She didn’t say anything, and I couldn’t bear to stand there a minute longer. I hated myself for what I’d done, and I turned and walked back to my room, closing the door behind me. I wasn’t hungry, and I couldn’t stand to be around her anymore. If I did, I’d take her in my arms, profess my love, and never let her go.
I’d just broken the heart of the woman I loved most in this world, and I knew there was no turning back. I had to keep her safe, then this would all be over, and she could go home. She’d forget about me and move on, but I knew I’d never forget about her.
I pulled the whiskey I kept in my nightstand out and drained half the bottle that was left. I just wanted to ease the suffocating ache in my chest, if only for a little bit.
“Just get the fucking oil done and get it out of here! I’m sick of staring at it!” I snapped.
Odie looked at me like I’d gone crazy, but he said nothing as he went to change the oil. It really wasn’t that big of a deal. I knew he was busy, and we could get it done and out of there in under half an hour. But I was frustrated.
I hated myself for what had happened the night before, and I still hadn’t even remotely gotten through it. I wasn’t hungover, remarkably, from the whiskey that I’d drank, but I still wasn’t feeling myself.
That morning, I’d slipped out of the bedroom as silently as possible. I’d texted Amanda the day before and told her I didn’t want Megan coming in there because of the fact the cartel was closing in, and she was understanding. I had also posted two men with her to make sure nothing blew back on the shelter if anyone came looking for Megan there. If they knew she was at my apartment, they surely knew she’d been working at the shelter.
When I’d come out of my room, Megan was covered entirely in the blanket, having it pulled up and over her head. I felt bad, and part of me wanted to make sure she was doing alright before I left, but with the mostly empty bottle of wine by the couch and the tv still turned onto low, I had a feeling I was the last person she wanted to see.
So, I grabbed the bare minimum I needed out of the apartment and slipped out into the hall, locking both the knob and the deadbolt behind me.
I’d also texted Gunner the night before, asking him to come by and hang out with Megan for the day. She knew him well enough from the shop, I knew she wasn’t going to mind hanging out with him while I was at work.
Hell, after what I’d done to her, she probably would prefer to spend the day with just about anyone other than me. I felt like such a dick, and I wanted to just disappear. But I reminded myself once again as I got on the back of my bike that this was for the best.
She was Cutter’s sister, technically associated with the Satan’s Souls MC. There was no way it would work between us. Not to mention, I’d been going through all this to make sure my town was safe from Cutter’s shit. This was the only way that would happen.
If I were to get with his sister, there was little doubt in my mind our contract would go right out the window. He would think I’d soften my ideals because he was her brother and I had no intention of putting Megan in the middle of a shitstorm between her brother and me.
Brutus and Axle kept their heads down. Neither of them wanted to get in my way, either. They didn’t know what was going on, but then, they didn’t have to. I was in a bad mood, I didn’t want to talk to anyone, and that was the end of that.
I wasn’t going to discuss my feelings with any of them, and I wasn’t going to sit down and tell them what had gone on. It was none of their business. I was the President of the club, and I took care of my own shit.
My thoughts were yanked back to the present when the sound of a Harley engine filled the air. It was coming in fast, and I had a feeling it was Javi with some sort of bad news about what the cartel was doing. He didn’t have to tell me they were in Ridgecrest. I knew that already.
I braced myself for the worst as the bike came into view, but my stomach dropped, and I shot to my feet when I saw it was Gunner.
He came to a screeching halt in the parking lot in front of the shop, and I was out the door before he was able to get off his bike.
“What the fuck? You’re supposed to be with Megan!” I hollered.
“I got to your place and she’s gone,” he said.
“She was there twenty minutes ago, asleep on the couch!” I spat.
“That wasn’t her,” he said. “She piled up pillows and shit and covered it with the blanket, then left the tv on. She’s gone.”
“Fuck!” I bellowed. I headed back inside the shop. It wasn’t hard to guess what had happened. She had clearly left the tv on the night before to mask the sound of her own leaving, assuming that I’d do the same in the morning.
Damn, she knew what she was doing, and I couldn’t believe that I’d fallen for it.
She didn’t have much money of her own, having not been working or getting paid to be down at the shelter, which meant she was either hitchhiking, or she’d found another ride back to Barstow. I didn’t know which it was, but I knew I had to get down there as soon as possible.
Her life may well depend on it.
22
Megan
“Will that be all for you, miss?” the man behind the counter asked.
I nodded. “Yeah, that’s it, thanks.”
I grabbed the coffee and the breakfast sandwich before heading to a table near the back of the small shop. There were a few other people milling about, some with coffee in their hands, others with sandwiches, parfaits, and newspapers.
No one was paying any attention to me, and that was fine. I didn’t want to draw attention, and I knew where I was going.
I was pissed off and hurt. I couldn’t believe what Trip had said to me the night before. And he’d said it right to my face as though I didn’t mean a thing in the world to him. It wasn’t like him, not like him at all. But there was no arguing the facts, and he made it clear how he felt.
There was no we. There was him, and there was me. The more the words echoed in the back of my mind, the angrier I became. I couldn’t say that I felt like he used me. I didn’t. I had enjoyed every second of the sex we’d had, and I loved the time that I got to spend with him, but he’d let me pretend that it was more than what it was.
I was grateful for him for saving me that night, and I understood why he had made the agreement with my brother. Hell, I could even say that he had changed my mind about MCs as a whole.
But I was still hurt. And I wasn’t going to let him sit up there in Ridgecrest when I knew my students were in danger here in Barstow. So, I’d done the only thing that I could do in such a situation. I grabbed only the things I knew I’d need, and I’d gotten a bus ride home.
It was risky, and I had to leave at midnight to get to the bus station in time. But I had managed, and here I was, sitting in a coffee shop in Barstow, eating a quick breakfast before I headed over to the high school.
I wasn’t sure what I was going to say. I knew that I was going to have to make some sort of scene if I was going to get my point across, but I still didn’t know what that would be. Shit, I would run screaming like a lunatic through the hallways if I had to.
No one was going to get in that high school, not with the threat that I’d received.
I wanted to call Cutter and let him know what was going on, but I knew he’d be far too intent on getting me out of there. He wouldn’t be paying attention to the kids, and that’s what I needed from him.
No, if I was going to do it, I had to do it myself. And I would. I didn’t care if I was putting my own life on the line. I didn’t even think that I truly was. I didn’t have anything to do with Cutter’s business with the cartel.
I thought about what Trip had said. That it was just a ploy to get me out into the open. Maybe he was right, but I couldn’t take that chance. Not with so many innocent young lives at stake. I watched the clock. I would get to the school about the same time the first buses arrived. Then I’d tell them to get back on. I knew the kids would be happy to skip t
he day, and it wouldn’t be hard to get them to listen to me. It was a matter of getting the teachers and administrators to listen. They’d surely think I’d flipped my shit. But as long as I made a big enough scene that no one got into the school, it would all be worth it. They could have me committed for all I cared as long as all the kids were safe.
When it was finally time to go, I grabbed my purse and slipped the strap over my head, wearing it across my body as I headed to the school. Barstow was small enough, I knew I could walk and make it on time.
I’m coming. I’m not going to let them hurt any of you, so help me God! I’m going to do what I have to make sure you are all safe!
The thought ran through my mind as I hurried along the street. I wasn’t afraid that I would be shot, or even that any of the other members of the MC would see me. Hell, they would recognize me, but it was too late now. I was here, and I was going to stand up for what I believed.
I was going to stand up for my kids.
I reached the school and let myself in with my key, and I walked the halls. It was dark, it was quiet, and there was something unsettling and eerie about it. The minutes ticked by, and I waited, confused that none of the other teachers were there. It didn’t make any sense.
There should be some people arriving and getting the place ready for the students. The buses were set to be there in half an hour, so of course there had to be teachers on the way. But where was everyone?
“Megan? Fuck!” Cutter’s voice came out of the blue, and I was roughly grabbed by the arm and yanked into a classroom. “What the fuck are you doing here? Where’s Trip? Why the fuck aren’t you with him?”
“I left!” I snapped, folding my arms. “I got a message yesterday – they’re going to burn down the school with the kids inside. Trip didn’t think I should come, so I slipped out last night. I’m not going to let anything happen to this school because of you and your bullshit Cutter!”
“Fuck!” Cutter shook his head. “You are so fucking stupid! The kids have been evacuated for the past week! Someone tipped them off that shit was going down with the cartel and they declared an emergency and shut down. What the fuck?”
“But the note –”
My voice only hung in the air for a moment before a bullet whizzed past me, the buzz of it ringing in my ear. Cutter shoved me against the wall as he took the other side. “Stay the fuck down!” he shouted.
My heart raced. I suddenly began to piece it together. It was a trap. Trip had been right. I hadn’t listened to him. I’d insisted on doing things my way and now I was going to die.
“What are you doing here?” I asked, my back against the wall and my head down.
“We’ve been using this as sort of a compound since they hit our clubhouse last week,” he hissed. “Why the fuck did you have to come?”
“Why do they want me?” I argued. “I’ve never been a part of this shit.”
“One of the kids who was killed that night was Pedro’s brother. In his eyes the only satisfactory retribution is an eye for an eye. Or in this case, a sibling for a sibling,” Cutter replied, wiping his hand over his face as we scooted inside a classroom and quietly shut the door so it didn’t make a sound and alert the shooter or shooters to our whereabouts.
“Were you the one that killed him?” I asked. I hesitated to ask, but I had to know. I had to know if he really was responsible for killing those men. I had to know if it would be my own blood that caused my death.
“For once in my life, no, I didn’t do it,” Cutter replied. “Which is part of the reason I’m so fucking pissed off that he has a target on your back. I’m so goddamn sorry Meg. I was supposed to take care of you after mom and dad died. I’ve failed and I’m sorry.”
For the first time in a long time, I saw genuine regret on my big brother’s face. It was a look I hadn’t seen much in the past ten or so years. He’d become so hardened by the life he chose to lead that he rarely felt remorse for the consequences that came along with his choices.
But this, this I see, is different. He may not care what happened to him, but he sure as hell cared what happened to me. I was suddenly very sad for him. How lonely and angry he must fell most of the time. I wanted to reach out and tell him it was ok, that he’d done the best he could, but now was not the time. We had to get out of this clusterfuck alive first.
I wished that Trip were there, despite the horrible, hurtful things he’d said to me the night before. He had been the one who was smart enough to see through the bullshit ruse and I had stubbornly refused to listed. Like always. My own bullheadedness was finally going to get me killed. If I could only take it back. I wished I’d listened to him. I’d rather be sulking on his couch, nursing a broken heart than on the floor under a desk with gunmen after me. More bullets whizzed through the windows, and Cutter swore again.
“Come on, we’re hiding out in the gym on the south side,” he said. “We’re going to have to make a run for it. They’re watching through the windows and taking aim when they can.”
I nodded. I thought back to the attack in the parking lot of the diner, and I knew I was going to have to hold it together if I was going to make it through this. Cutter needed me to hold it together; he didn’t need to be worrying about carrying my frozen ass while trying not to get his shot off. I couldn’t crumble like I did in that parking lot with Trip.
We each took a deep breath and ran. The bullets continued to whiz through the windows, hitting the wall on the other side, but we kept going. I wanted to scream, I wanted to cry, but I knew I had to press on. It’s what Trip would do. If he was there, he’d tell me straight up that I had to toughen up and get myself through it. There would be time to freak out when I was safe.
I was the one who had put myself in the situation, now it was up to me to get myself out of it. And if I was going to do that, I was going to have to keep my head on straight.
We made it to the gym and ducked inside. It was one of the few places without windows allowing for no one to see inside. If the cartel wanted to come in and start shooting, they were going to be exposed, which gave the Souls a chance to fight back.
“Where is everyone?” I asked, looking around at the shockingly small handful of men who looked as miserable as I felt.
“This is who we have left,” Cutter replied. There were only five of his men in the gym, and he shook his head. “We haven’t been able to send for help. No one can go in or out, which is why it’s remarkable you weren’t shot walking in here.”
I didn’t want to think about it, so I sat down. I felt sick, and I wanted to break down in tears, but I knew I couldn’t. That could wait. Right now, we had to figure out a way to get out.
“What’s that?” I asked, pointing out the window across the hall from the gym doors. There were several men pulling something out from behind the fence, and Cutter walked over to see what I was looking at.
“Oh fuck,” he said. “Get down!”
He grabbed me once more, yanking me down to the ground. I wasn’t sure what happened, but at that moment, all the glass shattered in the hallway and concrete dust rained down on us from a hole blown in the wall of the gym. Smoke was everywhere, and I couldn’t see a thing, but I heard shouting and gunshots.
Cutter was suddenly gone from my side, and I couldn’t breathe. I put my hands over my ears, trying to stop the ringing, but it was coming from inside my head so I just had to ride it out.
The smoke was blinding, making it impossible for me to see anything. It stung my eyes, and though Cutter was shouting to me, I couldn’t tell which direction his muffled and distorted voice was coming from.
I knew what the plan was now. They wanted to get me there, to kill both of us in the same place. They didn’t care about the kids, Trip had been right about that. Now, they were outnumbering us, and they could move in without us being able to see where they were coming from.
The shouting and the cries made it impossible for me to know what was going on. All I knew was that we were under at
tack, and I didn’t know how to fight back. I felt a sudden sharp pain pass through my abdomen, right above my belly button.
I crumbled to the ground once more, holding myself. The wet warmth that ran over my hands told me I was bleeding, but I didn’t know how bad the wound was. All I could think was that I wasn’t going to make it out of there alive, and I had made the biggest mistake of my life in coming back.
Not only had I put myself in danger, but I had given the cartel what they wanted, and they were hitting us hard. They were going to take their revenge on my brother, and they were taking me with him.
As the noise started to fade around me and darkness crept in at the edges of my vision, the only person I could think of was Trip. I hoped he wasn’t still angry with me, and that he could come to forgive me for going against what he said.
I wished I had the chance to tell him the truth – not that I was sorry for leaving, but that I was sorry for not telling him sooner that I loved him. I saw now with a clarity that I hadn’t had before that he loved me to. Everything he’d said the night before had been a lie. He’d wanted to save me; he’d wanted to guard his own heart. I knew that now.
I loved him with everything in me and I wanted nothing more than to spend the rest of my life with him. But the rest of my life had come, and I was fading fast. I couldn’t think straight anymore, but the pain had faded, and warmth had washed over my entire body.
I closed my eyes as an easy peace settled over me.
Then everything I knew faded to black.
23
Trip
The wind whipped through my hair as we flew down the freeway, ignoring any sort of speed limit that was in place. Gunner, Axle, Odie, Javi, and Brutus rode with me, all keeping up with my breakneck speed.
I didn’t blame Gunner for Meg being gone that morning. I blamed myself. I had been beyond an asshole the day before, and I was paying for it now. I had thought I was doing the right thing, but I now knew that I couldn’t have been more off base.
Men in Charge: A Contemporary Romance Box Set Page 57
