by KJ Dahlen
She nodded and they both turned to where Oscar was standing.
He glared at the compound on the other side of the fence. He had a cigar in his mouth and they both watched as the glowing end rolled with his movements.
Looking toward the main building, Theo couldn’t see any movement coming from inside. The windows were dark and it looked like no one was there at all.
Then Oscar began mumbling to himself. They both listened to the other man’s words and Theo’s soul felt cold at his words.
“Fuckin cowards, that’s what they are. They’d let one of their own women die rather than face up to the truth,” Oscar ranted. “They brought this war on themselves. They killed my boy. Hell, they killed both my sons. They murdered my crew and now I have nothing left. For all I know, they spent the money I left with Bear and now I have nothing.” he began to pace back and forth. He twisted and turned the bottle in his hands.
Theo watched as the rage inside the man take over. He understood that kind of rage. He’d often felt it himself. When he saw Oscar stop his pacing and turned to face the compound, he knew exactly what the man as going to do. He watched in horror as Oscar flipped the lighter open in and his thumb struck the wheel that flicked the flame. He saw the rag sticking out of the top of the bottle burst into flame and as Oscar lifted his hand to throw the flaming cocktail over the fence a shot rang out and Oscar staggered back dropping the bottle to the ground.
The bottle burst and the scent of gasoline spread quickly and burned everything it touched. It engulfed Oscar’s body and soon his clothing caught fire.
Theo grabbed the back of Reva’s head and brought it to his chest, so she wouldn’t witness the other man burn to death.
Reva sobbed as she was pressed into his body. She didn’t want to see what was going on a few feet away from where they sat.
He screamed as he tried to roll the fire out but the gas burned too quickly.
All they could hear was Oscar screaming. Finally, the screams stopped and the flames burned brightly.
Theo got up to his feet and hauled her away from the fire. He stumbled closer to the fence. Walking along the chain link fence they made their way to the front gate.
Men poured out of the clubhouse as they reached the front gate. Wiley pushed the buttons and the gate opened.
Theo walked Reva inside and she was immediately taken from him. She was hustled inside the clubhouse and Theo was left to answer questions.
“What the hell happened out there?” Deke growled.
“I took the first man out then found their camp. Reva and another man were there and so was Matty. Matty was almost dead but I made sure he was before we left. Then I found the second man and sent him to hell.” He looked back at the burning embers of what was left of Oscar. “I have no clue who fired the shot there but he was the last one.”
Just then, James walked out of the woods with a rifle in his hands. No one said a word as he moved past the group and disappeared into the clubhouse.
Slowly, everyone turned and followed him into the clubhouse.
Reva was next to her man, Gator and she was in his arms sobbing in relief since he was awake. Gator was holding her in an embrace that said he wasn’t letting her go any time soon.
When Theo walked past them, Gator reached out his hand.
Theo paused before he took it. Looking Gator in the eyes, he heard the other man whisper, “Thank you for bringing my life back to me.”
Theo nodded but didn’t say anything. Instead, he let go and headed down the hall to the bedroom he claimed as his own. Opening the door, he saw Sarah sitting on the bed waiting for him. He saw the tears rolling down her face and the sight broke his heart.
He went over to her and knelt on the floor in front of her. She raised shaky hands and cupped both sides of his face. “I’m so glad you came back to me.” She pushed the tight knit cap off his head.
“I’ll always come back to you,” he told her as he buried his face in her belly. He wrapped his arms around her waist and held her tightly for a moment.
Sarah ran her fingers through his hair. Her eyes were blurry from the tears she couldn’t stop. “I love you Theo Franks. I don’t care about your past only the future. I want to stay right here beside you.”
“Then I guess I don’t have to beg you to stay with me huh?” He smiled slightly. “Are you sure about this? I’m not an easy man to live with. I’m so much older than you are and pretty much set in my ways. I can be incredibly demanding and stubborn to a fault but if you stay, I can try to change.”
Sarah shook her head. “I don’t want you to change just for me. If you change, I want it to be for our future. I love you just the way you are. As scary as that man can be, I don’t want to change him. That’s the man I fell in love with, that’s the man I want you to be.”
Theo smiled. “I can do that.” His smile slid off his face and he looked at her intently. “But to start our life together, you need to know the whole truth about my past. Once you know the truth you may decide to go home with your brother.”
Sarah waited for him to speak. She looked deeply into his eyes with confidence and didn’t look away from him.
“My past includes being a hit man for most of my adult life. I killed people for a living and made more money than I will ever spend in three life times. I was a cold, brutal man and I never thought I could change that. Then in the end, I learned forgiveness. I couldn’t understand what Cricket was all about when she stood up to me, when she stood there with her head raised and told me she wasn’t going to run. I learned what honor really was when she put her life on the line for every man, woman and child who lived here. Everything I knew as fact faded into nothing when I saw what she meant to these people. What she was beginning to mean to me. I saw the light of her mother’s soul in her eyes and I saw something my brother told me years ago.”
“What was that?” Sarah asked softly.
“Orrin told me there was more to life than simply getting by. He told me that to experience what life really meant I had to see it through someone else’s eyes. The night I was shot, I did finally understand what he meant. I fully expected to die that night then Priest stepped out and offered me a do over.” He closed his eyes and whispered, “I got my chance to change my life and today, my past sucked me back in. I guess I’m one that doesn’t get a do over. I only hope you can live with the man I am becoming again.”
Sarah cupped his face and leaned toward him. “Theo, I love you and that love means the world to me. I’ve living on my own for more years than I care to remember. I lived in fear every single day and with you, I can forget that fear. You’ve given me that you took the fear away that was paralyzing my every waking moment. I know with you beside me, I no longer have to fear anything, even the Connor brothers.”
He shook his head. “There’s more. My real name is—”
She held up her hand and covered his mouth. “There is nothing in your past that will make me run from you. Nothing more that I need to know. You have a past same as I do. And that’s ok with me. I won’t hold anything in your past against you. I fell in love with you, not your past.”
Theo kissed the fingers she held over his mouth. “I have no clue where I’m going from here but I would consider it an honor if you would come with me.”
“I will follow you to the ends of the earth,” Sarah assured him. Then she leaned forward and pressed her lips against his.
Theo ground his mouth over hers but before they could take the next step, they broke apart at the sound of someone knocking on the door.
Chapter Eleven
Growling with annoyance, Theo got to his feet, marched over to the door and threw open the portal, ready to smash whoever stood there to mush.
Priest raised an eyebrow and stared at the other man. Then looking beyond Theo, he saw Sarah sitting on the bed with a red face. He chuckled then sobered. “We have to talk.”
Theo stood back and allowed the other man into his room.
&nbs
p; Sarah got to her feet and brushed her lips with Theo’s. “I’ll see you later.”
When she left, Priest shut the door and walked over to the window looking out over the backyard. Neither man said a word for a number of minutes then Priest broke the silence by asking, “What’s your next move?”
“Excuse me?” Theo asked.
“Where are you going from here?” he repeated his question. “I have a reason for asking.”
“And that would be what?” Theo narrowed his eyes at the other man.
“As you know, I’ve never trusted my life to many people. With what I did, I couldn’t trust anyone but James with my secrets. But that was enough. It was me and him against the whole world. Then I met Sawyer and I wanted her in my life. I didn’t know if I could have her with all my enemies but I wanted her. I finally took that chance and I couldn’t be happier. I have her and a son now. But there is a desperate need out there and someone has to fill it.”
“What need would that be?”
“The need for someone to fight for the underdog. There is great injustices happening every day and it’s the little people getting caught up in the muck and the mud left behind. I think you and I could help balance the scales. I think you, me and James can take back the shadows that rule the underworld.”
Theo just stared at the other man. Then before he thought about it much he asked, “What makes you think I can do that? I mean you know my past. I was part of that dark underworld, Do you really think I could change that much and work for the underdog instead of the big men with the money?”
Priest nodded. “I think you can do anything you want to do with your life. If you want it bad enough that is.” He nodded at the door. “I see you want her bad enough to maybe find your happiness with her.”
“I tried to tell her about my past and she didn’t want to hear it. She said she fell in love with me and she didn’t need to know my past. How crazy is that?”
“She could be very good for you, my friend.”
“I’ve done some pretty bad things in my past and the worst thing was the insane amount of money I collected to kill a man. I didn’t know or care if the men I killed deserved death or not. It never mattered before.”
“Yet, when your niece needed someone on her side you were there, not once but twice. You were there for her, even if she didn’t know it was you this time, you wouldn’t leave her future to the fates.”
Theo shook his head. “I think she knows it’s me. She saw it in my eyes. She may not want to believe it but she knows I was here for her.”
“That could be a good thing.” Priest nodded.
“So this plan of yours, what would it all entail?”
“We could set up shop anywhere you want. I have a few home bases all over the states and a few cases we could start with. Like you, my past often comes to knock on my door and I know secrets no man would be comfortable me knowing. I’ve hidden my identity as well as I could but there are bound to be people out there that would be willing to take a chance looking for me. To right some past wrong. I know I can take care of myself in any situation but now I have a wife and a family to take care of too. With them, I feel anything is possible, with them I know I can do this, but that’s not the real reason I want this so much.”
“Then what is?” Theo asked.
“I think it because of them that I want this so much. Sawyer hasn’t had a good life, because of a man her mother never got her happy ever after. And Sawyer almost paid the ultimate price for someone else’s choices. I know the need is out there for our services and I want to spend the rest of my life giving people a real choice.”
Theo walked closer to the window and shared the view with Priest.
For a moment, neither man said a word. Instead, they shared the silence comfortably.
“Before I agree to this I want first say on our first job.”
“Ok, lay it out for me.”
“I want to bring hell down on Sarah’s uncles. He stepfather almost killed her mother and she killed him to save her mother’s life. I want his brothers to pay for the fear she’s lived with for the last twelve years.”
“I’ll be happy to do that job. Vengeance will be ours,” Priest swore under his breath.
“No, vengeance will be mine,” Theo stated. He turned to Priest and held out his hands. “To our new adventure.”
“To Vengeance is mine.” Priest grinned. “We’re gonna kick some serious ass brother.”
Theo nodded. “Together, we can do anything we need to do to safeguard our families.”
~*~
Pappy looked up as his sister joined them in the main room. He smiled as she made her way over to him. “Sadie, how are you?”
Sarah blushed. “I haven’t heard that name in so long, I almost forgot it was mine.”
Pappy smiled. “You know you’ll always have a home with me if you want it right?”
“Even though I lied all those years ago?”
Pappy smiled softly. “I understand why you did that, I can forgive those lies, just don’t make a habit of it.” He wrapped her in his arms and held her for a moment.
When he let her go, she stepped back and waited.
“Now we have to talk about the old man.” He nodded at her.
Sarah held her hand over his mouth. “Please I know what you think. You think I’ve been running for so long I don’t know what I want anymore. But I do know, I do know what makes sense for me. I may not know everything about Theo but I do know that I need him, that I love him. And I always will love him. He takes very good care of me.”
“But taking care of someone is different than really loving them,” Pappy argued.
Sarah smiled. “I know that. I don’t love him because he takes care of me. I love him because he makes me feel loved. He gives me everything I ever wanted. He makes my heart skip a beat every time he enters the room. When he holds me I feel butterflies in my soul.”
“And now?” Pappy asked. “Where do you go from here?”
“I’ll go where ever he takes me.”
“Well, I expect to hear from you wherever you end up and if you ever need me just pick up a phone and call me. I’m there for you now too. I don’t want you to disappear on me again. When the Connors are taken care of, I’m moving mom closer to me in Texas. She won’t have to hide anymore either.” He nodded. “Maybe she can finally have the kind of life she deserves too.”
“I hope so. I really hope so,” Sarah whispered.
~*~
Deke walked over to where Breaker and Amy were sitting. He sat down at their table and nodded at Amy. Then he looked at Breaker. “Are you all right man?”
Breaker shook his head. “I left this MC to have a life with a woman I loved. I got the life I wanted but there was always something missing you know. I mean I loved Katie and our life together and I love this kid even more.” He nodded at Amy. “But now I can’t go back to that life. She’s not there anymore. I can’t go forward either.”
“Well, you’re welcome to stay here until you figure things out,” Deke offered.
Breaker’s shoulders slumped. “Thanks man, I appreciate that. I don’t know what I want to do just yet but with some help I know I’ll figure it out.” He looked over at his daughter. “I know I want the best for her though.”
“Dad, I’ll be fine as long as we’re together. You should know that.” She looked around the room. “And I could totally live here. I don’t think I could go back to Concord without Mom waiting for us.”
Deke grinned. Getting to his feet, he held out his hand. “Welcome back brother.”
Breaker grinned and shook Deke’s hand.
Epilogue
Theo slipped out of the clubhouse. There was still one thing he had to do before he could move on. Falling back into a lifetime’s habit, he kept to the shadows as he made his way to her house. He should have avoided her. He knew he should have seeing as she recognized him but he had to see her one more time before he left for parts unknown.
He stood in the shadows of her house. Like a stranger peeking in a window observing her life, he saw her moving around her home. She was preparing a meal and he watched her for a long moment.
Then he heard someone stepping up behind him. “Who are you and what do you think you’re doing here?” a child demanded of him.
Theo slowly turned around to face the young boy standing there. He was young, maybe seven or eight years old. His hair was a little longer than Theo liked but it looked good on him. The light brown color was sun faded. Theo gasped at the boy’s eyes. They looked a lot like his Grace’s eyes.
Suddenly, the boy called out, “Aunt Cricket, can you come out here a minute?”
A moment later, the back door opened and Cricket stepped out of her kitchen. “Dusty, what the heck?” Then she noticed the taller man standing in the shadows. She grabbed Dusty and hauled him away from Theo. “What are you doing here?” She glared at him.
“I had to see you, just once,” Theo told her.
“Do you know this guy, Cricket?” Dusty glared as he looked between Theo and his aunt.
Cricket nodded. “Can you go check on the kids for me Dusty? I don’t like to leave them alone too long.”
“Sure, I can do that.” He gave Theo a long hostile look. “He isn’t gonna hurt you is he?”
Theo shook his head. “No I would never hurt your aunt.”
Dusty gave him one more glare then disappeared into the house.
“How are you still alive?” Cricket demanded. “I was told you were shot in the face. They could barely recognize you.”
“Obviously that man wasn’t me,” Theo replied. “I was there and I did blow up the clubhouse with Stark inside. But when I thought the threat was over I began climbing down from my tree and as I was walking away Stark found a way out of the fire. He got a shot off before I could turn around and take his miserable life. His bullet caught my shoulder from the back. It was a through and through. I walked deeper into the woods and I could feel the blood soak my clothing. I found a tree and sat down when I couldn’t walk any more. My thoughts that night were something I never took the time to think about before. I thought about your parents.”
