by K. J. Dahlen
Mom nodded.
“He said that?” he asked doubtfully.
My eyes narrowed on him. “Yes, he did. Call him if you like.”
I was surprised by what my dad said next. “No, I trust you, baby girl.”
My head snapped up. Our gazes met and I smiled.
Mom interrupted. “You know, I really don’t feel up to going back to that town just yet.”
This I understood. My mom was still a mess. “Dad, you’ll still take me though?”
He hesitated. “I’ll take you. But you’ll only stay there if you’ve got protection. That’s an order. I’ll send Johnny to watch over you.”
I sighed. But I didn’t have any choice. “Okay. Okay. Fine.” Anything to get out of this place. I didn’t want to leave mom alone, but I knew my dad would take care of her.
I hugged my mother with an emotional goodbye. The relief that dad had brought her home unharmed was overwhelming. I followed dad down the stairs and my heart stuttered a little to leave her like this. I just felt the overwhelming sensation that I needed to be with Jax, Maybe it was because I almost lost him? I wasn’t sure but I went with what I felt these days.
Outside, Johnny waited to follow us to Jax’s apartment on his Harley.
A half hour later, my father gave the area a thorough, encompassing glance as he pulled his Harley into a parking bay in front of Jax’s apartment. Though it was outside of working hours, a few reporters still lingered around in the hope that Jax might return.
“You sure you’ll be ok on your own?” Dad asked, his voice uncharacteristically a gentle whisper.
“I’m sure.”
“I can walk you to the door,” he persisted.
“Dad!” I said one word, but he got the message… I would be fine. “I’ve got Johnny here to watch me. Jumper and the Bloods were dead. Jax and I have no threats anymore.”
For some reason, my heart thrummed faster in my chest as I watched my father leave. I realized that perhaps I had preferred it when he was around.
The sensation of a large hand connecting with my lower arm, gripping my wrist tightly, shattered my thoughts. “We’re going inside. It’s not safe to be standing out here,” Johnny stated.
I let out a small breath, meeting his steely grey eyes. “Okay,” I agreed. The man didn’t give me a choice.
Staring at Johnny as he escorted me to the entrance of the apartment building under his arm. I took in the fact that he was every bit the typical biker thug. He was a solid presence. A dark beard protruded five inches or so from his face. His bulldog face was an expressionless mask. Tattooed everywhere I could see but his face.
Inside, we climbed the stairs to the third floor. “You’re not to make any calls or answer the door to nobody. Dagger’s orders,” he said his tone a command.
“Okay,” I said demurely. Well, you can just go to hell.
After a while, I paced and worried as the minutes seemed like hours and eventually, I got bored in the apartment while Johnny just sat there and flicked the channels on the television. I’d fallen asleep in the armchair in the living room and woke with a start when the eight o clock news ended with a dramatic musical tune.
Johnny had apparently fallen asleep too.
I wondered when Jax would be home. He’d seemed so riled up when I’d last spoken to him. There was something else going on, I just knew it. Suddenly, I couldn’t wait to see him but decided I needed a shower. The apartment was warm and while I slept, I had sweated. Feeling nasty and smelly, I decided to clean up a bit so I would be ready for my man when he got home.
Rising to my feet, I made my way to the shower room, snatching a towel from the cupboard on the way. I locked the door, removed my clothes and stepped into the shower. No sooner had the warming water started to fall over my skin, than I found myself suddenly overwhelmed by the whole ordeal. Jax being in that coma. Then as soon as he got better, he was back out the door in danger again. Despite how things looked, the man was always in danger. I knew I had to live with that fact if I stayed with him. Then my mom getting taken and traumatized.
As I washed myself, silent tears streamed down my face. Soon after that, I completely lost control of the tears that had been building up. Desperate for release, I sank onto the floor and suddenly there I was; in a tiny shower cubical, shaking and crying under the shower spray of water.
After a few minutes, I felt better. I hadn’t realized just how wired I’d been. Getting to my feet, I finished my shower.
When my body was cleaned and dried, I got dressed again. Now fully together after falling apart, I got up and walked out. Not a great way to remember my moving back here, but at least this whole ordeal was behind us now. I wanted to go to sleep and never wake up at times. I felt guilty to feel a little angry at Jax for the events that had occurred. I gulped in a breath and moved back into the living room.
I sat back down and let out a sigh, but that sigh turned into a gasp when…
BOOM!
Thunder shot violently though my ears. Crouching low, I held my palms against my ears. I looked around the room carefully. Johnny was crouched down beside me. He had his gun in his hand and was assessing the situation.
A bullet had fired through the front door of the apartment. My blood ran hot and cold. As I slowly dropped my hands from my ears, I heard loud footsteps of somebody running down the hall.
A warning shot. A shot which had traveled through not only the front door, but straight through to the bathroom where I had been showering. I froze. My chest heaved—my mouth ran dry. My eyes flicked to Johnny. If I thought he looked dangerous before, now he looked positively murderous. His knuckles were white as he gripped his weapon.
He snapped his head around to glare at me. “Don’t you fucking move, you hear me? I’m going outside to take a look around. Stay right where you are.” Then still crouching, he ran for the door and disappeared from sight.
A thousand questions jumped into my mind. Who could possibly be out to get us? Jumper and the Bloods were dead, right? Drowning in terror, my imagination went wild, picturing all sorts of awful things that were about to happen to me.
My panic was interrupted by ringing of the landline phone, again and again. I didn’t move.
Then a message had come through on the answering machine. “I’m coming for you. I’ve got you now.” The voice sounded calm, but had undertones of suppressed fury. There was pure evil in his tone, like a predator that already had its prey between its jaws. A voice I surely recognized as I sucked in my breath.
Antonio.
I didn’t know how that could be possible but I knew it was him.
I ran to Jax’s hiding spot and called and called his phone but for some reason, the phone only rang and rang with no answer. I crept out and approached the floorboard near the door and pulled out his spare gun.
The voice spoke again, “I’m coming for you Jaxson. I know you’re in the clubhouse. And if you’re not there, you’d better be there,” he said casually, as though he were talking to a friend rather than threatening to kill Jax.
What should I do? I had to make up my mind fast. The hard fact was that if I couldn’t stop this, Jax would be dead before the night was over. I closed my eyes at the thought of this grim and raw truth. There was only one thing to do.
My legs traveled toward the phone and I picked up. “I won’t be at the clubhouse,” I said in a low gravely tone, “I’ll be at the viewpoint by the lake. Falls Peak,” I told him.
I couldn’t believe what I was about to do, but for Jax, it would be worth it.
“I’ll be there at 11pm tomorrow night. Let’s finish this once and for all. Just you and me. Show me you’re a real man instead of the sissy I always took you for, you bastard.” He hissed, and I heard the sincerity in his voice. Before I could answer, the phone slammed down in my ear. The line went dead.
My heart jumped violently in my chest. Had I lost my mind? Breathing deeply, I allowed my gaze to drift over to the bullet hole in the front do
or, then to the hole in the bathroom door. The roaring in my ears was subsiding, but the trepidation in my gut hadn’t moved. I felt there was a high probability Jax would die, and I cared about Jax too much to let that happen.
Something inside me calmed my fears and I realized at that moment what it was. My love for Jax was stronger than my fear. I’d always wondered how my mother could stay true to a man all these years, yearning for his return even though she thought him dead. She loved him beyond everything else. That was how. And that was exactly how I felt about Jax. I loved him enough to put my life on the line for him and I knew at that moment I would take a bullet for him.
The fear I went through when he lie in that hospital bed, a wraith of the man he’d been. When at any minute, he could take a turn for the worse and just—die.
I also realized something else. Apparently, his club and Bruno had failed to take care of this monster. He’d been the one to get together with Jumper to get rid of Jax in the first damn place. Now he’d gotten away with it, somehow.
My eyes narrowed as I thought about the last threat against the man I loved. What it had done. I would see this through one way or the other. Antonio would die tomorrow night and this time, I would be the one to send him to hell.
Chapter 21
Jax
Dark, ominous clouds spread over the sky and threatened to give way to rain. It matched how I felt. I knew it’d been Antonio. I knew but I couldn’t tell anyone. I’d barely slept last night with the urge to go out and track the coward down.
It was already nearly noon, and there was much that needed doing today. For one, I had my weekly meeting with Bruno to attend soon. Marco had said Dino had been arrested too, and I needed to find out how Bruno planned to get him out. Dino in jail? It was too much. I needed him out. He wasn’t going to take a fall for this, and I intended to see what was being done about it. I drew my gaze away from my bedroom window and stared at my scarred face in the mirror on the wall in front of me for a long moment, just thinking.
I glanced down at Chloe, sleeping contentedly in bed. The girl is pretty tough. Tougher than I had ever assumed. She’d even seemed calm when I got back to the apartment in a panic, desperate to make sure she was safe and unharmed. Johnny had phoned and told me what had happened. I still had a bad feeling that somehow, Chloe was being affected by all these events in a way I could pinpoint. Yes, tough, but something felt off.
I gently rolled off the bed. I won’t lie, even the slightest movement still hurt like a bitch, but I’d be damned if I were going rest when my MC needed me. I splashed water onto my face. Then dressed in my leathers. Silently, I walked toward the door, my body protesting with every step. I exited the apartment and locked the door, grateful that Marco had called round to reinforce the door and change the locks after what had happened last night.
The damn staircase to the ground floor hurt like hell to get down, and I told myself I’d have to push all thoughts of pain aside if I were to get anything productive done today. Taking a breather, I paused at the porch of the apartment building and lit a cigarette. My calm mood began to vanish as a stepped out into the parking lot and abruptly broke my stride. The sound of loud clicking came from either side of me.
Four paparazzi ran from behind cars and were snapping pictures.
“Shit,” I muttered. Something about what had happened the night I was shot had clearly got media attention. This wouldn’t look good for me, or my club.
Taking a breath, I continued on toward my bike, digging into my jacket pocket and retrieving my phone to text Bruno…
‘We still on for the club check-up this afternoon?’ I typed, clicking send as I crossed the short span of concrete toward my Harley.
‘If you’re up to it.’ He responded, ‘I’m there now.’
‘On my way.’ I responded, hell yes I was up for it. Dino needed me and Antonio was now gunning for me again. Bullets in my apartment. I considered sending Chloe back to her dad. It would be better to play it safe. She wouldn’t like it but I intended to call Dagger to come and get her.
I slid my phone into my front pocket and stepped onto my bike. I jabbed my key into the ignition of my Harley, twisted, and the engine fired to life.
The sound drowned out the questions thrown at me by the small crowd of reporters. I almost smiled as their voices were muted to nothing as I stepped on the throttle, gunning the engine for another round of engine shushing. Then I put it into gear and flew out into the street toward the Black Devils clubhouse.
For once, there was no traffic.
Arriving twenty minutes later, I rolled into the grounds of the clubhouse and stopped beside Spider, Crow and Reaper. “Anyone seen Bruno?” I asked the guys who stood smoking by their bikes.
The three of them smiled when they saw me, but before any of them could answer, I heard Bruno’s voice call out from behind me and I killed the engine, “Jax! My boy.” The hint of a smile touched my old man’s lips as he approached.
My old man… still hard to digest this. My real father. All along he had been. I dismounted my bike as he reached me, he shook my hand and he pulled me into a hug. Pain shot though my torso a split second later when his heavy hand collided with my upper back, patting it three times in greeting as was his way.
“How are you holding up?” he asked, pulling away from me and meeting my gaze with excited eyes.
“I’m fine. I’m just fine,” I told him. Lying. I refused to believe I’d need weeks of rest and physical therapy to recover from my injuries as the doctor had told me privately. I took a step closer to Bruno, my expression dark. “When are we going to spring Thunder?”
“We’ll take care of it. Let’s go inside,” Bruno proposed, taking a final short drag from his cigarette before flicking it in a high arc to the ground. Bruno walked beside me as we paced toward the clubhouse.
Looking behind me for prying ears, I told Bruno, “I need Thunder out and now. We both know who killed Roy. But we can’t give up Dagger. He did everyone a favor when he snuffed that asshole out. You said it yourself; you would have had Jesse in the Devils in the early days if he weren’t already one of the Bloods. And the Bloods are gone now,” I argued.
He walked silently and brooded as I talked. With his usual stoic face and blank expression, he didn’t give away how he felt about this.
We went inside and headed to his office.
He sat and got out two shot glasses. He poured them full with his special brand of whiskey. The same brand that had been stolen weeks ago.
At this lull in our conversation, I wanted to tell Bruno about Chloe too. But there were so many things we needed to address. I swore an oath to the club that I’d never get involved with a family of a rival MC member, and that’s what Chloe was. It was a blood covenant, stronger than even the blood that bound father and son. I realized he probably knew about Chloe but maybe what he didn’t know was how serious we had become. He needed to know I was serious about her.
Bruno shook his head, “Jax. Within the span of a decade, you’ve rose to President. It will remain one of the most memorable and rewarding times in my life. It couldn’t be sweeter knowing my son was leading this club.” He got to his feet. “ Damn I’m late. I need to go check on Kelsey. See how she’s doing. I got her to the hospital on time but I need to see for myself.”
Bruno left and I realized I hadn’t done what I set out to do today. I sighed and went out into the club’s main room. I needed to talk to Dagger before I took my relationship up a step with Chloe. I needed his permission. Chloe just got her dad back and I couldn’t be the one to come between them. Then I would propose he take her back with him. I couldn’t let on about Antonio though. Dammit, I hated hiding things.
He was supposed to meet me here in a few minutes. I watched as the door opened and Dagger walked in. I swallowed hard and got to my feet to face the man. “Dagger, I’d like to ask you for permission to marry your daughter,” I burst out without giving the man a chance to say hello.
�
�No. No. No. This life will break her.” Daggers voice was a lash of pure anger. A threat. “And there’s a special place in hell for men that hurt the people I care about.”
I didn’t wince at his promise of retaliation. “I expect you to kill me if anything happens to Chloe. If you didn’t do it, I’d send myself to hell for that. The dishonor on my shoulders would be too much to bear. That doesn’t change my intention to marry her. Without Chloe, I wouldn’t have anything to live for.”
“You fucking liar,” Dagger shot back at me. “You let her get kidnapped and almost killed by Jumper! It’s a good thing I’m here to keep her safe. She’ll be guarded at all times, you hear me?” His voice was firm. Insistent.
“I understand. Consider it done.” I gave him my word. “In fact—”
Before I could tell him to go get his daughter, Dagger ended the conversation there. He looked angry at my announcement. I let him go. He needed to cool down.
Less than an hour later, Bruno returned from the hospital in his sedan. I’d been thinking hard while he was gone. I had to tell Bruno about Chloe and who she really was. I needed her by my side.
I stood, hands behind my head in the back office when I heard Bruno’s footsteps drum across the hall toward me. “Kelsey is in a weak, but stable condition,” he said as he walked through the open door, “I’ll check back on her in the morning. There is nothing more we can do right now. Then I have Marco on our lawyers to get Thunder out ASAP. It’s what I pay those high priced mother fuckers for.”
I nodded my thanks. He was doing all he could for Dino. I refused to go and visit him in jail. Because it would be like I’d caved and he would stay in there. Fuck no. I would speak to him right here or at Juanita’s with a drink to celebrate his freedom.
I let out a breath, now for the next hurdle and this one could be insurmountable. “Bruno, there’s something I need to say.”
