by KJ Dahlen
Paco turned his head and glared at him. “Where are my brothers?”
Bastian leaned in close to the two men and whispered something into their ears.
Both men turned pale then Maximillian let out a roar of pain and anguish. “You bastard. You rotten bastard. I’ll kill you myself!”
Bastian stepped back and looked at each of the men sitting on the floor. “I brought you all here because I wanted you to know the reason you will all die tonight. And have no doubts, you will all die and it will be because of one man. Maximillian Barrone. He ordered you to take my woman, why? Because her father turned his sons over to the authorities over a decade ago. His sons didn’t want to go, so they started a shootout with the police. Jose was killed in the shooting, Enrique was wounded, and Tomas went to jail, where he still should be today.” Bastian paused then continued, “Tomas escaped and started his gang up all over again. He made a final mistake when he took my woman in hopes of getting to her father. Both Tomas and Enrique learned their lesson the hard way when I caught up with them. They both died screaming like old women while they burned. They both begged for mercy while the flames took them to hell, I imagine the same as you all will.”
“Just shoot us and leave our bodies to be identified so our families can bury us,” Paco insisted.
“I can’t do that,” Bastian told them quietly. “You know what I do firsthand.” He shrugged his shoulders. “It should not surprise you.”
There was a movement at the door and when Bastian turned his head, he saw his friend Jim place a one gallon gas can down on the floor. Then he turned and disappeared leaving Bastian alone in the room with the twenty two bound men. “In addition, that would be merciful and I have no mercy in my soul for men like you. I have a hard and fast rule about my work. No one ever finds the bodies unless I want them to. This isn’t like my other jobs though. This is personal. You see, you took my woman and meant to do her and her father harm. To me, that is unacceptable. I protect my own and Sawyer belongs to me.” He walked over to the doorway and picked up the gas can. Walking back to the group, he began to splash them with the gas.
When he finished everyone was doused with gas and he saw Maximillian fighting his ropes. He grabbed the other man by his hair and held him still. Taking a black marker, he wrote the name The Priest on his forehead then he threw Maximillian’s head back. It smacked Paco’s head hard.
He headed toward the door then paused and reaching inside his pocket, he drew out a match. He flicked the sulfur tip and the flame fired. He tossed the match toward the men and watched for a moment until the flames began to roar. The men on the floor began screaming. Bastian caught Maximillian’s eyes as smoke and flames burned the men alive. Maximillian never said a word the whole time Bastian watched him.
Finally, the flames and smoke got to be too much. Bastian hurried down the hall and taking the stairs, he burst out into the parking lot. Gasping for clean air, he made his way over to where Jim was waiting for him and watching the top of the hotel.
Bastian turned and watched as the flames burned brightly. They both heard the sirens in the distance. Without saying a word, they both got into the vehicle and Jim drove away.
Chapter Two
A short time later, Jim and Bastian arrived at the compound. Bastian went in search of Sawyer and found her with her parents and her brother in one of the bedrooms. One of Pappy’s men was cleaning her cuts and scrapes.
Pappy, Dewey and Gage were standing against the wall watching them.
Calico and Jolene were standing closer to the bed with Jordan. Calico turned his head when Bastian came in.
Sawyer turned her head and Bastian saw tears rolling down her cheek. “You’re here,” she whispered. “You’re alive and you came back to me.”
Bastian knelt beside the bed and brushed a strand of hair out of her eyes. “Oh course I came back for you, silly girl. I will always come back to you.” Leaning forward, he touched his lips to hers gently. “You get some rest now. You’re safe.”
Sawyer raised her hands to cup the sides of his face. “I’ll always be safe with you watching over me won’t I?”
Bastian gave her one of his rare smiles. “Every single time.” Then he got up and walked out the door followed closely by Pappy, Dewey Gage and Calico.
When they got to the main room, he noticed Slammer and his men sitting at one of the tables. Caiden was sitting at the same table but apart from the others. Bastian went over to Caiden and knelt down beside him. “How is your mom?”
Caiden glanced over at Slammer then back to Bastian. “She’s ok. One of the guys looked her over. She has a broken nose, two black eyes, and a sore jaw, not to mention a couple of broken ribs but she’s resting now.”
“And you?” Bastian asked quietly. “Are you okay?”
Caiden stared at him for a minute then slowly nodded. Turning his head, he caught Calico’s eyes watching him and frowned.
Bastian watched as he noted a longing in the boy’s eyes.
Then Caiden turned back to the can of pop in his hands. Looking up at Bastian he whispered, “I’m ok but I think Slammer is looking for a fight.”
“Does he love your mother?” Bastian asked.
Caiden nodded.
“Does your mom love him?”
Caiden nodded again. “They’ve been together for five years now. I think he’s going to marry her.”
“Is he a good man? To you, I mean.”
Caiden nodded yet again, as a tear rolled down his cheek. “He’s the best man I know.” He looked over at Calico again then back to Slammer. “Is that girl Sawyer going to be okay?”
Bastian nodded. “She will be.”
“Is she really my sister?” Caiden asked.
“Would it bother you if she was?” Bastian stared at him.
Caiden shrugged. “For most of my life, it’s only been my mom and me, then she met Slammer and we became a family of sorts. Now, I find my real father and find out that I have a sister. I have to wonder how that’s going to screw things up. That’s all.”
“How can finding them screw things up?”
“We were doing fine before he came into the picture.” Caiden growled softly. “We had a good life in Maine. Now we’re in Texas, Mom’s been hurt and Slammer is mad. I find a father and a sister that I never knew I had. I don’t know what’s gonna happen tomorrow and that makes me nervous.”
Bastian nodded. “I can see that, but whatever happens, it doesn’t mean you don’t have a say in it.”
“Will I?” Caiden scoffed. “I’m only fourteen. I’m still a kid in the eyes of the law.”
Bastian raised his hand and cupped the back of Caiden’s head. “The people that love you won’t ever make you do anything you don’t want to do. Your life may change but you have to show them you can adjust to whatever changes are coming. You need to listen and learn from their mistakes. We’ve all made mistakes in our lifetimes. Don’t let their anger and rage take away your choices. You need to stand up for what you want. I think they will listen to you if you want it bad enough.”
Bastian got up and walked over to where Pappy, Calico, Gage and Dewey were standing. He looked to Pappy first. Waiting for the other man to speak and he didn’t have to wait long.
“Do I want to know what happened after we left?”
Bastian shrugged. “The Barrone Cartel won’t ever bother Calico or Sawyer again. Max and Paco have joined Tomas, Jose and Enrique in hell.”
Pappy nodded. Looking at the others, he glanced back at Bastian. “Well as long as that’s cleared up, can we move on to Leroy Nash?”
Bastian turned to Calico. “I want your daughter as my wife first. I’m claiming both her and the baby and I want them both to have my name before this goes any further. We can start with Leroy in the morning.”
Calico nodded. “Yeah, we should clear the air before we move on to something like this guy. He’s gonna need everyone’s attention.” He ran his fingers through his hair. “I need to talk to Lydi
a and Caiden too.”
“Have you spoken to Jolene yet?” Bastian raised a brow at him.
“No this sort of all blew up before I had a chance to explain my past,” Calico admitted. Then he looked over at Slammer. “I’m not too sure I’ll even get close enough to either of them to talk.”
Bastian glanced over at Pappy. “Can you find me a priest who will marry us tonight?”
Pappy nodded. “I can do that. We have a good friend that’s a priest. He comes here often enough to know what’s going on with us.”
“Good. I know women want their dream wedding and all, but I can’t wait for that. I need to know she’s safe and once she has my name, she’ll be safe.”
Dewey snorted. “You know that don’t make sense right? Just having your name won’t protect her from your enemies.”
Bastian raised his fist and hit it on his chest. “In here it will and right now, that’s all that matters.” He looked around and noted that Slammer and several of his men were gathered around the boards they had displayed all the notes and info they had gotten on Leroy Nash. They were discussing something under their breaths as they searched the info.
Bastian and Pappy walked over to join them.
“What the fuck is all this?” Slammer asked motioning to the boards.
“This is our next mission,” Pappy explained. “This is what we do here. We’re here to stop any possible terror attacks on our home soil.”
“And this? What the fuck is this?” Swede asked.
“This is something we just discovered and something we need to work fast to stop,” Pappy informed them.
Thor picked the page with Leroy’s manifest on it. As he read the words, he frowned deeply. After another moment or so, he looked over at Slammer. “This dick is seriously whack man. He worse than the Taliban over in the sandbox. Over there, all they want to do is kill you but this guy? This guy is gonna destroy everything this land holds dear.”
Slammer glared at Pappy. “Can you stop him?”
“We’re going to do our best to do just that,” Pappy assured the others.
“How can just a few men stop a madman?” Slammer asked.
“We have a network of men and women all over the United States, most of them are like us, retired or ex-military, just waiting for our phone call,” Pappy explained. “We’ve only discovered this guy and already we’re compiling info on him. We have forty two days to stop him.”
“Can we help?” Slammer asked.
“We need you to clear the air with Calico first,” Bastian told him. “What happened was the past and it needs to remain there. He’s got a wife that he loves very much even after all these years. Lydia seems to be your woman and he doesn’t have a problem with that. You need to let go of the rage and hostility you have toward him.”
Slammer ground his teeth together. “Lydia and I have been together for the last five years. She always told me Caiden’s father was no longer in her life and that he’s never even met the boy. I was outraged on her behalf.” He paused then ran his fingers through his long hair. “Hell, that kid is awesome. I wish I’d been his father is what I’m saying.”
“You’ve been the only father I’ve ever known. I love you man and I know my mom loves you too,” the words were softly spoken but they came from the heat of a fourteen year old boy.
Everyone turned and saw Caiden standing behind them. Slammer opened his arms and Caiden rushed forward. Hugging the other man, Caiden babbled, “Mom is awake and she wants to see you.”
Slammer hugged him extra hard then released him and went off to find his woman. Swede and Thor grabbed the kid and passed him around to the others to hug.
Pappy observed the comradery between them all and nodded. He hoped this meant there wouldn’t be any problems. Looking over at Bastian he said, “I’ll get that call made.”
Bastian nodded and watched as he strode away.
Swede glanced at Pappy then back to Bastian. “What call would he be making?”
“He’s calling a priest. I’m going to marry Sawyer tonight before anything more can happen to her. This is the second time in as many days that’s she’s been taken and I’ll be damned, if it will happen again.” Bastian growled.
Thor snorted. “You think changing her name will stop her from being taken?”
Bastian turned slowly to face the other man. “You don’t know who I am and what I represent but other people do. They will know better than to touch her again. That will also protect her brother and her father as well.”
The man they called Falcon snarled. “We can protect Caiden and Lydia. They belong to us, not to Calico.”
“I never said she did,” Bastian pointed out. He also didn’t point out they had failed to protect Lydia and Caiden from attack from the cartel three days ago. Now was not the time to get into a pissing contest.
A few minutes later, Slammer returned with Lydia in his arms. She was beaten and weak but she still came out of the bedroom.
Caiden called out to her and rushed to her side.
Bastian watched as they assisted her to one of the tables.
Bastian and the others watched as Calico and Jolene walked over to the table. Everyone was tense as Slammer got to his feet but Lydia asked them all to sit down. They were still there talking when Bastian left the room to find Sawyer. He had to tell her they were getting married after all.
A couple of hours later in the main room, the story boards were pushed back. The men had formed somewhat of an arch from branches and stood it in one of the corners of the room. The women had candles lit on every table and great smells were coming from the kitchen area.
Bastian was standing there waiting for his bride along with Pappy, Dewey, Jim and the priest. Then someone turned the music on low and to the tune of, “I Believe” they all turned to watch as Calico escorted Sawyer to her soon to be husband. She was dressed is a soft white dress and her multicolored hair flowed down her back. The only jewelry she wore was the pendant Bastian had given her a few months ago.
Bastian held his breath as he watched her walking toward him. His heart was beating hard in his chest as he caught her eyes and held them until she came to a stop in front of him. Without saying a word, they turned to the priest and the ceremony began.
When it was over, Bastian exhaled the breath he’d been holding. Turning to her, he saw her smile. A single tear rolled down her cheek. Using his thumb, he brushed it away. Leaning toward her he whispered, “I love you Sawyer Castil. Now and forever.”
“I love you too, Bastian Castil. Now and forever.” Sawyer smiled. “You are my past, my present and my future.”
He wrapped his arms around her and swung her around in a circle. When he stopped, they were both laughing.
The others joined them to congratulate the new couple. Then everyone turned to watch as Slammer led Lydia over to the priest.
“I know we didn’t make an appointment or anything but can you marry us as well?” Slammer asked the man with the white collar.
“I can marry you but you’ll have to come to the church tomorrow and fill out the paperwork,” Father Connor told the couple.
“Thank you Father.” Lydia smiled. Her face might have been black and blue but her smile shone brightly.
“I’ll need to know your real name young man,” Father Connor told him.
Slammer grinned. “My name is Jonah Stryker.”
“I’m Lydia Benish.”
The priest coughed loudly “Can everyone please give their attention. Jonah and Lydia have also decided to marry on this night.”
Everyone stopped talking and turned their attention to the second wedding.
Jolene rushed forward and grabbed Lydia’s hand. “If we’re doing this we have to do it right.” Turning to Caiden, she called him to her side. “You come with me.”
Then she took both of them down the hall with her. McKenna and Trudy disappeared as well.
Then men all stood in the room and talked amongst themselves. Bastian hel
d Sawyer on his lap at one of the tables.
Fifteen minutes later, Jolene, McKenna and Trudy reappeared and nodded to the priest. Soft music came on and everyone’s eyes were looking at the hall.
A few minutes later, Caiden showed up with his mother on his arm. Lydia had changed into a blue dress. She held a small bouquet of wildflowers in her hand and she had a smile on her face as Caiden led her the short distance to where Slammer was waiting for her.
A short time later, Slammer and Lydia turned to face the others. Both had a huge smile on their faces. Slammer looked over at his man Swede and nodded. Swede disappeared for a moment or so and when he came back, he handed Slammer a small package. Slammer turned to Lydia and handed her the package. “I know this isn’t the time or the place for this but I want you to know that I was going to ask you this a while ago.”
Lydia opened the package and gasped as she saw the leather vest inside. It was a property patch from the Sinners and Bastards MC and yet, it wasn’t. The vest didn’t say Property of, instead it said, Wife of Slammer. When she looked up at him, he smiled. “I don’t consider you property of any kind. I just want you to wear my colors. Being part of a club is important to me. We are a family and I want you to be part of my family. You and Caiden.” He looked over at Caiden. Turning back to Lydia he said, “I know I’m not his father. He already has one of those but I’m going to do my best to let him know he’s part of me now too.”
“Oh Slammer,” Lydia cried out as she buried her face in his chest. “I do love you.”
“Good,” he whispered in her ear. “That’s sort of goes along with being my wife.”
The priest said the vows. The couple repeated them and they were wed with a kiss. They both turned to the group in the room and beamed.
Slammer’s men all gathered around them, slapping Slammer on the back and hugging Lydia carefully.
Calico stepped up to the crowd of men.
Slammer’s men stared at him then looked over at Slammer.
