Out of Darkness

by Laramie Briscoe

  A Dutch oven sat on one of the burners. “What else do we have?” he peered inside, groaning. “Seriously? Homemade pot roast and cornbread? I’m in heaven.”

  Tyler shot him a glare. “Quit flapping your damn gums and get the food so the rest of us can eat too. I’m just as hungry as you are, damn.”

  The ladies laughed as they went back and forth with each other before they all sat down together at the table. Dinner was comfortable with the four of them, like it always was. Numerous times throughout the meal, Tyler and Liam had exchanged glances, almost like they didn’t want to look at the information that had been given to them. They seemed to be having too good of a time.

  Tyler and Liam cleared the table and put away the leftovers while the girls washed the dishes they had dirtied up. Afterwards, they all had a seat at the kitchen table again, drinking coffee and just talking.

  “Why did you really invite us here?” Denise asked out of the blue. “I’m a mother, and I’ve noticed the looks that the two of you have been shooting at one another all night. I’ve seen those looks before between the twins. Why don’t you just be honest with us?”

  Tyler swallowed hard. He didn’t want to ruin the easy camaraderie that had developed over the night, but he didn’t want to lie to them either.

  “We talked to Rooster the other day. We asked him if he could get us a complete dump on William’s phone. That meant text, pictures, calls, emails, GPS locations. He was able to get us what we wanted, and he gave it to us today. Liam and I want to be straight with the two of you, and we thought we should go through it together. We had to get somewhere that William couldn’t just walk in. So we chose here.”

  Meredith felt a lot of the warmth that had seeped into her bones leave, but she understood this and the reason for it.

  “Well what are we waiting for?” she asked. “Let’s do this.”

  Chapter Thirty-Four

  Meredith sat in shock as she watched a video of the night of her attack. In the envelope there had also been a USB Drive. She hadn’t been sure she had wanted to see what it held, but knew that after all the other incriminating evidence they had viewed, it had to be something big. Someone had been in the bushes that night filming, they had heard her scream for help and hadn’t come to her rescue.

  Denise choked back sobs as she held onto Meredith’s hand beside her. “Let’s turn this off,” she pleaded.

  “No,” Meredith stopped her. “I have to see this. I have to see what he saw while he heard me screaming for help and didn’t come to my rescue. I need to know what kind of a bastard he really is.”

  “I’ve seen enough,” Tyler whispered, getting up from the table and making his way to the other room.

  He had a seat on the couch, putting his head in his hands. Most of the information they had received had been text messages and voice mails that detailed the planning of her attack and set up that would bring the club down on her. What William hadn’t counted on was the depth of Tyler’s feelings for her, that was apparent. He had a need to kill William. To feel his bones break and to see the blood pour from his body.

  “You okay?” Liam asked as he walked over to carefully sit next to his friend.

  Tyler’s temper could sometimes get the better of him. The beast could sometimes come out, and Liam knew it was close.

  “Not at all. I want to murder your father, my President, with my own two hands. I want to slowly put knife marks in his body and let him bleed out a painful death. I want to take the guy that did this and cut his cock off so I can shove it down his throat.”

  “We have to sit on this. We still don’t know who the guy is that actually raped her. We get both of them at the same time. Otherwise, William will tell him and let him run.”

  Tyler knew the words Liam spoke were truth, but it didn’t make anything easier.

  “That was the most disgusting thing I have ever seen in my life. The fact that a man can sit by and watch as a woman screams for help while her body is violated…” he stopped and took a deep breath. “I just can’t fathom it.”

  “That’s because we are way better men than my father will ever be.”

  Liam sensed he needed to turn this conversation onto another direction or things would get very dark in his friend’s head. “We need to figure out what to do about the other information we found. He’s been playing both sides of this goddamn protection business. Getting paid by us and then getting paid by the Vojnik on the runs he leaks the information to. No wonder these trucks need protection. The Vojnik know exactly what’s on them and where they’re going.”

  Tyler leaned his head against the couch. “There’s not a damn thing we can do tonight. We need to think about this carefully, and we need to figure out who actually raped her before we go pointing fingers.”

  “Agreed, we go on with life as normal as possible. You keep that savage temper of yours under control.”

  “I will,” Tyler promised. “I’ll do it because I want justice for her. I want her to be able to feel comfortable again, and that won’t fully happen until we find this fucker.”

  “I’m trusting you, Ty. You keep your shit locked down.”

  “I know.”

  Liam got up and went back to the kitchen, collecting Denise.

  After they left the house filled with a thundering silence. It was so loud it roared in his ears. He didn’t know what to do, what to say to Meredith. Before, when he hadn’t really known what had happened, it had been easier. Now, he just wasn’t sure how to approach her.

  An hour later, she walked slowly in the living room. Her face was pale, her eyes red. He opened his arms to her, and she collapsed next to his body.

  “Are you okay?” she asked him.

  His laugh was hollow. “I should be asking you that.”

  “I lived through it once. You, on the other hand, had never seen it. I’m sure it was a shock.”

  He cleared his throat. “It was a lot more savage than I thought. A lot more violent. You’re so well-adjusted now, I just thought it was different. If that makes sense.”

  It didn’t really to her, but she decided to just overlook that. It was obvious he was still trying to come to grips with what he had seen on the video. “I’m that well-adjusted because of you. You’ve made me who I am today. I can never repay you for that.”

  “Yes you can,” he told her, tightening his arms around her. “Don’t ever leave me.”

  She smiled up into his face. “I hadn’t planned on it.”

  The two of them sat in silence, enjoying each other’s company. After a while, she turned to face him. “How do we play this? Now that we know he ordered this. What do we do?”

  “I know you’re gonna hate hearing this, but we’re going to act like nothing has changed. We can’t let him suspect we have this information. If we let on that we do, he could tell your rapist and then he could run. I don’t want that. I want the pleasure of the kill.”

  She nodded, understanding why they wanted to play it like this and even looking forward to it. Over the past few weeks, she had decided that enough was enough. “I want that too.”

  Acting like nothing has happened is driving me nuts. I even started packing the gun that Tyler taught me how to use. I carry it with me at all times. It’s small and couldn’t kill anyone, but it gives me peace of mind. I know that both Tyler and Liam believe that it’s what’s best for now, but I would give anything to let William know just how precious his time left here is. I want to see Tyler beat the shit out of him. Maybe I’m beginning to become a little savage myself.

  “You’re coming to my show right?”

  Meredith glanced up from her journal into the mischievous eyes of Jagger. “What show?”

  “I’m playing Wet Wanda’s the day after Thanksgiving, it’s gonna be bigger than normal. I’m officially inviting everybody.”

  “Like with a band and everything?” she asked, excited for the young man she had come to know so well.

  “Just me and my guitar. I’m a li
ttle nervous. I’d like for you to be there.”

  She had heard him humming around the clubhouse, singing softly to the radio every once in a while. He did have a good voice. She was excited for him. “I will totally be there. I’ll get Tyler to come too, and he can muscle my way to the front row.”

  Satisfied with her answer, he grinned, already looking for something else to do.

  “What was that about?” Tyler asked as he had a seat next to her, putting his big arm around her shoulders.

  She sank into the weight, welcoming it. “Jagger is apparently playing a show at Wet Wanda’s the day after Thanksgiving. He wants me to come, and I want you to use those big, powerful muscles to get me up front.” She emphasized the words big and powerful with a breathless voice.

  “Oh, you’re good,” he grinned. “You know I’ll do anything you want me to do.”

  “Great. Then it’s a date.”

  He liked the sound of that. “Sounds like a good time.”

  “Anytime I get to spend with you is a good time. Speaking of time spent together, can we go to the dorm room for a minute?”

  He lifted his eyebrows up seductively. “Yeah? It’s the middle of the day.”

  She hit him in the stomach. “Not for that. I want to talk to you about something.”

  Without a word, he grabbed her hand and led her to the room that he called his. Shutting the door, he put a finger to his lips and then pulled out a device she had seen him use a couple of times. In minutes he’d swept the room for bugs.

  “We’re clear, what’s up?”

  “I had an appointment with my therapist this morning about the video. She wanted me to ask you something.”

  “What’s that?” he asked, having a seat. The mention of the video still made his gut churn and still made him want to kill someone.

  “Do you need to go talk to her? Alone? You know, about what you saw?”

  That question floored him. He was actually speechless. He struggled to answer it.

  “I mean, I don’t wanna put you on the spot. But I know it was a shock to you, and I know you weren’t expecting it. I wouldn’t think less of you if you wanted to talk to her. She just wanted me to throw that out there to you. It doesn’t matter to me what you decide.”

  He realized that she was doing this for him, and that made his heart swell. “After this is over, I think I will. I think we both should together. But I wanna keep this anger for now.”

  She could appreciate and live with that.

  Chapter Thirty-Five

  Thanksgiving

  “Are you going to be okay doing this?” Tyler asked as he and Meredith got ready for the big Thanksgiving dinner with the club.

  “I could ask you the same thing, as well as Liam and Denise. Things are going to be fine,” she assured him.

  Thanksgiving dinner was a huge tradition with the club. Given that so many of them came from broken homes, a lot of members wouldn’t have a place to go for the holidays. So the club provided the traditional meal.

  “Are you sure you don’t want to go visit your family today?”

  Meredith shook her head. The love she saw amongst this group of outlaws was more than she had seen in her family in a long time. “No, the only thing my dad’s going to ask me is if I’ve decided to put the college education he paid for to use again. My mom will just sit there and nod. I’d much rather stay here.”

  Tyler didn’t have family, so he didn’t really understand the dynamic. “If you say so.”

  “I do.”

  They made their way into the dining area of the clubhouse. The large table that could hold everyone sat decorated, and Meredith had to hold the intake of breath. They really did go all out for this. They had good plates as well as tablecloths on the table. Each chair had a place setting, and it looked like there were even linen napkins as well. She noticed that every place setting had a cup except for Tyler’s. Jagger caught her eye and winked.

  “If you want your mug, you’re gonna have to get it yourself.”

  The group laughed, remembering the ‘curse of the skull mug’. Tyler’s laugh was full bodied, and she thought she saw tears at the corners of his eyes. They all had a seat and started passing around the food. Once everyone had their plate full, William stood at the head of the table.

  “It’s a tradition here at Club Heaven Hill every Thanksgiving, we go around the table and tell what we’re thankful for. I’ll go ahead and start. I’m thankful for the prosperity of the club, and the fact that we’ve continued to stay relevant in a changing political and economic climate.”

  Up next was Liam, who cleared his throat and put his arm around Denise’s shoulders. “I’m thankful for my new family and the friendships I’ve been able to maintain. Without that, my life wouldn’t be anything, and this year I figured that out.”

  It went down the line to a few more people when it came to Drew. He fidgeted in his seat, playing with this glass. “What are you thankful for?” Denise asked, looking at her son.

  “I’m thankful for Tyler agreeing to work out with me. I’m thankful for the new brother or sister I’m going to have. I’m thankful for us coming to this place. We’ve never really had a family before, and I’ve never had a dad before. I’m glad I have one now.”

  That took the breath out of everyone. He had never called Liam Dad before, never even mentioned it.

  “You sure?” Liam asked, shock and pride apparent on his face.

  “I am, we both talked about it. You are our dad no matter what,” Drew motioned to Mandy who nodded.

  She was the quieter of the two and almost always deferred to Drew when things like this came up. It was so good to see her agree.

  “I’ve been calling you my kids to everyone but the two of you, so I’m glad you think of me the same,” Liam choked out.

  He stood up and went around the table to hug both of them. Everyone watched the group, happy that so many had found happiness in their situations this year. The table came around to Meredith and Tyler.

  Meredith cleared her throat. “I’m thankful this year for the trials and tribulations I’ve had. They’ve made me appreciate the good times, and they’ve brought me to this place and to this man who I care about more than I can say.”

  Tyler wanted to tell William exactly what they knew and that he should enjoy his last holiday here with the club he supposedly loved so much. But he couldn’t bring himself to do it. Not with the kids around and not before he had a chance to exact his revenge. “I’m thankful also for the universe bringing me this beautiful woman.”

  Everyone raised their glasses in salute. When he saluted his, he looked straight at William, a smile on his face.

  The group at the table sat around eating dessert and drinking coffee a few hours later. William had made an abrupt exit, and Liam got up on the pretense of having a cigarette. Minutes later, he texted Tyler to let him know that an unknown car had come to pick William up and had driven off down the road. Liam texted the license plate information to Rooster, hoping he could run a search on it. Everyone else went on with business as usual.

  Beside him, Meredith crossed and uncrossed her legs, turning to face Jagger. “Did you invite everyone tomorrow night?”

  “What’s she talking about?” Steele asked.

  Jagger’s face turned red. “I hadn’t, but I guess I will now. I’m playing a show at Wet Wanda’s, and you’re all welcome to come if you want.” Even though he had played shows there before, he’d never actually invited everyone. This would be big if they all came.

  “I’ve heard you sing when you think no one is around. You’re not half bad. I’ll be there,” Travis told him, nodding in his direction.

  A couple of the other guys agreed, promising him they would fill the place up.

  “No pressure or anything,” Tyler grinned, looking over at the younger man. “My lady has informed me that you’re good, and I’m muscling us up to the stage, so you better not disappoint.”

  “Motherfucker, that’s a
lot of pressure,” Jagger ran a hand through his hair.

  Meredith smiled prettily at him and waved. “Aren’t you thankful I came into your life?”

  The guys laughed as he shifted, uncomfortable. “You are going to get me killed by your boyfriend over there. That is, if I don’t die of nervousness first. Damn, I need a cigarette.” With that, he got up, almost running for the door.

  “You’ve got him all tore up,” Tyler laughed, taking a drink from his infamous mug.

  “I like to keep him on his toes. He’s fun to pick on,” Meredith shrugged. “That being said, I expect to see everybody at his performance tomorrow. It means a lot to him, whether he admits it or not.”

  “Yes ma’am,” Liam saluted as he made his way back to the table.

  He motioned to Tyler to check his phone. The name had come back from Rooster as well as a photo of the license of the person the car was registered to. When he opened the cell, he knew without a doubt something was wrong. The picture was of an African American man. They knew that the man who had raped Meredith was Caucasian. They had to do something and fast. They both knew that William could be on to them, and that would be a very dangerous situation.

  Chapter Thirty-Six

  Meredith screamed along with the other women who surrounded her. She wasn’t exactly sure what it was about a man playing guitar that women loved, but it was downright sexy. Never had Jagger looked more at home than he did up on stage. She really couldn’t believe this was the same man who was scared to death of the curse of the skull cup. She’d heard him humming and singing to himself a few times, but she’d never known his voice was so rich. As the crowd began to surge closer towards the stage, Tyler wrapped his arms tighter around her body. No one was getting in between the two of them, no one would separate them. She put her hands over his and squeezed, showing her appreciation of the fact that he wouldn’t let anyone encroach on their space.