched her at the last minute…in the middle of an argument…where would she go?
She’d go straight to the fucking Dragon Knights.
***
I parked my bike at a nearby building from The Bird. The bar I knew belonged to the Dragon Knights, and I didn’t want to risk causing anything by pulling up in front with my bike. The lights from inside the bar were spilling out on the dark pavements, and I walked cautiously towards the door. There was grunge music being played loudly inside, and rows of bikes and muscle cars were parked outside. Clearly, most members of the club were inside and I was going to be walking right into the Devil’s lair.
No outsiders ever visited The Bird. Just like our own Rusty Pelican, The Bird was exclusively frequented by DK members and they’d be able to sniff me out the moment I entered the place.
And there was no way I’d be mistaken for someone else. Everyone in these parts knew the Alton family. They all knew Bryce and they especially knew my dad and I was certain that they would know me by face as well, even if I didn’t know them. Most people claimed that I was the spitting image of my father.
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